The Bird lovers and ornithologists will rejoice to learn that the Hirakud reservoir in Odisha’s Sambalpur has welcomed a record number of foreign migrating birds this season, with 2,08,000 in total.
According to the most recent bird census, which was conducted on January 7th of this year, the number of foreign winged visitors to the reservoir shattered a ten-year record.
This year’s increase occurred against the backdrop of a bird census done for the first time in Sukhasoda (38 square kilometers) on the Odisha-Chattisgarh border.
According to sources, the biosphere got 104 different bird species this season, up from 98 different species the previous season.
Five bird species in particular traveled in huge numbers. Lesser Whistling Ducks, Tufted Ducks, Common Coots, Little Cormorants, and Red Crested Pochards are among them.
According to Anshu Prajnya Dash, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Hirakud Wildlife Division, 52, 337 Lesser Whistling-Ducks have moved to Hirakud in huge numbers.
Last season, 1.24 lakh foreign migratory birds of 98 different species visited the Hirakud reservoir.
On Friday, 38 teams of forest employees from the Sambalpur, Bargarh, and Jharsuguda divisions worked at the Hirakud reservoir area and the power canal to count both domestic and migratory birds.
The power channel was separated into three sectors and the reservoir was divided into 18 sectors. Thirty boats were provided to allow census workers to move around in aquatic areas while conducting surveys.
Prasanta Patnaik 
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