Illustrations from the book on Calcutta’s birds

J.M. Garg, a senior railway officer, has just released A Photo Guide to the Birds of Calcutta at a function at Bengal Chamber of Commerce, organised by the wildlife group Junglees.

“There was no comprehensive record of birds in Calcutta, whose scarce urban greenery still affords cover to a surprising number of birds. Some are seasonal migrants... and there are many less-recognised ones,” said Garg.

Garg spent the weekends of 10 years to click the images of the birds across the city. “I found them at New Alipore Railway Colony, zoo, horticulture garden, Salt Lake, Rajarhat, Joka… and, of course, in the tree next door,” recalled Garg.

The book, published by Granthik of College Street, has been priced Rs 299. It contains 112 colour plates, accompanied by captions and a brief introduction to each species. “Each page is dedicated to a single bird. I have provided pictures of fledglings, young birds and adults. They appear in and out of their nests, preening, flying, hunting and mating, ” said Garg.

The book has an introduction by Bill Harvey, a London-based ornithologist. There are also contributions from a host of wildlife photographers, including Gopal Bhaskaran, Nikhil Devasar, Clement Francis M., Rakesh Dhareswar, Mohan Kemparaju, Niraj V. Mistry, Kalyan Varma, Rajneesh Suvarna, Sachin Rai and Devashish Deb.

“Unlike the Yamuna in Delhi, the banks of the Hooghly are more bird-friendly. Calcutta is better off than Mumbai and one can still find 13-14 rare birds here,” said Garg.

So, what next? Garg plans to do a similar guide on Calcutta’s butterflies and trees. But for this, he says he will need the help of experts from the respective fields.