Limp in the leg, not in the spirit

Around the Selaiyur lake, a greater coucal with a damaged limb and a slowly growing tail is up against the uncertainties of the wild

A greater coucal without its elongated tail is as easy to process as Rapunzel without her flowing tress. It is the species’ greatest quiddity; and a significant “navigational” aid. As it hurries to safety on the ground, a greater coucal walks with a waddle — not as pronounced as in ducks, but striking nevertheless — that is accentuated by the obtrusively long tail. When it “walks” in the trees, its tail is the equivalent of a handstaff held by a 90-year-old with an unsteady gait. Birds in the cuculidae family develop an additional left foot when they clamber through tree branches. Just like a majority of its cousins, the greater coucal uses its tail as a balancing prop in this situation.

Imagine a greater coucal without a tail. Also imagine its quality of life.

On August 25, this writer did not have to muster his powers of imagination. On a bund of the Selaiyur lake, a greater coucal showed up without a tail. Gaped at, the bird would not take to wing, but trust its feet and bushes to keep itself scarce.