Sarus Cranes at The Basai Wetland

This Saturday, the 7th of July was an eye-opener for me when I visited the Basai Wetland in the wee hours of the morning. The first thing that I noticed was Sarus Cranes strolling through piles of plastic garbage dumped in the area. The second thing was to observe with horror, a couple, wildlife photographers taking photographs while one of them was throwing stones at birds apparently to make the birds take wing so that one of them could take a flying shot. My take on this habit is that people who throw stones at nesting birds are highly irresponsible in nature, more so because the stone might hit a nest and break the eggs lying in the nest. Wildlife enthusiasts need to be responsible citizens who have the moral responsibility of preserving and protecting nature in all its forms. 

I was most lucky to take photographs of a pheasant tailed Jacana in its breeding plumage. While I was photographing a pair of Sarus Cranes, a bird landed just beyond me flashing a golden neck even as it moved around in the grass. My sensed were alerted and I switched attention towards this singularly distinct bird.

What drew my attention, however, was the ritual of grooming that the Sarus cranes went into. An entire fifteen minutes were devoted to a dry-cleaning ritual which was perhaps meant to extract fleas from their rich plumage. They did it all together!

The behaviour of these human beings drew my ire, no doubt, for I believe that every responsible human being has the duty of protecting nature and throwing stones at birds for the sake of a photograph is not done!

The Swatch Bharat Mission seems to have been ignored by this little boy who peed into the water with the least of worries! Also to be seen were people who made noise apparently to drive away the birds from their morning breakfast.

But then, good sense prevailed, and I got to see a couple of bee-eaters going through their morning rigmarole of cleaning themselves!

I was also able to spot a bird that seemed to me most similar to the Chat Bird one finds all over the country.

It is clear that the Basai Wetland continues to be an important ecological treasure trove for Gurgaon that we need to preserve. While the authorities continue to dither on its status, I hope that common sense prevails and the Government of Haryana declares it to be an important ecological zone. 

Different Moods of A Bee Eater Pair at the Basai Wetland

I thought it was only human couples who have differences, but then, even birds have their differences. Strangely enough, when I visited the Basai Wetland today, I was in for a treat, especially since I was party to what I believed was a Bee Eater Bird Couple having differences. The mail of the two seemed to fly off only to return to his mate. Amazed at this display of affection and disagreement, I stood fast and waited to see the story unfold. It seemed amazing, no doubt. The photographs tell a story of a couple of Bee Eaters having a fight no doubt!

They seem to be having an argument and sure the Bee Eaters seem to have turned away from each other!

It seems they have reached an agreement! Their love for each other seems to be evident. They are together in everything, no doubt.

The distance seems to appear, one of the two birds seems to be in disagreement and is ready to fly away because of some argument. The message for us is that Bee Eaters too have their disagreements, to it is OK for us human beings to have disagreements!

Sometimes, things work out after an argument, but then I wonder if it is f

or appearance. We often want to show the world that all is well even when the cracks have appeared!

But then, this is what happens when you don't see eye to eye! You look away in disagreement, to tell the world that you have an issue.

It is when things go out of control that one of the two flies away. But then in most cases, this is just a scare, a threat.

After the flight, we come together to see if things can be mended. In many cases, it is about having one last try.

The loner is left all alone, waiting perhaps for her mate to return. In most cases, it is the one with the patients who wins the innings! Ultimately, these birds did get together, affirming that love does win in the end!