Class 8 - L15 - The Birdman of India

15. The Birdman of India

Reading Comprehension

A. Read the lesson again and complete the table:

No.	Names of Birds	Names of Persons	Names of Awards
1	Humming Word	Dr. Salim Ali	J. Paul Getty International award
2	Ostrich	Amiruddin Tyabji	the Golden Ark of the International Union for conservation of nature
3	Hawk	Dr. W.S. Millard	the golden medal of the British Ornithology Union
4	Eagle	J. Paul Getty	Padmashree
5	Kiwi, Emu		Padma Vibhushan

B. Answer  the following questions:

(i) Why is Salim Ali called the Bird-man of India?

Answer – In india, the world of birds was exposed to us by the great Salim Ali’s contribution. Therefore he is affectionately known as the Bird-man of India.

(ii) What do ‘feathers’ of birds tell us?

Answer – Feathers of the birds give us an idea about the life that they lead.

(iii) “Looking at the beak of a bird, it is possible to understand its life cycle”. Explain.

Answer – Yes, looking at the beak of a bird, it is possible to understand its life cycle. It helps to understand about their food  habits that it is insect or grain or flesh eater.

(iv) What influenced Salim Ali to become an ornithologist?

Answer – When Salim Ali was a child, he shot a bird which had a yellow streak running below its neck. When he went to Bombay Natural History Society, Dr. W.S. Millard identified it and also showed him the splendid collection of stuffed birds. This incident influenced him to become an ornithologist.

Vocabulary

A. Fill in the blanks with appropriate words given below.

winged bipeds, reptiles, ornithology, budding, intervention, laboratory, identified

(i) His intervention saved the Bharatpur bird sanctuary.

(ii) Dr. Salim Ali studied the life of birds in natural conditions not in the laboratory.

(iii) The science of studying birds is known as ornithology.

(iv) The secretary identified the sparrow as the yellow throated sparrow.

(v) Animals that are able to change blood temperature and usually lay eggs are reptiles.

(vi) "The book of Indian Birds" is a bible for budding ornithologists.

(vii) Birds are called winged bipeds.

B. Match the column ‘A’ and ‘B’:

No.	A	B	Right Match
(1)	ecology	given as an honour and not according to the usual rules	flowers, animals, birds in the environment
(2)	deities	those who are not experts	images that we worship
(3)	conservation	flowers, animals, birds in the environment	attempt to save natural resources
(4)	amateur	images that we worship	those who are not experts
(5)	honorary	attempt to save natural resources	given as an honour and not according to the usual rules

C. Frame your own sentences using the word /phrases:

high altitudes, distant objects, nature lover, life history

High altitudes – Vultures are known for flying at high altitudes.

Distant objects – We can see distant objects clearly with a telescope.

Nature lover – I am a nature lover who loves to spend time with the nature.

Life history – We can learn many good things by reading about the life histories of great people.

© 2019, Anupam Agrawal and CG-SCERT