By Michael Chantiri
Amidst all the bedlam and chaos of this pandemic, a lot of people are rightfully fearful of the future. What to do seems to be the question of the hour, it’s enough to drive anyone a little crazy. However, what no one is asking about is the birds.
Since no one is out the streets, what will be the fate of our feathered friends? The lack of people on the streets means the birds won’t be fed. The city used to be a hub of bird (and human) activity, birds would come from miles around to bother humans while they were eating their delicious meals. Now birds have had to change their tune, Joe from the fish shop no longer comes down to feed them anymore. Question is, How do the birds survive now that humans are off the streets?
Like many times before nature adapts but that doesn’t mean it’s gonna be an easy transition. Recently there have been sightings of pigeons in obscure places, ibises on the wrong side of town and seagulls feeling confused on the beach. The lack of handouts from humans has put birds in an awkward position. People say the virus only affects humans, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. While birds can’t contract the coronavirus, the birds still feel the effect of the pandemic.
On the one hand, the birds have less polluted air and have the pleasure of not being bothered by humans. On the other hand, birds tend to rely on humans to survive, it’s easier and more convenient for birds to go to the city where humans usually convene. Will birds forget humans exist? Depending on how long we stay in this quarantine they might.
Despite everything that happened, we still have to help them out in whatever way we can. If you see a bird in your garden, please don’t shoo it away but feed it some food. You might make that little guys day. If your one of those people who says “I don’t wanna feed em because once I feed one the rest them come after” I am going to have to ask you to politely leave the conversation. In this time of crisis, you need to put your judgement and biases aside because we are going through a pandemic. We need to help our feathered friends in any way we can. When this is all said, and one the birds will smile and say “thank you” and I’ll be there to accept them with open arms.
