Losing touch with nature’s beauty: Poor planning forces native, migratory birds to leave town
A villager believes professional hunting has caused a decline in the number of species.
A villager believes professional hunting has caused a decline in the number of species. ILLUSTRATION: JAMAL KHURSHID
KARACHI:
Once abuzz with thousands of native and migratory birds, the Kaka Pir and Younisabad villages boast no more of providing a favourable environment to these colourful creatures. Some 20 years ago, these species could be seen taking flight over the mangrove forests but today, these birds are almost extinct.
Factors such as land-grabbing, poor town planning, deforestation of mangroves and the discharge of chemical effluents in Lyari River have affected the life of residents and the flora and fauna alike.
The birds - the pelicans, flamingos, ducks, ibis, pochards, shikra, buzzards, redshanks, kingfishers and warblers - flew together and lived side by side. The habitat of several species, however, is reported to have declined in the last decade.
The sounds they made in the noon and at night were music to the ears of inhabitants but now it seems a distant memory. An aged Muhammad Ibrahim from Younisabad a village near Sandspit — said, “I never thought they will disappear. I saw them in thousands during the winter and we called them our guests from the north.”
His childhood memories at the forest patch seem to fade away like these birds. “We hunted them weekly but never sold them. The hunting was also on a limited scale,” he stressed, adding that birds disappeared when professional hunters came in. “Moreover, the rise in population have left a limited space for these creatures to inhabit.”
WWF-Pakistan’s Wetland Centre incharge Naveed Soomro was of the view that the expansion of the city was one of the reasons behind the decline. He also supported Ibrahim’s view point that increased levels of hunting had reduced the number of native and migratory birds.
The centre, situated in the middle of the Sandspit’s mangrove forest, has been working since 2001 to protect the forest and its species with the support of local communities. At that time, the WWF’s officials and local communities held early morning birds-watch to observe the number of birds and their species living in the vicinity.
Soomro was of the view that they had not only observed a decline in the number of species but in their population as well. He disclosed that over the last 10 years the decline in the number of species was over 40 per cent. “Several kinds of migratory birds are missing now. They don’t come here anymore,” said Soomro, adding that the decline in the native birds is another serious issue.
According to the WWF findings, there were about 38 families of different species with 114 kinds of birds in the area. The centre with the help of local communities has built a healthy forest patch to allow these birds to have a better abode, he added.
Ibrahim said this would help them save these trees [mangroves]. “The generations to come will see some kinds of birds,” he said. To him, Younisabad is not a village but a city with no fresh air.
The mangrove forest of Sandspit has a conspicuous appeal. The cool breeze, flight of birds and lush greenery offers a serene environment. Soomro feels that without the involvement of local communities the preservation of species was not possible. “They own it and understand its importance. The indigenous communities play a pivotal role,” he said, adding that there was a strong relationship between the residents and their resources. Soomro is hopeful that the birds could return if thick forests were planted.
Muhammad Usman from a nearby village was of the view that poor town planning and lack of environmental assessment have caused restlessness among birds. “We are enemies of our own environment. First we kill the birds and then we ask others where they had gone,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 21st, 2013.
Once abuzz with thousands of native and migratory birds, the Kaka Pir and Younisabad villages boast no more of providing a favourable environment to these colourful creatures. Some 20 years ago, these species could be seen taking flight over the mangrove forests but today, these birds are almost extinct.
Factors such as land-grabbing, poor town planning, deforestation of mangroves and the discharge of chemical effluents in Lyari River have affected the life of residents and the flora and fauna alike.
The birds - the pelicans, flamingos, ducks, ibis, pochards, shikra, buzzards, redshanks, kingfishers and warblers - flew together and lived side by side. The habitat of several species, however, is reported to have declined in the last decade.
The sounds they made in the noon and at night were music to the ears of inhabitants but now it seems a distant memory. An aged Muhammad Ibrahim from Younisabad a village near Sandspit — said, “I never thought they will disappear. I saw them in thousands during the winter and we called them our guests from the north.”
His childhood memories at the forest patch seem to fade away like these birds. “We hunted them weekly but never sold them. The hunting was also on a limited scale,” he stressed, adding that birds disappeared when professional hunters came in. “Moreover, the rise in population have left a limited space for these creatures to inhabit.”
WWF-Pakistan’s Wetland Centre incharge Naveed Soomro was of the view that the expansion of the city was one of the reasons behind the decline. He also supported Ibrahim’s view point that increased levels of hunting had reduced the number of native and migratory birds.
The centre, situated in the middle of the Sandspit’s mangrove forest, has been working since 2001 to protect the forest and its species with the support of local communities. At that time, the WWF’s officials and local communities held early morning birds-watch to observe the number of birds and their species living in the vicinity.
Soomro was of the view that they had not only observed a decline in the number of species but in their population as well. He disclosed that over the last 10 years the decline in the number of species was over 40 per cent. “Several kinds of migratory birds are missing now. They don’t come here anymore,” said Soomro, adding that the decline in the native birds is another serious issue.
According to the WWF findings, there were about 38 families of different species with 114 kinds of birds in the area. The centre with the help of local communities has built a healthy forest patch to allow these birds to have a better abode, he added.
Ibrahim said this would help them save these trees [mangroves]. “The generations to come will see some kinds of birds,” he said. To him, Younisabad is not a village but a city with no fresh air.
The mangrove forest of Sandspit has a conspicuous appeal. The cool breeze, flight of birds and lush greenery offers a serene environment. Soomro feels that without the involvement of local communities the preservation of species was not possible. “They own it and understand its importance. The indigenous communities play a pivotal role,” he said, adding that there was a strong relationship between the residents and their resources. Soomro is hopeful that the birds could return if thick forests were planted.
Muhammad Usman from a nearby village was of the view that poor town planning and lack of environmental assessment have caused restlessness among birds. “We are enemies of our own environment. First we kill the birds and then we ask others where they had gone,” he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 21st, 2013.