Nash and me

You Can’t Get There from Here

by Ogden Nash

Bird watchers top my honors list.
I aimed to be one, but I missed.
Since I’m both myopic and astigmatic,
My aim turned out to be erratic,
And I, bespectacled and binocular,
Exposed myself to comment jocular.

We don’t need too much birdlore, do we,
To tell a flamingo from a towhee;
Yet I cannot, and never will,
Unless the silly birds stand still.
And there’s no enlightenment in a tour
Of ornithological literature.
Is yon strange creature a common chickadee,
Or a migrant alouette from Picardy?

You can rush to consult your Nature guide
And inspect the gallery inside,
But a bird in the open never looks
Like its picture in the birdie books-
Or if it once did, it has changed its plumage,
And plunges you back into ignorant gloomage.
That is why I sit here growing old by inches,
Watching a clock instead of finches,
But I sometimes visualize in my gin
The Audubon that I audubin.

Exerpted from “Up From the Egg: Confessions of a Nuthatch Avoider”

Thank you Sheila, for sending me this!

My apologies, for an adaptation I could not resist:

Bird watchers top my honors list.
I aim to be one, but this tail has a twist.
Since I’m both myopic and astigmatic,
My sightings turn out to be erratic,
And I, bespectacled and binocular,
Expose myself to comment jocular.

We don’t need too much bird IQ, I was told,
To tell a prinia from a pipit, so bold;
Yet I cannot, and never will,
Unless the silly birds sit still.
And there’s no enlightenment in a tour
Of ornithological literature.
Is yon strange creature a common ibis, black-headed
Or an uncommon black migrant in the marsh embedded?

You can rush to consult your Inskipp & Grimmett guide
And inspect the photo gallery inside,
But a bird in the open never looks
Like its picture in the birdie books-
Or if it once did, it has changed its plumage,
And plunges you back into ignorant gloomage.
That is why I sit here writing ghastly verse,
Instead, I should be out looking, for better or worse,
But I sometimes visualize in my dream
The birdwatcher that I became, supreme!

Urban wildlife - Chennai

Welcome to wild wild Chennai - The Times of India

Arun Janardhanan, TNN | Aug 8, 2011, 05.43AM IST
From jackals, rodents and squirrels to black buck, pangolin and even slender loris, residents of the urban jungle of Chennai have spotted all kinds of wild creatures in their backyards. In the last year, forest officials in the city have rescued 3,025 monkeys and 1,200 snakes from residential areas. "Forest officials across the city rescued more than 5,000 animals from April 2010 to March 2011," said wildlife warden V Karunapriya.

Originally a coastal area with thorny bushes, Chennai is the only city with a protected forest - Guindy National Park - within the corporation limits. But as the city expands, the pressure on green spaces, which are also home to several species of snake, gecko and fruit bat, intensifies and animals lose their habitat. Thickly wooded forests and scrub jungles in Guindy National Park, IIT-Madras, Nanmangalam forest, Theosophical Society and Kalakshethra colony still provide shelter to these wild creatures, but they too are coming under threat.

IIT-Madras authorities recently cut several trees to make space for buildings, the Pallikaranai marsh, which is a source of water for the city, is being used as a dumpyard. T Murugavel of the Madras Naturalists' Society says that urban wildlife still survives in the green spots and protected forest inside the city. "What's left of the green belt inside the city surprisingly sustains a wide variety of animals, though we have lost several species, including birds like the white-headed babbler, the purplerumped sunbird and red-vented bulbul," said Murugavel, who has rescued cobras and rat snakes from his neighbourhood. "Last month, I rescued a barn owl that had been injured by a kite string. We set it free after a vet treated it," he said.

Recently, a slender loris was rescued from the terrace of a house. A limited number of this endangered species still lives in the city. Jackals can be seen at the Adyar estuary,while the Indian mongoose is spotted often in busy T Nagar, Shenoy Nagar and Adyar areas. Flying foxes still swoop through the evening skies. E Seshan, a retired chief photographer of the Zoological Survey of India, said the weather also plays a role.

