Delayed Santragachhi Jheel clean-up leads to dip in migratory bird arrivals
Times of India | 21 December 2024
123 Kolkata: A nearly two-month delay in cleaning the Santragachi Jheel has led to far fewer bird arrivals this year.
While 2,500 lesser whistling ducks, four gadwalls and one garganey were sighted at the water body around mid-Dec last year, only 500 lesser whistling ducks and two gadwalls have been sighted so far this year. The census is carried out on the second Saturday in Jan.
With the clean-up starting only last weekend and expected to continue till the end of next week, bird enthusiasts and experts fear this will severely disrupt the arrival of migratory birds and prompt many flocks to fly to other habitats. Lina Chatterjee of Nature Mates, who coordinates the clean-up of the water body, said the organisation received the govt work order from the state biodiversity board on Friday and were trying their best to finish as much as possible within 10 days. "We usually start work on Santragachi Jheel around mid-Oct and complete it by mid-Dec. The clean-up is happening very late this year and it's bound to impact the birds' arrivals," Chatterjee said.
The spells of rain expected this weekend are a concern as they could hamper the clean-up operations.
Hyacinth that covers the entire water surface of Santragachi Jheel needs to be cleared in sections so that overflying migratory birds can see the water and stop to rest and roost. Usually, Nature Mates cleans up 30%-40% of the water hyacinth. The removed hyacinth is tied up to create 10-12 floating islands. When they dry up and turn brown in colour, they become the perfect camouflage for birds, like lesser whistling ducks. The islands being formed now, Chatterjee doubts if there is enough time for the hyacinth to dry and turn brownish.
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