Rainfall-driven movements and seasonal space use in Greater and Lesser Flamingos in western India

The arid plains of western India support significant populations of the Greater Flamingo ( Phoenicopterus roseus ) and the Lesser Flamingo ( Phoeniconaias minor ). "Flamingo City", a seasonally flooded salt marsh (Rann), is the largest breeding site for these species in Asia. However, their movement ecology remains poorly understood, limiting effective conservation planning. We conducted the first GPS–GSM tracking study of flamingos in this region, tracking four individuals of each species ( n = 8) from May 2019 to December 2023. All tracked flamingos remained primarily within the Kachchh region, with two instances of transboundary movement by Greater Flamingos to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Both species showed regular movements between Rann (during the breeding season) and inland and coastal wetlands (during the non-breeding season), while exhibiting strong site fidelity. A generalised additive mixed model revealed that daily movement distances were higher during the breeding season in both species, and were influenced by seasonal rainfall patterns. Kernel density estimates showed wider distributions during the breeding period, with Lesser Flamingos occupying a larger spatial extent. Species differed markedly in habitat use: Lesser Flamingos relied on saline habitats, while Greater Flamingos used freshwater and brackish wetlands. These findings suggest the presence of a resident breeding population of flamingos in western India. The study underscores the importance of conserving interconnected inland, coastal, and saline wetlands across the Kachchh landscape to maintain habitat connectivity for flamingos in this dynamic arid ecosystem.