Birds no longer seen flying in the sky, whose calls have vanished from nature's store of sounds, could be seen at an unusual bird fair at the Buddhijibi Chattar of Rajshahi University (RU). Not alive, though, but as "mummies".

Through birds preserved by a chemical process, the fair showed the real picture between extinction and conservation. The presence of life in lifeless bodies made the fair distinctive and thought-provoking, and visitors had the chance to see birds up close without fear.

The day-long fair was held from the morning of Saturday, 31 January, with the theme "See birds, love birds, protect birds".

After the opening, a rally was held to raise public awareness of bird conservation. The fair was organised by the university's Bird Conservation Club, with overall support from the Department of Zoology, Birdshahi and Valenttech Limited.

On the spot, a few small stalls were set up in a neat space enclosed with white and blue cloth. According to the report, the photographs on display included the chokhachokhi, pigeon, parrot, night heron, gubre shalik and bamun shalik, among other species.

Elsewhere the report lists the photographs as including the black-backed gull, Pallas's gull, Siberian stonechat, nil chotok, Wilson's storm petrel, red-naped ibis, Eurasian spoonbill, booted eagle, pheasant-tailed jacana, white-breasted waterhen and bamun shalik. Many visitors were surprised just to hear the names, and some took photos on their phones as souvenirs.

A neighbouring stall held an exhibition of preserved birds, with cormorants, jolkak, parakeets, barn owls, eagle-owls, stork-billed kingfishers, night herons, house crows, quail, whistling ducks and squirrels arranged in rows. Seeing them up close, many understood how real the danger of their disappearing from nature is.

The liveliest part of the fair was a drawing competition for schoolchildren, with pupils from nursery to class five at schools near the campus taking part.

Taiyiba Akter, a class four pupil at Shahid Nazmul Haque Girls' High School who came with her father to see the fair and take part in the competition, said she really enjoyed it. She had seen many new birds she had never seen before and thought there should be more such events.

Farhana Asha, a 2020-21 session student of RU's zoology department, was giving visitors information about the birds at the stall. She said the fair had many rare birds that are not usually seen, including white egrets, skeletons, rare ducks and pigeons. There had been crowds at the stall since morning, and visitors were being told how the birds had been preserved and the scientific process behind it.

Md Delowar Hossain, a former student of RU's zoology department and a gazetted taxidermist at the Armed Forces Medical College, was there to explain taxidermy. He said his interest in preservation began when he saw animals dying and rotting in different parts of the country, and that interest led him to start working in taxidermy.

He said that in Bangladesh such bird fairs are held regularly mainly in two places, Jahangirnagar University and Rajshahi University. The main aim is to raise awareness of birds among students and the public, give them a chance to learn about birds and show how birds are preserved scientifically. The event is held every year on the initiative of RU's zoology department.

Professor Dr A M Saleh Reza of the zoology department, convener of the university's Bird Conservation Club, said there are many birds in Bangladesh that most of us know nothing about. The fair was organised to introduce students to these birds, build affection for them and make everyone aware of bird conservation.

He said that at the start of every winter large numbers of migratory birds gather at the university pond and the Narikelbaria campus. "We must be conscious of protecting them. If we do not give them a suitable environment and instead disturb them by throwing stones, they will panic and go elsewhere. We must not treat birds and other wildlife badly," he said.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.