For me, spring in Delhi has arrived when I hear the “Kutroo Kutroo” of the Brown headed Barbet. While people are heartbroken on not getting tickets to the famous Cold Play and Arijit Singh orchestras, my heart dances with joy on hearing the melodious songs of the Delhi Bird Orchestra and that too for free!!
The song of the Brown headed Barbet, also known as the Bada Basanta, is a harbinger of spring. It has a green body and a brown head with fine white streaks. It has a patch around its eyes that turns orange from yellow, in the breeding season, in the males! The chorus of the pair, alternating the Kutroo calls from different trees can be heard in the mornings these days.
The “Tuk Tuk Tuk Tuk” of its cousin, the Chota Basanta or the Coppersmith Barbet, is another interesting call these days. They are beautiful, colourful birds with grass-green bodies and a red breast and forehead and a yellow throat! Their call sounds like a coppersmith pounding on metal with his hammer hence the name. They love to feed on banyan and peepal figs.
Another sight to behold these days is the Purple Sunbird! The male’s breeding plum11ge turns to a metallic bluish purple colour to attract the female sunbird, with a romantic “chewitt chewitt”. Once the breeding season is over the male and female look alike with olive green plumage!
If you hear a soft “fifu fifu” whistle in banyan or peepal trees, you are very close to the stunning Yellow footed green pigeon, a winter visitor to Delhi. It is bright yellow green in colour with a mauve patch on its shoulder, which nests here and leaves in October. It is an acrobat that loves to hang upside down and devour figs. Do enjoy these magical sights and sounds on your joyful strolls.
