Mumbai: MMR Records Highest Count of Greater Flamingos Ever
by Suraj V. Digital Marketing (sr. SEO Expert)In a welcoming news, the Mumbai Metropoltian
Region (MMR) has recorded the highest number of greater flamingos or pink
winged guests flocked in 2021-22.
According to reports, this is the
highest since 2018, when the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) began
monitoring exercise, tweeted Maharashtra Environment
Minister Aaditya Thackeray. However, they claimed that between
December 2021 and March 2022, the Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary (TCFS)
witnessed 54,000 greater flamingos while Sewri and
Nhava saw 17,000 and 227 respectively.
Juvenile (5%) and sub adult (21%)
proportions were lower than those of adults across the three regions.
Reports stated that
approximately, 1,33,000 flamingos were observed this year (during April) across
the TCFS, Sewri, Nhava and adjacent zones against 1,03,000 in 2020-21 (during
February), 96,400 during 2019-20 (February) and 1,20,000 during 2018-19
(March).
The population of the lesser
flamingos has witnessed a marginal increase across all three locations – 65,000
at TCFS, 25,000 at Sewri, and 9000 at Nhava from December 2021 to March 2022.
BNHS deputy director Rahul Khot
said, ‘’Last couple of years, we observed less number of flamingos. One of the
reason could be our inability to conduct surveys during March to May, owing to
pandemic reasons. Highest number of flamingos is observed during these three
months. Greater flamingos prefer
freshwater and estuary environments, which Mumbai offers in plenty thanks to
its creeks and inland wetlands. Also, the sort of food they might be getting
here may make this ecosystem more appealing to them. These birds are filter
feeders mainly feeding on algae and small crustaceans which are responsible for
their pink colouration.’’
‘’This is a sharp increase since
previous years and especially last year (2020-21) when the greater flamingo
abundance was the lowest (324-569) across all three regions and less than 2% of
the population recorded in the preceding two years,’’ said the Maharashtra
Forest Department and Mangrove Foundation in a joint statement.
For those unversed, since 2017,
BNHS is conducting flamingo survey in the region as a part of a decadal survey
project (up to 2027) – to map and count Mumbai’s migratory birds and to study
the impact of the Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link on flamingos and other avifauna in
the Thane Creek, Sewri, Nhava, and surrounding areas, as well as identify
mitigation measures.
Sponsor Ads
Created on May 12th 2022 07:33. Viewed 150 times.