Rare sighting of numerous Greater Flamingos at Kolleru

Vijayawada: In a rare phenomenon, nearly 500 Greater Flamingos arrived at the Kolleru Lake recently near Madhavapuram within the erstwhile West Godavari and Krishna districts of Andhra Pradesh.

Thousands of these birds normally frequent the Pulicat Lake and surrounding water bodies. Their presence at Kolleru is limited to a few. It is for the first time that they have chosen to land en masse in Kolleru Lake.

Forest authorities say a far larger number of Greater Flamingos have landed at Kolleru this season following huge availability of algae in the abandoned shallow fish tanks.

They point out that these birds mainly feed on algae and not much fish. Availability of abundant algae must have made them choose Kolleru Lake this season.

Forest authorities say the landing of Greater Flamingos near Kolleru Lake, spread over about 90,000 hectares, is a good augury. They want to develop Kolleru as a tourist hub, with signage explaining the importance of the Kolleru Bird Sanctuary.

Nearly two lakh migratory birds of 50–60 species arrive around water bodies like Kolleru, Pulicat, Coringa and others in AP, especially during October and November for breeding. They return to their places of origin like Siberia and parts of Europe and Central Asia during March-April.

Eluru DFO (Wildlife) M. Hima Sailaja said, “We have noticed nearly 500 Greater Flamingos at Madhavapuram near Kolleru Lake. It is unusual to spot such a large number of birds at Kolleru. We understand that as they are getting good feed in the form of algae, they are arriving in large numbers at the lake this season.”

Greater Flamingos lay their eggs by setting up nests on the ground, unlike other birds that do so on branches of trees for safety of their progeny. “We are taking all steps to ensure protection for them,” Hima Sailaja stated.