Mumbai Flamingos

 

Come January and parts of the Mumbai city will don a layer of pink, as flamingos (mostly lesser, and some greater too) fly for over 600 km to make Mumbai their home until the first monsoon showers arrive at Sewri. A large number of flamingos reach along with their babies from their breeding area in Kutch. Flamingos were first spotted in Mumbai back in 2000, and large flocks have since been seen here every winter from 2003. Their time of migration and the number that arrives in the city depends on various factors like the weather and rainfall in Kutch, as well as the suitability of the wintering habitat, level of disturbances, and hazards in the flying route Since their first visit, flamingo numbers have grown; the numbers seem to be stable for the last couple of years. In 2017, more than 20,000 have been recorded.
By May end the birds start leaving for Kutch and by the first week of June, the last batch leaves.
The scenery is a contrasting one with thousands of flamingos, mudflats and mangroves on a background of residential complexes , oil and petroleum factory and ships silhouettes.
Flamingos mostly thrive in muck which works in its advantage as this keeps predators at bay.