Graveyards are now sanctuaries for birds

According to government estimates, there should be 12 sanctuaries to ensure the safe habitat of birds and wild animals. However, in reality, what is meant by sanctuaries has not been fully developed yet. As a result, graveyards now become safe havens for birds. Visiting some cemeteries in the capital, anyone will get the sense. Starling, dove, myna, sparrow, and benebou are sitting on the branches of big trees. At the same time, birds of prey like vultures, hawks, and owls can be seen. However, speaking to the authorities concerned, it was learned that the Forest Department does not have any survey of what kind of wild birds are in the different graveyards in the capital.

A visit to the capital's Rayer Bazar Boddhyo Bhumi graveyard showed that the cemetery is so large that birds have chosen this place as a safe habitat. Various species of birds including doves, cuckoos, pheasants, woodpeckers, yellow-billed pheasants, sparrows, and doyels can be seen here. Along with these birds, we also saw birds of prey like vultures, hawks, eagles, and owls. These species of birds are sitting comfortably on the branches of trees. However, they fly away as soon as they sense the arrival of humans.

We talked about birds with a woman who came to the cemetery often. She said: "Now we see many more birds of prey here. I saw so many birds of prey together during the liberation war in 1971. And this is the second time I have seen them for the last a few months."

Describing her experience, she said: "Yesterday, I was walking along the cemetery road when suddenly a pitiful sound came from a few yards away, and I stopped. I was not at all prepared for what I saw. I saw a hawk with a snake hanging from one of its legs and a dove holding it with its claws. I immediately shuddered. I tried to take a picture with my mobile phone but I couldn't muster the courage. In the meantime, the bird quickly flew away after catching its prey. More surprises awaited. As soon as the hawk flew away, I suddenly heard the sound of flapping wings and looked back, and saw a few vultures flapping their wings."

Talking to some of the regular visitors to the Rayer Bazar graveyard, Views Bangladesh learned about almost the same experience.

When asked why so many birds of prey suddenly live together here, former Director General of the Wildlife Department Ashraf Ali said that the number of hawks is higher in winter than at other times. This is because hawks are a species of migratory bird. For example, the Himalayan hawk, a resident bird of the countries surrounding the Himalayas such as Nepal, Bhutan, India, Pakistan and southern Tibet, migrates to northeastern India and Bangladesh in winter. He also said that the bird, which looks a bit like a Japanese hawk, is 45-53 centimeters long."

The director further said that due to the deserted chars of the Padma and Jamuna rivers, some birds of this species can also be seen in Rajshahi and Rangpur divisions. They were seen in 2016 while searching for Kalajang and Loharjang cranes in the chars of the Padma river in Rajshahi. This hawk also exists in Panchagarh. The male bird weighs 630-810 grams and the female 515-970 grams. They search for food in the sky on the ground or on the branches of trees. They suddenly jump on rodents, snakes, reptiles, birds, invertebrates, etc. on the ground and hunt them with their sharp claws.

Their habitat is tree branches and mountain tops. They live by building a loft-like nest with sticks and leaves. They lay two to three grayish-white eggs, which hatch in 33-38 days. The chicks learn to fly in 43-60 days.

Referring to the damage to the habitat of birds due to the construction of houses, roads and industries, he said: "Excessive noise is harmful to birds. Bird sanctuaries are being destroyed due to the indiscriminate destruction of forests and jungles. As a result, these birds have chosen quiet places like cemeteries to live in for safety. That is why the influx of various species of birds and other animals in cemeteries has been noticeable lately."

When contacted, no official was available at the Agargaon Forest Department. On Sunday (February 2), it was learned that the Chief Conservator of Forests of the Forest Department, Md. Amir Hossain Chowdhury, is not in the country. When searching for Conservator of Forests, Wildlife and Nature Conservator (Dhaka Region) Emran Ahmed, it was learned that he is also in Switzerland. Then, contact was made with Forest Director Sanaullah Patwari, but it was learned that he is outside Dhaka as well.

According to experts, the number of birds in the country is decreasing at an alarming rate due to the indiscriminate destruction of forests, reduction in the number of wetlands, large-scale bird hunting, etc. At present, the number of endangered bird species in the country is more than 68,000. Ten species of birds are on the list of critically endangered. One of them is the vulture. Fifty years ago, the number of vultures in this country was more than a lakh. Today, it is much less.

They said that urgent steps need to be taken for the safety of birds in this deplorable state. In this regard, the government should increase surveillance, as illegal bird hunting is a punishable criminal offense. There are provisions for punishment in the Wildlife Protection Act of 1974 and the Wildlife Conservation and Safety Act of 2012. The Act states that the maximum penalty for killing birds is one year in prison, a fine of Tk1lakh or both. If the same crime is repeated, the punishment and fine are doubled. This law should be used properly by operating mobile courts.