Trichy: Even as the world will celebrate sparrow day on Tuesday (March 20) to reiterate on the importance of conserving the bird species, the city will not have a reason to celebrate as the bird which was once found in abundance is now a rare sight.While the same is the case in almost every developing city in the country, there has not been much efforts either from the forest department or nature enthusiasts to ascertain reasons for its dwindling population in the city.These birds were sighted in large numbers on the banks of Cauvery, Uyyakondan and agriculture fields a decade ago, but can hardly be seen in the city limits now.Change in lifestyle and urban setup has left little space for the sparrows to thrive in our surroundings. This has resulted in 70 per cent of its population being wiped out across the planet, experts say. Nature enthusiast blame their dwindling numbers and habitat loss on lack of food.“Rural areas have increasingly become noisy in the name of temple festivals and religious activities, which is also a reason,” points out wildlife biologist Q Ashoka Chakkaravarthy. Rice used to be transported in gunny bags and grains which used to spill from them used to feed these small birds. But polythene and plastic bags that have replaced gunny bags rule out any such possibilities, he added.The increasing use of pesticides and insecticides in agricultural fields is also a major reason for the dwindling population of these birds, says K Balakrishnan, a school principal and avid bird watcher. “These chemicals have an adverse effect on insect population which are a source of protein for the newly born in the first three weeks.“Forests were converted into agriculture lands and are further making way for concrete jungles. House sparrows were building their nests in the corners of tiled roof houses, but increasing concrete buildings has hardly any scope for their survival,” said V Sundararaju, former district forest officer.Debunking popular myth that radiation from mobile towers have affected the population of these birds, Ashoka said that there has not been any specific study on enumeration of sparrow population in the country to come out with such a conclusion.

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