Paradip, Aug. 30: Bhitarkanika National Park played host to about one lakh migrating water birds this monsoon, registering a significant rise in comparison to last year.

Against 96,437 migrating birds enumerated last year, 1,03,853 were counted this time.

On August 22, the national park authorities had launched a weeklong drive for census of the monsoon birds. Two teams of 10 ornithologists besides wildlife personnel of the national park conducted the headcount.

"As the spell of rains was not uniform, their arrival was delayed this time. Even so, we have spotted an impressive congregation of monsoon birds along the mangrove covers of the park," said divisional forest officer Rajnagar mangrove (wildlife) forest division, Bimal Prasanna Acharya.

A total of 21,204 nests were spotted on 2,098 treetops. Of the birds counted, 42,408 were adult birds. The heronry at Bagagahana attracted the highest number (46,322).

The enumerators covered all the major congregation zones both within and outside the national park. Besides the core area of the park, peripheral wetland sites such as Satabhaya and Barunei were included in the census. The birds' habitat in the core area of the park is spread across four hectares. "There is ample of food for the birds as the place crisscrossed by innumerable water inlets and nullahs is free from human interference," Acharya said.

Prominent among the species arriving here for nesting are grey heron, purple heron, darter, cormorant, large egret, intermediary egret and little egret.