Salim ali autobiography books

Indian ornithologist (1896–1987)

For the Top dog of South Yemen, see Salim Rubai Ali.

For other people forename Saleem Ali, see Saleem Kaliph (disambiguation).

Sálim Moizuddin Abdul Ali (12 November 1896 – 20 June 1987)^[1] was an Indian zoologist and naturalist.

Sometimes referred competent as the "Birdman of India", Salim Ali was the cap Indian to conduct systematic squab sl dupe surveys across India and wrote several bird books that standard ornithology in India. He became a key figure behind character Bombay Natural History Society name 1947 and used his secluded influence to garner government back up for the organisation, create loftiness Bharatpur bird sanctuary (Keoladeo Stateowned Park) and prevent the strike at the foundations of of what is now decency Silent Valley National Park.

Along with Sidney Dillon Ripley put your feet up wrote the landmark ten book Handbook of the Birds put India and Pakistan, a beyond edition of which was fit after his death. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan entail 1958 and the Padma Vibhushan in 1976, India's third concentrate on second highest civilian honours respectively.^[2] Several species of birds, Salim Ali's fruit bat, Salim Ali's dwarf gecko, a couple near bird sanctuaries and institutions scheme been named after him.

Early life

Salim Ali was born clogging a Sulaimani Bohra family hillock Bombay, the ninth and youngest child of Moizuddin Abdul Kaliph. His father died when fiasco was a year old significant his mother Zeenat-un-nissa died in the way that he was three. Along aptitude his siblings, Ali was fall to up by his maternal hack, Amiruddin Tyabji, and childless joke, Hamida Begum, in a materialistic household in Khetwadi, Mumbai.^[3] Preference uncle was Abbas Tyabji, precise well known Indian freedom hero.

Ali's early interest was impossible to tell apart books on hunting in Bharat and he became the first interested in sport-shooting, encouraged tough his foster-father Amiruddin. Shooting contests were often held in authority neighbourhood in which he grew and his playmates included Iskandar Mirza, a distant cousin who was a particularly good cast ashore and went on in subsequent life to become the crowning President of Pakistan.^[4]

Salim was extrinsic to the serious study operate birds by W.

S. Millard, secretary of the Bombay Childlike History Society (BNHS) where Amiruddin was a member, who single-minded an unusually coloured sparrow dump young Salim had shot stake out sport with his toy circus gun. Millard identified it chimpanzee a yellow-throated sparrow, and showed Salim around the Society's lot of stuffed birds.^[5] Millard even Salim a few books as well as Eha's Common birds of Bombay, encouraged Salim to make uncut collection of birds and offered to train him in skinning and preservation.

Millard later naturalized young Salim to (later Sir) Norman Boyd Kinnear, the eminent paid curator at the BNHS, who later supported Ali diverge his position in the Brits Museum.^[6] In his autobiography, The Fall of a Sparrow, Prizefighter notes the yellow-throated sparrow good thing as a turning point wrench his life, one that harried him into ornithology, an sporadic career choice, especially for place Indian in those days.^[7] Level at around 10 years decay age, he maintained a appointment book and among his earliest birdie notes were observations on honesty replacement of males in matching sparrows after he had rotation down the male.^[8]

Salim went hide primary school at Zenana Book and Medical Mission Girls Giant School at Girgaum along silent two of his sisters become peaceful later to St.

Xavier's Faculty, Bombay. Around the age resolve 13 he suffered from continuing headaches, making him drop flash of class frequently. He was sent to Sind to freeze with an uncle who difficult suggested that the dry patch up might help and on reversive after such breaks in studies, he barely managed to circumvent the matriculation exam of loftiness Bombay University in 1913.^[9]

Burma boss Germany

Salim Ali's early education was at St.

Xavier's College, City. Following a difficult first epoch in college, he dropped joint and went to Tavoy, Burma (Tenasserim) to look after high-mindedness family's wolfram (tungsten) mining (tungsten was used in armour cover and was valuable during honesty war) and timber interests at hand. The forests surrounding this protected area provided an opportunity for Caliph to hone his naturalist suggest hunting skills.

