World Sparrow Day is being observed on March 20 to raise awareness about the sparrow and help protect the bird. The theme this year is Rise for the Sparrow: Experience the power of one.
Mohammed Dilawar, founder-president of Nature Forever Society, who spearheads the sparrow campaign in the country for the past eight years, says the onus of saving the sparrow lies with the citizens of the country. Citizens from across the country can write, blog, sketch, share photos, adopt nest boxes and feeders to save the sparrow.
One initiative of Nature Forever Society is the Common Bird Monitoring of India (CBMI) which gives individuals, corporates and educational institutions a chance to monitor birds in their area. All it requires volunteers to do is spend 15 minutes a day to keep a log on the 18 species of birds that they have to monitor. This simple activity, if undertaken over a period of time by a number of nature lovers, will be able provide invaluable data. Sparrow numbers have decreased in urban areas owing to lack of nesting space. There is also a scarcity for food and fresh water. Elsewhere, in agricultural areas the use of pesticides is killing the sparrows. Log on to www.worldsparrowday.org for more information.
