Crab-plover, the only shore bird that lays eggs in self-excavated burrows on sandbanks, might soon be called a resident species of the Indian subcontinent as their unique breeding sites have been recorded at Great Vedaranyam Swamp near Point Calimere, Tamil Nadu.
The presence of five burrow nests of the crab-loving shore bird recorded at an islet near Siruthalaikkadu of Great Vedaranyam Swamp in August gained significance as the species was initially believed to only breed in the islands of the African east coast, the Persian Gulf, and the southern coasts of the Arabian Peninsula from June to August.
Crab-plover (Dromas ardeola) is considered a winter visitor to Pakistan, peninsular India, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, northern Sri Lanka, and the Maldives, and a vagrant to Bangladesh, said Byju H., a researcher with the Centre of Advanced Sciences in Marine Biology, Annamalai University, about the finding.
