36
Teetiri takes charge of all the birds to fight the enemies in the grassland
At the mention of Guturgu and Teetiri,
Bater gathered courage and stepped out in the open. The other jungle bush quail
were not to be seen. Possibly, Bater had asked them to stay hidden in the
grass. Used to sitting out in in the open, Kotwal found all this secrecy to be
quite silly. But to each bird, its own recipe for survival, Kotwal's father had
once advised him. Never question other birds about their techniques and
methods, he had been told. And most importantly, as Kotwal's mother had
added, never tease other birds about
their methods.
Why was all this racket disturbing the
grassland, Bater asked Kotwal. And why was Salonki and all the mynas moving
around the peaceful and quiet grassland?
Why did Guturgu and Teetiri want his help? Was it to chase away Salonki
and the mynas? Did she lose her eggs once again? Bater shot the questions in
rapid-fire mode. Phoolchuki and Darzi were taken aback by Bater's anger. The
jungle bush quail did not look like it had such courage. Phoolchuki had never
thought of questioning Kotwal. Darzi always tried to avoid talking to Kotwal.
The drongos were known to chase away Shikra, Shaheen or Kaawla Chacha. And here
was the timid and shy Bater, posing questions to the dozen to Kotwal.
Kotwal did not lose his cool at the
questions. He had once seen Bater argue with Teetiri on the wisdom of choosing
good nesting spots on the ground. Both were ground-nesting birds, and while
Teetiri tried to nest in the open, Bater built her nest in a quiet, hidden and
secretive spot inside clumps of grass or inside bushes and amidst rocks. But
unlike Teetiri, Bater was never to be seen out in the open grassland. It was
strange indeed, thought Kotwal, that secretive nesters were also secretive,
while open ground nesting birds somehow were very confident that their nests
would not be seen.
Bater was secretive and shy, no doubt,
but confident also. Perhaps that’s why Guturgu and Teetiri had so much faith in
the jungle bush quail. Perhaps Kotwal did not know all there was to know from
his high perch in the trees. Perhaps ground-nesting birds knew more about other
ground-nesting birds. Kotwal flew down to perch on a tiny rock near Bater and
began to tell him the entire story of Billi hiding in the marsh. Phoolchuki,
Darzi, Bulbul and Salonki were perched on nearby branches. Kotwal’s father and
the other drongos kept guard from all the high branches nearby while Salonki’s
cousins kept their loud chatter going on nearby.
