Observations on the foraging behavior of Tricoloured Munia Lonchura malacca (Linnaeus, 1766) and its interaction with pearl millet fields in Villupuram District, Tamil Nadu, India

Main Article Content

M. Pandian

Abstract

Study of foraging behaviour of Tricoloured Munia Lonchura malacca and its interaction in pearl millet crop fields was conducted in six villages of Tindivanam taluk, Villupuram district, Tamil Nadu from April to June 2020. A total of six flocks containing 1,640 birds of Tricoloured Munia were enumerated. The number of birds per flock varied from 60 to 800. They never split into small flocks and maintained the same flock size throughout the day. Tricoloured Munias used nine plant species for roosting. Twelve quadrats (0.3 ha) each of 5 m x 5 m size were laid in the pearl millet fields covering six villages. A total of 10,295 spikes were counted in these plots, and of these 3,785 spikes (36.7%) were found damaged by foraging munias. The maximum damage of 99.6% was observed in Thenputhur village. Along with Tricoloured Munia, five other granivorous birds, such as Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus, Indian Silverbill Euodice malabarica, Common Babbler Turdoides caudata, Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri, and White-rumped Munia Lonchura striata were also found foraging without any inter-specific competition. Farmers adopted various traditional bird repellent techniques such as beating utensils, throwing pebbles/soil on the crop, placing scarecrows, tying multi-coloured ribbons, and hanging bottles to chase the birds away.

Article Details

Section
Communications

References

Agriculture Times (2016). Pearl millet price will be static, Estimates, TNAU. www.agritimes.co.in (Accessed on 21 June 2020).

Ali, S. & S.D. Ripley (1987). Birds of India and Pakistan. Oxford University Press, New Delhi. 890 pp.

Bhatnagar, C., D.S. Shekhawat & V.K. Kohli (2013). Second record of the Tricolored Munia Lonchura malacca from southern Rajasthan. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 110(1): 76.

Bibby C.J., N.D. Burgess, D.A. Hill & S.H. Mustoe (2000). Bird Census Techniques. Second Edition. Academic Press, London, UK, xvii+302pp.

BirdLife International (2018). Lonchura malacca. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Accessed on 09 June 2020. www.iucnredlist.org/species/22719837/131885437

Cole, R. & C.P. Brown (1840). Catalogue of the Birds. The Madras Journal of Literature and Science 11: 27.

Cubillos, C.K., D.C. Ayala, R.M.P. Hernandez, M.M. Palacios, C.D. Jaranillo & J.S. Mejia (2010). Feeding biology of the tricolored munia (Lonchura malacca, Estrildidae) in the upper Magdalena valley, Colombia. Ornithologia Colombiana 9: 25–30.

Daniel, A.J. (2017). Commonly found avifauna of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. Journal of Entomology and Zoological Studies 5 (4): 46–52.

Deepan, R., B. Vikram, B. Harish, B. Ramakrishnan & A. Samson (2017). Occurrence of Tricoloured Munia (Lonchura malacca) in Karur district, Tamil Nadu. Journal of Applied Science and Research 5(6): 79—80.

Gadgil, M. & S. Ali (1975). Communal Roosting habits of Indian Birds. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 72(3): 716–726.

Grimmett, R., C. Inskipp & T. Inskipp (1999). Birds of the Indian Sub-continent. Oxford University Press, Delhi, India, 480 pp.

Jamdar, N. (1998). Southern black-headed munia Lonchura malacca in Koladeo National Park, Bharatpur, Rajasthan. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 95(3): 509—510.

Kale, M., B. Balfors, U. Mortberg, P. Bhattacharya & S. Chakane (2012). Damage to agricultural yield due to farmland birds, present repelling techniques and its impacts: an insight from the Indian perspective. Journal of Agricultural Technology 8(1): 49–62.

Llaguno, G.V. (1975). Damage potential of three species of Philippine weavers (Lonchura), Kaliskaran, Philippines. Journal of Biology 4: 141–144.

Rao, V. & O.P. Dubey (2006). Granivorous bird pests and their management. pp 29–61. In: S. Sridhara (Ed.), Vertebrate pests in Agriculture-Indian Scenario. Scientific Publishers, Jodhpur, India.

Rasmussen, P.C. & J.C. Anderton (2005).The Birds of South Asia: The Ripley Guide, 2 Volumes, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D. C. & Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, 1067 pp.

Reidinger, R.F. & J.L. Libay (1979). Perches coated with glue reduce damage in rice field plots. Bird Control Seminars Proceedings, 26. Wildlife Damage Management. University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nov 1979.

Salahudeen, M., E. Saranya, C. Gunasekaran & C. Vadivalagan (2013). Studies on the abundance and distribution of birds in three different habitats of Karur district, Tamil Nadu, South India. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 1(3): 57—63.

Sharma, S.K. (1999). Range extension of southern Black-headed Munia Lonchura malacca. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 38(2): 25—27.

Subramanya, S. (1982). Non-random foraging in certain bird pests of field crops. Journal of Biosciences 19(4): 369–380.

www.viluppuram.nic.in (2020). Government of Tamil Nadu: Villupuram District wbsite www.viluppursm.nic.in (Accessed on 09 June 2020).

www.viluppursm.nic.in (2020). Directorate of Millet Development, Government of India Website www.viluppursm.nic.in (accessed on 09 June 2020).

Most read articles by the same author(s)