Pune’s birds are flying away from the city in search of nest friendly environment. Birds coming to the city are therefore unable to recognize these trees and feel uncomfortable to build their nests in them. Professor Sanjeev Nalawade, environmental expert and head of the Geography department, Fergusson College, said, “Birds need a certain degree of connection to trees and the environment where they want to build their nests.”
Students of Fergusson College’s Environmental Science Department recently put together a series of research papers of which one report is saying that most of the trees and plants on the 65-acre campus are exotic with a scarcity of native varieties. Most of the trees growing in the campus are exotic to eco-system. Some, like the Yellow Oleander have been there for over 100 years and more than 20 types of birds eat its fruit so now they have started recognizing it. But there are newer varieties like the Nilgiri and the Subabul that are really hostile for birds. It’s not that the trees actively drive away birds; it’s just that they don’t recognize these species. The students have also penned a detailed report on the inter-relation and dependence of birds on native plants for better survival.
Fruit-bearing trees and flowering plants of native varieties should go up in number if we want to retain the birds. Native varieties like Umbar, Payar and Banyan should be encouraged. Conservation biologist Pooja Bhale said, “Ideally, when we want to initiate planting, we should try and keep to native vegetation. It is important to improve the variety of host plants that are conducive for butterflies and birds to lay their eggs.
