World Sparrow Day is observed on March 20 to raise awareness of the house sparrow and the threat to their population. The day throws light on the sparrows dwelling in urban areas which are vanishing slowly. The day is an international initiative by the Nature Forever Society of India in collaboration with the Eco-Sys Action Foundation (France) along with several national and international organisations host the day. This year, the theme for World Sparrow Day is 'I LOVE Sparrows'. The theme has been inspired "by the hope that more and more of us will celebrate the relationship between PEOPLE AND SPARROWS".

While the house sparrow has been one of the most common bird in the world, their population has declined heavily in both urban and rural habitats. Its decline is an indicator of the degradation of the environment around us. This World Sparrow Day, let's promise to conserve them and their habitat. This small chirpy bird originates from North Africa and is also present in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. In some countries, they are endangered while in others are on the verge of it.

Here are some interesting facts about the small bird:

1.Sparrows are carnivores by nature but have changed their eating habits after they started living close to people. While they primarily eat moths and small insects, but they can also eat seed, berries, and fruit.

2. Male and female sparrows can be distinguished by the color of their feathers. While males have reddish backs and a black bib, while females have brown backs with stripes.

3. Sparrows live for about four to five years in the wild.

4. It is said that sparrows are monogamous. A recent genetic analysis showed that only a few percent of eggs contain DNA of both parents.

5. Sparrows are very social and can survive between 4 and 5 years in the wild.

6. House sparrows do not migrate, however, the urban ones move to the countryside to feed on grain fields in the late summer.

7. While a sparrow is not a water bird, it can swim very fast when they sense danger.

8. House sparrows are known for dust bathing. They throw soil and dust over themselves like taking bath in a water.

9. Sparrows are generally considered territorial creatures but quite protective about their nests.

10. Male sparrows are responsible for building the nest and during the construction, they try to attract females.

The world sparrow day organisation wants to bring individuals, national and international groups together to conserve sparrows. They want something to done to fight contemporary challenges required for their existence. While they cannot address their issues, let's ensure we do not turn our surroundings into a concrete jungle and keep the ecological system balance for their and our existence.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 20, 2018 11:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).