Pune, January 28: Hardly recorded on celluloid, this one is a unique film that captures the enchanting bird life at the scenic Lakshadweep archipelago. The film titled ‘Lakshadweep: a threatened bird paradise’ was jointly screened recently by ELA foundation and Nisargsewak at the Tata auditorium of the Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce (BMCC).

Dr Satish Pande, ornithologist and trustee of the ELA foundation and his team along with the Indian Coast Guards and Manohar Awati, Director of Ecological Society, had visited these islands in fast patrol vessels and Gemini motor boats and filmed the breathtaking bird life in the region during the breeding season.

The Lakshadweep archipelago located in the Arabian Sea, is home to several species of corals, fish, crustaceans, turtles and other coral-associated fauna. Some of the remote islands that are out of bounds for the common tourist are also the most important breeding grounds of several marine birds in the Indian territories. Thousands of marine terns congregate on these reefs for nesting and lay their eggs in crowded colonies on the sand.

“The nuptial displays of these fantastic masters of the marine skies with streamlined wings are a treat to any nature lover,” says Pande. Several species of birds like Sooty Tern, Bridled Tern, Brown Noddy, Ruddy Turnstone, Lesser and Greater Sand Plover, Red-Billed Tropic Bird, Whimbrel, Crab Plover, Greenshank and Bar-tailed Godwit can be seen on the island.

The unique bird life in these islands like Cheriapanium and Beliapanium reefs and the Pitti Island is hardy recorded on the celluloid, though these breeding grounds are known and reported by ornithologists like Jerdon, Hume and Whistler since the 1880s.