May in Vedanthangal is full closure with the tank at year-low. Daytime 31-39C, humidity 75 percent, the 30-hectare tank reduced to cracked mud and a small central pool that holds residual local species (a handful of pond herons, an occasional spot-billed pelican, breeding plovers and lapwings on the dry margins). The TN Forest Department maintains the gate-shut status — no visitor access. The Barringtonia acutangula trees survive the heat dome through the deep groundwater table that the colonial-era bund engineering protected (the 1798 protection order recognised this); the trees will re-leaf and prepare nesting platforms ahead of the November migratory arrival. Madurantakam Lake (12km north, larger tank, accessible) sees occasional flamingo presence in May-June if water level holds. For Chennai birders: Pulicat Lake, Pallikaranai Marsh (Chennai south, Ramsar-classified urban wetland, year-round access), or the Adyar Estuary in the city. The sanctuary reopens around early November.

Why May scores 2.0/10