A dove in love with dear life

The dove, which otherwise seemed so lifeless and enervated, stirred back to life upon feeling the pain inflicted by the violent tugs of the crow’s bill

It has not been a good summer for birds. Intense heat and thirst followed by a dust storm displaced chicks from their nests in trees. It has been a grim battle for survival but there are stories of creatures who have come through adversities or were rescued by good samaritans. Last Sunday, at a pond in New Chandigarh, Anuj Jain chanced upon a Eurasian collared dove twice escaping the proverbial jaws of death.

Last Sunday, at a pond in New Chandigarh, Anuj Jain chanced upon a Eurasian collared dove twice escaping the proverbial jaws of death. (Anuj Jain)

Jain took a series of action photographs and penned his observations of a gripping encounter between a dying dove and a hungry house crow. “A dove was lying motionless on the edge of a water body and seemed to be a victim of heat stroke. A crow spotted the vulnerable dove and began to tear at her feathers. The dove, which otherwise seemed so lifeless and enervated, stirred back to life upon feeling the pain inflicted by the violent tugs of the crow’s bill. However, she was too weak to defend herself. Relentlessly attacked by the crow, the dove finally summoned every ounce of her remaining strength to escape the crow’s clutches. In a sudden explosion of energy and flurry of wings, she flew away at full speed. For the crow, it was just a potential meal, but for the dove it was a desperate fight and flight for survival. In the end, the dove evaded the crow which was in hot pursuit. It was a remarkable triumph of courage and determination,” recalled Jain.

The dove had risen like the phoenix from the ashes. It is entirely possible that the sharp pain caused by the crow’s bill as she lay dying by the pond revived the dove from semi-consciousness and a heat-induced loss of the senses and energy. Had the crow not intervened, the dove could have died right there, as birds frequently do in acute weather distress.

The grit the dove showed in escaping the crow is not all that surprising. This dove species is known for being a combative one and makes up in ferocity and doggedness what she lacks by way of size, aquiline beak and sharp, curving talons. Especially, when it comes to defending nests. Bird-watcher and keen naturalist Jatinder Vijh, who resides in Manimajra’s Modern Housing Complex, observed a dove pair take on a Shikra eyeing the nest. “The pair would perch on observation posts such as the water tank or dish antennae and watch out for predators. The pair would attack the Shikra from different directions and ensured that the hawk beat an ignominious retreat on each foray,” Vijh told the writer.

Vijh’s observation aligns with the views of legendary birdman Dr Salim Ali, who had written decades back that this dove species “was very pugnacious when nesting, chasing an intruder in its territory with vigour and determination.” Ali had also observed this dove species in hot pursuit of a crow making off with an egg or chick filched from the nest. When male doves fight, Dr Ali wrote, “rivals sidle up to one another rather surreptitiously, then suddenly jump up and lash out viciously with the wings, each ducking in turn to avert the coming onslaught, each bird jumping clean over the other in the excitement of these comical antics!”

Evidently, the dove is possessed with much more of a combative character than her typical portrayal in global cultures as a symbol of peace, harmony, gentleness and murmuring, cooing sounds.

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