KOCHI: ‘The Birds’, a 1963 movie directed by Alfred Hitchcock, narrates the story of a community that was terrorised by flocks of birds. Omana, a native of Nayarambalam near Kochi, has a similar story to narrate. It was a Brahminy kite — popularly known as Krishna Parunthu in Kerala — that targeted the woman and her daughter, Sona, for the past two weeks. Finally, the family heaved a sigh of relief after the forest personnel caught the bird and shifted it to the Kodanad forest station on Thursday.
“The bird was sighted in our locality six months ago. But it started behaving strangely around a month back. It didn’t allow me and my daughter to step outside the house during the past two weeks. It used to sit on the branch of a tree in our courtyard and monitor our movements closely. The moment we open the door it will rush to us and attacks us. We have bruises all over our head and shoulders,” said Omana, of Chulliparambil House.
Omana, who works as a cleaning staff at the office of a lawyer in Kochi, could not go to work for the past one week. “The bird is not afraid of humans. It sits on the hands of people who offer food. My cousin sister calls the bird Krishna and it responds to her calls. Earlier, I used to give it fish. But I stopped the practice after people advised me against it,” she said.
Omana said they were not able to go to the washroom located outside the house. “Frustrated by the attack, I complained to ward member K V Pramod, who caught the bird with help of his friends and released it somewhere around 10km away. But the bird was back at our house by evening,” she said.
On December 26, Omana set out for work wearing an umbrella. But the bird followed and attacked her. She fell into a paddy field and was badly hurt. After that, the mother and daughter did not step outside the house. “We were starving for the past couple of days as all our resources got over. We stepped out of the house only after the bird was caught. The forest staff said they will release it at Kodanad. Though the place is located some 30 km away, I am sure it will return,” said Omana.
“I have not heard about Brahminy kites attacking humans. But the bird is known to be protective of its nest, eggs and chicks. Maybe, the family has unknowingly harmed its chicks or gone near the nest. The Brahminy kites normally breed in the coastal region. This looks strange,” said wildlife scientist Dr P O Nameer.