In between seeing the fledgeling Shikras for the first time and the time of writing this post (one day) as is my wont, I spent a lot of time on the Internet, reading up and researching
on my subjects, and it seems (on the basis of some reading material
shared by a good friend who is a fellow birder and raptor aficionado)
that Shikra fledgelings are more or less totally dependent on their
mothers for something like two months!
When I do the math and recollect from my own memory of sightings past of these birds, Juvenile (as opposed to fledgelings) Shikras -- with noticeable barring on the breast and spots on the belly and legs -- seem to make their "first" appearance as the rains are at their fag end, in the first weeks of September.
So there, huh?
But two months does seem such a long period of time, for what look like so capable birds, no?
But then, they have so much to learn -- from their mother and Mother Nature, before they can be skilled hunters worthy of being called the Leopards of the Sky!
Meanwhile, on the basis of what I saw (after yet another long, sweaty and bone-numbing walk) they seem to be doing a good job of growing up and watching the world around while waiting for their mother like well-behaved kittens in the shadows of this protective Neem.
They did sally forth a couple of times, but their flying seemed to be imbued with a sense of wonder rather than the power and grace one would associate with an adult Shikra.
Seeing them fly was both fulfilling and bemusing...I have never seen a Shikra fly so slowly; for a minute I thought I was in the presence of Kestrels trying to hover in a strong crosswind!
(No, I did not even try to make a photograph; somehow I didn't even feel like raising the lens, I was so entranced.)
In between this and other photo-shoots, I spent some time snooping around to see the amount of human footfalls that this area gathers.
Two spotty teenagers with scraggly beards and tattoos were the first. They had come by on a Scooty with what looked like at least 6 bottles of beer, a packet of smokes, some paper plates, etc, etc. Their open air bar was barely 50 metres away from the Neem. I walked over to it and spoke to them at length about littering, Swacch Bharat, the Police, the Indian Army, etc, etc.
I also asked them to go and drink a bit farther, where they would be a bit less noticeable for the Police, the Indian Army, etc, etc.
By now, one of them looked as if he wouldn't notice it if a two headed snake popped up right in front of him and the other seemed genuinely contrite, so I decided I had done enough. Then came along some worthies out for a walk, headed generally in the direction of the Neem. These guys were easy meat. I just brought up the topic of snakes...politely asking them if they had seen any Cobras around.
When it was evident that they weren't exactly thrilled at the prospect of seeing Cobras -- I helpfully suggested that they could go on their walks on the paved roads (and away from the Neem) because Cobras stay away from paved roads.
I waited and waited for them to take the hint, and even turned my back on them...but they walked to the Neem and sat right under it. All this while, when I was indulging in these lies and deception and generally being a badass with both the teenage beer drinkers and the walkers, I was surreptitiously watching the Neem and hoping and praying that the Shikras don't sally out of it.
Luckily they stayed put there, swaying up and down in the breeze, and if I wasn't looking out for them, I wouldn't have seen them.
Two more months...
When I do the math and recollect from my own memory of sightings past of these birds, Juvenile (as opposed to fledgelings) Shikras -- with noticeable barring on the breast and spots on the belly and legs -- seem to make their "first" appearance as the rains are at their fag end, in the first weeks of September.
So there, huh?
But two months does seem such a long period of time, for what look like so capable birds, no?
But then, they have so much to learn -- from their mother and Mother Nature, before they can be skilled hunters worthy of being called the Leopards of the Sky!
Meanwhile, on the basis of what I saw (after yet another long, sweaty and bone-numbing walk) they seem to be doing a good job of growing up and watching the world around while waiting for their mother like well-behaved kittens in the shadows of this protective Neem.
They did sally forth a couple of times, but their flying seemed to be imbued with a sense of wonder rather than the power and grace one would associate with an adult Shikra.
Seeing them fly was both fulfilling and bemusing...I have never seen a Shikra fly so slowly; for a minute I thought I was in the presence of Kestrels trying to hover in a strong crosswind!
(No, I did not even try to make a photograph; somehow I didn't even feel like raising the lens, I was so entranced.)
In between this and other photo-shoots, I spent some time snooping around to see the amount of human footfalls that this area gathers.
Two spotty teenagers with scraggly beards and tattoos were the first. They had come by on a Scooty with what looked like at least 6 bottles of beer, a packet of smokes, some paper plates, etc, etc. Their open air bar was barely 50 metres away from the Neem. I walked over to it and spoke to them at length about littering, Swacch Bharat, the Police, the Indian Army, etc, etc.
I also asked them to go and drink a bit farther, where they would be a bit less noticeable for the Police, the Indian Army, etc, etc.
By now, one of them looked as if he wouldn't notice it if a two headed snake popped up right in front of him and the other seemed genuinely contrite, so I decided I had done enough. Then came along some worthies out for a walk, headed generally in the direction of the Neem. These guys were easy meat. I just brought up the topic of snakes...politely asking them if they had seen any Cobras around.
When it was evident that they weren't exactly thrilled at the prospect of seeing Cobras -- I helpfully suggested that they could go on their walks on the paved roads (and away from the Neem) because Cobras stay away from paved roads.
I waited and waited for them to take the hint, and even turned my back on them...but they walked to the Neem and sat right under it. All this while, when I was indulging in these lies and deception and generally being a badass with both the teenage beer drinkers and the walkers, I was surreptitiously watching the Neem and hoping and praying that the Shikras don't sally out of it.
Luckily they stayed put there, swaying up and down in the breeze, and if I wasn't looking out for them, I wouldn't have seen them.
Two more months...
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