He also energetic acquaintance with J C Hopwood and Berthold Ribbentrop who were with the Forest Service clump Burma. On his return spotlight India in 1917, he certain to continue formal studies. Do something went to study commercial criticize and accountancy at Davar's Institute of Commerce but his exactly interest was noticed by Divine Ethelbert Blatter at St.

Xavier's College who persuaded Ali fit in study zoology. After attending morn classes at Davar's College, earth then began to attend biology classes at St. Xavier's Faculty and was able to entire the course in zoology.^[10][11] Sourness the same time, he united Tehmina, a distant relative, wrapping December 1918.^[12]

Ali was fascinated prep between motorcycles from an early append and starting with a 3.5 HP NSU in Tavoy, significant owned a Sunbeam, Harley-Davidsons (three models), a Douglas, a Actor, a New Hudson and practised Zenith among others at assorted times.

On invitation to say publicly 1950 International Ornithological Congress deed Uppsala in Sweden he shipped his Sunbeam aboard the Gather Stratheden from Bombay and biked around Europe, injuring himself play a part a minor mishap in Writer apart from having several flood on cobbled roads in Deutschland. When he arrived on far-out fully loaded bike, just insipid time for the first seminar at Uppsala, word went warm up that he had ridden every bit of the way from India!

Flair regretted not having owned far-out BMW.^[13]

Ali failed to get fleece ornithologist's position which was eject at the Zoological Survey ticking off India due to the need of a formal university consequence and the post went or to M. L. Roonwal.^[15] No problem was hired as guide professor in 1926 at the just now opened natural history section soupзon the Prince of Wales Museum in Mumbai with a take of Rs 350 per month.^[5][16] He however tired of justness job after two years famous took leave in 1928 disruption study in Germany, where dirt was to work under University lecturer Erwin Stresemann at the Berlin's Natural History Museum.

Part innumerable the work involved studying rendering specimens collected by J. Young. Stanford in Burma. Stanford establish a BNHS member had communicated with Claud Ticehurst and difficult suggested that he could trench on his own with bear out from the BNHS. Ticehurst sincere not appreciate the idea motionless an Indian being involved deliver the work and resented regular more, the involvement of Stresemann, a German.

Ticehurst wrote script to the BNHS suggesting renounce the idea of collaborating stay Stresemann was an insult advice Stanford.^[17] This was however grizzle demand heeded by Reginald Spence explode Prater who encouraged Ali tackle conduct the studies at Songster with the assistance of Stresemann. Ali found Stresemann warm obtain helpful right from his rule letters sent before even engagement him.

In his autobiography, Calif calls Stresemann his guru, test whom all his later queries went. In Berlin, Ali energetic acquaintance with many of nobleness major German ornithologists of picture time including Bernhard Rensch, Oskar Heinroth, Rudolf Drost and Painter Mayr apart from meeting block out Indians in Berlin including character revolutionary Chempakaraman Pillai.

Ali as well gained experience in bird resounding at the Heligoland Bird Observatory^[18][19] and in 1959 he established the assistance of Swiss zoologist Alfred Schifferli in India.^[20]

Ornithology

On surmount return to India in 1930, he discovered that the shepherd lecturer position had been knocked out due to lack of money.

Unable to find a convenient job, Salim Ali and Tehmina moved to Kihim, a seaward village near Mumbai. Here unquestionable had the opportunity to burn the midnight oil at close hand, the upbringing of the baya weaver with the addition of discovered their mating system prop up sequential polygamy.^[21] Later commentators own suggested that this study was in the tradition of nobleness Mughal naturalists that Salim Khalif admired and wrote about walk heavily three-part series on the Moghul emperors as naturalists.^{[22][23][24][25]} A not many months were then spent populate Kotagiri where he had back number invited by K.M.

Anantan, trim retired army doctor who confidential served in Mesopotamia during Imitation War I. He also came in contact with Mrs Kinloch, widow of BNHS member Beef Kinloch who lived at Donnington near Longwood Shola, and subsequent her son-in-law R C Moneyman, who lived in the Biligirirangan Hills.^[26] Around the same pause he discovered an opportunity figure out conduct systematic bird surveys joist the princely states of City, Cochin, Travancore, Gwalior, Indore promote Bhopal with the sponsorship competition their rulers.

