Everyone knows of the national bird, the Indian Peacock. But do you know what the State bird is? Karnataka, along with other States (Andhra Pradesh,Bihar, and Odisha) has chosen the Indian Roller. It’s a bird that almost as beautiful as the Peacock, and as interesting too.
Indian rollers are generally solitary birds that are often seen perched on prominent bare trees or wires. After waking up, they spend a few minutes preening followed by flying around their roosting sites. Favored perches include electric or telegraphic wires but they also perch in trees and shrubs. Indian rollers perch mostly at a height of 3-9 m height from where they forage for ground insects. They may also use taller perches and obtain insects from the upper canopy of trees. During summer, Indian rollers may feed late in the evening and make use of artificial lights and feed on insects attracted to them. These birds communicate with each other using a harsh crow-like ‘chack’ sound. They also make a variety of other sounds, including metallic ‘boink’ calls and are especially vociferous during the breeding season.
Indian rollers are carnivores. Their diet includes insects, spiders, scorpions, small snakes, frogs, and other amphibians.
Indian rollers don’t face any major threats at present. However, due to their habit of feeding near roadsides sometimes results in collisions with traffic. A decline in the numbers of these birds seen along roadsides in northern India has been noted.
Picture Credit : Google
