Common birds of the subcontinent
ABOUT INDIAN BIRDS — Including Birds of Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Pakistan & Bangladesh: Salim Ali and Laeeq Futehally; Wisdom Tree, 4779/23, Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110002. Rs. 495.
Kumaran Sathasivam
This is a new version of a book that was first published nearly 50 years ago. With 87 pages of text, the book was then available for the now astonishing sum of two rupees. Over the years, new names have been coined for some birds.
In the present version, the names of these birds have been updated. Lithographs by John Gould and other artists, and photographs by Nikhil Devasar, have displaced the original illustrations of D.V.Cowen. The first and second authors have exchanged places now. The book is meant for the lay reader.
The division of the book into chapters is the same as in the original publication. The first four chapters deal with aspects of bird life in general. The titles are: What are birds?, Song and Courtship, Nesting Habits and Migration.
The remaining five chapters provide portraits of common species of various habitats: town dwellers, scrub and jungle, the farmer’s friends and foes, the village pond, and along the coastline. The emphasis is on birds that are readily observed, and thus forest, hill and desert species and rare birds are not covered.
Accurate
The text, written with a scrupulous regard for scientific accuracy, has a highly readable and entertaining style. Using simple terms, it provides insights into the life of birds. It is complemented by beautiful photographs and illustrations. Without doubt the excellent descriptions of bird behaviour are the highlight of the book. The imagery evoked by the sketches is simultaneously accurate and amusing. For example, “the long legs of the Black-winged Stilt, then, mean that it can wade into quite deep water without getting its clothes wet.”
It is an indication of the extent to which human life has changed since the book was written that some parts of the text sound anachronistic: “The Common Myna has a way of walking about on the ground with its head nodding intently, which makes one think of a busy old woman in a bonnet.”
Anthropomorphism
A statement about the Red-vented Bulbul reminds one of a period when large gardens were a common feature of houses: “It feeds on wild berries and fruits; but if it comes upon peas or cherries in our gardens — who would not consider them tastier than the berries of the banyan or lantana?”
That birds are incapable of sophisticated reasoning is pointed out in the book. Yet it strays with delightful unconcern into the realm of anthropomorphism. Of the crow: “A typical habit of the House Crow is to sit on the branch of a tree and sharpen his beak on it — one rub on this side and one rub on that. It is a gesture like that of a villain rubbing his hands when bent on mischief. For the House Crow is an accomplished villain … The cheeky, bullying manner of crows can be so amusing that one is apt to be ready to forgive them their misdeeds. But the crow is not only an amusing reprobate. He is a real criminal type. He eats the eggs of small birds and murders their chicks.”
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