on world sparrow day march 20 toi spoke to naturalist writer and photographer sunjoymonga about the changing sparrow habitat and the disappearance of one of the most common birds from the urban landscape q why has there been a decline in the house sparrows why have they become rarer a a decline in house sparrows has been noted in urban areas in several parts of the world in india you could call it a part decline in that in certain cities and towns it does not appear to be so and yet again it is obvious in certain localities in other cities and towns the reasons could include loss and reduction of nesting sites also loss of small insect prey in the wake of rapid and largescale development over the past couple of decades especially in the last one decade resulted in major loss of green patches and consequent drop in availability of insects this could be important because sparrows feed their young mostly an insect diet to add to that various forms of pollution could be affecting sparrow though it should also affect other small birds even transmission towers and unleaded petrol have been suggested as amongst the several such reasons sparrows also may have lost out to the far more resilient house crow and common myna and our changing attitudes q why do pigeons and crows thrive better compared to sparrows what is the difference in their habitat food and habits a some birds are typically more resilient than others and far more adaptable and acceptable of human impact directly or indirectly crows have no problems about nesting sites and as a species it is highly versatile and adaptable crows are omnivorous hence dont have issues regarding food pigeons are far more adaptable in terms of nesting in our urban world with a myriad nooks and crannies available also the pigeon is a fairly open platform breeder in that it does not make a nest that typically requires it to have cavities and suchlike sites pigeons feed exclusively on seed and grain and there is no shortage with people in fact going out of their way to ensure pigeons feast q what canshould be done to ensure that house sparrows do not deplete further a a mix of conditions and attitude adjustments are needed it is almost akin to our human society and nearly the same factors influence sparrows too real estate housing easy availability of certain food at specific time competition and pollution are those factors we must remember that unless the sparrows and other smaller birds have little green patches even derelict and overgrown little corners where they can catch insects it would be difficult for them to survive well q why has the sparrow habitat disappeared how has the world changed a our old type homes and until recent times even the openings available in various corners and nooks cracks in walls etc are either covered with wiremesh or netting and hence generally out of