Gujarat : In Gujarat, migratory birds, including Pied-Crested Cuckoo, Florican Black Partridge and Rain Quail, have been spotted in the Kutch region during the last few days, which is a strong indication of the onset of monsoon. According to Navin Bapat, an ornithologist, the migratory birds arrive in the sub-continent around this time of the year, riding the seasonal winds of the south-west monsoon. He said migratory birds come from South Africa and camp in the region till the beginning of November.

It is believed that the Pied-Crested Cuckoo or Chatak, as it is locally known, drinks rain water tumbling down from the sky directly and that too during the Swati Nakshatra. According to Bapat, the bird is a sort of parasite and does not believe in setting up a nest, instead, it puts its eggs in the nest of other birds like Laughing Dove and Common Babbler.

The migratory birds have been spotted in the grasslands near Nalia taluka in Kutch district. The Little Rann of Kutch, one of the largest wet-lands in the world, becomes a haven for migratory birds in the winter.