THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:On Friday, the Punchakkari-Vellayani wetlands threw a pleasant surprise for bird lovers. There, cosying up in the wetlands which have been facing grave threats over the years, was the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater (Merops persicus) - a bird which usually had no ‘business’ there in this part of the world!
It is the bird’s first sighting in South Kerala, a new addition to the birds of Punchakkari-Vellayani wetlands. The rare sighting has left avian lovers in a state of frenzy and confusion. Could the monsoon have played the damper and made it halt temporarily? The sighting, that too in June, is nothing less than ‘remarkable’, the birders say.
“It was only after close examination that we came to the conclusion it was indeed the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater. It is the first time the bird is seen in the extreme south region,” said C Susanth, a bird and butterfly expert, who led the expedition. A bird seen widely in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain,Congo, Lebanon, Libya,Tanzania, Uganda and the UAE, the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater is a passage migrant or summer visitor seen in northwest states of India.
The bird was earlier recorded in Kerala at the Kole Wetlands in Uppungal in central Kerala in 2013. “That was in April. The unusual sighting of this bird in a spot where it is not known to frequent is confusing. And that too in June, during its breeding season. More studies need to be undertaken on why it was found here,” he added. The bird was spotted during the 26th Induchoodan commemoration bird watching trail conducted to remember the noted ornithologist K K Neelakantan. The programmes were organised by the city-based bird watchers forum ‘Warblers and Waders’.
“The unusual sighting of this bird in a spot where it is not known to frequent is confusing. But it shows the significance of these wetlands and the need to preserve it. Even after facing severe reclamation, the wetlands continue to attract birds.
Moreover, more studies have to be made into the habitat extension of this bird,” he added.As many as 40 species of birds were recorded.The team comprised K Harikumar, Prasath Rajendran, Vinod Kumar, Sangeeth and Abhiram Chandran.