The displacement!

 

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I kept looking for about six weeks now, the resident Magpie robins in our garden A pair was often in our garden. Knowing that they are perched at some favourite tall trees, I searched for them for about three weeks now. In fact it is their bird calls which are tuneful which announce their presence.  When their bird calls were not heard, I began suspecting about some stress factor because of which they did not sing as before. I found out from a bird watcher that a bird, who usually has a particular behaviour, can behave differently, when there is stress.  

A Magpie robin was perched in the tree outside the main door to our cottage in a tree, which gave it an advantaged position to watch the happenings in the garden. I noticed how it tracked the movements of the Bulbuls, Barbet, and Myna. It seemed to be comfortable but without any bird calls. 

When it noticed a garden lizard in the plant below, it seemed to show restlessness and flew away from the garden. 

I too have noticed a garden lizard in the feeding station and on other plants recently. I noticed that Magpie robins are comfortable with squirrels. But I wonder whether the presence of a garden lizard is an inhibition to the Magpie robin. 

During the five minutes I caught the attention of the Magpie robin, it kept looking at the camera and appeared communicative. But its body behaviour changed when the garden lizard appeared in the plant below. 

Was the Magpie robin displaced  by more birds now visiting the garden? Or is it because of any predator in the garden!

The experience of displacement is an emotional matter rather than only a physical reality. 

An interview of a family who had to relocate to a new location following the recent landslide in the Wayanad area, expressed to the press reporter, how there is no longing to get up in the morning. Otherwise walking with the neighbour to collect milk at 5 am, then  to the field to gather flowers and later to the common well to collect water gave a friendly and inviting ambience. At dusk, they met again at the well and it was like a debriefing of the day. There was a connect that gave acceptance and social comfort. This family is trying to find similar connections. There were not many children in the locality, which make their two pre-school children homebound during the day. 

 

I guess that the avians also would have similar connections that make them comfortable. But if there is any stressful factor, they behave differently!

My thoughts got carried away to Gaza, Israel-Lebanon border and West Bank, where the conflict has got intensified. The expectation was that Israel would announce some peace initiatives at the first anniversary of the conflict, but it is far from that! To live stressfully would make some prone to post-traumatic stress disorder. I read a comment from a doctor that he was tired of attending on patients brought to the emergency department with multiple bleeding injury following the bomb blasts. 

If a person is displaced from his or her emotional comfort zone, it is an unfortunate situation to be in!

I feel delighted by the interest of a group of college going students to visit people, who recently came to live in their locality following  the land slide. They go with cricket bat and ball, foot ball  and a Boomerang to play with children. The parents of children too have felt encouraged by these visits. One college student when asked, said, 'it was a decision which was initiated by their teacher sharing in the class that the new comers to any locality can feel lonely... what if you went to visit such people once or twice a week'. A group of four students do it now for about three weeks as their contribution to make the new residents feel welcome. They brought comfort to the new residents and   cheer to the children, who are yet to adjust to the new school. 

The stressful experiences can be many. But we can anticipate and respond to such situations to make people feel at home! Three cheers to the college students who are mindful of others!

Anna and I need to find a way to help the Magpie robins to return to its earlier way of moving about in the garden freely and singing tunefully! 

M.C.,Mathew (text and photo)