Birding in my garden

We decided to build our house a little away from the turmoil of city-life. The place we found in 1985, on

west slope of Hantana was the perfect place for our hideaway. We moved to this place in 1988, two years after I left school and even after 26 years, ours is the only place where the wildlife gathers. This is because ours is the only plot of land that has a lot of shade, many trees to feed on and no barriers for them to enter. A few Barking Deer, Wild Boar, Fishing Cat [not to mention a Leopard that took two of my dogs, one in 2000 and the other in 2001.] lizards, snakes whom I found refuge to release when people around the area caught them and brought to me, and many birds.

On the 16th February 2014, I was just out early in the morning with a cup of tea in my hand I heard a few bird calls, some tailor birds and a Scimitar Babbler. I called my younger daughter who is full of enthusiasm towards birds and refers to Prof. Sarath Kotagama's Bird-guide,

she came running with my pair of binoculars.

Within about 15 minutes, we were in a middle of hovering, chirping, feeding and fighting Feeding-Flock of oriental birds. We listed the birds down and here's the list. I thought of taking a few photos too and here are some of the photos for your pleasure.

1.      Spotted Dove

2.      Common Tailorbird

3.      Black Bulbul

4.      Black-rumped Flameback

5.      Yellow-fronted Barbet

6.      Small minivet (Little Minivet)

7.      Flame minivet (Orange Minivet)

8.      Pale-billed Flower pecker

9.      Indian Pitta

10.   Velvet-fronted Nuthatch

11.   Oriental White-eye

12.   Tickell's Blue Flycatcher

13.   Yellow-billed Babbler

14.   Yellow-eyed Babbler

15.   Sri Lanka Scimitar Babbler

16.   Oriental Magpie Robin

17.   Brown-headed Barbet

18.   White-throated Kingfisher

19.   Common Myna

20.   White-bellied Drongo

21.   Black-headed Munia

22.   Scaly-breasted Munia

23.   Purple Sunbird

24.   White-browed Fantail

Nayana Wickramasinghe - WildWorldWatch

DOES SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND TAXONOMIC STUDIES HELP CONSERVATION OF NATURE?

I have been actively participating in a couple of Non Governmental Organization [NGO] in Protecting Environment since about 1986. Since then I've come across of many environmentalists and scholars of Nature Studies. Out of these people, I've got to know that only a handful of people DID something to protect nature, but non of the taxonomists have done anything good for environment except getting their post graduate degrees to join a mission abroad or to find better job opportunities using their study records.

After all these years I've come to a conclusion that it is not the scholar that helps nature, but it is the common citizen who is aware of environmental destruction who helps protect nature.

This is open for you ideas and lets make a change today to help protect nature.

Nayana Wickramasinghe
WildWorldWatch
2014

It's really up to all of us to act NOW to prevent forest fire in Sri Lanka. The meteorological department of Sri Lanka has announced of serious droughts and added to this unconcerned people all over the island are setting fire to grasslands and it spreads to destroy the adjoining forests. The media of Sri  Lanka have just announces the fire as incidents only. Although they have the capability of making people aware of this devastating matter of destruction that affects future of every living thing in Sri Lanka, the politicians and the media are seemed to have deaf-ear.

If you are a serious person who think about the future of this beautiful island, please join us to acknowledge the authorities and general public to prevent setting fire to bush lands and grasslands.

Send your suggestion to freethinker@wildworldwatch.com
Thank you.

Nayana Wickramasinghe
WildWorldWatch
Sri Lanka

Is Nature Conservation inactive in Sri Lanka?

In 80s there were full of activities and activists that called out loud to save Nature. But in late 90s it seemed to have no interest of the public in conservation of natural resources. Anyone has ideas what the reasons are?