LITTLE ACTS OF KINDNESS
LT COL NOEL ELLIS
13/V/2022
Sunbirds and sparrows are now becoming my favourites. It’s a pity that how hard one tried to capture the seven or eight that came calling today, they just won’t fit in one frame. Besides, the time they pose is so short that before you blink it’s too late. Furrrrrrrr, they fly away.
There were a few unusual things I noticed about them. To see six black & shiny Sunbird ‘males’ chasing each other is rare. Could they be siblings or could they be rivals? It appeared to be a fierce dog fight. It didn’t add up as female Sunbirds were missing from the action.
There are a few Champa, Neem and Almond trees, plus our pots which is their playground. Within the dense foliage one can hear them chirp loudly. One behind the other they scoot between them. Once in a while they sit on an exposed branch giving me an opportunity to shoot. There is hardly any time to focus to get a clear shot. They hop so fast, making the task even more difficult.
One female was spotted somehow. She sat flapping her wings like bird chicks beg for food from parents. The continuous flapping fluffs up the little bird to almost double her size. Could it be a new born chick asking to be fed or could it be a female inviting a male, I am not sure.
These small birds dance and hover on our windows as if trying to get in. Many times, they strike the window and then go and hang upside down on the pots hanging close by. Surprising!
They must be seeing their own reflection in the glass as it turns into a kind of mirror and attacking fictitious rivals. When they hit the glass they turn back, hang and wait for that miscreant to flee. These are all conjectures which run through my mind.
Recently, we have started spreading grains of rice for them. Those broken portions of rice grains (tukri) are a welcome snack for the sparrows. Surprisingly, sparrows are not shy of humans at all here.
Our rice treat is a welcome change like ‘Kurkure’ for kids. They are loving it. Obviously, they have got fed up with ‘bajra’ grains which the residents’ dish out abundantly around the colony in bird feeders.
People generally feed grains in flat dishes hung on trees. Some even spread them on footpath stones. The abundance of grain strewn around doesn’t excite them. Probably they take it for granted.
Also, when grains lie on the stone, it must be hurting their beaks as they peck to pick them up. We tried spreading grains in a sandy flower bed right across the house. They enjoy picking them up & scratching their claws to dig out more. The distribution of grains is so thin and far apart that many birds can congregate and enjoy the fun. Beaks don’t get hurt, their legs get exercised and loosened sand becomes a bathtub for them to fluff their feathers to ‘sand bathe’ and ward off pests.
Close by there is a drain, where water stagnates temporarily. This natural ‘bird bath’ is where they fly to quench their thirst. Some even take a dip in that pool of water. A few find a snack in an insect hiding in the cracks of the drain. Overall it must be a wonderful experience, frolic, play, eat, bathe, drink and go to rest in the shady trees. Hungry again, repeat the same procedure.
As the heat is picking up and has touched 47 degrees here on the hottest day, like us, they too need some shade and a cold drink. Water isn’t an issue, as the horticulture sprinklers and taps are good enough. Plus, we too have made provisions.
A little gesture of love, becomes a playground for these little birds. Had all those who fed and watered them not done so, would they have survived? I wonder!!!!!!!!!!
JAI HIND
© NOEL ELLIS
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