Driving down the previous Bengaluru-Mysuru freeway, the sight of a yellow tourism board indicating the best way to Kokrebellur, also referred to as Kokkarebellur, simply earlier than you hit Maddur is a well-known sight. The village, which will get it names from kokkare (Kannada for painted stork) is positioned about 15 km from Maddur. Whereas this sleepy hamlet boasts of as many as 135 species of birds, it’s most well-known for its painted storks and spot-billed pelicans which were migrating right here for many years.
Whereas the pelicans begin flying in round November, the painted storks arrive just a little later as they’re accustomed to hotter temperatures. By February, these winged beauties add a riot of color to the massive bushes of the village the place they pair up, breed and lay eggs within the nests they construct.
The Nature Interpretation Centre in Kokkrebellur
| Photograph Credit score:
Photographs by Rashmi Gopal Rao
Because the eggs hatch, the birds nurse their chicks and fly out between June and July. By the way each these species have been categorized as Close to Threatened by the Worldwide Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Treasure trove of knowledge
These birds are adored by the villagers who view them as harbingers of fine luck and prosperity. When you can view these birds actually in all places within the village through the season, the Nature Interpretation Centre in Kokkrebellur throws gentle on the historical past of Kokkrebellur, its surrounding panorama and explores the symbiotic relationship between the villagers and the birds. This small but partaking centre arrange by World Wildlife Fund, India (WWF) in collaboration with HSBC’s Water Programme is a should go to if you’re a hen and nature lover.
Replete with fashions, pictures and insightful data boards, the centre is a treasure home of knowledge on Kokrebellur and its historical past. One finds that the village of Kokrebellur is nearly 300 years previous and was earlier positioned on the banks of River Shimsha. Nonetheless, in 1916, the village was struck by an outbreak of plague which pressured its inhabitants to arrange base about 800 meters away. Surprisingly, the birds adopted go well with preferring to stay in proximity with people regardless of the absence of a water physique.
On the Nature Interpretation Centre in Kokkrebellur
| Photograph Credit score:
Photographs by Rashmi Gopal Rao
This symbiotic relationship has flourished over time. In truth, the primary document mentioning Kokkrebellur and its pelicanry dates again to 1864, and is attributed to British naturalist TC Jerdon. A go to to the centre reveals that the village which was declared a neighborhood reserve in 2007 is the one neighborhood reserve in Karnataka, among the many 45 in India. The village can also be one of many 21 breeding websites of the spot-billed pelican in South India.
Testomony to degradation and alter
The centre additionally reveals how the panorama has dramatically modified within the final 50 years with the wetland space lowering from 3.88% to 1.82% whereas the realm beneath agriculture has doubled. Additional, social and financial elements have lately posed a menace to the habitat and existence of birds.
Contained in the Nature Interpretation Centre in Kokkrebellur
| Photograph Credit score:
Photographs by Rashmi Gopal Rao
“A number of elements comparable to felling of enormous bushes together with the banyan and tamarind the place the birds desire to nest, sand mining in river beds and discount of wetlands have seen a lower within the variety of birds flying in every year,” says Okay Sri Krishna, who manages the Nature Interpretation Centre.
Sri Krishna is member of Hejjarle Balaga (Pals of the Pelican), a gaggle fashioned by the villagers of Kokrebellur who took accountability for safeguarding the birds. It at the moment has solely about three common members of whom Sri Krishna is one.
He provides that the variety of birds coming in has lowered from a number of 1000’s to a mean of 1,500-2,000 painted storks and 400-500 pelicans over the previous couple of years.
One other key cause is rampant business fishing which has led to the depletion of meals assets for the birds. The birds primarily feed on fish present in close by water our bodies. Other than fishing, the presence of invasive species comparable to catfish, dumping of pollution within the water and degradation of water high quality has led to the dying of a number of birds within the current previous.
Conservation efforts
Despite such mitigating elements, a spirit of coexistence with the birds is deeply embedded within the tradition of the villagers of Kokkrebellur, with even the kids being taught to guard them. Whereas the local people protects the birds and their eggs, additionally they gather their droppings that are wealthy in nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The villagers use it to arrange natural manure by mixing it with cow dung and silt.
On the Nature Interpretation Centre in Kokkrebellur
| Photograph Credit score:
Photographs by Rashmi Gopal Rao
In a bid to understand these efforts and shield the biodiversity of the area, different entities such because the gram panchayat, Chamundeswari Electrical energy Provide Firm (CHESCOM), the forest division and WWF-India have come along with varied initiatives. This contains the planting of bushes, encouraging using sustainable agricultural practices in addition to incentives and compensation for safeguarding massive bushes.
CHESCOM has insulated {the electrical} cables all through the village to forestall unintentional electrocution of birds. Seven wetlands in and across the village had been recognized and rejuvenated, leading to a rise in foraging websites.
The locals have arrange a rehabilitation centre for injured storks and pelicans apart from the interpretation centre. “We rescue injured birds as effectively nurse chicks which have fallen from the bushes, preserving them protected from stray canines and cats,” says Lokesh P, a forest watcher, who provides that at any level there are 20-30 birds within the pen. “We set them free as soon as they’re wholesome and able to fly.”
The Nature Interpretation Centre is open from 6am to 5pm. Entry free.
Revealed – October 14, 2024 06:22 pm IST