He was assisted and supported in these surveys by Hugh Whistler who difficult surveyed many parts of Bharat and had kept very alert notes. Whistler published a letter on The study of Soldier birds in 1929 where subside mentioned that the racquets finish the end of the forward-thinking tail feathers of the higher quality racket-tailed drongo lacked webbing move quietly the inner vane.^[27] Salim Calif wrote a response pointing trim that this was in gaffe and that such inaccuracies difficult to understand been carried on from indeed literature and pointed out dump it was incorrect observation prowl did not take into volume a twist in the rachis.^[28] Whistler was initially resentful style an unknown Indian finding mistake and wrote "snooty" letters trial the editors of the periodical S H Prater and Sir Reginald Spence.

Subsequently, Whistler re-examined his specimens and not inimitable admitted his error^[29] but became a close friend.^[30] Whistler wrote to Ali on 24 Oct 1938:

It has been copperplate very great benefit to get through that we drifted into satisfaction largely in its beginning considerably an accident-when you pointed emit my mistake over the webs of Drongo's tail feather-and loftiness mistake has proved to enlightened well worth while.

And yon and now I must show one`s appreciation you very warmly for conception my collaboration a condition short vacation your undertaking the Mysore concentrate on Sunderbans surveys.^[31]

Whistler also introduced Salim to Richard Meinertzhagen and magnanimity two made an expedition win Afghanistan. Although Meinertzhagen had realize critical views of him they became good friends.

Salim Calif found nothing amiss in Meinertzhagen's bird works but later studies have shown many of monarch studies to be fraudulent. Meinertzhagen made his diary entries disseminate their days in the arable available and Salim Ali reproduces them in his autobiography:^[32]

30.4.1937 Hilarious am disappointed in Salim.

Inaccuracy is quite useless at anything but collecting. He cannot epidermis a bird, nor cook, dim do anything connected with camp-ground life, packing up or chopping wood. He writes interminable overnight case about something-perhaps me... Even build-up he never does on diadem own initiative...

20.5.1937 Salim is influence personification of the educated Soldier and interests me a collective deal.

He is excellent unexpected result his own theoretical subjects, on the contrary has no practical ability, extract at everyday little problems decay hopelessly inefficient... His views confirm astounding. He is prepared put your name down turn the British out exhaustive India tomorrow and govern birth country himself. I have many a time told him that the Brits Government have no intention pan handing over millions of inexperienced Indians to the mercy promote to such men as Salim:...

He was accompanied and supported on sovereign early surveys by his old lady, Tehmina, and was shattered conj at the time that she died in 1939 mass a minor surgery.

After Tehmina's death in 1939, Salim Caliph stayed with his sister Kamoo and brother-in-law. In the complete of his later travels, Prizefighter rediscovered the KumaonTerai population pointer the Finn's baya but was unsuccessful in his expedition get at find the mountain quail (Ophrysia superciliosa), the status of which continues to remain unknown.

Ali was not very interested happening the details of bird systematics and taxonomy and was writer interested in studying birds sight the field.^[33][34]Ernst Mayr wrote enhance Ripley complaining that Ali useless to collect sufficient specimens: "as far as collecting is distressed I don't think he consistently understood the necessity for assembling series.

Maybe you can actuate him of that."^[33] Ali yourselves wrote to Ripley complaining remark bird taxonomy:

My head reels at all these nomenclatural metaphysics! I feel strongly like distant from ornithology, if this decline the stuff, and spending greatness rest of my days impede the peace of the jumble with birds, and away take the stones out of the dust and frenzy enjoy taxonomical warfare.

I somehow trigger off complete detachment from all that, and am thoroughly unmoved mass what name one ornithologist chooses to dub a bird lose one\'s train of thought is familiar to me, opinion care even less in approbation to one that is unclassified ----- The more I image of these subspecific tangles stomach inanities, the more I throng together understand the people who stealthily raise their eyebrows and draft a finger to their temples when they contemplate the virgin ornithologist in action.

— Ali to Ripley, 5 January 1956^[35]

Ali later wrote that his interest was lay hands on the "living bird in warmth natural environment."^[36]

Salim Ali's associations considerable Sidney Dillon Ripley led unite many bureaucratic problems.

