The variety of birds who have made the marshy land on both sides of the Chaliyar at Mavoor and Edavannappara their home may soon have to move out.
The marsh land is shrinking, threatening to rob the habitat of birds such as the Lesser whistling teal, also called the Indian whistling duck, which is one among the many resident and migrant species found in Mavoor-Vazhakkad region.
Although the local people of Vazhakkad, Akkode, and Mavoor say that the Lesser whistling teals they find in their locality are migrants, birdwatchers affirm that they are only local migrants.
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“The Lesser whistling teals are not long distant migrants. They are a common species found in our marshy land, including wet paddy fields. They sometimes move to neighbouring marshy lands,” said M. Nasser, Associate Professor of Zoology at Calicut University.
Apart from the Lesser whistling teals, the other resident species found commonly in the region are White-breasted waterhen, Bronze-winged jacana, and Purple moorhen.
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Local migrants such as Grey heron, Asian open bill stork, Oriental ibis, and Glossy ibis are also seen in the marshy regions of Mavoor and Vazhakkad.
“We can’t blame the local people in branding these birds as migrants. We often find long-distant migrant birds like Garganey duck, Pintail duck, and Spot-billed duck along with these birds in these regions,” said K.M. Aarif, a birdwatcher and doctoral researcher in shorebirds.
According to Mr. Aarif, who has done extensive studies on the migrant shorebirds reaching Kadalundi, the resident species like Lesser whistling teals, Bronze-winged jacana and White-breasted waterhen found in Mavoor and neighbouring regions are often in perfect company with the migrants like Garganey and Pinktail.
“They are all ducks, after all,” he said.
Long distance migrant birds like the Lesser sand plover, Kentish plover, and Common greenshank, which are widely found in Kadalundi during the winter season, have also been seen in Mavoor and neighbouring regions.