In Search of the Common House Sparrow In Attingal

A bird race was conducted in Thiruvananthapuram city on November 15. About 54 people participated in the race and they found 145 species of birds. In a report about the event, what caught my attention was not what they had found, but what they had not. They could not find a single common house sparrow in and around Thiruvananthapuram. I thought sparrows (“kuruvi” in Malayalam) were in abundance in Attingal. So, I set out to photograph a sparrow in our region and prove the bird-racers wrong.

Unfortunately, after one week of bird watching that prompted many villagers look at me curiously (some of them suspiciously – when they saw me with a camera near the lake where ladies take bath), I could only prove them right. It seems that the common sparrow has deserted us Attingalites too.

However, I photographed some other birds during this unofficial bird race. I am no expert in bird watching – or in photography. Still, I dare to post some of the photos of birds: just in case these birds too follow the sparrow’s way.

Kariyila Kili

Crows

Maina

Ponman (Kingfisher)

Uppan

Irattavalan

Olainjali

Kuyil

Kock (Crane)

Apart from these, I also spotted a parrot, an owl, some pigeons, a few tiny humming birds, and some other unknown birds, but could not take publishable photos. Can you spot a green bird in this photo?