Observations on the foraging behavior of Tricoloured Munia Lonchura malacca (Linnaeus, 1766) and its interaction with pearl millet fields in Villupuram District, Tamil Nadu, India

Study of foraging behaviour of Tricoloured Munia Lonchura malacca and its interaction in pearl millet crop fields was conducted in six villages of Tindivanam taluk, Villupuram district, Tamil Nadu from April to June 2020. A total of six flocks containing 1,640 birds of Tricoloured Munia were enumerated. The number of birds per flock varied from 60 to 800. They never split into small flocks and maintained the same flock size throughout the day. Tricoloured Munias used nine plant species for roosting. Twelve quadrats (0.3 ha) each of 5 m x 5 m size were laid in the pearl millet fields covering six villages. A total of 10,295 spikes were counted in these plots, and of these 3,785 spikes (36.7%) were found damaged by foraging munias. The maximum damage of 99.6% was observed in Thenputhur village. Along with Tricoloured Munia, five other granivorous birds, such as Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus, Indian Silverbill Euodice malabarica, Common Babbler Turdoides caudata, Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri, and White-rumped Munia Lonchura striata were also found foraging without any inter-specific competition. Farmers adopted various traditional bird repellent techniques such as beating utensils, throwing pebbles/soil on the crop, placing scarecrows, tying multi-coloured ribbons, and hanging bottles to chase the birds away.

Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) marker for proliferating cells in living tissues: Detection in adult avian brain

Knowing how to perform cell proliferation assays is an undeniably essential skill to detect the effect of external or internal stimuli on cell genesis. Immunohistochemical staining using Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU), enables quantification of proliferative fraction of cells in sectioned tissues. BrdU, an artificial nucleoside that substitutes for thymidine. It is currently quite popular research tool of choice for new cell genesis studies. It incorporates into the DNA during S-phase of the cell cycle that’s why used for birth dating and observing cell proliferation. BrdU immunohistochemistry is currently the most used technique for studying adult cell genesis in situ. In this article we provide a step-by step protocol for immunodetection of BrdU by light microscopy using avian species (Ploceus philippinus); starting from BrdU administration to the final analysis.

Type locality of the Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus (Passeriformes, Ploceidae)

The Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus (Linnaeus, 1766) was one of the first weaverbirds to be described, and although Linnaeus (1766) provided its specific epithet and the type locality of the Philippines, the Baya Weaver does not occur there. Hartert (1902, p. 577) thus restricted the locality to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and this locality has been used in all major references since, in spite of Stresemann (1952) showing that the type was most probably collected by Pierre Poivre in India. This paper draws attention to this error so that avian handbooks and taxonomic works may refer to the correct type locality of the Baya Weaver as Puducherry (previously Pondicherry), Puducherry district, India.

NEST CHARACTERISTICS OF BAYA WEAVER Ploceus philippinus (Linnaeus, 1766) AROUND RICEFIELD IN GURUN AUR, BANUHAMPU, AGAM REGENCY, WEST SUMATERA

Penelitian tentang karakteristik sarang tempua Ploceus Philippinus di area persawahan Gurun Aur, Kecamatan Banuhampu, Kabupaten Agam, Sumatera Barat, telah dilaksanakan dari bulan Maret sampai Mei 2016 dengan metode survey langsung. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mendeskripsikan karakteristik dan material penyusun sarang. Dari hasil penelitian ini diketahui bahwa bentuk sarang burung tempua secara umum menyerupai pendulum di pelepah daun pohon kelapa dengan rata-rata tinggi sarang 7,81 m dari permukaan tanah. Sarang mengantung di pelapah pohon kelapa dengan pintu masuk dari bawah.Bentuk sarang yang belum lengkap juga ditemukan jika burung gagal mendapatkan pasangan. Sarang ini menyerupai kubah berbeda dengan sarang yang telah lengkap berbentuk seperti kantung dengan variasi lonjong dan bentuk ginjal. Sarang juga memiliki nilai yang bervariasi pada ukuran panjang, berat dan tinggi gantungan. Bahan yang digunakan burung tempua membangun sarang sebagian besar dari potongan rumput (Graminae) dan malai tumbuhan Imperata cylindrica untuk alas chamber (ruang telur).

Traditional home garden agroforestry systems: habitat for conservation of Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus (Passeriformes: Ploceidae) in Assam, India

The present study was conducted in 18 homegarden agroforestry systems of Assam to assess the role in the conservation of Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus. Observations were made on the type of host trees, location of host trees, their spatial arrangement pattern, height and diameter of host trees chosen for nesting and the number of complete and helmet stage nests. Trail walks were employed for assessing the encounter rates of predators. A total of 2357 individuals of potential host trees for nesting of P. philippinus were found belonging to Areca catechu (2272), Cocos nucifera (56), Phoenix sylvasticus (13) and Borassus flabellifer (16). According to the spatial arrangement pattern of host trees, among 2272 individuals of A. catechu, 96.5% (n=2192) and 3.5% (n=80) of individuals were arranged in block and row pattern respectively. The other three host trees were arranged in single pattern. Among these 80 individuals of A. catechu planted in row pattern, 47.5% (n=38) had nests (complete and helmet stage) on them. In total, 293 nests (both complete and helmet stage) were observed in A. catechu, out of which, 46.1% (n=135) were complete nests. The other three host trees had nests in various stages of development but none of them were completed by P. philippinus. The encounter rates of predators (arboreal mammals) was significantly higher in block patterns (2.56 ± 0.51) as compared to row patterns (0.53 ± 0.17) of host tree spatial arrangement whereas, the encounter rates of reptiles showed no statistical difference among the two patterns of host tree arrangement. Thus, A. catechu planted in row pattern was the most preferred host tree species for nesting by P. philippinus as compared to the other three host tree species. The height and DBH of A. catechu trees having nests varied from seven to 11 m (7.8 ± 1.11) and 10.5–16.5 cm (12.6 ± 1.4) respectively. The homegarden agroforestry systems provided suitable habitat for survival of P. philippinus as this system has ample water sources, feeding grounds, nesting material and host tree sources and conservation attitudes of the homegarden owners, thus, suggesting that homegarden agroforestry system can be a potential site for conservation of P. philippinus in human-modified land use.