Date:04/02/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/02/04/stories/2008020454210200.htm

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Other States - Orissa

Sparrows make a comeback!

Sib Kumar Das

Now, their survival in urban areas will depend on the attitude of man, feels biologist

Photo: Lingaraj Panda

House sparrows sit on an electric line in Berhampur on Sunday. —

BERHAMPUR: Sparrows, which have vanished from the urban landscapes of Orissa are reappearing.

Though no study has been undertaken to find out the reason behind their vanishing and reappearance, their reappearance in small numbers is being welcomed by the city dwellers. They are no more shooed away. At some grocery shops in the peripheral areas of Berhampur, the shopkeepers are seen cautioning the customers not to panic away the small birds, who may be eating grains from their open rice bags. A biologist, Suvendu Mishra said there is hardly any documentation of common bird species in India. He felt that the drastic fall in the number of some common birds like sparrows and vultures near urban areas in Orissa during recent years have not worried the scientific community much. A few years back there was much hue and cry in Europe when the sparrow population had come down by 85 percent in London.

“Change in human attitude towards these small birds would again create conducive environment for them in urban areas,” he hoped.

Dearth of thatched roof houses reduced the scope for these birds to build up their nests. Their increased number had also made households shun their presence, Mr. Mishra said. As their number has depleted common households and even shopkeepers have started to value their presence. Small discarded boxes are being provided to them at strategic corners to be used as nests. And the sparrows seem to have accepted it. But Mr. Mishra attributes vehicular pollution as a major reason behind the sudden fall in sparrow population in urban areas. The so called high speed petrol has Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE) as an anti-knocking agent. Along with the by-products of combustion, the MTBE plays a major role in killing small insects, which in turn takes toll on the food of the these birds, feeding on insects. It was felt that now the survival of sparrow population in urban areas would be based on the attitude of humans towards them.