Harry Potter blamed for India's declining owl population

Wed, 03 Nov 2010

New Delhi - India's environment minister has linked the popularity of boy wizard Harry Potter to the widespread illegal trade in owls that threatens the birds in the country, news reports said Wednesday.

Jairam Ramesh said there was a "strange fascination" among the affluent classes in India with giving owls to their children, inspired by the Harry Potter films and books that feature his feathered companion Hedwig, an IANS news agency report said.

The minister, who published a report on the country's owl population late Tuesday, said there had been an increase in people wanting to buy the owls from illegal bird traders.

The findings were also revealed in the report Imperilled Custodians of the Night written by the conservation group Traffic.

The report's author, Abrar Ahmed, said he decided to investigate the owl trade after a friend's wife asked him to obtain a live white-colored owl for her son's Harry Potter-themed birthday party.

"This was probably one of the strangest demands made to me as an ornithologist," Ahmed said in the report.

The report said a growing number of India's owls were being killed in sacrifices during black magic rituals as well as for medicinal purposes.

It revealed that as many as half of the 30 species of owls in India were being caught and sold alive in markets, and recommended stricter monitoring and control on the bird trade particularly during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, that starts Friday.

The study said the sales of owls peak during the Diwali festival, when their "darshan" (sacred view) and sacrifice are believed to bring wealth to the household.

Source: Earth Times.
Link: http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/351645,indias-declining-owl-population.html.