Thirty-one: the number of birds we've found in the wetland so far. Thirty one, individual species, can be found in an area the size of maybe, the App State football stadium. That's pretty amazing. When we were researching to come to India, I read about the immense biodiversity here but to see it is something entirely different. It's hard to be out at the site every day and not get a little Eco Warrior about the situation. The pollution from the trash stays mainly on the banks of the wetland but what happens when it begins to migrate into the water? The water becomes toxic, the fish die, the plants die, and then the birds may die but ultimately they will leave. It's very difficult to fathom.
The SBS has developed a kind of following. There are a few elderly men that like to walk the road in the evenings and they've begun to birdwatch as well. When we see them we always call them over so we can point some different birds out to them. I see them now point birds out to one another. There are a group of children that like to come see me too as they wonder the road creating toys from the trash. The other day a six piece band marched up to me. Each boy had developed an individual instrument from random pieces of styrofoam and sticks. The very professional manner in which they conducted the band made my heart warm and also sad. These little boys work all day and this is their only play time. They have practically nothing but are still courteous and playful and so curious. They are my favorite people to birdwatch with, their excitement always intensifies my own.
As I've been filling in the Excel sheet with the numbers from my paper notes, which, for the record is a bigger task than I imagined, I've been trying to decide which bird I'll choose today. I think the Pheasabt-tailed Jacana will be the bird of the day. I've picked this bird primarily because it illustrates an important lesson in amateur birding- sometimes you don't know what the hell bird you're looking at and you just go with one. Have no fear, after a few days you will become older and wiser and, as in my case, doubtful of the identifications others make. You may notice a tiny stripe, a difference in beak color, or, in the case of the Jacana, a patch of gold coloring on the nape of the neck. Birding is, after all, a learning curve. It's been two weeks and I'm already surprisingly good at identification but sometimes you just don't know. Cue my new best book friend: Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. It's a game really, you flip through until something looks like what you're seeing, you read a little about it and then decide whether that's it or it's different. After a while bird watching you'll pick up on the general body shape of different types of birds. You may not know the exact type of finch but you know it's a finch.
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The Pheasant-Tailed Jacana is generally the shape of a giant dove, but with super long legs, so the super model version of a dove. The males currently have long curled tails for the breeding season. We often see pairs of these birds roaming the lily pads. The Purple Moorhens and they tend to have the occasional territory issue but for the most part they coexist peacefully. I got a treat this morning and saw my first baby Jacana. It was a fully brown and black striped little chick that hobbled after its mother, as she searched for food. It's good to know at least one male Jacana didn't grow his tail in vain.
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