Top 10 Migratory Birds in India With Names and Pictures

The migration of the birds is nothing but the movement of the birds from one place to another that take place during different seasons of the year. The birds fly to long distances so that they can get the best conditions in which they can breed, give birth to young ones, while also leading a healthy life. During different times of the year, the seasons and the habitat in which birds originate change and that is why they fly miles away to get the best condition.

India is home to a lot of colourful migratory birds that fly from distant lands of Africa, Europe, America, Siberia, and from several other countries. Let us find out the top 10 migratory birds that India boasts of in this article.

List of Migratory Birds in India

10. the Great White Pelican:

The first migratory bird that makes it to the list of the top 10 migratory birds in India is the Great White Pelican. This particular bird is also called the rosy pelican and part of the reason for its name goes to its colour and beautiful rosy hue. It is basically distinguishable from some of the other birds in the similar category owing to a large throat and the beak which is really long.You can witness the Great White Pelican coming to India in the winter season, like most of the other migratory birds that have been mentioned on the list of the top 10 migratory birds in India. The Great White Pelican is a native to the western countries of mainly Europe as well as Africa. In India, these birds can be found in the winter season if you are visiting the states of Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, as well as Assam.

9. The Siberian Crane:

The White colour birds are usually seen in India and its subcontinent mainly during the cold winter season. These migratory birds are also known as the snow cranes and are slowly becoming quite endangered in the country. The adults are almost completely white in colour and only the feathers are black. They are the cranes which are known to travel the longest distances during the migratory period. The main origin of the snow cranes is actually in Russia and as the name suggests, in parts of Siberia. You can spot this wonderful migratory bird in the Bharatpur Keoladeo National park. However, the numbers have fast dwindled in recent years.

8. The Wagtails:

Like most of the birds mentioned in the above list, this tiny migratory bird also comes and takes shelter in the Indian soil during the winter season. However, the wagtails are one of the birds that are known to come to the country in early winters. Out of all the birds that migrate into the country during the winter season, wagtails are the first to arrive. When they visit India, they fly amongst various domesticated animals and also start living together for some time in harmony. The wagtails are really small and pretty migratory birds and most of them are pretty yellow in colour.

7. The Greater Flamingo:

Another beautiful migratory bird that is found in India and its neighbouring countries is the greater flamingo. The beauty of these migratory birds is breath taking and has rightly been named as the state bird of the state of Gujarat in India. While the average height of these migratory birds is 5 feet, there are a few odd ones who can be found standing tall and are as much as six feet in the height. Most of the areas in India where these birds are found include the Sewri mudflats, Jawai dam sanctuary,the Chilka lake, the Nal Sarovar bird Sanctuary, the Thol bird Sanctuary in the state of Gujarat. This species, in fact, is the largest amongst the species that belong to the Flamingos in general.

6. Starlings:

These are small sized birds the name of whom is derived from the Latin word for Starling. The size of this migratory bird may range from somewhere around 15 centimetres to around 36 centimetres.   The starlings, when medium sized are also called Myanas in India. The main thing that distinguishes starlings from some of the other birds mentioned on this list is the capacity to fly to distant places and the strong feet. They are also known to make quite a lot of noise and are usually gregarious. In fact, they can imitate the calls and sounds of as many as 20 different species of birds. They are mainly found in the open and the main food for them is small insects and well as various types of fruits.

5. Bar Headed Goose:

Another migratory bird that makes it to the list of top 10 migratory birds in India is the Bar Headed Goose. This is the bird that you can normally spot in the Indian state of Assam during the winter season. The goose is known to lay around eight eggs at a single time on the ground. The bar headed goose is a light grey in colour because of which you can easily distinguish the bird from some of the other species in this category. The size of the goose ranges from around 71 cm to 76 cm and the total weight of the bar headed goose is close to 1.87 kgs to around 3.2 kgs. The bar headed goose is actually the highest flying bird in the world and are usually known to fly across the Himalayas.

4. Black Winged Stilt:

Another beautiful migratory bird that makes it to the list of top 10 migratory birds in India is the Black Winged Stilt. This is amongst those few birds that are known to migrate into India during the summer months. There are different types of sub species of this bird. These are called the Black Winged Stilt, the White backed Stilt, the Black necked Stilt, and the White- headed Stilt. An average adult of the migratory bird is known to be somewhere around33 to 36 cm in length. Most of these birds are known to have long legs that are pink in colour, a black thin bill which is black in the top area but white in the bottom area. The female adult of this migratory bird are somewhat brown in appearance.

3. The Blue-Tailed Bee Eater:

You can witness the beautiful Blue-Tailed Bee Eater mostly in and around the different water bodies in India. They are known to visit the country during particular seasons. The bird is mainly known to breed in countries of South eastern Asia. These birds are really colourful which is true for other species belonging to the bee eater family as well. The bird is usually green in colour, and as the name suggests, the tail of the bee eater is blue in colour. Besides, its face has a blue strip, the eyes are black, and most of the birds are 23 to 26 cm in total length.

2. The BlueThroat:

Another migratory bird that is in the list of top 10 migratory birds in India is the Blue Throat. This passerine bird has as many as 10 species. These birds are known to love the cold climate of the Alaska region in America and also in North Africa. However, the migratory bird can be witnessed in India during the winter season. It is a shy bird which can usually be seen hiding in and around areas where you have thick and dense vegetation. In India, the best place to spot this migratory bird is the Bharatpur Keoladeo National park located in the Indian state of Rajasthan.

1. The Amur Falcon:

This is one of those migratory birds that are origin to the region of Siberia. After that, they are known to migrate to South Africa and can be spotted in areas of the North Eastern state of Nagaland in India. The male adults of these migratory birds have quite rufous thighs and while they are flying in the sky, the wing lining of the bird is white in colour. These birds can be mistaken with the other species of the falcon family. However, females can be distinguished as they have an eye ring which is close to the orange colour and the feet too are of reddish orange hue.  These birds can grow somewhere around 275 to 290 mm in length and weigh around 100 to 180 grams through their lifetime.They migrate into India during the winter season like most of the other birds that have been mentioned on this list.

Thus, the above are some of the most beautiful migratory birds that flock into our country on a seasonal basis. However, the above is not an exhaustive list and India is home to many other migratory birds of the world.