oikos : for Ecological Services

NOVEMBER - 2011
Dear Nature Lovers, Greetings from oikos ! One can never forget the dazzling blue colour of Indian Roller in flight. It is generally seen perching on poles, overhead wires, trees or shrubs, suddenly bursting into brilliant display of colours… keep a watch on roadsides while traveling for holidays.
Regards, Ketaki & Manasi.
Indian Roller Zoological name: Coracias benghalensis Aptly known as Neelpankh, also Tas or Chash in Marathi, it was known as Blue Jay. It is generally found in open cultivated country, grasslands & thin forests. World over it is found in southern Asia from Iraq to Thailand and in India from Himalayan foothills to peninsula. It is known to migrate locally. It can be easily identified with striking blue colour of crown, wings, tail & belly and soft brown back with streaked throat, rufous-brown breast. It is a large bird similar to size of a pigeon. It mainly eats crop pests like locusts, crickets, beetles, winged termites, etc, so is useful to farmers. It is also known to eat field mice, lizards & frogs. It generally nests in a tree hollow or a hole in building walls, laying 3-5 white eggs during March to July.

Save it to computer and set it as desktop background for your computer monitor.