Spot-billed Duck brood at Dorai Kere

At about 29 acres, Dorai Kere in Uttarahalli, is one of the large water bodies in South Bangalore. 

Location of Dorai Kere 

In Dec 2010, DNA had reported that the lake was being restored by the BBMP at a cost of Rs 8 crore, including a sewage treatment plant (STP) to treat 1 MLD of sewage. One corner of the lake currently houses the STP. With a track along the bund, and lots of greenery, the lake is a nice place for morning walkers and joggers (despite a number of stray dogs). It is also a good place for bird watching.

Recently, Mr Vinaya Kumar Thimmappa, on the bngbirds email group, reported the sighting of Spot-billed Pelicans at the lake. To check out the pelicans, Mr Deepak Jois, a resident of the area visited the lake. Apart from the pelicans and a host of other birds (more than twenty species), he was pleasantly surprised to see a brood of eight Spot-billed Duck chicks. The Spot-billed Duck is one of the commonly seen birds in Bangalore lakes, often in pairs. However, the species breeds in a very few places inside the city, which is why Deepak feels that documenting this sighting is quite important.   

Spot-billed Ducks at Dorai Kere (Courtesy: Deepak Jois)

To see Deepak’s delightful video of the brood getting separated by a pack of marauding dogs, and later reuniting, see this youtube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iY3xT9z84DM.
 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Similar Story

The crisis choking small and mid-sized cities: Can you feel it in the air?

Systemic lack of attention limits data and interventions in our severely polluted small and mid-sized cities, say authors of a recent report.

In the larger narrative on climate change and urbanisation, the plight of India’s small and mid-sized cities has mostly slipped through the cracks. Not that the global and national media is oblivious to the stellar rankings, which highlight that 15 of top 20 most polluted cities are in India. However, the specific contexts in which this toxic air has been brewing are not well looked into and understood. While the metropolises hog the spotlight, these smaller cities housing millions are silently choking under a haze of neglect.  Our recent report “Declining Air Quality in Small and Mid-sized Cities” highlights the…

Similar Story

Buckingham Canal restoration: Stuck between ambitious proposals and financial constraints

Buckingham Canal in Chennai, vital for flood control and ecology, faces neglect, pollution and halted restoration due to funding challenges

It has been over two centuries since the construction of the Buckingham Canal, a once vital navigational route stretching from Pedda Ganjam in Andhra Pradesh to Marakkanam in Tamil Nadu. At its peak, the canal could carry 5,600 cubic feet per second (cusecs) of water. However, decades of unplanned urbanisation have drastically reduced its capacity to just 2,850 cusecs with the Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) being the major encroacher. Map: Shanthala Ramesh Regular desilting is crucial for maintaining the Buckingham Canal, yet its upkeep has been a significant challenge since the early 20th century. Over the years, numerous proposals…