Harini gets to know why Dominga and Domingi, the magpie robins, are upset with one another

Harini gets to know why Dominga and Domingi, the magpie robins, are upset with one another 

Darzee and Darzi, the tailor birds were puzzled. They could hear the arguments, loud whistling calls that went back and forth between Dominga and Domingi, the Magpie Robins. They had been arguing about something for some time. They were flying about, flitting here and there, amongst the flower bushes below the great old banyan tree at the corner of the garden.

Darzee flew up to Domingi and asked, “What is the matter? Why are you so upset? The two of you will disturb the entire garden and the other birds inside the banyan tree. Did something go wrong?”

Domingi gave a sharp whistle, and pointed towards her partner. “It is Dominga. He will simply not listen. I have told him to be careful and yet, he slips up. You know that we have to absolutely protect our nests and eggs. I am helpless when I am in the nest. It is Dominga, when he is flying about, who has to keep a watch and be on the alert.”

“I hope you are not anywhere near the nest now, while you are whistling and arguing so loudly,” Darzi asked Dominga. “That would be very foolish. Everyone, the birds, especially the crows, hidden away in the tall Asoka trees in the neighbouring garden, are all watching, looking at you.”

Dominga whistled, an angry tone, loud and shrill, and quietened down, perched on the branches of the Chafa tree, away from the banyan tree and the flower bushes below it. “No, No. We are not near the nest. Even Domingi is away from it. I was not careful today but Domingi blames me every day.”

Meanwhile, Harini, the 4-year old girl, hearing the loud whistles and calls of the Magpie Robins and watching them fly about with the two tailor birds, walked out of the house and came up to the Chafa tree. Darzee flew out of the banyan tree and came to a branch near her and called out, softly.

Harini saw Darzee, and said, “I hope everything is ok. If you want, I can go and call my Daddy. He will come out and scare it away, whatever is frightening you all and making you upset.”

Darzee laughed, in a musical whistle, “No. There is no need to call anyone. We cannot depend on you or your Daddy to help us. We have to help ourselves and manage it amongst us. Come, let me introduce you to Dominga. He did something wrong, like he does, every day. Domingi is angry.”

Darzi and Dominga flew down to the lower branches and perched nearby. Darzee asked, “What did you do wrong, Dominga? Even Harini, our friend in the garden, she who watches us from her window above the Chafa tree, is very curious. She wants to know if she can help us if you want her to.”

Dominga whistled in a low tone, “Hello, Harini. I have seen you at your window and while you were walking about in the garden. I know that you talk to Darzee and that the two of you are good friends.”

Harini smiled, and asked, “What happened? All of a sudden, there were these many loud whistles.”

“It was Domingi, my partner, who was upset,” Dominga replied. “I was not alert. It seems that Kokila, the female partner of the Koel, came quite close to our nest. I was watching Koel and looking out for hidden crows. I did not notice Kokila moving about stealthily, almost unseen, searching for nests.”

“Why are you so worried about Koel and Kokila,” Harini asked. “They are very quiet and never seem to talk to the other birds. They are always hidden in the large trees in the other gardens and are very rarely seen in the chafa tree. But, they never come to the bird feeder or to the bird bath.”

“The quieter that they are, Koel and Kokila,” Darzi said, looking around warily, “the more dangerous that they are. They search for our nests and we are always careful with them. Kokila is very clever. She is never seen but if we are not at our nests, she will come in and remove one of our eggs and replace it with her own. She will throw away our egg. She is very stealthy. We will have a big loss.”

“Kokila will steal your eggs?” Harini gasped. “How terrible. Why does she do that? Please go and talk to Domingi. She must be very frightened.”

Darzee nodded, and said, “I will let you know all about Koel and Kokila, sometime later. Now, let me go and talk to Domingi.”

The fifth of the very short stories about the birds in Harini's garden 

Bharat Bhushan 11 April 2025

Harini listens to the song of Dominga, the Magpie Robin

Harini’s mother looked angry. “Come on, eat up your breakfast. We need to get you to your kindergarten school in time. You may be punished for being late.”

Harini knew her strategy well for such moments. She put up her innocent face, pouted slightly, and spoke in a sing song voice, “Let me sit in Daddy’s open jeep in the garden and eat my breakfast. I will finish it quickly. We can go to the school directly from the garden after you get ready.”

Before waiting for her mother to answer, Harini picked up her breakfast plate, spoon and water bottle and ran out to the garden. She had prepared for it, already. A wooden box was kept in place for her to climb on and get in to the front seat of the open jeep. She could now have her breakfast and also take a look around the garden and see if she could spot any of the birds or butterflies or grasshoppers. Some portion of the Chafa tree’s shadow came over the vehicle and Harini was happy about it.

Sure enough, the male Magpie Robin, the handsome black and white colored bird, was perched on the outer branches of the Chafa tree and calling out in song, in a shrill, loud tone, with long whistles. ‘Wonder why was he calling out so loudly,’ thought Harini. ‘Darzee had told her that the tailor birds had different reasons for their many short and long whistles and calls. Did the Magpie Robin also change its calls?’

Waving her spoon, Harini called out to the Magpie Robin, “Why are you calling out so loudly, so early in the morning? Do you want some breakfast? I can share some of my fruits and milk.”

The Magpie Robin did not reply. From a nearby branch, Darzee, the female tailor bird, flew down to the bonnet of the jeep and looked inside Harini’s breakfast plate.

Darzee said, “That is Dominga, the male Magpie Robin. He is usually very busy in the mornings and evenings in calling out with his very loud display call. What are you eating? That looks very funny. Do you want me get you some insects and flowers to eat?”

Harini laughed. “Yes. I would love to show the insects to my mother and tell her that I am going to eat them. She will scream in fright. Why is Dominga, the male Magpie Robin calling out so loudly? Is he threatening the other birds and warning them not to come to the Chafa tree?”

“Dominga is just like that,” Darzee replied. “He calls out to the other male Magpie Robins and tells them that he is at the Chafa tree and that the others can go to some other trees. But, he is usually calling out to Domingi, the female Magpie Robin, who is at her hidden nest, on their eggs, and being careful about letting anyone know her location.”

“Oh! That is so wonderful. Another nest!” Harini clapped her hands. “Do you know where is it?”

Darzee whistled in mock anger. “Yes. I know where Domingi has her nest. No. I will not show you the nest or point it out to you. The nest will be in danger. There are always others who are watching, waiting for us to make a mistake. They even notice the direction that you are pointing to, and also can wait very patiently.”

“Yes, Yes. You had warned me,” Harini said. “I have to go to school now, and will return at noon. Can you get me to talk to Dominga and Domingi? I love Dominga’s song. Why does he sing?”

“I guess he is being clever,” Darzee said. “He is singing loudly so that all the hidden watchers are looking at him. Domingi can quietly get out of her nest and flit about the low bushes before she allows herself to be seen in the upper branches.”

“That is very smart,” Harini replied. “There, my mother is coming over to pull me out of this vehicle. I will meet you when I return from school. I love Dominga’s long whistling song. Let me try and practice that when I am going to school.”

Bharat Bhushan

11 April 2025