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Bring back the birds
By Lankika de Livera
Colombo city has been described as “a concrete jungle”-building upon building with hardly any spaces in-between, sparse trees and dwindling gardens. We are gradually creating a sterile environment with concrete all around. It is a situation where even the few gardens that exist will soon be built upon. What is happening to the “Garden City” that Colombo was once famed to be?

Trees and plants not only give us fresh air and are pleasing to the eye but also give any home the ambience that is needed for healthy and pleasant living. Green vegetation is also home to many creatures of nature that create the delicate balance for a healthy life. Creatures most of us do take note of, like the birds and the butterflies, beautify the environment with their colour and calls.

If we destroy our gardens and trees what will happen to them?
I live in a residential neighbourhood in Colombo 5. Two years ago my little son and I counted 20 different kinds of birds we could see from our garden. They included groups of parrots, the Brown faced Barbet, munias (both speckled and black headed), the drongo, Blue-tailed Bee Eaters, Red-vented Bulbuls, tailor birds, Loten’s sunbirds, Purple rumped sunbirds, mynahs, shikra, Yellow billed Babblers, Coucal, Koel, Black headed Oriole, woodpeckers, Magpies, two kinds of owls in the night, the Spotted Dove, kingfishers and Brahmini Kites. These were the regulars.

In the nearby lanes we had seen the Asian Paradise Fly catcher and the Indian Paradise Fly Catcher. Two gardens away the Sri Lankan endemic bird, the Copper Smith Barbet used to come often to a tall tree. A trio of Black headed Orioles and a group of Rose ringed parakeets used to circle this tree and shriek and call in the early hours of every morning. But alas! They cut this tree!
My neighbour had a flourishing jambu tree from which birds used to make frequent flights hither and thither. The tailor birds had made a nest here.

Together with the Bulbuls, the Tailor birds’ twittering was so soothing during the day. But there again alas! the tree was pruned so harshly that all the branches were gone and the birds once again lost a habitat.

My neighbour in front, had a tall tree growing wild, while she was abroad for six months of the year. Just the day before she returned, her family got the tree cut. Now this was a tree which had no fruit, but many birds like the Yellow billed Babblers, the Black headed Oriole and the Brown faced Barbet used to perch there.

Another neighbour had a massive mango tree of about 25 years growing in their garden. It stood taller than the second storey of our house. Now this tree was the biggest treat to the neighbourhood. The full branches and leaves were a resting place to all the birds I have mentioned that I could see from our garden. The shikra was a frequent visitor to this gorgeous tree, amongst all the other birds. This tree too was cut down to make way for a new house.

What can we do to “nurture” an environment that is conducive to birds in the heart of the city? Firstly one can grow more plants, shrubs, trees and creepers on every inch of space in one’s garden, however small. I have limited garden space, but we have a big mango tree (on which many birds come to rest) and flowering plants which attract butterflies. We have put up a trellis over the gate and grown a flowering creeper. In the back garden there are plants belonging to the citrus family such as orange and narang which attract a host of butterflies. If you have more space, be sure to plant jam fruit trees, lovi, mango, guava, uguressa and others which birds love.

Some of our friends who have retired after working in the United Nations live in Nugegoda. They purchased the adjoining block of land just to plant and grow fruit trees. As a policy all the fruits that the trees bear are left to the birds and birds alone. There is a secure wall around the property and the fruit trees are tended and cared for, and whenever we visit, we see flocks of birds flying to and fro over their house. Their calls give such a pleasant and harmonious atmosphere.

While growing plants and greenery, you could set up feeding trays for birds. Flat plates with food for the birds hanging from a tree or secluded on the stump of a tree with leaves right round are ideal so that the birds would feel comfortable to come, eat and fly off. However, do not place any feeding plates on the ground, especially if you have cats and dogs as pets in the house!

Food for the birds could be fruit such as pieces of papaw, mango or banana. Scraped coconut attracts some birds too. “Budgiri” considered a weed which grows wild in paddy fields can be bought in packets from the market and attracts the munias. Fresh water could be kept for the birds to drink and bathe – of course it has to be changed daily to prevent mosquitoes breeding.
Some friends in Wellawatte have the munias (speckled and black headed), the magpie, bulbuls and mynahs coming for their daily fruit platter. These friends buy the “Budgiri” which they place on the lawn especially for the munias as they have no dogs and cats.

Some other friends in Battaramulla have a delightful fruit platter kept atop a trunk of a tree. The surrounding area is covered by a canopy of leaves from the main tree. One Sunday morning when we were there, we witnessed the most amazing sight of Brown faced Barbets and Black headed Orioles fighting to get on the fruit platter while Bulbuls tried to butt in too. Apparently, these shrieking and squawking squabbles among the feathered friends are common for this household.

On his coconut estate in Kurunegala, our friend Michael very generously, has many fruit platters laid out along with pails and bowls of water. It is quite a sight to see the birds taking turns at the platters to nibble at the fruit and coconut, together with a few squirrels. The most amazing sight to behold there was the Jerdon’s Chloropsis (a rare bird) coming everyday to have a bath.

So create the proper environment for birds by growing plants, trees and creepers as well as flowers like the Hibiscus for birds who sip nectar. Having trees and shrubs also encourages carnivorous birds to come foraging for worms and insects.

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