Indian Pitta birds and White-throated Kingfishers are being captured and displayed during Dasara in Telangana, with wildlife activists urging the Forest Department to track social-media posts and act against those responsible.
The birds are reportedly being mistaken for Indian Rollers, whose sighting during the festival is associated with good luck. The practice has already placed pressure on the Indian Roller, Telangana’s state bird, as well as Karnataka’s and Odisha’s state bird, according to Telangana Today.
The Indian Roller was moved from the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s “Least Concern” category to “Near Threatened” in 2025 amid a continued decline in its population, the report said. Conservation efforts in Telangana had focused on preventing the capture of Indian Rollers ahead of Dasara, but officials and wildlife organisations also encountered cases involving other species.
Indian Pittas, colourful passerine birds that breed in the Himalayan foothills and parts of Pakistan and Nepal, migrate to southern India around October. The report said several people had posted photographs and videos showing the birds in captivity during the festival.
Santoshi Pradeep, a wildlife activist and founding member of the Animal Warriors Conservation Society, said some Indian Pittas became exhausted after flying for hours from northern India to Telangana. She said the birds had also collided with high-rise building balconies after hitting glass façades, while others were kept in captivity for display during Dasara.
The incidents connect festival-related wildlife practices with a broader urban risk. Glass-fronted buildings and balcony façades can become collision hazards for birds, particularly during migration, while social-media posts can make the capture and display of protected wildlife more visible and potentially encourage imitation. The report did not specify the number of birds captured, the locations of the buildings involved or the number of cases registered by authorities.
The Forest Department and wildlife conservation organisations across Telangana have been working to prevent Indian Roller poaching during the festival. Pradeep urged the department to monitor social-media posts showing captive birds and initiate action against those responsible.
The report also cited a case in which a person posted a blue-tailed bee-eater on social media while claiming that it was an Indian Roller. The incident underlined the risk of species misidentification during a period when public interest in seeing the state bird is linked to festival observances.
The immediate response sought by wildlife activists is action against social-media posts showing captive birds and continued enforcement against the capture and display of Indian Rollers, Indian Pittas, White-throated Kingfishers and other birds during Dasara.
