Thursday, December 16, 2010

Cute Nibblers

Sunny winters ensure that to escape the cold dark indoors I spent more and more time outdoors; at least till the frigid sun less days are not here. There is always something happening and so you do not get bored even for a single second. Just yesterday I saw - what I then thought to be a strange bird but google told me that this brown headed Barbet is fairly common in India - this cute birdie helping itself merrily to the Guavas. Guavas are one fruit in my garden which, to my utter helplessness, are reserved for the winged; I seldom get to enjoy the lovely fruit as the birds always beat me to it...not that I mind. I very carefully tip toed to shoot it with the camera, but it was blissfully unconcerned with my presence. It must have been after a few minutes that I looked in the direction of Guava tree to find that the Barbet had now been replaced by a Bulbul. Like the Barbet, Bulbul was relishing the same Guava and didn’t mind me taking a few snaps in return for allowing her an unrestricted access to the Guavas.I was wondering on the wonderful cooperation that goes on in nature - Bulbul,Barbet, all eating the same Guava one after another. As I turned my gaze again towards the Guava tree, I saw the visitor number three - A squirrel. I do not know if this was mutual cooperation or she bullied the bulbul away, but here she was nibbling the left over Guava which was still hanging to the tree branch. I was out for almost quarter of an hour and so much happened on a single Guava tree. At other occasions I have noticed other welcome culprits like parrots who satisfy their appetite on the Guava tree leaving me with the half eaten fruit to gaze on but the satisfaction of watching nature in perpetual motion is all worth much more than the ‘loss’.

35 comments:

mikem said...

worth having the guava just for the attendant wildlife I don't know if it would survive here in Spain though

Nic said...

Adorable! Also, you managed to snap some very good pictures. I had never seen a barbet that up-close before.

Lona said...

What wonderful pictures. They blend in well with the foliage. I love the striped squirrel. Where yours have stripes ours has spots. Yours is much more interesting.

nishant said...

hey !
i can so understand the joy of finding these visitors in your garden!

ve been reading your posts for quite sometime.. very very inspiring , considering that i myself am tring to bring up a garden from scratch !

thanks for being an inspiration !

and yes the barbet..maybe it was common ' once upon a time' .. i've seen them but not very often.. so you are lucky !

keep it up ! best wishes for spring !

nishant
N Delhi

nishant said...

and yes .. i am so sure going to plant a guava tree now !

nishant

Vaijayanthi KM said...

I am tempted to plant a Gauva too in my garden whenever I get one :) Lovely!

Lemongrass said...

I found your blog two nights ago and was inspired by your spinach patch. So inspired was I that I decided to sow some arugula and lettuce seeds last night. It is winter here in South Carolina, both the arugula and lettuce would be happy.
My grandfather had an open field with lots of Gauva trees. I can still remember the school of hungry, singing birds flying from tree to tree for their daily meal.
To save one or two gauvas for yourself put a light-weight cotton bag around a few fruits to protect them from the birds. Gauve juice was my favorite summer drink.
Best wishes for the coming season. Keep growing where you're planted.

Julie said...

What a wonderful show of nature to give you such happiness (and me too, watching through your pics)! The Barbet is so beautiful!!!!!

The Interior perspective said...

Your blog is a real inspiration and I love reading your posts

Have featured it as part of a garden blogger segment I did on my blog

http://indiehome.blogspot.com/2010/12/garden-blogger-brigade-new-green-army.html

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen said...

That Guava is pretty popular! Love the white stripes on the squirrels back, very pretty.

Just popped over to wish you happy holidays and the very bestest for the New Year!

Yolanda

Ever Green Tree said...

Somehow i can never ever get to click a squirrel... they are just to fast for me to capture them thru my lenses. Nice shots! Merry chrsitmas n a Very Happy New Year ahead...

Ever Green Tree said...

We too have a couple of Guava trees growing in our yard.... The parrots seem to enjoy them and even the Monkeys. Same here...Love basking in the wintery sun outdoors thru this season. Enjoy your greens...

radha said...

I love the fruit. I love your visitors too. But would I sacrifice the fruit for them? Keep a feed for the birds and hope they spare the fruit for you.

