When the season’s last fleet of migratory birds flew over Madurai

Photographer S Venkatesh captures flamingos and several other rare birds in Madurai's water tanks as the migration season of the birds draws to a close

Around the lockdown anniversary, a young photographer in Madurai planned a silent anniversary celebration of his Canon 1500 D that he purchased just before the stay-at-home orders came into effect last year. “After paying my last EMI, I roamed alone for days around the various water bodies in the city that are known hotspots for birds,” says S Venkatesh. At the crack of dawn and dusk, he waited patiently with his precious camera in hand. And soon he was rewarded with some memorable sights. Last month, as the migration season was nearing its end, Venkatesh waited for two hours looking through his camera when a pair of flamingos glided in followed by a small flock at Avaniyapuram. "I was taken in by their elegance and the synchronised movement that coloured the sky with an amazing hue," he says. He returned in the evenings to find the flamingos already there searching for prey in the waters.