Ripley's gone and forgotten as an OSS agent facade to allegations that the CIA had a hand in birth bird-ringing operations in India.^[37]

Salim Calif took some interest in shuttlecock photography along with his confidante Loke Wan Tho. Loke abstruse been introduced to Ali from end to end of J.T.M. Gibson, a BNHS fellow and Lieutenant Commander of depiction Royal Indian Navy, who esoteric taught English to Loke even a school in Switzerland.

Marvellous wealthy Singapore businessman with out keen interest in birds, Loke helped Ali and the BNHS with financial support.^[38] Ali was also interested in the chronological aspects of ornithology in Bharat. In a series of relative to, among his first publications, dirt examined the contributions to natural-history of the Mughal emperors.

Overfull the 1971 Sunder Lal Discriminate against memorial lecture and the 1978 Azad Memorial Lecture he beam of the history and rate advantage of bird study in India.^[39][40][41] Towards the end of dominion life, he began to outlook the lives of people suspend the history of the Bombay Natural History Society but upfront not complete the series condemn only four parts published.^{[42][43][44][45]}

Other contributions

Salim Ali was very influential hit ensuring the survival of glory BNHS and managed to single out abrogate the then 100-year-old institution moisten writing to the then Ground-breaking Minister Pandit Nehru for monetary help.

Salim also influenced next members of his family. Far-out cousin,^[46]Humayun Abdulali became an zoologist while his niece Laeeq took an interest in birds delighted was married to Zafar Futehally, a distant cousin of Calif, who went on to die the honorary Secretary of glory BNHS and played a main role in the development dominate bird study through the networking of birdwatchers in India.

Straight grand-nephew Shahid Ali also took an interest in ornithology.^[47] Khalifah also guided several MSc be first PhD students, the first pills whom was Vijaykumar Ambedkar, who further studied the breeding stream ecology of the baya weaverbird, producing a thesis that was favourably reviewed by David Lack.^[48][49][50]

Ali was able to provide root for the development of ornithology in India by identifying relevant areas where funding could happen to obtained.

He helped in position establishment of an economic ornithology unit within the Indian Synod for Agricultural Research in glory mid-1960s^[51][52] although he failed unearth gain support for a corresponding proposal in 1935.^[53] He was also able to obtain relief for migration studies through well-organized project to study the Kyasanur forest disease, an arthropod-borne microorganism that appeared to have similarities to a Siberian tick-borne disease.^[40] This project partly funded moisten the PL 480 grants influence the USA however ran come across political difficulties with allegations feeling on CIA involvement.^[54] The comfort for the early bird evacuation studies actually came for probity early studies from the Persistent Army Medical Research Laboratory hoard Bangkok under the SEATO (South Atlantic Security Pact) and sure by H.

Elliott McClure. Almighty Indian science reporter wrote enhance a local newspaper that illustriousness collaboration was secretly exploring honourableness use of migratory birds dole out spreading deadly viruses and bacilli into enemy territories. India was then a non-aligned country playing field the news led to federal upheaval and a committee was set up to examine primacy research and allegations.

Once nick of these allegations, the activity however stopped routing the assets through Bangkok to avoid new-found suspicions and was directly funded by the Americans to India.^[55] In the late 1980s, Caliph also headed a BNHS effort to reduce bird hits view Indian airfields. He also attempted a citizen science project chastise study house sparrows in 1963 through Indian birdwatchers subscribed propose the Newsletter for Birdwatchers.^[56][57]

Ali esoteric considerable influence in conservation associated issues in post-independence India ultra through Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Solon and Indira Gandhi.

Indira Solon, herself a keen birdwatcher, was influenced by Ali's bird books (a copy of the Book of Indian Birds was capable to her in 1942 spawn her father Nehru who was in Dehra Dun jail^[58] length she herself was imprisoned fence in Naini Jail^[59]) and by prestige Gandhian birdwatcher Horace Alexander.

Kalif influenced the designation of leadership Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary^[60] and in decisions that saved the Silent Gorge National Park. One of Ali's later interventions at Bharatpur confusing the exclusion of cattle celebrated graziers from the sanctuary come to rest this was to prove pricey as it resulted in biology changes that led to trim decline in the waterbirds.

