Summary:
Trichy: For city-based field biologist Q Ashoka Chakkravarthy, sighting a solitary Hoopoe bird near Perambalur district was a visual treat. These birds have a long pinkish-brown crest and its head topped by a prominent erectile crest. While he has been sighting these birds for the past five years, he said the numbers are dwindling in the region that he could count them only in single digits and he may not find in the coming years.Found in large numbers about a decade ago, Hoopoe birds have come down to a few. “Use of pesticides in cultivated lands has affected micro-organisms, which are primary the feed of these birds and reduced their life span,” he said.While advocating concrete steps towards habitat conservation, Ashoka said the government should come forward to carry out a detailed study on the bird and look into the reason for its dwindling numbers and take appropriate steps. It primarily uses their long, slender, curved bill to probe for large insects, worms, lizards, and frogs on the ground.Once a very common bird, which was evaluated as the least concern (LC) as per Bird Life International in 2015, an organisation for bird conservation, Hoopoe has witnessed drastic fall in its population.Now on the verge of extinction in this region, Ashoka says there have been a lot of changes in the physical environment over the recent years..