Visitors from the wild who are at home in Delhi | Delhi News

New Delhi: Over the past few years, birdwatchers across Delhi-NCR have been noticing an unusual visitor. While the Indian grey hornbill is familiar to them, its larger and more monochromatic cousin, the Oriental pied hornbill, is being spotted with increasing frequency.Typically found in lower Himalayas and north-east India, the later has, over time, been sighted at multiple locations, especially in south Delhi, including Hauz Khas, GK-I, Sukhdev Vihar, Aravalli Biodiversity Park in Vasant Vihar and Safdarjung Development Area. Birders believe the birds may have arrived here accidentally, but have since adapted to the urban environment, likely aided by the presence of fruit-bearing trees.“Oriental pied hornbills are not supposed to be in Delhi-NCR. Records from 1930s show they were occasional winter visitors, but did not live here. They are mostly seen in Dehradun and Rajaji National Park,” said birder Nikhil Devasar, who has spotted them in Delhi’s Green Park.In Sept 2024, National Zoological Park acquired a pair of Oriental pied hornbills through an animal exchange programme from Assam state zoo.The most recent sighting took place at Jamia Millia Islamia campus this Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. Ahmad Azeem, public relations officer of the university, who clicked the bird on the three days, said, “On Monday, it was perched on a tree, accompanied by three grey hornbills, which is quite a rare sight. I again spotted this bird on a eucalyptus tree on two more days.”A single Oriental pied hornbill has been sighted on several occasions, while a pair have also been seen a few times. Birders feel there may be two reasons for the presence of the single bird: it accidentally reached here or it could have been released by someone who had illegally kept it as a pet.“It is highly likely that some Oriental pied hornbills in the city are ‘liberated’ birds. It is a popular species in the pet trade and is often kept in private aviaries. Historically, escapees from zoos or private collections have been known to establish small, semi-wild populations in urban green areas,” said Devasar. He added whatever the case, they are staying on because Delhi’s trees provide a high-calorie fruit diet they need.Sohail Madan, director of WildTales, an NGO which works for biodiversity conservation and habitat restoration, said he spotted a single Oriental pied hornbill several times in south Delhi since 2019, and there have also been reports of two birds being seen together.“This bird appears to be an escapee, and it seems whoever may have released it lacked proper knowledge about its feeding needs. Smaller escapee birds often struggle to survive in the wild, but these are large birds and have not faced much threat from other species.”Madan added that these hornbills are mostly seen in the heavily wooded gardens of south Delhi, where ficus, pilkhan, peepal and banyan trees provide them with abundant food sources. “At times, they are known to feed on garden lizards as well,” he said.