A little handholding, coupled with some basic education on the importance of safeguarding our ecosystems, can go a long way in not only protecting threatened bird and marine species, but also improving the livelihood of the local population. This has been demonstrated by the Chilika Development Authority of Orissa, which has worked with Wild Orissa, an NGO, to sensitise bird poachers against their vocation.
Every winter lakhs of migratory birds from beyond the Himalayas, Northern Eurasia, Caspian region, Siberia, Kazakh, Lake Baikal and remote areas of Russia swoop down on the vast wetlands of Mangalajodi village, on the northern tip of the Chilika lagoon, about 60 km from Bhubaneswar. This is a brackish water lagoon spread over a whopping 1,100 sq km, and is the largest coastal lagoon in India and second largest in the world. It has invaluable marine and plant life. With over 160 species of migratory birds making this lagoon their home during winter, poaching of birds had become a vocation for many youth in Mangalajodi village.
Like many others, Kishore Behera too began his career as a poacher. During winter, when birds such as the Brahminy duck, pintail, egret, godwit and falcon, descend on this lagoon in huge numbers, it was easy to trap and kill these birds, which ended up on the plates of patrons in surrounding villages.
But today, Behera and other local youth have turned bird protectors and nature guides. To promote the region for avid birdwatchers, the locals were trained and familiarised with the habitat and its winged visitors.
Infrastructure was developed to facilitate ecotourism, and a watchtower, tourist reception centre, nature trail and boat landing centre set up. Financial assistance was given to villagers to buy fishing boats, and the arrival of tourists benefited locals in several ways.
Even though a small beginning, today far from poaching migratory birds or destroying local flora and fauna, the fishing village of Mangalajodi has become a zealous protector of the wetland. This significant avian habitat has been declared an International Bird Conservation Area.
November to March is the ideal time to visit the wetland for an amazing bird-watching experience.
Text and pictures by the author