Have the black kites found a new hangout?

Following the unexpected and still-unexplained fire on a patch of Perumbakkam wetland on the night of May 30, black kites continue to haunt the burnt patch, showing up in impressive numbers at certain hours.

Seasoned birders would assign an “avian bionomial name” to almost every stone-marker pole at the western end of the Perumbakkam wetland. They would do so based on which wintering raptor patronised a pole, holding on to it with an air of territoriality. This reporter actually remembers a long-time birder engage in this “friendly, inoffensive name-calling exercise” with another birder, one with a sprinkle of gray hair, nodding in agreement.

The winter is gone with the wind along with the wintering raptors. But the poles are not desolate. They enjoy local-raptor occupancy. Black kites haunt this patch with the poles ever since a fire swept through it.

Black kites are drawn to offal, earning them the title, pseudo-raptors. Following the unexpected and still-unexplained fire on this patch of Perumbakkam wetland on the night of May 30, which continued through the following day, there was bound to be dead flesh out there. Sorties by black kites over the patch on June 1 was hardly out of place. The June 2, 2024 edition of The Hindu Downtown in fact carried a brief account of these sorties. It was believed to be a transient presence. But it could turn out to be less of a transient phenomenon than believed. The black kites continue to haunt the burnt patch, showing up in impressive numbers at certain hours, as reported by people frequenting Classic Farms Main Road which lines this section of the wetland.

As is evident now, there had been a preponderance of snails. Snail shells, burnt and empty, are found in impressive numbers on this patch. Burnt to a crisp, the snails within their shells seem to have been a food source to the black kites. The black kites had been scooping out whatever is left in the burnt shells. One wonders if the black kites would continue around this patch till “supply” lasts. Obviously, this patch is not as inviting to the black kites as the Perungudi landfill with the perennial promise of offal.

Or, have they discovered this patch of Perumbakkam wetland as a hangout? Only time will tell.