पृष्ठम्:Birds in Sanskrit literature.djvu/४६

15 DRONGOS The Drongos (Drongo Shrikes or Fork-tailed Shrikes) are a well known family of Indian birds defined by their black plumage and long forked tails. They are entirely insectivorous, and being weak in the legs they are incap- able of any progression on the ground or even along the branch of a tree so that their movements are entirely aerial and they sally forth from a fixed perch after flying insect, picking them off from the tree trunks as well. Some, like the Black Drongo, descend to the ground to pick up a morsel while its larger cousins, the Racket-tailed ones, are entirely arboreal and hunt in the air from high or low vantage points. They are the bravest of our birds, dashing headlong at and driving away any unwanted intruder, including Hawks, Kites, Crows etc., from the vicinity of their nests or young, but allowing harmless birds like the Oriole to build their nests on the same tree. The Drongos share in common the Sanskrit name, , after their black colour like that of the large Black Bee (), and, Hindi भुजङ्ग (भुजं वक्रं गच्छति), after their agile swoops turning and twisting dextrously in the air like a serpent on the ground. The larger Racket-tailed Drongos, however, go by the name of Bhriga-raja. The main characteris- tics of important species and their names in a few of the Provincial verna- culars, given below, should serve as a brief introduction to them. 1. The Common Black Drongo is one of the mest familiar birds of the Indian plains: Entire plumage black glossed with blue but with a small white spot close to the angle of the gape. It has "cheery loud notes", des- cribed also as "harsh scolding or challenging calls". It rides on the backs of grazing cattle and takes toll of insects disturbed by the animal's move- ments through the grass-hence its Sanskrit epithet, , and as its food consists of insects it is highly beneficial to agriculture (Salim Ali; Douglas Dewar) which fully explains its another epithet, (produ- cer of wealth, i.e., valuable food crops-M.W.'s Dict.). Approaching nec- tariferous flowers for insects, it also feeds on floral nectar (S. Ali). These birds also turn up for a real feast in front of advancing clouds of smoke emerging from a forest fire particularly in open grass lands, or fired grass patches. Large numbers of grasshoppers and other insects are put up at the time and the plucky birds snap them up as they rise low in the air. This behaviour of the Drongo, known to the ancients and recorded by modern bird observers like Salim Ali and witnessed by me too, accounts for 63 Drongos its name qe in Sanskrit (qrai refe). No other bird in nature can put up with smoke rising from such a fire and so close to it. The name que is equated with #fore in Viśva-prakaśa, and the latter is explained in Sabda-kalpadruma: कलि चिचि कुचीति शब्देन कलहं करोति descriptive of the bind's pugnacity and challenging calls. It is in this very sense that the bird has been given the names of कलिङ्ग (कलहं गच्छति) and कुलिङ्ग (कुत्सित लक्षण यस्य having bad or wicked characteristics), and in MBh. I. ch. 61.9, the brave Duryodhana is said to have adopted the ways of the Kulinga bird (the Black Drongo) to worry the Pandavas and drive them away from the kingdom. It is also known as ar (black like charcoal) in Hindi, which is just synonymous with Skt. a (black like charcoal) for the male, and T (Kala, black) for the female (see M. W., s.v. kälaká). In बाज० संहिता 24.35, गोधा (iguana, an arboreal lizard), कालका (the female Drongo), and refere (woodpecker bird) are quite properly associated with and allotted ritually to far. The Bengali name for the bird, फिङ्गा, is a Prakrit derivative from the root पिज्, पिज्जु, to make a sound, or from, and the Punjabi fre for it would thus seem to be from जल्पक काल-चटक, the prattling black bird. 2. The Himalayan and the Indian Grey Drongos: The whole upper plumage is indigo-blue with a high gloss and the lower plumage dark grey. Their ways are those of the Black Drongo. They have a very large vocabulary of notes, some harsh and some sweet, and a very musical song uttered almost throughout the year. In addition to this they are also excellent mimics (S. Baker). Both are known as after fir in Bengal. 3. The White-bellied Drongo: Upper plumage deep glossy indigo with greenish reflections in certain lights; breast brownish grey; belly, posterior flan and undertail coverts white. Song sweeter than that of the preceding two, and habits those of the family; found in the Himalayas and the greater part of India except the Punjab, Sind and Rajasthan. It fre- quents plantations and cultivated lands for its insect food. It is known as धौरी भुजंगा (Sk. धवल, white) in Hindi. 4. The Northern Bronzed Drongo: Whole plumage black glossed with bronze, shining green or lilac in certain lights; bill flatter, less carinated, than that of other members of the family. It is a bird of the outer Himalayas from Mussoorie to Assam. "Although like the rest of the family it has many discordant cries, it has a sweet song and many pleasant call-notes as well. It is as plucky in defence of territory, nests or young as are all the other genera of this family." (S. Baker). It is known as (Sk. ferre, flat)) after its flattish bill, in Nepal, and eter, from its small size, in Bengal. 5. The Indian Hair-crested Drongo: Whole plumage black with blue gloss on head, neck, and breast, inclining to bronze on wing and tail. About half a dozen long hairs spring from the posterior crown lying over the neck and back. The tail is nearly square. Voice louder and more diversified