Tanya Boracay said...

Oh great, it looks adorable.

Just like to share with you a famous quote...

"The voice of parents is the voice of gods, for to their children they are heaven's lieutenants. " -- Shakespeare

You can get more famous quotes at http://quotelandia.com

~G said...

Hi,
A long time follower of your blog, I have a few queries regarding my potted plants. I was looking for an email id but couldn't find one, hence I am writing this in the comment section itself.

1) My Vinca (sadafuli) plant was my delight until I replanted it in a bigger pot and moved it from its prior location. I think it did not get enough sunlight there, cos the size of the flowers went on diminishing. The last time it flowered, the flowers were the size of my little finger's nail. Now it has stopped flowering completely. I have moved it to its orig place now. Is this due to the sudden cold wave or am I doing something wrong?

2) My Hibiscus plant is infested with white mealy bugs. I have tried brushing them off, spraying water,tobacco water, mixture of onion and chillies. Nothing seems to work and the bugs seem to be feasting on my hibiscus. Now they are eating up the leaves too. Is there another remedy?

Really sorry for such a long comment. But it breaks my heart to see the only two perennially flowering plants in my garden barren.

Nature Rambles said...

Wow...you got some great shots of the birds and the squirrel. I have only seen the red-throated barbets here but somehow they do not visit my guava trees!:(

Looking forward tour posts in 2011.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Kanak

A Year In My Garden said...

Fascinating - this took me back to my childhood when I read lots of books set in India - and there were always bulbuls and barbets in the hedges - I took the time to look back through your blog and enjoyed it a lot.

Sanju said...

Very Nice

Unknown said...

dear doc waiting for ur new post.i read ur post on making mustard seeds.grounded mustard seeds are used in bengali cuisine too.the powdered husk is an exellent fertiliser.we let it rot under water before applying the mix to the plants.

Unknown said...

g-there is an easy solution to your bug problem.try this-dissolve 10 grams of detergent or dish washing soap in 1 liter of water and spray it on the insects.some people spray it on the entire plant-no need.just the solution falling on the insects will do.most garden insects donot have a chitinous exoskeleton.the detergent dissolves the lipid bilayer and kills them

delhi nursery said...

The pictures made me remember the day when i used to be in village. I used to sit in the shade of Peepal tree and enjoy the mischief of these creatures.

natural beauty said...

These small creatures the natural beauty of earth.

~G said...

@Sarban: Thanks a lot. Will try that out. Btw, my sadafuli (from first query) is blooming well now. Touchwood. :)

Jan said...

These are such 'cute nibblers'. It's never a dull moment in my garden when I walk around with my camera. It looks quite similar in yours!

Shraddha said...

Reading your blog is such a pleasure.
I was in Jhansi for four years,and had a big garden there i used to enjoy plants and birds there with extreme weather also. Now i am in bangalore plants do well here in my potted garden.

Indian Home Maker said...

These are amazing photographs, specially the Barbet!! Indeed it is worth it to have your guavas eaten!

Becky said...

We have red squirrels, gray squirrels and chipmunks with stripes, but yours is the fanciest squirrel I've seen. You're a talented photographer to catch him so beautifully. I am better at taking pictures of plants.They stay in one spot.I like you blog very much!

Final year project report said...

The pictures of animals and trees are amazing and attractive. The way you presented is nice...................
A place becomes beautiful when it is filled with the nature............

smallgardendesign said...

What a wonderful show of nature to give you such happiness (and me too, watching through your pics)! The Barbet is so beautiful!

backyard designer said...

Oh great, it looks adorable.
backyard design

los angeles fumigation said...

adorable. looking beautiful.


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nelson peltz said...

Its the great post. Your blog is amazing.....

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Beth said...

Great photos. Your blog really stands out from the crowd. Thanks for providing us with so much interesting material. Looking forward to more....

michael greenfingers said...

Did you realize that between 30 - 40 % of all the felines and mutts in the United States are overweight? Who is to be faulted? The felines and puppies or their human guardians? You got it, we are.

Unknown said...

botanix nature resort Unique post shared man..........

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