T-Perches Determining Avian Feeding Guilds in Maize

Abstract

Avian diversity is considered an environmental indicator for measuring ecosystem quality. The availability of food and its diverse types influence bird distribution and their community structure in agricultural landscapes. The current study investigated the role of T-perches as bird attractants in maize at the Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. A total of 39 species were observed belonging to 12 orders and 24 families. Insectivorous birds were observed as the most dominant feeding guild constituting 47.12%. Black drongo, jungle babbler, common myna, house crow, green bee-eater, and red-vented bulbul were noted utilizing t-perches for foraging purposes. The key factor driving the increase in insectivorous bird species seemed to be the additional perching sites available by installing T-perches.

Quality analysis of groundwater and surface water bodies around the selected brick kilns in Fatehgarh Sahib and Rupnagar Districts in Punjab, India

“…In the present study, the COD values for surface water and groundwater were similar to those found in Chandigarh city, which indicates that the COD values originated from anthropogenic activities (Kaur and Malik, 2012). A recent research showed that many species of birds also live in and around the surface water (water ponds) in Barnala District of Punjab State (Kaur et al, 2018).During the period in which this study was conducted, ducks were seen in the ponds visited,whichis a sign of microbiological activity and poor water quality. The disposal of various types of domestic and commercial waste in the ponds may lead to the entering and biomagnifications of contaminants in theaquatic food chain by affecting the COD levels in surface water.…”

“…In rural areas of the state, many village ponds serve for rainwater harvesting, livestock bathing and irrigation (Ansal et al, 2010). Due to the household wastewater discharges in the statevillage ponds, the later are rich in nutrients, which attract many species of migratory and local birds (Kaur et al, 2018).The state of Punjab is characterized by significant production of Bharat bricks (fired bricks), as about 2500 brick production units withmore than 2 lakh workersis a prominent non-agro-based industry in the state (Kainth, 2009). To draft the study plan, a pilot survey was first conducted to locate the brick kilns on Google Earth.…”

“…Acidity formation in water is a complex process involving different factors (Akpan et al, 2021). The reason for thehigher mineral content in surface watermay be probably due to its openness, the air deposition of pollutants from the nearest brick kilns and other anthropogenic activities easily reach the surface water(SahaandMostafa, 2021), and in some cases, the surface water ponds were the dumping sites for different types of industrial and domestic waste (Singh, 2014;Kaur et al, 2018).…”

“…The presenceof E. coli andtotal coliforms werealso more significant for surface water than for groundwater, which is justified by the fact that there workers constantly settle in slums around brick kilns, where basic hygiene and sanitation facilities, especially toilets,are inadequate or even absent (Singh, 2014;Daly et al, 2020),and a large number of birds livein water ponds in state of Punjab (Kaur et al, 2018). In 2019, a study onthe bacteriological quality of groundwater revealed that more than 60% of groundwater sources in Punjab are affected by bacteriological pollution and are unfit for drinking due to leachate from landfills and more than 14% were contaminated with E. coli (Tiwari et al, 2019).…”