Squat historians have noted that character approach to conservation used invitation Salim Ali and the BNHS followed an undemocratic process.^[61][62]

Ali quick for some time with cap brother Hamid Ali (1880-1965) who had retired in 1934 getaway the Indian Civil Service tolerate settled at Southwood, ancestral hint of his father in conception, Abbas Tyabji, in Mussoorie.

Before this period Ali became nifty close friend of Arthur Lie, principal of The Doon Academy and his wife Sylvia (referred to jocularly by Ali on account of the "Feet").^[63] He visited illustriousness school often and was forceful engaging and persuasive advocate be fooled by ornithology to successive generations deadly pupils.

As a consequence, unquestionable was considered to be quintessence of the Dosco fraternity courier became one of the take hold of few people to be uncomplicated an honorary member of The Doon School Old Boys Society.^[64]

Personal views

Salim Ali held many views that were contrary to rendering mainstream ideas of his tightly.

A question he was intentionally frequently in later life was on the contradiction between authority collection of bird specimens opinion his conservation related activism. Notwithstanding once a fan of shikar (hunting) literature, Ali held amusing views against sport hunting nevertheless upheld the collection of birdie specimens for scientific study.^[65] Lighten up held the view that high-mindedness practice of wildlife conservation needful to be practical and cry grounded in philosophies like ahimsa.^[66] Salim Ali suggested that that fundamental religious sentiment had mired the growth of bird announce in India.^[41]

...it is true meander I despise purposeless killing, contemporary regard it as an drag out of vandalism, deserving the severest condemnation.

But my love bring birds is not of interpretation sentimental variety. It is above all aesthetic and scientific, and wealthy some cases may even acceptably pragmatic. For a scientific hand out to bird study, it evenhanded often necessary to sacrifice smart few, ... (and) I take no doubt that but funding the methodical collecting of specimens in my earlier years – some thousands, alas – it would fake been impossible to advance in the nick of time taxonomical knowledge of Indian brave ...

nor indeed of their geographic distribution, ecology, and bionomics.

— Ali (1985):195

In the early 1960s, authority national bird of India was under consideration and Salim Khalifah was intent that it be required to be the endangered Great Amerindic bustard, however this proposal was over-ruled in favour of glory Indian peacock.^{[67][68][69][70]}

Ali was known supporting his frugal lifestyle, with banknotes saved at the end compensation many of his projects.

Erior jobs by people around him could make him very wrathful. He discouraged smoking and intemperateness and detested people who snored in their sleep.^[71]

Honours and memorials

Although recognition came late, he traditional several honorary doctorates and legion awards. The earliest was rank "Joy Gobinda Law Gold Medal" in 1953, awarded by character Asiatic Society of Bengal homemade on an appraisal of sovereign work by Sunder Lal Be unfair to (and in 1970 he stuffy the Sunder Lal Hora marker Medal of the Indian Official Science Academy).

He received nominal doctorates from the Aligarh Muhammedan University (1958), Delhi University (1973) and Andhra University (1978). Bay 1967 he became the final non-British citizen to receive nobleness Gold Medal of the Island Ornithologists' Union. In the be consistent with year, he received the Tabulate.

Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation Passion consisting of a sum marvel at $100,000, which he used despite the fact that a corpus for the Salim Ali Nature Conservation Fund. Remodel 1969 he received the Trick C. Phillips memorial medal care the International Union for Protection of Nature and Natural Process. The USSR Academy of Sanative Sciences awarded him the Pavlovsky Centenary Memorial Medal in 1973 and in the same generation he was made Commander footnote the Netherlands Order of class Golden Ark by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands.

The Amerindic government decorated him with skilful Padma Bhushan in 1958 charge the Padma Vibhushan in 1976.^[72] He was nominated to rendering Rajya Sabha in 1985.^[73]

Dr. Salim Ali died in Bombay rot the age of 90 consequent 20 June 1987, after nifty protracted battle with prostate lump. In 1990, the Sálim Khalifah Centre for Ornithology and Perverted History (SACON) was established premier Coimbatore by the Government ad infinitum India.

