Rachana Gupta -
Shree Complex Phase-III, Adharwadi Jail Road Kalyan Maharashtra
I've lived in the Adharwadi region of Kalyan since 1996. The place was thriving with sparrows then! In those days, there was a village close by (Umbarde gaon). My place, including 3 others were the only residential developments for several miles. The region to the back of my building faced a cultivation, and the road leading down deep into Umbarde village was surrounded by nothing but cultivations on both sides - for miles there would be no residential apartment in sight. As for now, things have changed greatly. By and by, there came a major residential construction opposite our complex, and therefore all the trees and a small pond which existed there disappeared. Along with that, so did many of the sparrows. We had fewer visits in our house - so fewer nests. And they only got even more fewer when many more of res. constructions began rising. I used to wonder then "why have those birds vanished? Aren't they "house sparrows"?" Even my aunt who comes to visit me from Canada every 3-4 years, expressed her sorrow that there were fewer and fewer sparrows visiting. The population was such before, that there used to be a male sparrow who would come and perch on a wall-mirror in my house - and stare at his own reflection for half the day, only to return again after (we assume) his hunger was attended to! True the mirror still has the stains of his droppings, but I never see such occurences any more, and it's unfortunate - I miss it gravely. It was a treat to wake up to an orchestra of chirps every morning, but alas! No more really. We hear just the mynahs - which makes up, but not so much as those sweet little chirps. For info regarding the area, there are a lot of constructions around, even in the village (no longer a village!) and not much cover of trees. There are many buildings with those mobile-signalling towers, less bee-hives (not at all like what it used to be!)
And unfortunately, we never seen them try to make a nest in our house since past 3 years!
I've lived in the Adharwadi region of Kalyan since 1996. The place was thriving with sparrows then! In those days, there was a village close by (Umbarde gaon). My place, including 3 others were the only residential developments for several miles. The region to the back of my building faced a cultivation, and the road leading down deep into Umbarde village was surrounded by nothing but cultivations on both sides - for miles there would be no residential apartment in sight. As for now, things have changed greatly. By and by, there came a major residential construction opposite our complex, and therefore all the trees and a small pond which existed there disappeared. Along with that, so did many of the sparrows. We had fewer visits in our house - so fewer nests. And they only got even more fewer when many more of res. constructions began rising. I used to wonder then "why have those birds vanished? Aren't they "house sparrows"?" Even my aunt who comes to visit me from Canada every 3-4 years, expressed her sorrow that there were fewer and fewer sparrows visiting. The population was such before, that there used to be a male sparrow who would come and perch on a wall-mirror in my house - and stare at his own reflection for half the day, only to return again after (we assume) his hunger was attended to! True the mirror still has the stains of his droppings, but I never see such occurences any more, and it's unfortunate - I miss it gravely. It was a treat to wake up to an orchestra of chirps every morning, but alas! No more really. We hear just the mynahs - which makes up, but not so much as those sweet little chirps. For info regarding the area, there are a lot of constructions around, even in the village (no longer a village!) and not much cover of trees. There are many buildings with those mobile-signalling towers, less bee-hives (not at all like what it used to be!)
And unfortunately, we never seen them try to make a nest in our house since past 3 years!
