NEW DELHI (Xinhua): Pied cuckoos, associated with monsoons in India, flew in from Africa to the Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple (BRT) Wildlife Sanctuary in Chamarajnagar, near south Indian city Bangalore, Mail Today said Saturday.

These birds fly from Africa ahead of the rains, and herald the arrival of the monsoons with their shrill, metallic calls. Scientists are now trying to confirm if their early arrival could have signaled the early onset of the monsoons this year.

"Interestingly, the bird arrived a bit early and so did the monsoon. We are monitoring the arrival of the bird to see how valid this connection is," Uttara Mendiratta, coordinator of the citizen science program started by the National Center for Biological Sciences, told the paper.

Migrant Watch, a citizen science program, has started the Pied Cuckoo Campaign to track its migration patterns. The idea is to collect data on the birds' arrival across India and compare them with the arrival of the monsoon in these places.

Participants write on Migrant-Watch blogsite about the sightings with details of time, location and duration of the birds ' stay.

Reports dating back to 1928 indicate that the arrival of the bird varies a little from year to year, coinciding with the rains. But, its migration patterns are still largely unclear.