A rare sighting of a bird is something that birders look forward to. While we were birding at Valley School, we discussed about the sighting of a Black Baza in Muthanallur lake, a rare sighting that we did not want to miss. Despite being tired we decided to try our luck. We could not get to see the Baza, but witnessed a drama enacted by a pair of common coots.
While we were on the tank bund, we noticed a pair of Coots making agitated alarm calls.
We saw a juvenile Brahminy kite swooping in for a kill directly amidst the coots.
The reason for the alarm of the coots became clear when we noticed the chicks that were swimming along! The Coots made a valiant attempt at chasing away the Kite.
The chicks immediately went for a dive into water. One chick dives in first.
Another chick dived in, while the adults try to relentlessly chase away the Brahminy Kite.
The adults didn’t give up till the Brahminy flew away.
The lovely chicks resurfaced!
The chicks discussed with a parent on what happened!
The parents then guided them away to a safer place.
The parents moved the chicks to the safety of Water Hyacinths.
The rain lashes out on the wind shield as we drive down the winding roads to our destination Valparai . Wondering if the rain could hinder our plans on this trip , I demolish that thought immediately, rain being one of the main character of a rainforest . The huge trees that reach out to the sky with creepers clambering over them accompanied by the ferns and wild flowers form a wall of greenery on the mountains . As the rain mellows down to a drizzle I step out to experience the faint drizzle. The rain has made sure that anything and everything in the forest is studded with rain drops.
Blue bottle butterfly mud puddling
To my delight I noticed lots of butterflies mudpuddling on the ground . These butterflies get most of their nutrition from flower nectar. Though rich in sugar, nectar lacks some important nutrients the butterflies need for reproduction. For those, butterflies visit puddles. By sipping moisture from mud puddles, butterflies take in salts and minerals from the soil. This behavior is called puddling, and is mostly seen in male butterflies. That’s because males incorporate those extra salts and minerals into their sperm. When butterflies mate, the nutrients are transferred to the female through the sperm.
Common Nawab mud puddling
Common map butterfly mud puddling
As I move on to have a closer look at the ferns interspesrsed with wild flowers .These tiny flowers are stunning with intricate details in all colors and shapes.These wild flowers include many endangered ones which need to be conserved .
The occasional chirping of the birds and the excellent weather made the walk a pleasant one. I did hear a loud cackling sound and my attention gripped on to a pair of Hornbills on a fig tree . The male hornbill and the female hornbill were conversing with each other probably discussing which direction to fly or where to have lunch . After a short discussion both flew away in the same direction. These birds are really huge and when they flap their wings to fly they make a characteristic sound .The loud whooshing noise emanating from hornbills as they fly is produced by gaps in the hornbill’s wing feathers and air being compressed in these gaps. Large hornbills lack feather that allow for smooth air flow. The wing beats of some species can be heard a half mile away.These hornbills are vital to forests as they are important seed dispersal agents to many endangered trees .
Incidentally “Saving Hornbills is saving forests ” was the caption for my son Suhas’s drawing competition conducted by the NCF to promote awareness about their hornbill conservation programs . I learnt about hornbills when I was looking out for information on them on the net. Suhas’s drawing was shared and like by many on facebook. As a result his drawing was featured in this years calendar.
Great hornbill
Great hornbill
Hornbills are majestic birds with a distinct beak . Hornbill have long curving bills that are mostly yellow and can reach lengths of 13 inches. The bill is an integral part if the hornbill’s skull and is used by the bird to feed, fight, preen, make nests and keep snakes from attacking the vulnerable parts of their body.
Great hornbill – Sketch by Suhas
Hornbills primarily feed on fruit, figs and insects. Many species collect fruit in their neck pouch and hide them in caches. Some have to ability to clasp fruit, insects and other food with the tip of their bill and deftly toss it in the air and catch it their gullet like a person catching a piece of popcorn in their mouth.
Hornbills are generally monogamous. Many mate for life. Hornbills nest in tree cavities or rock crevasses that are sealed shut except for a narrow, vertical slit. The female is sealed inside the nest . The slit is about a half inch wide: wide enough to pass food through but narrow enough to seal out potential predators such monkeys raptors and other predators that feed on eggs and young birds. Males bring up to 13 meals of fruit a day to nesting females. One male was observed delivering 150 figs in one visit, regurgitated one after another . The females reportedly like some variety to their diet and have refused food if they are brought to much of the same thing.The great Indian hornbill feed in fruit, primarily figs, plucked from among the foliage.
Father and mother hornbill coaxing the young one to come out of the nest by offering a fig
On one of the nature trails on the outskirts of Bangalore we found this creeper with a very intriguing flower. It appeared like an insectivorous plant. We were fascinated by its appearance and started to take pictures. Little did we realize that it was a rare plant.
As soon as I got back started to look for the id , a friend identified this as the Ceropegia species. I confirmed the species id with Guru- G. On browsing the http://www.flowersofindia.net/ website found that the plant id was Ceropegia candelabrum .
Flowers of most species in the genus Ceropegia have elaborate adaptations to trap pollinating flies. Flies are trapped within a bulbous base of the flower after moving through an elongated corolla tube that is frequently lined with stiff hairs. When these hairs wilt after several days, insects held in the bulbous chamber at the base of the corolla tube are released.Indeed they were smart plants which had this unique mode of pollination.
I realized that I had stumbled upon an endangered species featured in the IUCN red list of critically endangered plants- 1999.
Over exploitation of Ceropegia species for these tubers by humans and various animals, endemism, and habitat loss have caused their decline in the wild. Ceropegia is extensively uesd in Indian medicine to cure various disorders. We should realize that by losing a species we might lose an answer to a medical problem which the researchers are trying to solve.
Due to the untiring efforts of our scientists quest to conserve this valuable genus the conservation status has been raised from critically endangered to rare.
If we realize how important these species have an effect on our health.We will be more careful not todestroy the species around us. Healthy ecosystems prevent human illness by providing food and clean water, and by breaking down and recycling wastes In addition, many plants and other organisms are useful in medical research or contain substances used as medicines.
“The challenge for those of us working to preserve biodiversity is to convince others, policy-makers and the public in particular,that we human beings are intimately connected with the animals, plants, and microbes we share this small planet with, and totally dependent on the goods and services they provide, and that we have no other choice but to preserve them.”-Aaron Bernstein
I like to observe insects, butterflies, birds and trees and their interconnections with each other.With keen interest in urban wildlife and butterflies I have reared some of them. Blogging is my religion. I love to share my experiences in my blog https://wanttobeanomad.wordpress.com.
Some of my stories have been published in The Traveller.in - Hindu .
I am a freelance communication consultant with special interest in organizations that work for a social cause.
