A four letter bird

Read this article which tells some cruel practises followed for capturing birds.

A FOUR LETTER BIRD

A recent raid on a shipment of wild Indian birds is focussed on bringing the criminals to book. So, why is there no happy ending in sight? NISHITA JHA reports


Blind fate ‘Sealing’ or stitching the eyes of a falcon to tame the bird is a common practice

WAKING UP at the crack of dawn, crouching in awkward positions with a pair of binoculars — these are relics of the past. Bird watching is infinitely easier today — just take a walk down Delhi’s Chandni Chowk. From parakeets to peacocks, macaws and owls, everything that has disappeared from the cityscape is waiting for you right here, neatly stacked up in cages on the side of the road. Rehmaan Ali, a bird-trader, has his double-act in place. He will soothe your shock at the sight of the tiny cages crammed with brightly-coloured and dull-eyed birds, commiserate over the loss of their natural habitat in a concrete jungle and assure you that their only chance at survival now is your home.

Since its amendment in 1991, the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA) has banned all trade of wild Indian birds in both domestic and international markets. Yet, hawkers openly sell birds in every city — as Ali chortles, “The police have bigger birds (criminals) to chase.”

Indeed they do. According to Samir Sinha, head of Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce (TRAFFIC) India (a network that monitors wildlife trade) — diverse species of endemic birds, combined with ineffective laws, have made India the primary supplier of wild birds in the world. The domestic wild bird trade alone is estimated at a minimum of Rs. 2.5 crore per annum (excluding the profits earned through cage-making and the hawkers’ cuts) .

While mammals like the rhino receive plenty of attention from wildlife activists, birds are almost completely neglected. Dr Asad Rahmani of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has been struggling for the past 30 years for the government’s approval to launch ‘Project Bustard’, but to no avail. He says, “The Great Indian Bustard will be extinct in 10 years without immediate action. Why do birds receive this stepmotherly treatment from the Ministry of Environment and Forests?”

More worrisome than the trade, is the fact that even after rescue, most trafficked birds have a bleak chance of survival. On 2 July, a cargo of wild birds was seized at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka. The Pakistan International Airlines plane was filled with dozens of cages, packed beak-tobeak. According to an official document from the Forest Department of Dhaka — in the possession of TEHELKA — of the 775 birds seized by the authorities, 330 were found dead in their cages due to the trauma they had suffered in transit. The man responsible, a Pakistani national named Ahmed Sheikh Wazid, is awaiting trial in Bangladesh.

While the Forest Department congratulates itself for a job well done, the ‘rescued’ birds are no closer to freedom. Currently “awaiting the court’s decision” in closed aviaries at the Banga Bhadu Sheikh Mujib Safari Park, they are the true prisoners of fate.


Fear of flying Thick- Billed Green-pigeons with clipped wings: even after rescue, these birds need to be force fed

MERELY FLINGING open the doors of a cage is not enough to help captive birds. “You wouldn’t release territorial creatures like lions in the same area. The rule applies for birds as well,” explains Abrar Ahmed, a wildlife consultant with TRAFFIC. One cannot release territorial birds like owls in a confined space. It is also futile to ‘release’ birds without ensuring that they are being returned to their endemic habitat. If the birds were captured when juvenile, freeing them amounts to murder — since they never learnt to fend for themselves. TRAFFIC recommends a softrelease programme for birds that have been reared in captivity: from a cage, the birds are shifted to a larger aviary, after which they are moved to an enclosed section of a forest, and freed. At every stage, the birds require monitoring.
“No one has that kind of time or passion anymore,” admits Abrar. “Looking after birds requires scientific expertise combined with maternal love,” he adds. Although tribes like the Mirshikaris and Baheliyas have traditionally earned their livelihood from capturing and trading in birds, Abrar feels conservationists can learn from their example. He elaborates, “The tribals use indigenous methods of trapping, which are less harmful than mechanical bird traps or nets that often cause fatal injuries. These tribes have studied birds for generations. They understand nesting habits and mating rituals.” This reservoir of tribal knowledge could lead to great progress in avian veterinary science — an area of study which lies in woeful neglect at present. Dr YD Gaur, a surgeon at Delhi’s Jain Bird Hospital, admits that all his knowledge was gained through a painful process of trial-and-error. The hospital only admits ‘vegetarian’ birds — while most birds, even fruit-eaters, need to eat insects for adequate protein and survival. The occasional injured eagle in the corridor of cages (the ‘ward’), is fed paneer and grains. “We do not like to keep predators for too long, and I don’t think they want to stay here either,” Gaur says. Healthy birds are kept in a huge enclosure on the terrace, until they can be released on Jain festivals.

Birds are sold for a variety of reasons: as caged pets, for a zoo’s collection, for meat, black magic, medicinal purposes, sports like bird-fighting and for taxidermy. Bird traders have an added source of income from the compassionate — birds are often captured and sold for release in large numbers, to people and groups who believe ‘freeing’ birds is auspicious.

For every bird sold, three die during trapping and transportation. Already, common birds like the sparrow, woodpeckers, koels and owls are missing from our cities. As the urban jungle becomes crowded, there is no place for birds to perch or nest. Traffic fumes, noise and cellular tower radiation too have harmful effects. It is no surprise then that the number of endangered species in India has risen from 148 in 2008 to 152 now.

Among the birds seized in Dhaka, 300 were Hill Mynahs (Gracula religiosa), a popular specie of birds that possess the ability to mimic human voices. Originally found in hill ranges 1,000 feet above sea level, deforestation has forced these birds to the plains. Also seized were 35 highly endangered Green Avadavats or Green Munias (Amandava Formosa) — of which 20 were dead in their cages. The Green Avadavat is prized precisely because it is so rare. The tiny, olive green bird with its pale yellow breast has been listed as a species highly vulnerable to extinction according to the IUCN Red List (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources).

TRAFFIC is involved in the near-impossible task of trying to save the ‘rescued’ birds from Dhaka, and bring them home to their natural habitat. “One can only hope for the best. I’m not in favour of confining birds — I hope Bangladesh feels the same,” TRAFFIC’s Sinha responds stoically.

The article can be read at - http://www.tehelka.com/story_main46....fourletter.asp