Flight of the pink carpet

Every year, Sewri's mudflats are transformed into a pink-hued landscape, as thousands of flamingos make it their winter home. Fiona Fernandez decided to tag along with Ashima Narain, director of a documentary on these winged visitors, for a day spent with mumbai's avian superstars

The first impression you are left with after a circuitous ride leading to a garbage-strewn non-road, is that of disbelief and awe. Towards Mumbai Port Trust's easternmost fringes lie what is perhaps one of urban India's most fascinating natural wonders that's wowed bird lovers for two decades. Every winter, tens of thousands of flamingos sweep across the Sewri Bay and Mahul Creek in Mumbai to make this filthy, industrial wasteland their home until the monsoons arrive, the following year.u00a0



Against all odds
"It's amazing and defies logic. We actually have a wildlife spectacle in Mumbai. It comes as a shock to the system, overturning the theory about the coexistence of humans and animals. At a basic level, it proves that birds and animals behave like humans, constantly on the lookout for food. My intention was to raise awareness and hopefully, help in making Sewri a sightseeing landmark," says Ashima Narain, professional photographer.

Ashima's words reflect the setting for this contradictory landscape. This dilapidated port area in south east Mumbai is dotted with buildings in ruin, rust-infested shipping machinery, factories spewing smoke and scrapyards that alternate as playgrounds for residents of nearby slums. In the distance, you spot a power plant, oil refineries, the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and the Rashtriya Chemical Fertiliser factory, making it even more baffling that these birds have survived an inhospitable habitat.

Behind the scenes
Spotting these birds inspired In the Pink, Ashima's debut film, which is probably the first urban wild life documentary made in India. She submitted her proposal in June 2005; her first shot was taken in December that year and the documentary was ready by October 2006. "Researching for it was a challenge since so little has been documented about the existence of flamingos in Sewri. I submitted my documents to the Chair of International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Flamingo Specialist Group (FSG) for their feedback."

Professor of Aquatic Science, South African Dr Jan Roos's inputs helped tremendously. Back home, Dr Shyam Asolekar from IIT Powai provided insights during the sampling process (testing of water samples in the Bay), while naturalist and photographer Sunjoy Monga pitched in as a consultant. Ashima's sister and filmmaker Ruchi Narain produced this 24 minute-long documentary on a limited budget, mostly self-raised.

Following the Pink trail
"It was in 1994 when the first sightings were noticed here by a Port Trust official who notified the BNHS (Bombay Natural History Society). However, books dating back to when the British occupied the islands claim sighting this bird," she says. The flamingo is a nomadic bird, not migratory -- which is the common perception. They move only when they need to. They travel to Kutch to breed during the rainy season, post their winter break in Mumbai."

They mate in groups
Ashima says the mating dance is quite a sight -- it's usually done in a huddle. They prance around each other, flagging their heads and stretching their necks to crane for attention from their mate. Mating begins in March.

In fact, most activities are done in a huddle, Ashima says, pointing to a colony of them engaged in an expansive luncheon. In her experience, juveniles and sub-adults are more likely to come closer to humans.

While flamingos have a distinctly poised air around them, their cries aren't the most soul-stirring.

Once, while shooting sequences of the flamingos' mating dance, Ashima lost track of the tide. Suddenly, she found herself stuck thigh-deep in the muck, desperately hoping to free herself and protect her camera and tripod. A crowd of truckers nearby were equally helpless. Finally, a child drifted into the filth and ferried her equipment to safety until she could surface out of the mud. But her favourite story is about how whenever she wore pink, her feathered friends would be relaxed in her presence. "They didn't mind me being there by the end of the film. Pink ruled my wardrobe," she chuckles.

Threatened by a bridge
While it's heartwarming to learn that their numbers have increased over the years, Ashima isn't too sure about external factors that threaten their habitat. The testing of water samples collected from the Bay indicated very high metal content that is harmful to humans, let alone flamingos who feed off these deposits. "Look around... this is a huge industrial belt. Knowing the toxic nature of the sediment, it's sure to be damaging. Other threats in the form of a bridge being built through flamingo territory, connecting Sewri to Navi Mumbai will disturb their flight path." What the government needs to do instead is transform the area into a tourist spot for nature lovers.

Thankfully, her documentary has drawn attention to Sewri's flamingos. It was telecast on Discovery Channel and screened at various film festivals including the Vatavaran Environment (it won a Special Jury Award) and Wildlife Film Festival held at New Delhi in September 2007. In 2008, it was nominated for the prestigious Green Oscar (Wildscreen Panda Awards). Dr David Harper, University of Leicester, ecology and conservation biologist and an authority on East Africa's flamingos, used her research in his studies.

It was 6 pm when the tideu00a0 came in further. The flamingos made their way closer to the shore near the jetty; our sighting spot. A pink wave outlined most of the area all the way up to Mahul Creek. We left this urban natural wonder with a hope and prayer that a bigger entourage of Mumbai's avian superstars arrive next year.

The Flamingo fact file
The greater flamingo (adult) stands at four feet, the lesser (young one), at two feet, and is the smallest in the family.

Flamingos are filter-feeders. The inside of a flamingo's bill is covered with tiny, velvet-like hair. These filter out algae from the water squeezed through them by the flamingo's tongue.

They find safety in numbers, which helps to protect individual birds from predators, while their heads are down in the mud.

Flamingos may live into their fifties in the wild.

Nests are built up by mouthfuls of mud.

They rest by standing on one leg. The "knee" of the flamingo is actually an ankle joint and the lower leg bends forward.

How they turn pink
Flamingos are born grey and are known as juveniles; they turn white when they become sub-adults or adolescents and eventually acquire a pink plumage when they grow into adults. This is when they are ready to mate. Their coat gets pink because of a carotenoid-rich diet which consists of blue-green algae found on Sewri's mudflats, insects, molluscs and crustaceans.

How to reach:
Nearest Railway Station: Sewri (Harbour), Dadar (Central / Western),
Road: Via Shahid Bhagat Sing Marg (Sewri Koliwada).
Landmark: Colgate factory
Best Time: The best time to visit is between October and May where waders are abundant, be there 4.5 to 5 hours before or 2 hours after high tide; it's better when the tide comes in.
for Tide Time table: https://www.mobilegeographics.com:81/locations/658. html