By Chin Siewyoong
I spent the morning talking to the wild birds that come by every morning to perch on a small tree, just outside my window. In the past year, I had spotted pairs of Yellow – vented Bulbuls, Javan Mynas and Asian Glossy Starlings on that tree. The tree had flowers that the birds found appetizing and kept returning for. A few pigeons and a family of sparrows would come by daily too. Occasionally, the shy Yellow-breasted Sunbird couple that not too long ago, weaved a beautiful nest in my backyard would revisit.
Spotted dove
Yesterday, the facility’s maintenance crew came and cut the tree down. It had survived the past year without their notice and no harm came to it – till yesterday. The tree was not part of the facility’s landscaping. It just grew wild undisturbed, till yesterday. My heart sank, when I saw the tree chopped down.
This drizzly rainy morning, the pair of Bulbuls and Javan Mynas came by and sat on the wall next to where the tree once stood. Alas, their tree had vanished and no more. They chirped forlornly (it sounded like so, but I am no bird whisperer……). They clung on to the wall for a good half an hour, twisting their little heads, seemingly puzzled. What happened to their tree, their morning breakfast perch?
After a while, they flew off, resigned to their fate. Perhaps they know life must go on; and they need to search for a new tree. Only the sound of raindrops now I could hear, as I type this out.
I grieve for my bird friends, for their loss (and for mine too). For the first time, I saw with my own eyes the impact of cutting down a tree, and what it does to wildlife. It hurts. My bird friends would need to find another tree. I am not likely to see them again tomorrow morning, nor hear their chirpy cacophony that heralds the dawn of another new morn.
We need to think about nature before we cut trees and build human dwellings. Can we not do so in a way that co-exist with nature? We took over what were once jungles and nature, mowed them down and put up all these concrete boxes. Yet, so many remain empty, unutilised, ugly, and abandoned, in so many cities across the world.
I am writing my new year resolutions, which I habitually do in the last week of every year. Plant a native tree for the birds [To do by 31 December 2024].
I came across this paper published in 2013, by Christopher J. Hails and Mikaail Kavanagh. It is a very good read, as it provides interesting insights on bird conservation work in Singapore, landscaping strategies and tree species that provide food and shelter for the birds. I am sharing it here, so that more people, can plant a tree to help bring back the birds.
Let’s all plant a tree this year.
Let’s help bring back the birds!
RIP Tree and Farewell My Bird Friends.
Feature picture shows Asian Starling and Yellow-vented Bulbul
About the Contributor
Chin Siewyoong works in the office of sustainability of a healthcare organisation. She enjoys long walks, and hiking trips to observe nature. She is inspired by the forest and all its glorious biodiversity. She would like to convince some that the forest and the treasure trove of wildlife, flora and fauna that reside within are nature’s gifts that are so fragile and need our protection.
