Whistling schoolboy
MADHAV GADGIL
Prema Iyer
Time has come, the blue
thrush thought
To out-whistle the school
boy,
To set up a nest in right
earnest
My heart is full of joy.
Nicknamed the idle or whistling schoolboy, the Malabar Whistling Thrush has its headquarters in some gorge in the Peninsular Indian hills. There is something very dapper and neat about the bird as it hops and flies from boulder to ledge; its shiny feathers pressed close to the body and its tail moving slowly up and down as it spreads its fan of feathers. Moreover, it has a most melodious song, a loud rich whistle rambling aimlessly up and down the scale.
A Magpie Robin's song cheers our ears but its plumage is unremarkable. A House Swift's graceful flight stirs up our wonder and admiration but it looks drab and its call is nothing to write home about. A Peacock has magnificent looks, but a harsh voice and a laboured flight.
But a Whistling Thrush is one of those birds that can charm us in every way, with its looks, voice and movements. Indeed, its seems a living embodiment of all the qualities of vitality and fitness that one associates with unspoilt brooks and hills.
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