பொங்கலோ பொங்கல் ~ மாட்டு பொங்கல் ~ thanking cattle for the harvest 2020 During my school days, on this day, I would plead with my mother, take permission to sit on the doorstep of our TP Koil Street house watching those lovely cows of Triplicane and wondering the affection and warmth showered on them by the people.
Cow shout ‘maa’ (moo in English) but actually Cows make several different sounds including mooing, bellowing, snorting and grunting, and they use these noises for different things. It’s hard for humans to decipher these cow calls, but a new study shows that our bovine buddies communicate using unique voices, which remain consistent across a range of emotional circumstances. Previous research has shown that mothers and calves show individuality in their vocalizations, helping moms recognize babies’ calls, and vice versa. But Alexandra Green, a PhD student at the University of Sydney’s School of Life and Environmental Sciences, wondered whether cows also display unique voices in other aspects of their lives. So she headed to a free-range farm on the university’s campus, equipped with headphones and a shotgun mic. Green spent five months hanging out with a herd of Holstein-Friesian heifers, capturing their moos and lows. In total, Green and her colleagues recorded 333 high-frequency vocalizations from 13 heifers, none of which had been pregnant. The calls were collected during a number of different situations, like when the cows were in heat and when they were anticipating a tasty meal, which the researchers identified as “positive” contexts. Calls were also collected when the animals were denied food, when they were physically isolated from their fellow herd members, and when they were both physically and visually isolated from the rest of the herd, which the researchers identified as “negative” contexts. Using acoustic analyses programs, the researchers determined that the cows maintained individual vocal cues, whether they were communicating arousal, excitement or distress. It is “highly likely,” the study authors write, that cows are able to recognize other members of their herd through these calls. Back home, the indignant, nonchalant, uncaring Kerala Govt under Pinarayi Vijayan showed their irreverence with Kerala Tourism posting a tweet in social media abouta beef dish eaten in Kerala. The beef dish tweeted by the handle sparked a row soon when the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) took a dig at Kerala Tourism questioning if the tweet was meant for promoting tourism or promoting beef. Isn't it hurting sentiments of crores of cow worshippers? Is this tweet generated from the pious land of Shankaracharya?" Here are some photos of the cows of Thiruvallikkeni decorated and paraded on roads, with people offering them sweets and their owners some money.It is sharing of happiness everywhere. பொங்கலோ பொங்கல் ~ மாட்டு பொங்கல் - நம் கால்நடைகளை பேணுவோம். With regards – S. Sampathkumar 16th Jan 2020.