By Bahadur Jusman Kumar Rana
Sambalpur: Scattered across 26 small and large islands in the Hirakud reservoir near Sambalpur, nature is painting a new canvas in different hues - of thousands of migratory and native birds, which have chosen these isolated pockets of land to lay their eggs, undisturbed and safe, away from the predators' eye.
According to Hirakud Wildlife DFO Anshupragya Das, this year an unusually high number of birds arrived and are nesting. “Migratory birds do come here but their numbers have risen manifold, particularly in egg-laying activity,” she says. "Apart from nesting, they are also seen tending to their young ones,” she adds.
The reason is simple but beautiful. The wetlands offer a rare combination of being safe and abundant. Since the place is isolated, they are away from the eyes of the predators, both human and animals. No stray dogs, no cattle, no human footprints disturb the areas loaded with sand and stones. And it is here that the eggs lie camouflaged in between the layers of sand and stone.
“The eggs and chicks seem like marks on the soil and any single step on those areas could cause harm,” Das fears. “That is why we have restricted entry to these islands for the time being,” she adds. Fishermen, tourists or anyone for that matter are prohibited to the area.
Since the surrounding waters offer plenty of fish, an important reason why the birds feel at home and feed well. No wonder, the islands are hosting over 1,000 birds, both local and exotic, many of them migratory, including River Terns, Little Terns, Gull-billed Terns, Pratincoles, Plovers, Egrets, and more.
To ensure that these nesting areas remain untouched, the Forest Department has issued red-flag warnings across more than 100 sites in the reservoir. Even forest staff are asked not to step into the restricted zones. Nine monitoring squads, four senior officials, and two speed boats have been keeping a watch on the area regularly.
The forest officer says that the support from the local community has been heartening, to say the least. Fishermen from Sambalpur, Bargarh, and Jharsuguda districts, dependent on these waters, have also been cooperative. "After they were instructed to avoid fishing near the islands, they took it as their responsibility to guard against any infringement. In fact, they are curious to see how many more birds will come,” Das shares. “It’s become a shared responsibility where nature and humans work in tandem,” she avers.
The nesting season which usually begins in March and continues till June, peaks in May. This year, the winged visitors are more in number and so have been their nests and chicks. While some birds are exotic, many have become familiar guests over the years. They are all so well woven into the ecosystem of Hirakud that we consider them our local guests, says the officer.
Among them are species like the Oriental Pratincole, Whiskered Tern, and Ringed Plover, alongside local river birds. The presence of Platycodon has brought cheer among bird lovers as the reservoir is growing as far as ecological diversity is concerned.
It is worth noting that in 2021, the Hirakud wetland area was declared a Ramsar site by the Ministry of Forests and Environment, Government of India — a recognition of its global ecological importance. Since then, awareness and conservation efforts have consistently grown. The nesting season is only an extension of its preservation initiatives and care for nature.
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