Rama Krishna Sangem
BRS Rajya Sabha MP and Green India Challenge founder J Santosh Kumar this Sunday, October 1, captured in his camera some small yet valuable birds that enrich our ecology. This is part of his #WeeklyDoseofPhotography on every Sunday. Posted on X at 7.30 am, these pictures got 3,759 views, 202 likes and 62 reposts by noon, thus showing their popularity.
These birds are small but valuable in terms of ecological concerns. They reflect the rich biodiversity that is seen in and around Hyderabad city and parts of Telangana. According to Heeresh Dubey who commented on Santosh’s tweet, these birds are: Pied Bush chat, Ticolored munia and Olive backed sun-bird. All are tropical zones birds and commonly seen in southern parts of India.
Of them all, Pied Bush chat bird is special in terms of its bonding with humans. In many parts, this tiny bird is revered as a good omen and worshiped. There are a dozen sub-species of this bird that looks like our common sparrow, but, it is more intelligent with stronger survival skills. In spite of their religious value, these birds are prone to captivity and capture for eating by some people.
Another cute bird is Tricolored munia. This is mostly seen in south India and Sri Lanka, according to a bird watcher from Hyderabad. They eat both weeds, seeds and small insects. Tanks to their good and attractive looks, Munia birds are kept as pets and traded for their value. Interestingly, people of some areas free them as a symbol of celebrations. They are seen in groups.
The third bird of Santosh post is Olive-backed sunbird. In fact, sunbird is big family that is spread across the southern countries and some parts of Asia. They hover over trees and shrubs and are herbivorous. These three birds pictures posted by MP Sanotsh can be taken as a project by environmentalists and school children for further studies. Students can also free of such birds, if found in captivity anywhere.
