Fading flights
Bird Sanctuary/Rajastan/Bharatpur
Dying echoes of birdsong portend the swansong of an avian habitat...
When I reached Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary (Keoladeo Ghana National Park) in Rajasthan for the third time, I was welcomed by a crow- a fat black crow. He was calm. After turning the head and looking at me, it flew away without any haste. My mind flew back to times. Would he be a representative of any of my predecessors? Might be of Chandra mama who loved the forests?
When one reaches in this shelter of birds, citing a crow is not a good omen. It will give indications of destructions. When the crows become countless, other bids would fly away without any intention to come back leaving their nests. When I visited here 20 years back, under the trees in Kadam Kunj, there was no such rush of bird lovers. I had never spotted such a huge number of tourists before. In the exterior, one would feel that the park had thrown away the coat of tranquility. Not only the bird lovers come here, but also big groups, from families to tourists, come as part of package tours.
But still when you walk some distance through one of the walkways, you would only hear the music of birds. Walk some more, it is sure that you would spot a collection of birds medicating in trees or birds in small ponds like flowers sprinkled on the surface of water. The scene dispenses goodness and solace, the natural sense which is not lost. At this time I remembered the words by great ornithologist Dr Salim Ali, who bestowed most of his life for the birds. `` May be we would be able to recreate a Taj on the banks of Yamuna again, but Bharatpur can't be recreated again.
When I reached Delhi with Humphrey Coneman, an environmental scientist from Germany in 2008 for a day's visit, it was made it clear that why Bharatpur is the most sort after sanctuary for the bird lovers from across the world. We had to learn a lot from this sludge which is the home for 220 indigenous bird species and which attract 160 genres of migratory birds.
I peeped into the book of a foreigner, who was reading the same under the mango tree opposite to the babul trees where the birds, Painted storks, were sitting in groups. The book was `Final exit'. He was reading the book by looking at the birds in intervals. Might he be a poet like P? I remembered the words by the Mahakavi of Nila. –Amuttathe Poomarathil Manjakili Parannirunnu. Swantham Bhasahyil Entho Paranju. Nee Kaviyavum, valiya kaviyavum. Lokam Puthiya Velichathil Mungi'.
When I came here 20 years back in company of my friends, no one came in cycles and Tonga paid attention to others as they were immersed in their own worlds. Through the binoculars and their cameras, they saw the many pages of nature, sceneries, and its minute realities….
The journey through the bird sanctuary must begin from the Santhi Kutir. You can watch birds from boats in Santhi Kutir. If needed, cycles and rickshaws are available for rent. During the journey you can relax in the shadow of trees. To give you company, there would be groups of birds on the Babul trees.
Babul is a tree of wonders. It is a small or medium sized tree. The painted storks won't leave Babul once they inhabited. Like the soul in the body, they would never get separate from the Babul trees. Both in Tamil and Malayalam, the tree is known as `Karu-velam` . Its scientific name is `Acacia Arabica'. Its branches are very strong and would never break. Its fruits, with a mixed taste of mild sour and sweetness, are very dearer to the birds. During the months of March and April, the local physicians in Northern India collect and keep the gum that exudes from the bark which has medicinal values. It is said that the gum is best for healing injuries.
Those who come into the park are more interested to watch the migratory birds. The migratory birds would begin to visit the park from October. Various kinds of pelicans, swans, teals to name a few with. Laving (kuruvi) can fly in high speed. They could cover 300 km in one hour. Bronze Winged Jacana laid eggs in the floating vegetation on the water surface of the park. The males take responsibility for incubation. The females would go in search of other males too.
But the greatest attraction for the bird lovers visiting Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary are undoubtedly, the world-renowned Siberian Cranes, who spend their winters in Bharatpur, the only second habitat for them in the world. The Kaladeo Ghana National Park has been declared a world heritage site because of the Siberian Crane traverses nearly half of the globe to reach it. There are Common cranes, Demoiselle cranes and black-necked cranes in Bharatpur. But a bird lover would first ask for Siberian cranes.
The greatness and deep divine beauty of Siberian cranes were famous during the regime of Mugal emperor Jahangir. The painting of one of a rare Siberian Crane by Ustad Mansur, seventeenth century Munhal painter and court artist of Jahangir is renowned worldwide. There are a total of only 2500 cranes (Grus leucogeranus) which exist in the world now. The last Siberian Crane in this population was observed in Bharatpur in 2002.
