As El Niño disrupts Thane Creek,
birdwatchers are reporting unexpected flamingo activity in a part of Mumbai
they've never seen it before.
Something unusual is happening in Mumbai
this flamingo season.
The thousands of Greater and Lesser
Flamingos that typically crowd Thane Creek and Vashi between March and May have
been turning up in noticeably smaller numbers at their usual spots. At the same
time, birdwatchers and locals near Mulund Hills are reporting sightings that —
until this season — were virtually unheard of.
The reason, according to wildlife
observers, may be El Niño.
The ongoing climate cycle has raised
temperatures, disrupted rainfall patterns, and altered the shallow water
ecosystems that flamingos depend on for food. Thane Creek, which has sustained
Mumbai's flamingo population for over two decades, appears to be seeing reduced
availability of the algae and brine shrimp that make up the bulk of the birds'
diet.
Flamingos do not stay where food is
scarce. They travel — sometimes hundreds of kilometres — to find better
conditions. And the Mulund Hills area, with its higher elevation, its proximity
to greener buffer zones, and its access to cleaner water sources, appears to be
passing whatever test the birds are running.
It is too early to say whether this is a
permanent shift or a single-season anomaly. But for a city that has long taken
its flamingo season for granted, this year is a reminder that nature's patterns
are not fixed — and that when they change, the birds notice before anyone else
does.
If you live near Mulund, it might be worth looking up. The flamingos may already be there.