Sambalpur: The annual census of migratory birds at Hirakud Dam Reservoir started today morning. The counting began at 6 am and will continue till 5 pm.
As many as 30 teams have been engaged in the enumeration process which will be carried out throughout the reservoir spread in Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, and Bargarh districts.
More than 60 enumerators, including 30 forest officials and some ornithologists are part of the exercise.
Total 35 fishermen who are experts on identifying bird nests have been engaged in the annual exercise. Tourists and fishermen are prohibited to enter the area for a day.
All the team members have been equipped with binoculars, life jackets and other essential gadgets and articles to carry out the exercise, a senior forest official said.
Around 104 species of birds visited the Hirakud Dam, stated the report of the annual migratory bird census in 2022. A total of 2.08 lakh birds arrived at the reservoir. Out of these, there were 19 species of migratory birds.
