Feeding
birds has been our tradition; feeding crows is a religious practice
– one finds lot of birds especially
pigeons in many temples. Even at houses,
some provide food morsels to birds regularly -
providing water in bowls especially during summer will help the
birds. Every
morning at Marina ground, just opposite to the famous Vivekanandar illam,
thousands of pigeons land to eat the food grains spread out by a group of
people. Nearer Express Avenue Mall, in
Pycrofts Road [Bharathi Salai], an enthusiast Camera mechanic spreads out kgs
of rice in the open terrace – the hundreds of parrots that come in the morning
and in the evening is a joyous sight to behold.
Feeding birds is
nothing new – and is considered a good gesture. Feeding stations should be
maintained properly; otherwise, disease organisms can kill individual birds,
sometimes in large numbers. Inappropriate food items can be unhealthy and
possibly lethal. Bird feeding may
maintain populations of some opportunistic birds at higher levels than is
healthy for the environment and other, more vulnerable bird populations. It is obvious that the feeders do not expect
any recognition or reward – but the happiness of seeing them at close quarters
and making them feel at home.
Lots of people love
the birds in their garden, but it's rare for that
affection to be reciprocated. One young girl in Seattle is luckier than most.
She feeds the crows in her garden - and they bring her gifts in return –
reports BBC. Eight-year-old Gabi Mann sets a bead storage
container on the dining room table, and clicks the lid open. This is her most
precious collection. "You may take
a few close looks," she says, "but don't touch." It's a warning
she's most likely practised on her younger brother. She laughs after saying it
though. She is happy for the audience. Inside the box are rows of small objects
in clear plastic bags. One label reads: "Black table by feeder. 2:30 p.m.
09 Nov 2014." Inside is a broken light bulb. Another bag contains small
pieces of brown glass worn smooth by the sea. "Beer coloured glass,"
as Gabi describes it. Each item is individually wrapped and categorised. Gabi
pulls a black zip out of a labelled bag and holds it up. "We keep it in as
good condition as we can," she says, before explaining this object is one
of her favourites.
There's a miniature
silver ball, a black button, a blue paper clip, a yellow bead, a faded black
piece of foam, a blue Lego piece, and the list goes on. Many of them are
scuffed and dirty. It is an odd assortment of objects for a little girl to
treasure, but to Gabi these things are more valuable than gold. They are all
avian gifts – the ones given by crows to her.
Gabi's relationship
with the neighbourhood crows began accidentally in 2011. She was four years
old, and prone to dropping food. She'd get out of the car, and a chicken nugget
would tumble off her lap. A crow would rush in to recover it. Soon, the crows
were watching for her, hoping for another bite. As she got older, she rewarded
their attention, by sharing her packed lunch on the way to the bus stop. Her
brother joined in. Soon, crows were lining up in the afternoon to greet Gabi's
bus, hoping for another feeding session. Gabi's mother Lisa didn't mind that
crows consumed most of the school lunches she packed. In 2013, Gabi and Lisa started offering food
as a daily ritual, rather than dropping scraps from time to time. Each morning,
they fill the backyard birdbath with fresh water and cover bird-feeder
platforms with peanuts. Gabi throws handfuls of dog food into the grass. As
they work, crows assemble on the telephone lines, calling loudly to them.
It was after they
adopted this routine that the gifts started appearing. The crows would clear
the feeder of peanuts, and leave shiny trinkets on the empty tray; an earring,
a hinge, a polished rock. There wasn't a pattern. Gifts showed up sporadically
- anything shiny and small enough to fit in a crow's mouth. One time it was a
tiny piece of metal with the word "best" printed on it.
“If you want to
form a bond with a crow, be consistent in rewarding them," advises John Marzluff,
professor of wildlife science at the University of Washington. He specialises
in birds, particularly crows and ravens. "A few peanuts in the shell, would be
best " he says. "It's a high-energy food… and it makes noise when you
throw it on the ground, so they hear it and they quickly habituate to your
routine." Marzluff, and his
colleague Mark Miller, did a study of crows and the people who feed them. They
found that crows and people form a very personal relationship. "There's
definitely a two-way communication going on there," Marzluff says.
"They understand each other's signals." The birds communicate by how they fly, how
close they walk, and where they sit. The human learns their language and the
crows learn their feeder's patterns and posture. They start to know and trust
each other. Sometimes a crow leaves a gift.
But crow gifts are
not guaranteed. Not all crows deliver
shiny objects either. Sometimes they give the kind of presents "they would
give to their mate", says Marzluff. "Courtship feeding, for example.
So some people, their presents are dead baby birds that the crow brings
in." Gabi points out a heavily
rusted screw she prefers not to touch. It's labelled "Third
Favorite." Asking her why an untouchable object is in the favourites, she
answers, "You don't' see a crow carrying around a screw that much. Unless
it's trying to build its house." Lisa, Gabi's mom, regularly photographs
the crows and charts their behavior and interactions. Her most amazing gift
came just a few weeks ago, when she lost a lens cap in a nearby alley while
photographing a bald eagle as it circled over the neighbourhood. The object was found on the edge of the birdbath. Lisa logged on to her computer and pulled up
their bird-cam. There was the crow she suspected. "You can see it bringing
it into the yard. Walks it to the birdbath and actually spends time rinsing
this lens cap."
Have
you ever received gifts from birds? In Telegu
movie, Pelli santhathi, Ravali would love her garden and trees so much – that when she asks for the Guava fruit
by clapping her hands, tree would drop a fruit for her !
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
27th Feb 2015,
