In a treat to birdwatchers, two new species of migratory birds were spotted in the tricity area during the 12th annual Chandigarh bird race organised by the Chandigarh Bird Club (CBC) on Sunday.
The two new species, which were witnessed for the first time in the region, are ‘fire- capped tit’ and ‘jack snipe’, the president of the CBC Mitender Pal Singh Sekhon said.
The bird race is annually organised by the CBC in which four teams explore the Inner State Chandigarh Region (ISRC), which includes Timber Trail, Morni Hills, Kansal Hills and Sukhna Lake among other places. The race goes on from dawn to dusk and the team that records the maximum number of bird species wins.
This time in the bird race, the CBC witnessed a total of 210 species of the migratory birds, a dip from last year’s 257 species.
The top three teams included Team Falcon which recorded 178 species, followed by Team Kestrel with 166 and Team Black Baza with 165 species.
While explaining the reasons behind the dip in the total species spotted in the region, Sekhon said, “This year, the region is witnessing early onset of summers and the temperature has already started rising. Most of the migratory birds, especially the ones which had migrated from the greater Himalayas, have now flown back due to which a smaller number of species were reported this time. The bird club will soon conduct bird census and will find out more about the bird species.”
{{/usCountry}}While explaining the reasons behind the dip in the total species spotted in the region, Sekhon said, “This year, the region is witnessing early onset of summers and the temperature has already started rising. Most of the migratory birds, especially the ones which had migrated from the greater Himalayas, have now flown back due to which a smaller number of species were reported this time. The bird club will soon conduct bird census and will find out more about the bird species.”
{{/usCountry}}He added that the bird race aims at generating awareness about the bird species living near the city and also allow beginners, especially children to go birdwatching with experienced birders.
During the CBC’s annual Salim Ali Bird Species Count and Waterfowl Census that took place in November last year, a total of 99 avian species were spotted across the ISCR, the highest since 2017. Of the total species spotted, 49 were waterfowl, while 50 species were arboreal birds.
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