Shy Jack Snipe gets caught on camera

KOCHI

: Birders Vivek Chandran and Krishnakumar K Iyer were visiting their favourite birdwatching haunt, the Kole wetlands of Thrissur, on December 28 when they stumbled upon a rare winged visitor to the state— the

Jack Snipe

or Cheriyachundankaada. An hour later, they managed to capture it on their lens—the first time the shy bird is being photographed in Kerala.


“We were observing a flock of Pratincoles (Meevalkaada) at Alappad fields when a tiny wetland bird caught our attention. Just like all other Snipes, this bird too was shy and on seeing us it hid behind the vegetation. We waited for nearly an hour and finally it came out and posed for us,” said Chandran.

The Jack Snipe has only been spotted a few times in the state. Sightings have been reported from Kattambally (Kannur), Madayipara (Kannur), Punchakkari (Thiruvananthapuram), Wayanad, Kasaragod, Munderikadavu (Kannur), Kalpally (Malappuram) and Panavayal (Kannur).

“This bird had till now evaded the camera lenses of birdwatchers in the state. Because of its shy nature, it usually hides inside paddy fields. Jack Snipe is a migratory snipe and hence it can be seen only in the migratory season,” said P O Nameer, professor and head of the department of

wildlife

science, College of Forestry, Thrissur.

“The sky was cloudy that day and that is the reason why it came out from hiding. It is likely to have come from Northern Europe or Siberia and would fly back when summer begins there,” Chandran said.

Iyer added, “The bird actually posed for us and we could capture its beauty from various angles. We also managed to take some videos.”

Kole wetlands turn into an abode of migratory birds in the September-April migratory season with December being the peak month.