Montagu’s Harrier reaches Telangana on winter sojourn

Montagu's Harrier, which is native to central Asia and Russia, has reached the Yenkathala grasslands in Mominpet of Vikarabad district

Vikarabad: A migrant Montagu’s Harrier, which is native to central Asia and Russia, has reached the Yenkathala grasslands in Mominpet of Vikarabad district, apparently after flying thousands of kilometres for its winter sojourn.

Birders say it could have traveled between 3,500 to 5,000 km to reach Telangana from central Asia. The distance is just one side of the journey.

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The Montagu’s Harrier was tagged and tracked through a satellite tracker by the Bangalore-based Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE). ATREE had tagged the Montagu’s Harrier in 2019 at Tal Chhapar in Rajasthan, which is the entry point for birds migrating to India from central Asia and Russia.

According to seasoned birder Sriram Reddy, harriers are hawk family birds that would be active during the day times. Sriram said that there were 16 species of harriers distributed worldwide throughout tropical and temperate zones, and six of these species migrate to India from central Asia and neighbouring areas during winter. They communally roost in large grasslands.

Another seasoned wildlife photographer Latchi Raju Mantena clicked this satellite-tracked Montagu’s Harrier at Yenkathala on Saturday. However, he did not notice the tracker while photographing the bird initially. He saw the tracker while he was checking the pictures at home.

ATREE has confirmed that they were tracking this particular harrier. Some of the migrant harriers will travel to grasslands in Rollapadu Sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh and grasslands located near Bangalore as well.