The cranes with its bright yellow eyes, milky white body and feathers and a bright brick red coloring on the face, once stood on the banks of the small lakes of Bharatpur. Their courting calls made the world wonder. Their dance was most beautiful and enriched with lasya than any other dancer in the world. In Siberian Cranes, males and females are literally indistinguishable. Males just tend to be slightly larger in size and females tend to have shorter beaks than males.
The fleshy tubers of the weed, Cyprus Rotundas found in the lakes in Bharatpur, are their favorite food. If there were 29,000 cranes in 70's, now it is shortened to only 2000.
The winter voyages of Siberian cranes are vast than the stretch of human evolution. While travelling to find resting place, they were shot downin Iran and Pakistan. In Sindh province, shooting them down was a symbol of pride and power. The 14 day journey of Cranes to Bharatpur begins from the Yakud, in Ural hill in eastern Siberia. Another groups would reach the banks of Poyang Lake after crossing the Yangtze River from south east Siberia.
Some often, who ventures to Bharatpur, diverts to Caspian Sea to reach Ezbaran Fereydoon Kenar. There the hunters waited for them and hundreds of them fall prey to their gun. Sometime on their route to Bharatpur, they would reach the Lake Tengiz in Kazakhstan. They have resting place at Astrakhan, Russia.
Usually they use to reach Bharatpur after flying through Afghanistan crossing Lake Tengiz and Uzbaikisthan. In 1984, 200 cranes were spotted in Bharatpur. But the last two years witnessed none of them. World Crane foundation is of the assumption that they migh have went to another habitat. There were indications that in 2005, 6 of them came to Bharatpur. Their migration route, stretching 6400 km begins from December. They use to be at Bharatpur from December to March. They would begin the return journey when the intensity of cold lessens in Siberia.
The most vibrant bird group in the park is Painted Storks. The sight of thousands of painted strokes sitting in group in Babul trees would gift you an enchanting view .The birds can be spotted while sailing in the boats. The boat journey would last for one hour. There you can sight many views of bird nests and bird habits and also, the birds walking in the sludge. We only spot bird and birds only while riding in cycles or Tongas. You can select one among many routes available to the santuary. One is the Ram Bund Trail , which is a 2.5 km. stretch from Shanti Kutir to the jetty, terminating at the forest Lodge.
In this journey apart from the avian population, you can spot wild boars, Sambar, Chinkara, Nilgai etc.If you go through Brijendra bund you would reach Keoladeo Temple. I chose that route. When you move further covering the Python Point in Kadam Kunj and Comoro, you will spot cranes, jacanas, pipits, warblers, wheatears, pelicans, teals, pheasant-tailed jacanas,cormorants and herons, beautiful nilghai bluebulls, sambars, chinkara, black bucks and sometimes mulata macaques (red monkeys).The other routes are 8 km long Savanmori trail, Jatholi Beysa with 11 km, Sadarbeat trail with only 3 km distance and Cheethalwan Dry trail with 11 km distance. Majority of the beauties from round the world would be awaiting you. I never expected the presence of Flamingoes there, but they were there. I too not expected the Bar Headed Goose but they stood there like a parade for beauty pageant. Rody Pelicans, Adjutant Storks, Ruby Throat, Grey Wagtail and Dusky Warbler are also the wealth of Bharatpur.
Likewise are the animals and snakes. Vishnu Srivasta came from Alwar said that there are king cobras and other types of cobras exist in Bharatpur. The most imaginative picture of Bharatpur was given by Peter Matthiessen . His book `the Birds of heaven' became a path and guide. Peter Matthiessen wrote about the life journey of all the cranes. His book was attractive and melodramatic like touched in electricity.
After returning from Bharatpur, while scanning the photos, I recollected about that book read by visitor in the park 'Final Exit'. The book is written by Derek Humphrey. When Derek's wife Jean, who was reeling under pain after affecting with breast cancer said to him, `` I want to die in your lap. Can you please give me a minute of pleasure from my pain?
Derek gave her an overdose of medication and Jean, who was falling to drowsiness, said to him `I feel happy'. But the words did not fall into his ears. Due to the immense weight of his grief his heart was equal to a corpse. I was wondering why that person was reading the book the whole day sitting in the middle of avian. We know the birds. Their life is so pure. But what about these men…?