"During the monsoon, animals come out of their habitat. In the city, there is no space for them as everything has been covered with concrete," he said. "The IIT-Madras campus, Guindy National Park and Raj Bhavan campus are an important habitat. But the institution has decided to proceed with major construction projects, which will affect the animals," he said. S Davidraj, forest range officer of Velachery division, said that habitat loss is the main reason for the increasing man-animal conflict. "We have taken all measures to attend to cases immediately. We are monitoring about 997 spotted deer in Alandur, Adambakkam, Velachery and Kotturpuram," he said.

Valley of Flowers - books for my trip

The Valley Of Flowers: Frank S. Smythe

An account from Smythe who "discovered" this beautiful Valley.

Flowers of The Himalayas - Oleg & Adam

A reference book for the flowers I hope to see.

Birds of North India - Inskipp & Grimmett

Some birding too I hope!

The eco-warrior - Uday Veer SIngh

The Business Standard writes about the eco-warrior, Uday Veer Singh, a forest officer who has made a difference.

The Adyar Poonga

Madras Musings - Adyar Poonga

Worrying article that claims the Poonga is being neglected, suppliers not being paid....

Valley of Flowers - countdown begins

View Larger Map

Leaving soon for a Trek to Valley of Flowers. The route we are taking is almost identical to Thignam Girija's!

Though ours is supposed to be a bit more "luxurious"? An A/C bus Delhi-to-Delhi, and porters to carry our luggage on the trek.

# Trekking shoes bought. Used them yesterday, uff they are heavy.

# Outerwear begged and borrowed from Usha.

# Daily use contact lenses ordered. (Need good vision you see!!)

A loris on a terrace

Rare little primate found on Sastri Nagar terrace - Times Of India

Why the lady would scream on seeing this little creature is beyond me!

There is a picture of it here.

Johnny Allen Auroville

Auroville after many years � Ian Lockwood

There are a kaleidoscope of personalities and lifestyles in the community but Johnny lives my idea of the vision. He uses locally available materials for construction, the power comes from the sun and biomass and the impact on the ecology is minimal. He is still using a biomass-fueled Stirling engine to make peanut butter and dosa mix and chutney every Saturday. This was the engine that had first brought my father Merrick here. I had tagged along on several trips in the early 1990s. Johnny’s home is set amongst towering trees, thatched workshops and cowsheds. He is just the sort of teacher that helps you understand the practical side of sustainable living. Lenny was given a personal tour of the Stirling engine, a compost toilet and models of housing units that Johnny is designing for young people.

Rann riders reviewed

United colours of breaking even | CSR | wildlife resort | The New Indian Express

Purple sunbirds

Purple sunbirds, at Sheila's window sill

Lifted my spirits, filled me with thrill

As they chirped and flitted and discussed

the fine art of nest building, oh how they fussed.

One day, maybe I will be lucky and see their nest

That they have made with such care, choosing the very best.

The heron that blinked

I learnt about the nictitating membrane in birds from these fine photos by Mr Ramanan.A nigh heron with a fish that looks too big to swallow! Fish are always swallowed head first, and its a skill learnt by chicks at an early age. I've seen darters and pied kingfishers tossing fish deftly, before swallowing them head-first. (Photo by Mr Ramanan)

Photo by Mr Ramanan. The heron has swallowed the fish. Do you see its eye? Now look at the next picture.
No, its not a case of removing "red eye", its the heron's nictitating membrane having covered the eye! Photo by Mr Ramanan

Click on the picture and zoom in, and take a close look. This thin protective membrane is an extra protection that birds, fish and reptiles have, (we dont). This translucent third eyelid closes and opens horizontally across the eyeball, clearing dust, moistening the eye, protecting it in some cases from extreme conditions.

So, for example, owls while out hunting would keep this membrane closed and eyelids opened, so as to keep their eyes moist for better vision, but (quite literally) keeping their eyes open for that scurrying mouse or hopping frog.

It seems that the little pink bit of membrane we have in the corner of our eyes is a vestigial nictitating membrane.