It was a lesson of a different kind…..practical-based to the core, with a touch of theory thrown in. For, some of the things being said over the school sound system by famous bird specialist Prof. Sarath Kotagama, the students had seen first-hand.
As he said, “Run, stop, peck” and the voices of the students of Holy Family Convent, Bambalapitiya, echoed it over and over again, though they were in their classrooms, in their mind’s eye they saw the kirala family which had made the grassy patch near the laboratories, their home.
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| Students and feathered friends:
In perfect harmony |
The kirala or red-wattled lapwing couple had decided as way back as 2005 that the grassy patch would be good for them to bring up their family. But something or the other prevented it and it became a reality only this year. The kirala is well-known for its customary call which sounds like ‘Did he do it?’
Now mother, father and three chicks are a common sight, looking for food or running behind the children to forge companionship. The children, in turn, have taken upon themselves the task of being the “guardians” of these birds.
“The talk by Prof. Kotagama was very interesting,” said a 16-year-old student, explaining that while he told them about the birds’ diet of insects such as ants, beetles and caterpillars, pecked off the ground, he also pointed out the tremendous parental care and love showered on the young chicks.
“Two of the chicks are always together and the other one though a loner is very playful and active,” said the student, adding that when the mother senses any danger and calls them, the loner never responds to come under her wing.
Having heard the shrill cries of the father bird, attempting to ward off crows, Prof. Kotagama had explained to the students how the chicks are protected. The father to distract and take the predator away from the chicks would hurry off and and fall ‘dead’. The predator thinking that it would have easy access to a prey would pursue, but just when it closed in, the kirala would rise and move farther away, ‘dropping dead’ again.
Explaining the story behind the kirala’s strange call of ‘Did he do it?’, Prof. Kotagama had told the students that apparently a kirala had seen a man killing his friend and had followed him calling out, “Did he do it?”. Ultimately, the man had confessed to his crime.
As time passes, however, the students are sad. For they know that one of these days, sooner than later, their feathered friends will fly away.
With the words of Prof. Kotagama that the chicks will fly away by August, the students await next month with emotion. They will miss the little ones, especially the bold loner and its mischievous antics. |
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