Rare Red Phalarope Spotted in Karnataka for the First Time

Dharwad: In a stunning find for bird enthusiasts, four Bengaluru-based birders have sighted and photographed the rare Red Phalarope at Mavinkoppa Lake near Dharwad—possibly the first-ever recorded sighting of this species in Karnataka.

The birders—Manjunath P, Chidananda Urs, Nitin Srinivasa Murthy, and Nisarg Bharadwaj—were on a birdwatching trip when they spotted the elusive Arctic vagrant.

The Red Phalarope, known for breeding in the high Arctic zones of Alaska and Canada, typically migrates long distances. Though it’s not a regular visitor to the Indian subcontinent, it has been occasionally sighted in Kerala, Gujarat, Maharashtra, and the Andaman-Nicobar Islands, primarily in coastal regions.

“This bird is a vagrant, not a migrant,” explained Murthy. “It doesn’t follow a defined migratory route. Its appearance here is purely accidental and extremely rare.”

The bird’s unexpected presence so far inland makes the sighting even more remarkable. Experts caution not to confuse it with the Red-necked Phalarope, a more common species in India.

Such rare vagrant sightings provide valuable data for ornithological research and highlight the unpredictable nature of avian migration.

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