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Smog and Covid-19: Double whammy for NCR birders

BySiddhi Jain
Nov 22, 2021 01:29 PM IST

With smog-laden air and toxic foam covered waters, this birding season is a health hazard for all, rue birdwatchers in Delhi-NCR.

New Delhi

Shrouded in smog, birding spots such as the banks of Yamuna river have lost their charm for NCR birders (Photo: Biplov Bhuyan/HT)
Shrouded in smog, birding spots such as the banks of Yamuna river have lost their charm for NCR birders (Photo: Biplov Bhuyan/HT)

It’s that time of the year again when colourful winged visitors from all around the world make their way to wetlands in Delhi-NCR. But this birding season, bird enthusiasts are unsure about stepping out, as the air quality in the region plays spoilsport amid the ongoing pandemic.

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“There has been a lot of rain this year, so, all the areas around Bharatpur and NCR are full. Bird walks are happening, but the smog is a big deterrent. People, especially youngsters, are refraining from stepping out,” informs Nikhil Devasar, a Delhi-based birder, who conducts walks every Sunday.

‘Birds avoiding water with toxic foam’

The lack of clean spots has led to a dip in the number of birds the usually popular spots. “People are not going much to places such as Yamuna Biodiversity Park due to smog and toxic foam in the river. Birds are also avoiding these habitats. Surajpur wetlands are also not seeing much footfall,” says birder Rohit Sharma.

Low visibility

Even if the feathered creatures do show up amid the pollution, birders fear the smog would make it impossible to spot any rare species. Kanwarjit Singh, a veteran birder from the Capital says, “The smog is a big issue for birders, who travel long distances to a good spot and then find that visibility is poor due to smog! Smog also affects the health of birders.”

To this, Prerna Jain, an avid bird photographer and a bird enthusiast, adds, “The smog is so bad, I couldn’t get a clear picture and photography is all about light. Birds are moving objects and if light is bad, you will have no good images.”

Singh reports that among the most interesting recent sightings in NCR were the Indian Grassbird, Brown Hawk Owl, Pallid Harrier, Tickell’s Thrush, Orange-headed Thrush, Gray-headed Lapwing and the Gray Plover.

The Covid-19 impact

The fear of Covid-19 has also been discouraging people to go for bird walks in groups. Contrasting how birdwatching has changed since the pandemic struck, Singh tells us,“Earlier, birders would start going out in the field even in September to look for early migrant arrivals. But after the pandemic, birding activities have started late this year and birders have been going out in small groups of two-three. Only now in November, bigger groups of five to ten people have started birding together. In past years, there used to be much larger groups of twenty to thirty persons.”

The situation ahead

The annual Delhi Winter Bird Count, set to take place on November 28, will have a large number of birders go out in small teams to known hotspots to take a count of different bird species which can be spotted. The count helps in monitoring the migration patterns of birds.

With the Sultanpur National Park in Gurugram — which opened in early November — placing restrictions on the number of people allowed inside, birders are thronging to places such as Bhondsi, Mangar Bani, Najafgarh Jheel, Dhanauri wetlands, Okhla Bird Sanctuary, Mandothi and Aravalli Biodiversity Park. “Right now, people are concerned about the smog, but those who want to turn up, turn up anyway. Yes, for a month or so this time, the turnout has been lower. In the cities, the air is really bad, but on the outskirts it’s better,” says Abhishek Gulshan, a Delhi-based nature and wildlife enthusiast and birder.

Author tweets @siddhijainn

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