Residents spot low-flying defence chopper over flamingo habitat; Navy says migratory bird survey

Residents spot low-flying defence chopper over flamingo habitat; Navy says migratory bird survey

On Wednesday morning, Navi Mumbai residents were surprised to see a helicopter fly very low, close to the flamingo feeding grounds in Talawe wetlands, scattering the birds. The Indian Navy said they undertook a routine migratory bird survey sortie as flamingos and waders were a flight safety hazard. The survey was carried out to ascertain density of migratory birds as this habitat falls within the designated ‘local flying area’ (LFA) of Indian Navy Station (INS) Shikra in Colaba, officials said. More 1.5 lakh flamingos have flocked to wetlands in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) this year, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) had said last month, estimating a 25% increase in numbers as compared to 2019. BNHS said lower human activity during lockdown created ideal foraging conditions in Navi Mumbai wetlands. Local resident Sandeep Bangia, who photographed the helicopter around 10am on Wednesday, said he had never seen a helicopter over the flamingo habitat earlier. “I live on…