The show goes on south of Chennai

With the migratory season coming to a close, there is usually a last-minute flutter in two extremities of Chennai: Kelambakkam-Covelong backwater system in the south and Pulicat lake in the north

At the Perumbakkam wetland, the greater flamingos have stood birding enthusiasts up.

The sprinkling of pink-and-white is so thin that it hardly registers in the mind. There has not been a noticeable performance by the ballerinas of the wild at the adjacent Pallikaranai marsh either.

In usual circumstances, the flamingos would turn passersby, largely motorists, into spectators and the Radial Road into a gallery. This season, the ballerinas were in thin attendance out there.

In the Kelambakkam-Covelong backwater system, the show is on. On April 21, during low tide, a flamboyance of flamingos pirouetted, while making the most of the shrimp-rich waters.

The main congregation largely consisted of juveniles. There were also grown-ups that were yet to start slipping on their breeding coats. The colour of the congregation was a little drab, that is by flamingo standards, but the footwork was as captivating as ever.

Greater flamingos that have attained reproductive ability head to the Rann of Kutch for breeding.

Ornithologist V Santharam explains, “There are claims that the greater flamingos breed around Chennai with attention being directed to nest-like structures. These birds heap up mud around brackish water systems, as nests.