Text: M P Surendran
Photos: Dilip Anthikad
Translation: Shamila KY
Dying echoes of birdsong portend the swansong of an avian habitat...
When I reached Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary (Keoladeo Ghana National Park) in Rajasthan for the third time, I was welcomed by a crow- a fat black crow. He was calm. After turning the head and looking at me, it flew away without any haste. My mind flew back to times. Would he be a representative of any of my predecessors? Might be of Chandra mama who loved the forests?
When one reaches in this shelter of birds, citing a crow is not a good omen. It will give indications of destructions. When the crows become countless, other bids would fly away without any intention to come back leaving their nests. When I visited here 20 years back, under the trees in Kadam Kunj, there was no such rush of bird lovers. I had never spotted such a huge number of tourists before. In the exterior, one would feel that the park had thrown away the coat of tranquility. Not only the bird lovers come here, but also big groups, from families to tourists, come as part of package tours.
But still when you walk some distance through one of the walkways, you would only hear the music of birds. Walk some more, it is sure that you would spot a collection of birds medicating in trees or birds in small ponds like flowers sprinkled on the surface of water. The scene dispenses goodness and solace, the natural sense which is not lost. At this time I remembered the words by great ornithologist Dr Salim Ali, who bestowed most of his life for the birds. `` May be we would be able to recreate a Taj on the banks of Yamuna again, but Bharatpur can't be recreated again.
When I reached Delhi with Humphrey Coneman, an environmental scientist from Germany in 2008 for a day's visit, it was made it clear that why Bharatpur is the most sort after sanctuary for the bird lovers from across the world. We had to learn a lot from this sludge which is the home for 220 indigenous bird species and which attract 160 genres of migratory birds.
I peeped into the book of a foreigner, who was reading the same under the mango tree opposite to the babul trees where the birds, Painted storks, were sitting in groups. The book was `Final exit'. He was reading the book by looking at the birds in intervals. Might he be a poet like P? I remembered the words by the Mahakavi of Nila. –Amuttathe Poomarathil Manjakili Parannirunnu. Swantham Bhasahyil Entho Paranju. Nee Kaviyavum, valiya kaviyavum. Lokam Puthiya Velichathil Mungi'.
When I came here 20 years back in company of my friends, no one came in cycles and Tonga paid attention to others as they were immersed in their own worlds. Through the binoculars and their cameras, they saw the many pages of nature, sceneries, and its minute realities….
The journey through the bird sanctuary must begin from the Santhi Kutir. You can watch birds from boats in Santhi Kutir. If needed, cycles and rickshaws are available for rent. During the journey you can relax in the shadow of trees. To give you company, there would be groups of birds on the Babul trees.
Babul is a tree of wonders. It is a small or medium sized tree. The painted storks won't leave Babul once they inhabited. Like the soul in the body, they would never get separate from the Babul trees. Both in Tamil and Malayalam, the tree is known as `Karu-velam` . Its scientific name is `Acacia Arabica'. Its branches are very strong and would never break. Its fruits, with a mixed taste of mild sour and sweetness, are very dearer to the birds. During the months of March and April, the local physicians in Northern India collect and keep the gum that exudes from the bark which has medicinal values. It is said that the gum is best for healing injuries. Those who come into the park are more interested to watch the migratory birds. The migratory birds would begin to visit the park from October. Various kinds of pelicans, swans, teals to name a few with. Laving (kuruvi) can fly in high speed. They could cover 300 km in one hour. Bronze Winged Jacana laid eggs in the floating vegetation on the water surface of the park. The males take responsibility for incubation. The females would go in search of other males too.
But the greatest attraction for the bird lovers visiting Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary are undoubtedly, the world-renowned Siberian Cranes, who spend their winters in Bharatpur, the only second habitat for them in the world. The Kaladeo Ghana National Park has been declared a world heritage site because of the Siberian Crane traverses nearly half of the globe to reach it. There are Common cranes, Demoiselle cranes and black-necked cranes in Bharatpur. But a bird lover would first ask for Siberian cranes.
The greatness and deep divine beauty of Siberian cranes were famous during the regime of Mugal emperor Jahangir. The painting of one of a rare Siberian Crane by Ustad Mansur, seventeenth century Munhal painter and court artist of Jahangir is renowned worldwide. There are a total of only 2500 cranes (Grus leucogeranus) which exist in the world now. The last Siberian Crane in this population was observed in Bharatpur in 2002.
