25-05-2025
The nesting Black winged stilts of Perumbakkam: a sequel
Last week's showers might not have been forceful enough to break lake bunds, but the fragile nests of Black winged stilts in wetlands are an altogether different matter.
At the onset of summer, Perumbakkam wetland begins to serve as a home as well as a 'maternity ward' for Black winged stilts.
These birds build nests on stones, padding them with plant material to make the incubation process easier for themselves (both the male and female Black winged stilt share nesting, incubation and parenting duties).
Some Black winged stilts build their nest from the ground up (avoiding the use of stones as base) by heaping up plant material and creating a mound of a nest.
A recent issue of The Hindu Downtown discussed the resilience of the Black winged stilts, as evidenced by their efforts to build a nest again and again even where a succession of showers had damaged their nests beyond redemption or submerged them.
At Perumbakkam, sometimes, the stones sink on account of rains. This problem does not crop up under regular circumstances, only on account of unexpected and unseasonal summer showers (as the breeding season for this species in these parts is from April to August).
This year, ever since the Black winged stilts started the nesting routine, there were two spells of rain, causing them setbacks.
The latest happened last week, but the 'householders' — particularly two pairs, with two different styles of nests, as one can see from the images — emerged unscathed from the crisis.
