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Review Article
17.
The case of the disappearing house sparrow (Passer domesticus
indicus) -
Anjan Dandapat, Dipak Banerjee and Dibyendu Chakraborty
Vet World. 2010; 3(2): 97-100
Abstract
The fluffy brown sparrows are 15cm in length and distributed all
over India up to 4000m in the Himalayas. The disappearance of
sparrows has been widely reported in India. The sparrow
population in Andhra Pradesh alone had dropped by 80 per cent,
and in other states like Kerala, Gujarat and Rajasthan, it had
dipped by 20 per cent, while the decline in coastal areas was as
sharp as 70 to 80 per cent. But reliable information on sparrow
populations is not available. No one is actually counting and
keeping a record of the sparrows. The spread of diseases due to
decline in sparrow population is an alarming danger.
Introduction of unleaded petrol, use of chemically treated
seeds, flow of electromagnetic waves from cellphone towers,
reducing areas of free growing weeds or reducing numbers of
badly maintained buildings, competition for food by other
species etc. are possible reasons for this disappearance. The
BirdLife International, Royal Society for the Protection of
Birds (RSPB), a UK-based organisation and the Bombay Natural
History Society (BNHS) have taken plan for the protection of
sparrow population.
Key words: Alarming danger, disappearance, house sparrow,
India, plan, reasons
