Vadodara: This bird has placed the Dahod tribal district on the list of birders buckets in the state.
The district used to boast of leopards, bears and fly squirrels is now often visited by large amounts of Pochard Crested-Crested.
Red diving duck or pochard migrated to India from Europe.
It appears in small amounts in other parts of the country, but Dahod has seen visitors in increased quantities.
This year 400 to 500 birds from this species are seen in Dahod.
Red bills and orange heads from male birds make it a large attraction between wildlife and bird enthusiasts.
“On other wetlands in the state it can be seen in a much smaller amount.
Only Dahod who saw the presence of big birds this year.
Those who are interested in migration birds have visited Dahod to photograph birds in realtime,” said Wildlife Antusiaster Pratik Jain .
He said that while the bird was not uncommon, it was a bird color that attracted a lot to Dahod.
“Ducks began to arrive in November and have started leaving the pool now,” Jain said.
Shakir Kadiwala, a bird fan, said that the bird was seen in the pool around Dahod.
“We surveyed 15 ponds recently and saw 400 to 500 broken red at around five ponds.
The biggest number was seen in the Funtelalala pool where around 300 was found,” he said.
Kadiwala said that the bird was seen a few years back too.
“At that time there was no internet or social media.
I have found the details of the bird in a book by Salim Ali.
The bird is very easy to identify because of its different appearance,” Kadiwala said.
It is hoped that all Pochard Crested Crested will leave Dahod this month.
They mostly come from Europe to spend winter here before leaving, Kadiwala added.