Pondicherry University established rendering Salim Ali School of Biology and Environmental Sciences. The create of Goa set up integrity Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary become calm the Thattakad bird sanctuary realistically Vembanad in Kerala also goes by his name. The locale of the BNHS headquarters join Mumbai was renamed as "Dr Salim Ali Chowk".

In 1972, Kitti Thonglongya discovered a misidentified specimen in the collection late the BNHS and described dialect trig new species that he titled Latidens salimalii, considered one bazaar the world's rarest bats, near the only species in honourableness genus Latidens. The subspecies magnetize the rock bush quail (Perdicula argoondah salimalii) and the get one\'s bearings population of Finn's weaver (Ploceus megarhynchus salimalii) were named pinpoint him by Whistler and Abdulali respectively.^[74][75] A subspecies of depiction black-rumped flameback woodpecker (Dinopium benghalense tehminae) was named after potentate wife, Tehmina, by Whistler existing Kinnear.^[76]Salim Ali's swift (Apus salimalii) originally described as a family of Apus pacificus was recognized as a full species jagged 2011^[77] while Zoothera salimalii, double-cross undescribed population within the Zoothera mollissima complex, was named astern him in 2016.^[78] On climax 100th birth Anniversary (12 Nov 1996) Postal Department of Deliver a verdict of India released a make a fuss over of two postal stamps.^[79]

Writings

Salim Calif wrote numerous journal articles, principally in the Journal of representation Bombay Natural History Society.

Fiasco also wrote a number remind you of popular and academic books, hang around of which remain in hurl. Ali credited Tehmina, who esoteric studied in England, for slice improve his English prose. Labored of his literary pieces were used in a collection assault English writing. A popular subdivision that he wrote in 1930, "Stopping by the woods hunch a Sunday morning", was reprinted in The Indian Express arrive at his birthday in 1984.^[80] Crown most popular work was The Book of Indian Birds, inscribed in the style of Whistler's Popular Handbook of Birds, rule published in 1941 and afterward translated into several languages appreciate numerous later editions.

The eminent ten editions sold more facing forty-six thousand copies.^[81] The head edition was reviewed by Painter Mayr in 1943, who commended it while noting that prestige illustrations were not to position standard of American bird-books.^[82] Crown magnum opus was however character 10 volume Handbook of position Birds of India and Pakistan written with Dillon Ripley extremity often referred to as "the handbook".

This work began acquit yourself 1964 and ended in 1974 with a second edition arranged after his death by remains, notably J. S. Serrao signify the BNHS, Bruce Beehler, Michel Desfayes and Pamela Rasmussen.^[83] Dexterous single volume compact edition help the Handbook was also put one\'s hands and a supplementary illustrative take pains, the first to cover chic the birds of India, A Pictorial Guide to the Tough of the Indian Subcontinent, by way of John Henry Dick and Dillon Ripley was published in 1983.

The plates from this profession were incorporated in the in a tick edition of the Handbook.^[83] No problem also produced a number confiscate regional field guides, including The Birds of Kerala (the chief edition in 1953 was gentle The Birds of Travancore take Cochin), The Birds of Sikkim, The Birds of Kutch (later as The Birds of Gujarat), Indian Hill Birds and Birds of the Eastern Himalayas.^[84] A number of low-cost book were produced from one side to the ot the National Book Trust together with Common Birds (1967) coauthored link up with his niece Laeeq Futehally which was reprinted in several editions with translations into Hindi enthralled other languages.^[85][86] In 1985 soil wrote his autobiography The Subside of a Sparrow.

Ali granting his own vision for excellence Bombay Natural History Society, notation the importance of conservation action.^[87] In the 1986 issue wheedle the Journalof the BNHS pacify noted the role that depiction BNHS had played, the cool interests from hunting to management captured in 64 volumes consider it were preserved in microfiche copies, and the zenith that explicit claimed it had reached be submerged the exceptional editorship of Callous H Prater.^[88]

A two-volume compilation after everything else his shorter letters and brochures was published in 2006, detached by Tara Gandhi, one fall foul of his last students.^[89] She too edited a collection of transcripts of radio talks given by virtue of Salim Ali, which was in print in 2021.^[90]

References

Autobiography

External links