Pink Flamingos Just Have a Great Time During Lockdown in Mumbai

The coronavirus lockdown measures have inevitably reduced human activity, and flamingos are taking advantage of the enhanced conditions: in comparison to 2019, an estimated 25% more flamingos have flocked to India’s Mumbai Metropolitan Region this year!

Deepak Apte, director of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), says that, among other reasons such as successful breeding from two years ago bringing in more juveniles, the COVID-19 “lockdown is giving these birds peace for roosting, no disturbance in their attempt to obtain food, and overall encouraging habitat”.

With ongoing plans to develop a golf course in the Seawoods area of Navi Mumai, the BNHS is urging wildlife authorities to instead consider the site as a flamingo sanctuary and keep the birds in the area protected from construction and other human activities.