Birds wing across Afghan skies

By Bindu Jacob

Delhi has some interesting guests over this winter. And if you have some time to ``stand and stare'' you might spot them racing across the skies, breezing their way into the city for their annual sojourn. Despite the bog war, the birds have managed to stay en route their annual flyway and made it to their winter resort in good time.

In their own mysterious way, still intriguing the scientists, these birds have managed to wing across the war-ridden Afghanistan skies, through Pakistan into India.

Ornithologists heaved a sigh of relief recording little or no decrease in the number coming into the city. The guests are coming in good numbers and by the looks of it they are here to stay their full term too.

The city is visited by at least 18 to 22 species annually which stay, breed and later return home by February-March. And, of course, these guests have their favourite homes too, where you could spend time observing these visitors from across the globe, at their natural best. The Okhla barrage, Bharatpur sanctuary and contrary to popular belief even the Delhi Zoo are popular `winter' resort.

``We haven't seen any reduction in the number of birds coming into the city. We are getting the usual stock of pin-tails, shovler, comp-duck, painted stork, cormorants, egret, ibis and pelican. We haven't observed any reduction in numbers, but if there is any major change it will be observed only by December when the last migratory pack comes in,'' says Director National Zoological Park, Mr. B.S. Bonal.

About 150-200 species of birds come to India each year and almost all of them pass through the city. Governed by the availability of food, wet lands and green area these birds, ornithologists fear, might be faced with the danger of going astray or getting killed by these artificial barriers. But they also claim that the birds may also remain totally unaffected.

``The bombing might create an artificial barrier but we can not say with certainty that the birds might be affected. They might take a different route or even alter the time of travel in case of a barrier,'' reasons the Director of Wildlife Trust of India, Mr. Anirudh Mukherjee.

Meanwhile, perhaps the best place to catch these birds is Delhi Zoo, which is busy making elaborate plans to for these annual visitors. To make their stay comfortable, planning begins at lest four months before the actual arrival claim authorities.

``To maintain a constant food supply, planning begins at least four months in advance. Fishes are released into the Zoo ponds and are allowed to grow for three-four months till they reach a comfortable size of 2 to 4 cm, which is just right for these birds. Water plants and algae which is a staple diet for these birds are allowed to grow in the Zoo ponds in the hope of attracting these birds. A feed of dead fish is provided to these birds. Another normal routine that is followed is the pruning of the trees and plants in the bird enclosure, making it into a comfortable size for the birds to build their nests,'' said Dr. Paneerselvam from Delhi Zoo.However, there are some precaution that the city dwellers should take to make their guest comfortable. Though the birds rarely touch ground in the congested city, if you do find an injured bird notify the authorities immediately. Another golden rule to follow -- never try and capture these birds, they look best free!

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