Noida: With a knock on the winter at the door, Sanctuary Bird Okhla in Noida began to welcome seasonal visitors.
Still earlier for large-scale winter migration, officials said, but some early visitors have arrived near the main water bodies in the district, including Okhla, Surajpur and Dhanauri wetlands.
More than 1,000 initial migration birds have arrived at Sanctuary Bird Okhla, according to officials.
Watch-watchers can now see painted storks, various seagull varieties, cormoran, larger flamingo and the North Guide, among water species.
Terrestrial birds such as Eurasian hobby can also be seen, along with domestic species.
“Birds asylum Okhla, Surajpur, Dhanauri and the NTPC region get early migrants.
We hope that in the next 15-20 days, the body of the water will be full of several bird species,” said PK Srivastava, division forest officers, Gautam Budh Nagar.
Sanctuary Bird Okhla is open to the public from 7.30am to 5pm, every day.
Every year, the sanctuary looks at around 200 species of birds in a large herd.
At least, 15,000-20,000 birds visit the area, every year.
“Migration has just begun, but we expect a higher number, this year.
Once the birds began to come in a large herd, the whole body of water will be covered by birds,” said Arvind Mishra, Range Officer, Okhla Bird Sanctuary.
He added that this year, people can take advantage of garden facilities such as golf travel, a canteen, and a new bamboo bridge to reach the Watchtower.
Natural camps, other additions, will be ready in the next 15 days.
The Ministry of Forestry has also proposed a cottages for a night’s stay.
However, the plan was suspended after Birders argued that tourists at night would have a negative impact on bird migration.
The park was thrown into the public from early October, after post-monsoon cleaning and habitat development.