Bangladesher Pakhi

Bangladesher Pakhi

Monday, November 7, 2016

THE DHAYAL/oriental magpie-robin/COPSYCHUS SAULARIS/দোয়েল পাখি



THE DHAYAL
oriental magpie-robin
( COPSYCHUS SAULARIS )
If there is a bird, very familiar in an
Indian village, and has a voice exquisitely
sweet, it is the Dhayal. The black and
white markings of its body correspond so
nearly to those of the Magpie, that it is
known as the Magpie-Robin. The bird resembles
the English Robin in many of its
habits. Constantly jerking up its tail, it
loves, like the Robin, to frequent places close
to human habitation. Bold and vivacious,
it steps into our verandahs, and nests in the
holes and crannies of human dwellings. As
a songster it has no rival in the plains of
India, the Shama. being a bird of the forest
depths. Its notes are clear and varied.
They greet our ears the very first thing in
the morning, and when all nature is silent
in the evening, their cheerful music ring.
out a farewell to the departing day.
The Dliayal is indeed a superb singer.
With its presence in the gardens, orchards,
burnsides, and the backyards of houses, it is
one of the attractions of our rural surrounding.
The semi-domestic nature of the
bird has left it in comparative liberty, and
though it is often caged, people have not
the same rage for it as they have for the
more unfamiliar Shama. Legge says that,
like the latter, the Dhayal is a mimic ; it
can roll its tongue in imitation of other
birds. Layard also records that its power
of mimicry manifests itself in its wild life as
well. This, if true, is singular, as it is unlike
other birds that have similar habits. Even
the parrots do not show this trait while at
large. The Dhayals in my own aviary,
however, do not "degrade" their voice, a.s
has been observed also by Gould, ''by apish
tricks of imitation." The Dhayal'.s pugnacious
instinct makes it a special favorite
with the rich in Nepal where it is kept like
gamecocks for fighting.
Distribution:
It is one of the most widely distributed
birds in India and is found everywhere
except in the extreme North-west beyond
the Punjab. In Rajputana and westwards,
the desert tracts are too arid for its
habitation. It is, however, found
in Kathiawar, Sind, and in and
around Karachi, whence it departs in April
with the advent of summer. Eastwards it
is abundant and is an inevitable feature of
bird life everywhere—both in the Sub-Himalayan
regions from Mussoorie eastwards, and
the hills and plains of Aryavarta. In Bengal,
no place is unrepresented up to the very
base of the Himalayas, where it is not seen
higher up than the Terais. Thence its range
extends up to Burma. Though not so
abundant in the Deccan, it is pretty
numerous along the Hills in the West, and
in the lowlands of the Madras Presidency
in the East. It is distributed throughout
the whole island of Ceylon.
Field Notes:
The characteristic difference between the
Shama and the Dhayal is that while the
former confines itself solely to the most
secluded depths of forests, the latter, though
not unknown in the solitude of
woods, seldom strays very far from
the vicinity of man. Its graceful
form is always in evidence around us. Early
at dawn, before other members of the fledged
tribes are astir, it pours forth its music in
a continuous stream from the foliage. At
noon it is generally busy, silently foraging
for food in the chequered shades of gardens
and orchards. While thus engaged, the
approach of man does not seem to ruffle its
composure, and except bestowing a half amusing
quizzical look, it cares no more for
your presence than for that of any other
living thing. At the same time, it will not
allow you to take any undue liberty with it.
If it notices that you are trying to come very
near, it will fly away a few yards, and perching
on the branch of a tree, regard your
discomfiture with a sublime complacency or
defy you by a musical rebuke for thoughtlessly
disturbing it at its midday meal. In
the evening when the day's labour is over,
it resumes its rapturous strain of music till late at dusk.
This habit of keeping early and late
hours is true also of the more retired Shama.
In fact, we observe many traits common to
both these birds. The Dhayal is as voracious
an insect-feeder as the Shama. It
seeks its prey near the ground and generally
selects the low branches of trees for perching,
though it is not uncommon to find it
seated on the top of some large tree or other
elevated spots. In pugnacity, it is almost
a cousin-Q:erman to the Shama. Like all
pugnacious birds, the Dhayal is unsociable
to a degree, staying alone throughout the
greater part of the year, and only occasionally
in the company of its mate.
Sometimes one may notice a deviation
from this habit of exclusiveness on the part
of the Dhayal. But this is seasonal only.
Prompted by a freshly roused combative
instinct, the bird suddenly develops a
gregarious impulse during the mating
period. It is not unusual to observe a
number of Dhayals congregating in an open
