Visakhapatnam: Pelicans and Painted Storks are migrating to Telineelapuram in Srikakulam Tekkali mandal, as usual this breeding season, flying a distance of 12,000km from the Medvezhiy Islands in Siberia.
They breed in this location from the end of Sept to April for several decades. The winged guests usually form pairs and build nests on tamarind, bamboo, ficus religiosa, neem and manila tamarind trees.
Each pair usually hatches two to four eggs, then guards and feeds them with fish from nearby ponds. Once the young birds mature, they fly back to Siberia.
Sirla Ganapathi Rao, the Sarpanch of Telineelapuram, told Deccan Chronicle, "We believe that the arrival of these birds signifies an abundant crop yield. According to our ancestors, a fire consumed the village on Feb 20, 1960, resulting in the loss of these birds. The avian population also suffered during the Hud Hud and Titli storms when trees fell.”
“To mitigate these challenges, we installed iron rods and provided them shelters. Despite the adversities, the birds continue to visit Telineelapuram every year this season. We consider it our responsibility to care for these guests from abroad."
In 2021, the pelicans and painted storks were in danger. About 30 birds died in three days then.
The forest department is responsible for conserving these birds. It allocates funds for this purpose. Ganapathi Rao urges the forest department not to continue keeping the right conditions for these birds to breed.
Pelican is a bird in the duck family. It weighs about 8kg and has a beak about 14cm long. The wingspan of a pelican is about 118 inches and the bird consumes around 4kg of fish a day. It can eat a fish weighing up to 2kg at a time.
A pelican's egg weighs about 150 grams, and only four eggs are laid per season.
The egg matures into a chick in 28 days and can breed in 3 months, like a mature pelican.
The pelican's jaw is bag-shaped, allowing it to store up to 4kg of fish. Pelicans travel 100km per hour and move around about four times daily to hunt for food.
The lifespan of a pelican is about 29 years.
The painted stork is a bird belonging to the stork family. It weighs about 5kg and has a wingspan of 63 inches. Its diet consists of small fish, insects and snails. It can store only a quarter of a kilo of food in its mouth. If food is brought to the nest, the babies will eat it.
The length of its mouth is about 16 cm.
Painted storks go out twice daily to fetch food and have only a simple jaw. A painted stork egg weighs about 75 grams and lays only four eggs a season. The egg matures into a chick in 28 days. It takes about three years for them to breed like a mature painted stork. The lifespan of a painted stork is about 29 years.
