GUMLA: At least five species of migratory birds have been spotted in Gumla district after a gap of several years as the avian guests have started arriving in hordes across the state with the onset of winter. Bird-watchers and forest officials have spotted Northern shoveler, red-crested pochard, ruddy shelduck, lesser whistling duck and plaintive cuckoo at Masariya dam in Belagada panchayat under Ghaghra block, which is 27km away from the district headquarters.
Gumla divisional forest officer (DFO) Shrikant said, “These rare types of birds have flown over a long distance from Northern and Central Asia as the dam has been an ideal seasonal habitat for migratory birds.”
Sanjay Oraon, who is the mukhiya of Belagada panchayat, said, “As the winter season progresses, the numbers will multiply.”
The arrival of the winged guests has led to curiosity among kids and others who are thronging the water bodies to spot them. On Saturday, the secretary of the state planning and development department and the panchayat raj department, Rahul Sharma, Gumla SDO Ravi Anand, Ghaghra BDO Vishnu Deo Kachhap, Navodaya School’s principal Vishwanath Khilar, the school’s teachers and students visited the dam.
Ishan Sharma, who is a student of Class VII at Delhi Public School, Ranchi said, “I saw plaintive cuckoo for the first time. I even clicked photographs of different species of ducks.”
“It’s really wonderful to spot these rare birds in Gumla and the Masariya dam is an ideal destination for the ducks,” bureaucrat Rahul Sharma said.
Sharma has asked the DFO to form a task force for protecting the migratory birds after he learnt that locals often capture them to sell in the markets. He has also asked the DFO to plant trees along the pathway of the dam and erect seating areas for the visitors. “This place needs to be developed into a tourist spot,” he said.
Some students, however, expressed concern over plastic and other waste products being littered around the dam and said that they could be harmful for the birds.
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