Birds add colour, balance, and song across Goa’s skies and wetlands
It is said that “keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps the singing bird will come.” Apart from being vital components of nature, acting as essential, ecologically influential creatures that maintain environmental balance by dispersing seeds, controlling pests, and pollinating plants, these winged friends of mankind are enthralling creatures displaying vibrant and iridescent plumage, elegant forms, and enchanting sounds. In fact, a bird looks most attractive when it is outside the cage.
Goans are fortunate to have a premier bird sanctuary in the state – the Dr Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary – located on Chorao Island along the Mandovi River. It is a 440-acre mangrove habitat renowned for rich biodiversity, including rare birds. A protected area, the particular bird sanctuary is host to a number of common and uncommon species of marsh-dwelling birds. The visitors can most probably see white egrets and purple herons as well as expect to see colourful kingfishers, eagles, cormorants, kites, woodpeckers, sandpipers, curlews, drongos, and mynahs on a fairly regular basis. Other more rare inhabitants of the sanctuary include the little bittern, black bittern, red knot, jack snipe, and pied avocet. The migratory birds that also make their home here include pintail ducks.
In the recent past, four new seabirds were sighted along the Goan coast. In fact, researchers have documented four new seabird records for Goa, shedding fresh light on the state’s marine biodiversity and the impact of extreme weather events on migratory species. The newly recorded birds are the short-tailed Shearwater, wedge-tailed Shearwater, white-tailed Tropicbird, and Lesser Noddy. The findings were published in the 2025 edition of Marine Ornithology.
According to the study, torrential monsoon rain and stormy weather during June and July 2024 forced several pelagic seabirds inland along Goa’s coastline. The paper noted, “These pelagic birds were windblown and found stranded along the coastline.» They were taken to ReefWatch Marine Conservation’s Centre in Benaulim. The researchers also documented the occurrence and identification of each species in detail. The first significant record came on June 3, 2024, when an adult male short-tailed Shearwater was found stranded at Colva Beach in poor condition. Unfortunately, the bird succumbed days later due to suspected hypothermia and infection complications.
Another major sighting occurred on July 23 at Galgibag Beach, where a dead wedge-tailed Shearwater specimen was recovered. The researchers identified it by its “distinctive wedge-shaped tail and pale, stout pinkish beak with a prominent dark tip.” The paper observed that weather-related vagrancy may have contributed to the unusual appearance of the species in Goa. On July 6, lifeguards rescued an exhausted white-tailed tropicbird at Colva Beach. The species, considered among the rare tropical seabirds of Indian waters, later died from severe parasite infestation.
The Lesser Noddy, a tropical tern largely associated with the Seychelles and Chagos archipelagos, was documented multiple times in Goa between July and August 2024. One sub-adult bird rescued at Galgibag Beach was initially mistaken for a Brown Noddy before photographic analysis confirmed its identity. Birdwatchers later observed a live Lesser Noddy in its natural habitat at Baga in North Goa on August 29, suggesting that at least some displaced seabirds survived the severe weather conditions.
The researchers noted that these discoveries were absent from Goa’s avifaunal checklist until last year, making the findings particularly significant for ornithological documentation in the state. The new seabirds sighted along the Goan coastline form a welcome addition to the state’s bird checklist, which is nearing the 500 mark. Such newest additions, particularly seabirds and rare visitors, highlight the state›s rich biodiversity.
