Next time you sign up for a nature trail, chances are you might max your bird-spotting skills, courtesy Dr Erach Bharucha's DVD on 192 bird calls that echo across India's skies
Next time you sign up for a nature trail, chances are you might max your bird-spotting skills, courtesy Dr Erach Bharucha's DVD on 192 bird calls that echo across India's skies
Settled inside the wooded forests of Mumbai's Borivali National Park, the Indian Cuckoo must've probably been in business today, as a cloudy blanket enveloped Monday's skies. For according to Dr Erach Bharucha's DVD on Indian Bird Calls, this species, whose call carries a fluty-whistle-like musical sound, is heard clearly on such days.
Common Indian Sparrow. PIC/Santosh Nagvekar
Call of the wild
"Bird calls are a fascinating aspect of natural history.u00a0 It is a branch that is both aesthetically appealing and scientifically exciting," writes Pune-based Dr Bharucha, renowned biodiversity specialist, author and ornithologist, in the preface to the audio-visual guide. His first exposure to recording bird calls was when he met Brother A Navarro, SJ, who worked at Mumbai's St Xavier's School. Navarro was an active member of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) in the 1950s.
In the 1990s, Dr Bharucha, a physician by profession, developed a set of two bird call cassettes for the BNHS, with the help of Br Navarro, SJ and BCR Bertram, a naturalist. Many of these calls were recorded in the Lonavala-Khandala area of the Western Ghats nearly four decades ago.
Dr Bharucha recorded the calls of wetland and grassland species of the Deccan, mostly around Pune, while forest birds were recorded in the Dangs and Anamalais. BCR Bertram recorded calls in the Himalayas and North-East India. "Despite falling into a niche category, interest for such audio-video guides is rapidly expanding," adds Atul Sathe, public relations officer, BNHS.
Note the sounds
The two-part interactive DVD is a visual and aural treat for wannabe ornithologists, naturalists and anybody who is piqued by bird calls in urban and forestlands. The first part classifies 192 bird calls from the common myna found in Mumbai to the melodious Blackgorgeted Laughing Thrush found in the North-East; each slide is accompanied by a photograph, drawing, information (size, sex, call type) as well as detailed maps of where the species can be spotted.
More than just a bird's eye view, there's fantastic trivia, ranging from their scientific, old and new names but also clear recordings (32-35 seconds duration) of bird calls. The second part will interest the researcher, with detailed analysis of bird calls, including call types, spectrograms and strophes (Rapidly repeating rhythmic elements in a bird sound).
How to identify bird calls
>> Try to spot the bird even if you are confident of the species making the call. There can be many surprises!
>> Take into account the region and habitat that a bird uses frequently. This limits the birds that are likely
to be present at a site, although surprises can occur here as well
>> Carefully check the character of the species by colour, shape, size, and distinctive features
>> Don't play back the recorded call to the bird as this can confuse
and/or scare the bird. Respect its territorial rights and its special behavioural needs
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(Information courtesy: Indian Bird Calls/ Dr Erach Bharucha)
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