space in a garden or a grove to fight out
duels like the knights of mediaeval Europe.
As each bird comes out a winner, its success
is received with such an uproar of applause
that the uninitiated may easily mistake it
for some disaster in the avine world.
Amidst such din and commotion, each competitor
engages in combat till one is left the
sole champion of the field. Then, mighty
pleased with themselves and their performances,
the birds retire to their roosts,
chattering the while and discussing perhaps
the merits of different competitors. The
Dhayal's bullying tendency very often be trays
it into bondage. Bird-catchers take
advantage of this propensity and employ
tame birds to entrap it. .. Among the various
devices which are resorted to, one is to bring
a caged Dhayal to the place where wild ones
abound. Small sticks smeared with bird
lime are attached to the cage. As soon as
the captive bird begins to sing, the wild
Dhayals while coming down to challenge the
newcomer perch upon the sticks and get
fastened to the bird-lime. Sometimes the
tame bird is taken out of the cage and tied
to a long piece of string. While combating
its wild antagonist, it holds the latter in such
a firm grip with its beak and claw that the
catcher has no difficulty in securing the bird.
The Dhayal is full of activity. Watch it
feeding on the ground in the alleys and by lanes
of our countryside, you cannot fail to
notice its quick and animated movements.
With its wing half open or almost drooping,
it hops about in search of its prey, and at
each hop, stops with a jerk of its tail instantly
spread out and turned to the sky. If
cattle pass by at the moment, it flies up to
a low twig and keeps a sharp eye on any
insect or grub that may chance to be
brought to light. The moment it is noticed,
it comes down to snatch it up and after
beating it to death, returns with it to its
former perch. Always in motion, it raises
and depresses its body accompanied by
a flirtation of its tail. This tail-play is
most in evidence during the mating season
and specially at the time when several of
Dhayals are engaged in fighting out their
duels. The display consists in expanding the
tail like a fan so as to show the white outer
feathers, and continually jerking it up and
down. Although far from shy, the bird
likes the security of a thicket and revels in
the shade. While warily working its \\'ay
along the hedge, it betrays its presence by
uttering its shrill note every now and then.
It seldom sings in full view of man whose
sudden intrusion would check its flow of
vocal music ; and when thus interrupted,
it assumes a still attitude, fixing its cold
look upon him. If you advance nearer, it
will fly up to a higher perch or a more
distant twig. When flushed, it is seen to
fly directly from its perch in the cover of
the thicket to a more remote hiding place.
The hen bird is not slow to follow her
mate's example, but if she flies, she keeps
aloof from her lord and loses herself amidst
dense cover. While at ordinary times the
Dhayal seldom indulges in protracted flights,
it has been observed to develop a tendency
for sustained serial gyrations in the mating
season. The female Dhayal is far less
obtrusive than the male, and as she has a
less striking appearance, she easily eludes
detection. In conformity with the etiquette
of pugnacious birds, she knows what distance
to keep between herself and her lord. This
explains why the males appear singly so
often, but if you take a little pain to watch
carefully, you are likely to detect its retiring
partner not very far off. The Dhayal is
conscious of its right to its territory and
tenaciously keeps to its hunting ground.
It is not timid. Pond of insects as it is, it
may be easily encouraged to closer familiarity
with man, if we care to put now and
then a few grubs or disabled worms in its
way, or fix up in some safe place close to
our habitation little boxes or even earthen
pots which will be readily acceptable to the
bird as its nesting site. It is a beneficial
bird as far as its insect-feeding habit goes ;
and so, the more it is left to its liberty and
allowed to multiply, the better.
The Dhayal does not appear to sing in
the same way all the year round. It has
been observed to be in fall choral activity
chiefly during the mating period viz., in
April and May. The bird seems at that
time to be possessed with a musical mania,
warbling forth its amorous notes, which by
reason of their volume, depth, variety, and.
sweetness sound perfect to the human ear.
From August, its song begins to lose much
of its sweetness until in mid-winter it ceases
to fascinate us as before. And lo ! when
February comes, its voice begins again to
get into form and emerge once more into
full-throated melody towards the close of March.
Nests and Eggs:
The Dhayal takes to house-keeping at this
period and for nearly four months it is busy
rearing up its family. The bird seems to
have a remarkably monogamous instinct.
Observations of its habits in the
aviary substantiate the fact that a
