By Indira Aryal
Kathmandu, May 6: Asian paradise flycatcher, or Sworgachari is a beautiful bird that normally makes Nepal its temporary home for five to six months to lay eggs, breed and raise young ones.
Scientifically called Terpsiphone paradise, the summer migratory bird is sighted in various parts of the country, especially in Terai and Kathmandu Valley during summer season.
Ornithologists say that a flock of Sworgachari arrive in the country between late March and early April from India and Sri Lanka and that they raise their young ones here before returning to their native countries between August and September.
According to ornithologist Hem Sagar Baral, the bird is found in most of the protected areas of the country.
The small bird normally measures 20 centimetres in length, but their tails can be as long as their bodies. While males are more colorful with long-tail streamers in their bodies, female paradise flycatchers are usually plain-looking. They choose their partners by the length of tail streamers.
During his research, Baral found the bird exhibit polygamous behavior. “I have noticed that the male lives with two different females in separate nests,” he said, adding, “These kinds of polygamous behaviour was previously not noticed.”
Towards mid-July, birds are ready to pass through the fledging period. They will stay here for another two and a half months and then fly back with their mothers at the end of October.
Sanjay Shrestha, a wildlife photographer and life member of Bird Conservation Nepal (BCN), has captured the Asian paradise flycatcher in photographs from the Kathmandu Valley recently.
He describes the bird as one of the most beautiful creatures on earth. They can adapt to the environment naturally. In summer they make their ways to come here in a bid to avoid extreme heat in their native lands, he said.
About 60 species of birds come to Nepal in summer from different countries in Africa and Asia. It is said that the birds that start coming from March return to their respective countries at the end of September or October. But lately, paradise flycatcher, which used to be seen at a special time, has now started appearing in all seasons, said Shrestha, a photographer with a special interest in birds.
Paradise flycatcher, which we call Sworgachari in Nepali, is attractive by name, and everybody becomes happy when they see it, he said. The bird changes its colour twice. Under 4 years of age, the head is black; the back, wings and tail are red and the neck is grey. If the bird is four years or older, its head is black and white and its neck is white below the neck, according to Shrestha.
Paradise flycatchers, which enter Kathmandu from southern India and Sri Lanka, build nest in various places of Nepal for three to four months. However, Shrestha claims that the bird has been seen in every season lately and that he has succeeded in capturing its image in every season.
“One of the plausible reasons behind that is climate change’s impact on Nepal,” Shrestha said.