There lived a parakeet with wings as light as a kite that could take him anywhere he wanted to go. But it was not meant to be. He spent 20 years inside a tiny cage. When freedom came, he could barely move. He’d forgotten to fly.
Joseph Reginald, a member of Coimbatore-based Animal Rescuers, tells us this heart-breaking story of a parakeet his group rescued. “People should realise that it’s cruel to confine a bird to a cage,” he says. Imagine, the endless sky is its home, and here we are, treating it like a mere showpiece for our benefit. Joseph and his team assist the Forest Department in rescuing and rehabilitating parakeets that are caught to be sold as pets.
“The sellers are part of a wide network,” says Joseph. “Most of them smuggle the parakeets to Kerala, where they are raised as pets. ” The birds are seized at the border. Animal Rescuers helps maintain an aviary where the parakeets are rehabilitated. “They are in a state of extreme physical abuse,” says Joseph. “The wings are clipped; the claws are cut and the beaks are damaged too. It takes three to six months for them to get back to normal.”
This is not even a small fraction of what our birds and animals undergo in the hands of mankind. The theme for this year’s World Environment Day is ‘Go wild for life — Zero tolerance for the illegal wildlife trade’.
It’s time we spared a thought for this heartless practice that’s going on across the world. “The illegal trade in wildlife is next in size only to the illegal drug trade and the illegal arms trade, and is worth billions of dollars,” says wildlife filmmaker Shekar Dattari. “Most of the biodiversity of the planet is in developing countries, where laws are poorly enforced and the conviction rate for illegal hunting is very low. The monetary incentives for the hunters and traders, on the other hand, are very high.”
We live in a world where animals as magnificent as elephants are killed for their tusks; and those as endangered as tigers are hunted down for their skin and fangs. Even recently, 40 dead tiger cubs were found in a freezer at a Buddhist temple in Thailand. According to a BBC report, the Tiger Temple had at least 137 tigers in 2016. The monks are accused of being involved in illegal breeding and animal trafficking.
P. Jeganathan, a scientist with Nature Conservation Foundation, says that illegal wildlife trade feeds on man’s misplaced belief in wild animal-based medicines. From aphrodisiacs to painkillers, it’s hilarious to hear of the so-called miracles they can work. “A few years ago, I came across peafowl oil in Tiruchi. It was believed to cure knee pain,” he recalls.
Apart from medicinal uses, animals are poached for ornamental purposes an well. Think ivory, crocodile skin bags, rhino horn carvings…“The pangolin is hunted in Tamil Nadu for its scales,” says Jeganathan. He remembers seeing a refrigerator stuffed with the animals. “It was a gory sight,” he adds. “In southern Tamil Nadu, hedgehogs are sold in shops.”
Even butterflies are not spared. “Other than for scientific reasons, people collect them for ornamental purposes. There are some crazy collectors out there who would do anything for a thing of beauty,” he says. Collecting eggs of wild birds was a hobby in the past. “In certain countries, the practice still continues,” he adds.
So, how can the issue be dealt with? Animal Rescuers do their bit by creating awareness amidst school children. Says Joseph, “We encourage them to go bird watching to observe birds in their natural environment. We tell them that birds look more beautiful this way, rather than in a cage. Many children have come forward to hand over their pet birds.”
Shekar feels, “Only strong political will and a determination to stamp out this horrendous trade will produce results, as the problem has to be tackled on a war footing. Intelligence-led enforcement is absolutely vital, but the agencies entrusted with tackling the illegal wildlife trade in India are hamstrung by poor funding, staff shortages and motivation.” He adds that the onus is on the Government to “take this trade very seriously and act urgently”.