cock-bird which has lost its hen
refuses to chum up with any other female,
and feels so much enraged as to kill all
subsequent wives submitted for its approval.
The Dhayal breeds throughout the plains of
India ; but many birds resort to the Dhoons
and Terais of the Himalayas during the
nesting season. Holes in trees, walls, banks,
corners of the under-roof or the eaves of a
verandah are the places generally selected
for nesting. The nest is invariably placed
in a secure and sheltered position and is
made up of roots, grass, fibers, feathers—in
fact anything that is to hand is utilized for
the purpose. In the hills, the nest is a
shallow loosely-built cup of moss, small
twigs, and dry leaves. The Dhayal develops
a great fondness for particular places.
However far it may stray from its abode in
other seasons, it will come back year after
year to the same spot as soon as the nesting
season arrives, and build its nest in exactly
the same place. Five is the usual complement
of eggs, which are oval, neither broad
nor very narrow, somewhat elongated, with
a moderately glossy surface. The ground
colour is sometimes greenish or greenish
white, and sometimes greenish-blue with rusty blotches.
Cage-life:
In the cage, the Dhayal is no less attractive
than the Shama. It becomes tame and
docile, and appears very happy, seeming to
realize that ''iron lavs do not a prison make'’
and sings away its time as sweetly
as when at liberty. Young, hand reared
birds grow up very hardy
and make very nice pets, but adult birds seem
to feel their loss of liberty very keenly just
after capture. The provision of a bath in
the cage delights it immensely, for it enjoys
a dip in water as much as the Shama. Its
treatment in captivity is almost similar to
that of the latter. The food prepared for
the one is well suited to the other. Only a
little more insect-food is necessary in order
to keep it in health. This discourages many
people from caging it. Apart from this question
of its insect -food, there are good o-rounds
for leaving it at liberty. The bird is so much
attached to the vicinities of human habitation
that it seems not to be a gain to deprive
it of its freedom. The growth of civilization
with the concomitants of modern
town-planning is working such a havoc on
bird-life that even many of the commonest
birds have chosen to leave our company for
ever. It is not advisable, therefore, to make
life unbearable even for those few that still
adhere to us. In Bengal such a large number
of nestlings of this bird is caught during
the nesting season that the law meant to
prevent it by declaring the season a closed
period for bird-catchers utterly fails in its
object. One effect of this indiscriminate
Capture is that in Calcutta what was once a
familiar garden-bird a few years back is now
a rare avis.
It is not very difficult to get the Dhayal
to breed in captivity. Any small wooden
box comes handy to it for nesting. It is
known to have done so successfully in England.
In a few instances, however, the
nestlings were killed by the cock-bird, which
had to be separated from the hen soon after
she had laid eggs. When it is housed in
an aviary with other birds, care should be
taken to eliminate the smaller and weaker
birds, as the latter are likely to be worried
by the bad-tempered Dhayal.
Coloration:
The bird is very well-proportioned, has a
graceful form, and looks very bold for its
tail which is almost always carried erect.
The upper part of its body is black with
a blue metallic gloss, the white
wing-coverts forming a broad band.
The under-surface is white from
the chest downwards. The two median pairs
of tail-feathers are black, the others white:
the fourth pair is either white with a small.
black tip, or white with a greater or less
amount of black. The bill is black, iris hazel-brown,
and the legs dark plumbeous.
ln the female, the upper part of the
body is uniformly dark-brown glossed with
blue. In the wings and tail, the white is
distributed as in the male. Chin, throaty
breast, and sides of the neck are grey ;
forehead and cheeks mottled with white
and grey ; sides of the body, vent, under
tail-coverts pale flavescent, and middle of
the abdomen whitish.
In the young, the upper plumage is dark
brown streaked with rufous ; the white in the
wings being as that in the adult ; the tail
brown with similar white patches. Throat
and breast grayish brown streaked with
rufous. The rest of the lower body is white.
The young assume adult plumage as soon
as they are fully fledged.
The Dhayal is considerably smaller in size
than the Shama, being only about eight
inches from the tip of its bill to the end of
its tail. But if we leave the tail in both
cases out of account, the Dhayal becomes
larger than the Shama, the reason being
that the latter has a longer tail. The
Dhayal's tail which is much shorter equals
its wings in length. In both t he Dhayal and
the Shama, the two central pairs of
 tail-feathers are black.

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