I’ve seen a whole lot of animals since I’ve arrived some seem quite familiar and others are quite new. I’ve listed them below:
Street Dogs: Dogs flood the streets, especially after dark. I often step around a napping curled-up dog or two when I’m visiting community centre, the little downtown pocket closest to my flat. Most seem to be the same mix of breeds. They are generally caramel-coloured, larger than a beagle and have pointy noses and ears. From time to time one will tail Robin and I for a few blocks when we are walking home from a restaurant. They are not aggressive, but seem to just want a taste of our doggie bags. Other dogs bark at the ones that slink ten feet behind us, since they cross many others’ territories in hopes of food scraps. People seem to own dogs too. The ones I have met are excitable and have certainly not been through any obedience lessons. Robin likes to pet the ones on leashes, but I firmly avoid it as they usually snarl, jump and bark.
Street Cows: Along with dogs on the street, one can also find cows. I thought that they might be a little more active…wandering through traffic, chewing cud, mooing. But I think that the heat gets to them just as much as it gets to the people. They are bony and some are dust-coloured, otherwise dark blackish-grey. When I think of cows, I think of them in herds. Here, it is quite common to see only one or two laying on the sides of the streets. After seeing the same two together consecutively, I wondered if they were friends or relations. Robin and I are now on cow-patrol trying to test my hypothesis that, like rabbits, some cows become bonded and stick together. We’ll see.
Squirrels: Each morning I hear the chatter of little squirrels that run to-and-fro over the metal grating that lines my windows. Frequently the chasing and clicking noise they make wakes me up (6:30am). They are about six inches long with a six inch tail. Their striped bodies resemble chipmunks’ in size and colour, but their tails are very puffy like squirrels’. They are quite cute and run and jump over the roof-tops and into bougainvillea bushes.
Monkeys? I really thought I’d see more roaming the streets and causing mischief, but really the only ones I’ve seen are on leashes. They are clearly for tourists and they stand next to, or on the shoulder of, their owners at intersections so they can interact with the people stuck in the cars at traffic lights. Thankfully, the closest I’ve been to one is about fifteen feet. I hope it stays that way since Passport Health warned me a great deal about interacting with monkeys.
Birds: I’ve really enjoyed my private rooftop, especially for a little solitary stargazing and bird-watching. So far I have seen four different types of birds. I’ve been looking for an Audubon Society book so I can identify them, but no luck as of late, so you will have to read descriptions instead. I saw a few greyish doves right before the first rain (Jul 9). Their call alerted me to their visit. Following them was a big-beaked black raven-type bird cawing away. I saw another “raven” like this near the Siri Fort swimming pool. Robin and I exited the sports complex and saw one gutting a squirrel on the side of the road. I was moderately grossed out, but more afraid the bird would come hopping over to my flip-flop clad exposed toes! It really made me think back to my Shamanism class with Fogelson and the symbolic significance of the Raven to shamans who were considered experts on peoples’ innards. The third bird-type I’ve seen are pigeons (big surprise). And finally, I saw a very interesting cardinal-like bird whose tall comb and shoulders were black, like the rest of his body except for a few bright feathers near the top of his wing.
Geckoes: These, to my delight, climb all over the walls at the Gandhis’. They are not bright green like in Hawaii, but a greyish-muted green. I see them most when Robin and I came home from dinner at night. My guess is that they come out at night because the temperature is pleasant and the birds are asleep. They are about four inches long, nose to hind, and their tails are thick at the base, but taper to the tip, about four inches also. Two nights ago, though, we found quite a few two-inch babies. They were very sprightly and zipping around the wall as we approached.
Bugs: I have a few little ants that visit me in my room everyday. I think they get a little lost sometimes. They seem to come in from my rooftop door. I don’t have any food in my room, so I really don’t mind them at all. Otherwise, no insect sightings (“touch wood,” as they say here). I certainly expected tropical spiders like the ones in Costa Rica, or maybe even, gulp, a roach or two; so far I’ve been pleasantly surprised. I’m sure I’ll get my share of mosquitoes once the monsoons come; as of now there are a few eighth of an inch cracks around my air-conditioner that let in daylight, and probably thirsty mosquitoes once they hatch. Robin and I will fix this in the next few days.
