More birds spotted at this year’s bird race, yet loss of habitat is a cause for concern, say birders

The Hyderabad bird race 2018, organised by Birdwatchers’ Society of Andhra Pradesh recently, was nothing short of an adventure for birders in the Twin Cities. Around 82 avid bird watchers formed 18 teams to scout various places around the city and its suburbs from dawn to dusk with their cameras recording various species.
“The experience was mesmerising and has me addicted to birds,” says Parth Wandrekar, of team Treepies, that walked off with first runner-up prize after sighting 139 species of birds.“There is so much more to birding. I never knew we can identify them by their flying patterns. I wonder if birds can identify me by my walking pattern,” he adds, laughing.
For Dr Geethanjali Ramachandran, it’s her fourth bird race, but it was no less exciting than her first. “Though this was my fourth bird race at Hyderabad, this year was a special one for me for more than one reason. We had a fantastic fun-loving team and our team leader was one of the most experienced in the city. To make the day even more memorable, two other groups — Dove and Eagles — also joined us, the Hawks! So, we spent the day sighting birds, sharing food and racing to Ananthagiri Hills, Gandipet lake and Himayat Sagar like a family. Our youngest member was a nine-year-old who gave tough competition to the 60-year-old veteran birder in the group,” she says.
Among the rare species which were spotted during the event were Steppe Eagle, Citrine Wagtail, Bar Headed Geese, Short Eared Owl, Tickell’s Leaf Warbler, Western Crowned Leaf-Warbler and Gulls.
“We spotted many rare birds but the highlight of the day for me was sighting a family of babblers, drinking water from a tap at the Ananthagiri temple, taking turns in military fashion,” says Dr Geethanjali.
As an icing on the cake, Dr Geethanjali’s team was declared winner of the bird race after sighting 159 species. “It feels great to be the winner of bird race consecutively for two years. Though a little bit of competitive spirit kicks in when you go out with your team and the camera, it’s not always about winning; it’s about enjoying the nature. Bird race has always been about that,” says, Srikanth Bhamidipati of Birdwatchers’ Society of Andhra Pradesh, who was a part of the winning team.
Data obtained from the bird race, which covered an area of 331 sqkm area, extending from Anantagiri Hills to Manjeera Reservoir and all the way to Narsapur Forest Range, reveals that the number of bird species in the region has increased marginally from 221 in 2017 to 233 this year. However, the quality of the bird habitats has got ornithologists worried.
“Compared to last year, the sightings this year are a little better. I won’t say that it was difficult to sight birds, they were actually posing for us this time (laughs). But the quality of the bird habitats has got us worried. Habitat destruction is prevalent everywhere, especially around Gandipet lake. It used to be a home for a lot of waders or shore birds, now the number has decreased drastically; except for ducks and gulls which were found in abundance. Destruction of woodland around the lake has also led to decline of woodland birds. However in Anantagiri Hills and Narsapur Forest we had good sightings,” says Srikanth.
Seconding his opinion, Dr Geethanjali said, “With urban development works coming up everywhere, habitats of the fauna is being destroyed. Throughout the day, we were brainstorming how to preserve nature and our eco system; how to make these winged beauties return to Hyderabad city. We need to have some reserved areas where the bird population can live completely undisturbed.”
The event culminated with a grand awards function to honour the top three teams at the end of the day.