Itanagar: With the advent of winter, more than one hundred Amur falcons, the longest-flying migratory bird, have arrived in Arunachal Pradesh’s Tirap district.
The winged visitors arrived at Nuisa village in the district on October 18, covering an aerial distance of over 3,700 kilometres from south-eastern Siberia.
They are likely to roost in Arunachal Pradesh till the end of November 2022 and then will fly to South Africa, the official said.
The avian species will cross the Indian Ocean to East Africa non-stop for over 3,000 kms, flying day and night.
“Besides Nuisa, we have also recorded the presence of the birds at nearby sites like Mintong, Pangchau and Wakka in the district,” Chief Conservator of Forest of Southern Arunachal circle Chimoy Simai said.
Simai has been visiting all the roosting sites since October 18.
“Every evening, these avian predators engage in a feeding frenzy on certain types of termites that surface only on sunny days,” the official said.
The chief conservator has instructed the Kanubari forest division to carry out an awareness drive to protect the roosting ground from any human interference.
Simai said that he is confident that the local people will understand the significance of it and participate in the conservation process as it will also create a scope to generate income through the eco-tourism prospects.
As a preventive measure, the forest department has seized 28 catapults from nearby villages.
“On sunny days, termites are available and the birds come down to feed on the insects or else they stay atop hills at an elevation of 1,090 metres as we recorded,” Simai said.
The Range Forest Officer (RFO) along with his staff has been engaged to carefully monitor the migratory birds as incessant rain has severely interrupted the feeding frenzy.