Flamingos in IISER lake
Newly revamped Venkatapuram Lake, Tirupati, gets its first ever Flamingo visitors
When someone says ‘Flamingo’ in Andhra Pradesh people usually think of giant flocks in groups of 1000s in Pulicat lake in the month of January or February, but for the last week here in Chittoor district, in the Venkatapuram Lake adjoining the temporary campus of the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati, three Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) have been spotted. The Venkatapuram Lake has recently been desilted by the Chittoor district administration to make it a local attraction. This group of just three Flamingos almost 60 km away from the nearest saltwater body is a treat for local birdwatchers.
Greater Flamingos amass in large numbers in the breeding season in inland saltwater bodies, specifically along the coastlines of Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. While patterns of seasonal movement are not well-studied, we know from a few records that they seem to move further inland in the non-breeding season. A local bird expert, Dr. Shantaram from the Rishi Valley School, Madanapalle, supports this view “Flamingos do occur inland and though not often, they have been seen in the vicinity of Delhi and other places in north India. They have also been seen in lakes around Pune.”
In Andhra Pradesh, the largest congregations are found in Pulicat lake. There are no recent records of flamingos in these parts of Andhra, though there are historic records of these birds being seen here. This is the first record of Flamingos in lakes around Tirupati. Although fairly uncommon this far inland, flamingos have been reported to occur in lakes with brackish water. Dr Suhel Quader, Scientist at the Nature Conservation Foundation and facilitator of the Ebird India programme (www.birdcountindia.in) says “Flamingoes seem to be very flexible in their movements, possibly in relation to water levels and the right conditions for their aquatic food.”
These odd visitors been the centre of attraction for students of the Birding Club here at IISER Tirupati who have been continuously monitoring their activities. The students of Birding Club have spotted over 150 species of birds on campus over the last 3 years, but the Flamingo has been by far the most exciting.
The Ecology and Evolution Labs at IISER Tirupati run by Dr. V.V.Robin and Dr. Nandini Rajamani conducted a weekend survey of 34 lakes around Tirupati to look for more individuals of this exotic bird. Most of the lakes surveyed were dried up and in the ones that had water a few aquatic birds species such as Spot-Billed Ducks and Open-Billed Storks were seen. So far, the Flamingos have been sighted only in the one lake adjoining IISER Tirupati. Professor K.N. Ganesh, Director IISER Tirupati, was delighted by this discovery, and indicated that IISER encourages active engagement of students with the local environment both inside and outside their curriculum.
This finding begs even more questions and puzzles the local ornithologists, but to students, bird watchers and nature lovers alike this only adds more allure to the mystery of three Flamingos in Tirupati.