Caspian Gull : A Rare Migratory Bird
Kozhikode-based ornithologist has reported the sighting of a rare migratory bird Caspian Gull (Larus cachinnans) for the first time in Kerala.
- Caspian Gull is a monotypic, large, white-headed gull and is one of the rarest gulls to be seen in India.
- It typically nests on flat, low-lying ground by water.
- During the breeding season the species nests near lakes surrounded by reedbeds in steppe and semi-desert (Central Asia) reservoirs, rivers, and on grassy or shrubby river islands
- Its diet consists of fish, invertebrates including insects, molluscs etc.
- The Caspian Gull, usually found in Central Asia, visits northwestern India, such as Gujarat, in winter.
- They move from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea, then to southern and eastern Kazakhstan and western China. They winter in Asia and Africa.
- Traditionally, its wintering areas are from the eastern Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf and western India but increasing numbers now disperse into Europe, into countries such as Sweden, Norway and Denmark.
- Conservation status IUCN: Least Concern.
