Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

I watched, fascinated, as this little fellow went about fishing for his breakfast. It is a beautiful little bird - dainty and colorful. Nature has designed its outsized beak for one specific purpose - to grab and hold fish. I was in the Bertey-Chabang areas of Zhemgang - hoping to photograph the elusive and extremely rare White-bellied Heron (Ardea insignis). For the past few years I have been visiting the area since it looks like this stretch of forests in the sparsely populated villages of Bertey and Chabang is destined to be an important and even critical White-bellied Heron habitat in the future.

As I patiently waited and watched, I saw this darling of a bird appear out of nowhere and perch on a small rock by the rivulet next to the Mangde-Chu in front of me. As I trained my camera and lens on it, the little fellow levitated and started to flutter and flap its little wings - while maintaining a perfectly stationary position horizontal to the rivulet. Suddenly, it plunked into the water and emerged out of it - with a fingerling wedged in between its outlandish beaks.

After twenty minutes or so of fishing and feeding, the little bird flew away and perched on a tree branch and seemed to be dozing off - his food gathering and feeding over for the present.

I looked on for a little while longer and - wondered! How so very nice that the animals in the wild hunt for only what they need; it is not in their character to amass and hoard for tomorrow. The human animal, on the other hand, is a compulsive hoarder; we are solely focused on amassing, building and hording for tomorrow. This endeavor is seen as a necessary measure of securing and providing for our future; for growth and progress – oblivious of the fact that the very act of safeguarding our tomorrow is what is putting it to peril!