10 Birds We Hardly See These Days

There were numerous birds in our backyards even a few years back. But birds we used to see at least 10 years back are hard to find recently. Indian sub-continent used to host a lot of common birds which are rarely seen these days. Loss of habitat, increase in Mobile towers radiation, improper & abundant usage of pesticides, poaching and without permission hunting have taken a heavy toll in the bird ecology. Common birds like Sparrow, Owl, Magpie Robin, Drongo, Jungle babblers, Nightjar, Hawk Cuckoo are hardly seen these days. On the other hand rapid increase in Crow population has been observed in Indian sub continent which, as per the scientists, is due to increase in garbage & waste dump all over. Can't we do something to save these birds which used to sing just a decade back. Indian Government is trying hard to protect them but is not it our responsibility too to protect them? No government can succeed in this kind of plans without its inhabitants being actively taking part into these. We need be concerned about them as well. If they keep decreasing in number every year it'll affect the ecology & human life as well. That day will not be a good day after all.

Here is a list of most common bird used to be seen all over India but has drastically decreased in number -

1. Forest Owlet : One of the cutest and most photographed bird has been considered extinct but later found in adequate numbers in Indian sub-continent. But still their numbers are not very much satisfactory.

Owlet

2. Vulture : Vultures were one of the most seen bird in the Indian and African Continent but has been drastically decreased recently. Due to increased usage of Diclofenac in Vet medics has affected the population of this bird heavily. Also usage of uncontrolled pesticides has decreased their number.

Vulture

3. Sparrows : The most popular bird in every house hold is seen rarely these days. Mobile towers in locality, decrease in vacant space due to lesser number of trees, decrease in insects due to high use of insecticides which happens to be their food have summed up to their disappearance.

House Sparrow

4. Hawk Cuckoo : Used to frequently seen at Spring all over India this bird is commonly known as Brain Fever or Chokh gelo In Bengali. But suddenly the number has gone down drastically. Increase in temperature, deforestation to make human civilization enriched fatally affected the bird population.

Hawk Cuckoo or Brain Fever

5. Himalayan Monal : A common bird in upper Himalayas has been substantially decreased in number due to hunting and poaching. Very colorful feathers have always attracted men & it is very popular to use the feather in Hats. Due to excessive killing this beautiful bird is currently an endangered species.

Himalayan Monal

6. Munia or Avadavat : These small but extremely agile bird was frequently seen in all over Bengal even 5-6 years back. But again high usage of pesticides, lesser open space has lowered the numbered heavily. Specifically Red Avadavat number has gone very less.

Red Avadavat

7. Indian Roller/ Neelkantha : It is said the famous Bengal Durga Puja is not complete without this bird. But poaching & superstition has almost put this beautiful bird species on the verge of extinction.

Neelkantha Bird

8. Drongo : Commonly known as Finge in Bengal was very popular & distinguishable by its divided tail. But recently there has been frequent decrease in the number due to pollution, increased temperature etc.

Finge / Drongo

9. Great Indian Hornbill : There are several legends about this bird, it has been hunted all over India. Loss of habitant & poaching has put this majestic bird into real danger. We need to act real fast if we really want to see this bird in near future.

Indian Hornbill

10. Chestnut Tailed Starling : A common variety of Myna widely seen in South eastern part of Asia is now rarely seen. These birds likes to stay in a flock and feeds on fruits & insects. Rapid destruction of trees & increase in pesticides has affected their lifestyle to a great extent.

Chestnut Tailed Starling

Apart from these there are a lot of other birds which needs real attention. Its still not too late when we can't do anything to save these beautiful species. Its our responsibility being the most intelligent mammal in this world to take care of other species. Let's support the wildlife habitat by increasing the open space protection, planting a good amount of trees, making people aware of how chemical pesticides are affecting them and by increasing global awareness through campaigns involving social media. Else this planet will soon lose the balance Eco-system must need in order to survive. The what will happen to us?

** most of the pictures are taken from Google.

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12 most Essential Apps When You Travel

Travelling is a not a hobby any more. It has grown more than this. It was a few years back when travelling to off beat locations were too risky as mostly no info was available on staying there, travelling options, renting a car, fooding or parking availability etc. I have seen several travel operators around 90's and 2000's who severely faltered in coordination due to lack of info. Obviously there were better travel operators but most of them lacked the required info.

These days we don't need operators to arrange our trips. Event some of them are frequent flyers for their office or business activities. There are several websites & apps available which erased the gap between countries and information. Here are a list of some of the apps (surely smartphones have gone beyond laptops & desktops these days) which can make your life easy while travelling or arranging your next trip

Apps You Need

Booking Related

Oyo Rooms : One of the best apps in the market to book hotels of home stays during your trip. You can search & book thousands of room through this app, get hands on info & other user feedback about the room to ease your decision.

Booking : Another great app for booking hotels & find best deals. This can give you tremendous value for your money with all sort of first hand user feedback to make your choice viable. You can also find unique rating option for services of the hotels.

Car & Travelling Related

Uber : Great app to book cars whenever you go. The prices are quite suitable for pocket & recently they have improved their security options in the app. Also there are a lot of offers which can sometimes make your ride free of cost. They are currently plying in 300 cities across 58 countries.

Google Map ; Travel using your GPS to reach places unknown to you. This map gives you great precision to find locations & directions to reach there from your current position.

Flight, Railway & Bus Booking

Indian Railway App/IRCTC Connect/ERail : Find about trains, book online, get their running status on the go using these apps. Both the apps are very helpful and once of the most used Apps in India. Get time table of local trains commuting from different suburb of Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai etc.

ClearTrip/Skyscanner : Both the apps are equally good finding right flights for your trips. You can find both domestic & international flights. Both the apps provide cheapest air travel tickets and can help finding hotels car hire as well.

Abhi Bus/Red Bus : Book bus online using these apps. They provide mostly all the bus routes in India. They provide option to choose your seats & book bus online by making payment directly from the App.

 Miscellaneous

Trip Advisor : The best app in the travel domain provide valuable info about the hotels, places, direct feedbacks form thousands of customers will help you in finding the right choice for you. You can communicate with fellow travellers, ask them questions about the places. Also you can search what to see in places where you are travelling to planning to travel.

Google Translate : Although World is nowadays is not a big place to travel, the language barrier is still creating havoc. Google has offered a great app which provides real time translation in numerous languages. This can be a very obvious choice for you when travelling to countries with lesser English population.

Zomato : best app to find fooding option wherever you travel. This can give you first hand experiences of fellow foodies to rate hotels, restaurants & foods which you must try or must not.

Parking Panda : A very good app to search for parking spaces when you are travelling abroad and book online parking slots. This can ease you pain for parking in unknown countries and can save you from getting fined parking in no parking places.

Expansify : Track & manitain your expanses using the app and create expanse reports quickly. Its a great app for business & corporate travellers and helps to sync your credit cards, provide currency conversion. This can help you integrate Excel, Salesforce or Xero.

So whenver you are going for your next trip, be it holiday or business meet don't forget to get these apps with you which can actually save your valuable time. You can also search for other similar apps which can come in handy.

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