Recently I re-discovered the joy of feeding birds every
morning like I used to, a few years back…each morning the tiny winged lovelies
now flock to my balcony waiting for me to put out the grain…what joy !! It’s
almost meditative to sip a cup of hot tea while sitting in my bed watching
these birds and a lot of squirrels picking on one grain after
another….mechanically…persistently…they just keep pecking.
Some fight (Oh so human) and wouldn’t let the others eat and
in the process miss out on eating time themselves too J. Some, like a pair of parrots
I see quietly just eating ..always together…sheer joy they are to watch. They
take a break to go sip on the water that I have kept there…and then back
to collecting more food in their beaks.
I have, along with the squirrels a lot of pigeons, mynahs,
doves, a pair of white doves and some exotic little birds whose names I don’t
know and together they are a joy to watch but sadly I find the little brown
sparrows missing…completely. Not one. Having been born and brought up in the city I
have always had sparrows around me…in my garden, on the windows and merrily
chirping away even inside our homes. I suddenly miss them.
I have read about the environmentalists over the past few
years talking about almost a 50% drop in the population of sparrows in the city
of Delhi but never really bothered about it. Today when it has become so very
obvious to me…it is bothering me. I am surrounded by huge trees…have them in
plenty and always thought I could hear them chirp but where are they ?
The reasons we are all aware of but still I list a few of
them here…
Architectural changes:
Sparrows do
not make their nests in trees…earlier they used to breed in our houses, the sun
shades, the windows. The urban city scape doesn’t offer them that space any
more…the apartments are tightly sealed leading to a lack of safe space to nest
in.
Groceries to Supermarkets
A website
explains that earlier food grain used to be stored and transported in gunny
bags and some would spill…they fed on that. With super markets taking over that
avenue is also closed for these tiny birds.
Mobile Radiations
The scientists who are trying to
unravel the cause of Sparrow’s disappearance have identified a new culprit: the
mobile phone. Studies have warned about the effects of these mobile radiations
on reproduction and fertility of eggs. Animals navigate by the Earth's magnetic
fields and these waves can disturb a bird's ability to find their way around.
Unleaded Petrol and Insecticides
The extensive use of pesticides and
insecticides in our farms and gardens have created a scarcity of insects. The
unleaded fuel, believed to be eco-friendly, has harmful byproducts. Though
adult sparrows can survive without insects being a part of diet, they need
these to feed their young ones, and hence, the infant mortality rate of
sparrows has gone up.
Pigeons, Crow and other
big Birds Population
Religious beliefs encourage feeding of
a particular species of birds and therefore, the birds like crows and pigeons
have outnumbered small birds. These birds dominantly occupy the feeding and
nesting sites. And they have scared off our tiny winged friend and companion.
Some news articles over the past two
to three years have mentioned that the bird has been spotted in pockets in
Delhi…some colonies still have them…under some fly overs they have been
spotted…but they seem to be fast declining and that is sad.
The only thing I see we can do is…if
we spot any around our houses…we feed them. Put out some drinking water for
them especially in the scorching heat of Delhi summers. That is one good deed
one can do and get so much joy every morning. Also if there are some around
you…take the trouble of putting up a bird house in your balcony, on your terrace…give
them a home to come back to.
Infact in 2010 the
government also made the sparrow the bird of the State of Delhi.
I’d love to hear them sing here again…