The cranes with its bright yellow eyes, milky white body and feathers and a bright brick red coloring on the face, once stood on the banks of the small lakes of Bharatpur. Their courting calls made the world wonder. Their dance was most beautiful and enriched with lasya than any other dancer in the world. In Siberian Cranes, males and females are literally indistinguishable. Males just tend to be slightly larger in size and females tend to have shorter beaks than males.
The fleshy tubers of the weed, Cyprus Rotundas found in the lakes in Bharatpur, are their favorite food. If there were 29,000 cranes in 70's, now it is shortened to only 2000.
The winter voyages of Siberian cranes are vast than the stretch of human evolution. While travelling to find resting place, they were shot downin Iran and Pakistan. In Sindh province, shooting them down was a symbol of pride and power. The 14 day journey of Cranes to Bharatpur begins from the Yakud, in Ural hill in eastern Siberia. Another groups would reach the banks of Poyang Lake after crossing the Yangtze River from south east Siberia.
Some often, who ventures to Bharatpur, diverts to Caspian Sea to reach Ezbaran Fereydoon Kenar. There the hunters waited for them and hundreds of them fall prey to their gun. Sometime on their route to Bharatpur, they would reach the Lake Tengiz in Kazakhstan. They have resting place at Astrakhan, Russia.
Usually they use to reach Bharatpur after flying through Afghanistan crossing Lake Tengiz and Uzbaikisthan. In 1984, 200 cranes were spotted in Bharatpur. But the last two years witnessed none of them. World Crane foundation is of the assumption that they migh have went to another habitat. There were indications that in 2005, 6 of them came to Bharatpur. Their migration route, stretching 6400 km begins from December. They use to be at Bharatpur from December to March. They would begin the return journey when the intensity of cold lessens in Siberia.
The most vibrant bird group in the park is Painted Storks. The sight of thousands of painted strokes sitting in group in Babul trees would gift you an enchanting view .The birds can be spotted while sailing in the boats. The boat journey would last for one hour. There you can sight many views of bird nests and bird habits and also, the birds walking in the sludge. We only spot bird and birds only while riding in cycles or Tongas. You can select one among many routes available to the santuary. One is the Ram Bund Trail , which is a 2.5 km. stretch from Shanti Kutir to the jetty, terminating at the forest Lodge.
In this journey apart from the avian population, you can spot wild boars, Sambar, Chinkara, Nilgai etc.If you go through Brijendra bund you would reach Keoladeo Temple. I chose that route. When you move further covering the Python Point in Kadam Kunj and Comoro, you will spot cranes, jacanas, pipits, warblers, wheatears, pelicans, teals, pheasant-tailed jacanas,cormorants and herons, beautiful nilghai bluebulls, sambars, chinkara, black bucks and sometimes mulata macaques (red monkeys).The other routes are 8 km long Savanmori trail, Jatholi Beysa with 11 km, Sadarbeat trail with only 3 km distance and Cheethalwan Dry trail with 11 km distance. Majority of the beauties from round the world would be awaiting you. I never expected the presence of Flamingoes there, but they were there. I too not expected the Bar Headed Goose but they stood there like a parade for beauty pageant. Rody Pelicans, Adjutant Storks, Ruby Throat, Grey Wagtail and Dusky Warbler are also the wealth of Bharatpur.
Likewise are the animals and snakes. Vishnu Srivasta came from Alwar said that there are king cobras and other types of cobras exist in Bharatpur. The most imaginative picture of Bharatpur was given by Peter Matthiessen . His book `the Birds of heaven' became a path and guide. Peter Matthiessen wrote about the life journey of all the cranes. His book was attractive and melodramatic like touched in electricity.
After returning from Bharatpur, while scanning the photos, I recollected about that book read by visitor in the park 'Final Exit'. The book is written by Derek Humphrey. When Derek's wife Jean, who was reeling under pain after affecting with breast cancer said to him, `` I want to die in your lap. Can you please give me a minute of pleasure from my pain?
Derek gave her an overdose of medication and Jean, who was falling to drowsiness, said to him `I feel happy'. But the words did not fall into his ears. Due to the immense weight of his grief his heart was equal to a corpse. I was wondering why that person was reading the book the whole day sitting in the middle of avian. We know the birds. Their life is so pure. But what about these men…?
Text: M P Surendran
Photos: Dilip Anthikad
Translation: Shamila KY
Tags :
