Flocks of Bar-headed geese arrive here from Mongolia
| Date :04-Dec-2019 |
A trail of Bar-headed geese spotted by a group of birders at Dudha lake near Haladgaon village on Nagpur-Umrer Road on Sunday. (Right) The migration route of the winged guests. (Pics by Avinash Londhe)
By Ramesh Marulkar :
Flocks of Bar-headed geese, the winged guests, have started coming from Mongolia to Dudha lake, near Haladgaon village on Nagpur-Umrer Road, about 35 km away. Arrival of the migratory birds is late by one month or so this year due to climate change. A group of bird watchers from the city, including Avinash Londhe, Bird Resercher, Venkatesh Mudliyar, Harish Dhumal and Yash Mishrikotkar, visited the lake on Sunday and found themselves to be lucky to spot the flocks of migratory birds. The birders had visited this and other nearby spot during last two weeks but failed to sight any of the bird. Londhe said that the birds arrived this time late by one month due to climate change/global warming.
These birds generally stay here from last week of October to first week of March and in the hope of watching them they visited earlier. The Bar-headed goose is one of the world’s highest flying birds, having been heard flying across Mount Makalu - the fifth highest mountain on the earth at 8,481 m (27,825 ft) and apparently seen over Mount Everest at an altitude of 8,848 (29,029 ft). This bird migrates over the Himalayas to spend the winter in part of South Asia (from Assam to as far south as Tamil Nadu). The flock of birds travels almost 3,683 km from Mongolia to Nagpur (Maharashtra).
The minimum distance travelled is 3,000 km to maximum distance up to 5,000 km from Mongolia to India. The modern winter habitat of the species is cultivated fields, where it feeds on barley, rice and wheat. Avian migration is a natural miracle. Migratory birds stray long distances to find the best ecological conditions and habitat for feeding, breeding and raising their young ones. This movement occurs during the particular period of the year and birds usually follow the same route. The birds migrate to move from areas of low or decreasing resources to areas of high or increasing resources.
The two primary resources being sought are food and nesting locations. Some birds, including Bar-headed geese, migrate at different seasons of the year for food or breeding, called seasonal migration. Bar-headed geese can be found anywhere from Mongolia to the Tibetan plateau in the summer, where they raise young before the majority take long flights south to the Indian sub-continent in the autumn, and return again the following sping. The species measures 71-76 cm (28-30 in) in total length and weighs 1.87-3.2 kg. The geese are migrating south from Tibet, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Russia before crossing the Himalayas to Indian sub-continent in winter. They cross the Himalayas on one of the most iconic high-altitude migrations in the world. Their ability to sustain the high oxygen demands of flight in air able to do the same, flying even higher, above the highest peaks in the Himalayas above 8,000 m.