Shikra: A leopard with wings! | The Business Standard
Skip to main content
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard

Sunday
June 01, 2025

Sign In
Subscribe
  • Epaper
  • Economy
    • Aviation
    • Banking
    • Bazaar
    • Budget
    • Industry
    • NBR
    • RMG
    • Corporates
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • Videos
    • TBS Today
    • TBS Stories
    • TBS World
    • News of the day
    • TBS Programs
    • Podcast
    • Editor's Pick
  • World+Biz
  • Features
    • Panorama
    • The Big Picture
    • Pursuit
    • Habitat
    • Thoughts
    • Splash
    • Mode
    • Tech
    • Explorer
    • Brands
    • In Focus
    • Book Review
    • Earth
    • Food
    • Luxury
    • Wheels
  • Subscribe
    • Epaper
    • GOVT. Ad
  • More
    • Sports
    • TBS Graduates
    • Bangladesh
    • Supplement
    • Infograph
    • Archive
    • Gallery
    • Long Read
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Magazine
    • Climate Change
    • Health
    • Cartoons
  • বাংলা
SUNDAY, JUNE 01, 2025
Shikra: A leopard with wings!

Panorama

Enam Ul Haque
13 August, 2022, 11:15 am
Last modified: 13 August, 2022, 04:21 pm

Related News

  • Hundreds of birds burnt in Jhenaidah shop fire
  • 3 arrested with 697 slaughtered birds in Chattogram
  • 1,200 trapped birds rescued, freed in Bagerhat
  • Large influx of migratory birds enhances scenic charm of Ramrai Dighi in Thakurgaon
  • Experts warn of rising bird strike risks at Dhaka airport

Shikra: A leopard with wings!

Shikari, shikara, shikra or shikre – all mean ‘hunter’ in the subcontinental languages; and the bird is indeed worthy of that name. The exceedingly long and strong legs, toes and talons of the Shikra are purpose-built to strike and kill its prey quickly

Enam Ul Haque
13 August, 2022, 11:15 am
Last modified: 13 August, 2022, 04:21 pm
Toes and talons of Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
Toes and talons of Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

A band of screaming Babblers drew our attention to a sleek, grey bird sitting upright in the Jarul grove beyond our boundary wall. It looked pretty much like the Hawk Cuckoo that has been frequenting the grove since spring. But, unlike the cuckoo it had stern red eyes, a hooked bill and long pale legs with lethal talons! It was a Shikra - a bird that hunts lizards, squirrels, rats, snakes and small birds. No wonder the Babblers freaked out.

We rarely see Shikras in Banani though they are quite capable of making a living in the cities as well as in any other human neighbourhood. We do not get to see them often because they do not wish to be seen and are very good at staying under cover. Like most hawks, the Shikra patiently sits hidden in the foliage and surveys the ground for an unsuspecting reptile, bird or insect to prey upon.

A male Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
A male Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

We were particularly thrilled to spot the Shikra near our residence because only a week before, we had seen them in several national parks of Uganda, thousands of kilometres away. This avian hunter is widespread in large parts of Africa as well as Asia. Wherever it may live, it is called 'Shikra' - a name given in the Indian subcontinent and was circulated abroad by the English colonisers. Shikari, shikara, shikra or shikre – all mean 'hunter' in the subcontinental languages; and the bird is indeed worthy of that name. 

The Business Standard Google News Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel

The exceedingly long and strong legs, toes and talons of the Shikra are purpose-built to strike and kill its prey quickly. It usually watches its prey closely before swooping down on it and killing it by a single squeeze of its talons. We never saw a prey struggle for very long in the talons of a Shikra, even when the prey was as big as a partridge.

A female Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
A female Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

Shikra has always been popular with the falconers of the subcontinent. The sleek and lightweight bird had the reputation of a very brave, intelligent and indefatigable hunter. Shikra was often called a leopard with wings. Falconers considered the Shikra easy to train and very easy to handle. Shikras are still kept as pets at some villages in Pakistan and India although falconry as a sport or hobby has died out. 

Our familiarity with Shikra explains why the Panjabi ghazal titled 'Mai ek Shikra yaar banaya' became so popular all over the subcontinent breaking through so many language barriers. By calling his beloved a 'Shikra' the great Indian poet Shiv Kumar evoked the image of a wayward and insensitive paramour in the following memorable lines of his ghazal: 

It's a Shikra I befriended …

And let it peck at my core;

But in silence it departed

And came to me no more. 

Fortunately, a real-life Shikra in the wild does not see their mate as an insensitive or wayward partner at all. In fact, a breeding pair of Shikras may well be the very model of connubial love, care and conviviality. The enthusiasm with which a male Shikra undertakes courtship routine and all subsequent household chores are exemplary among all the hunting birds called raptors.

Shikra on tree-trunk. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
Shikra on tree-trunk. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

Like most raptors, the female Shikra is quite a bit bigger than the male; and can handle the bigger prey with greater ease. The female is also coloured differently. It is more brown than grey; has brown spots on the chest instead of fine rufous bars; and most noticeably, its eyes are yellow rather than red.  

We have seen the Shikras breed in the village groves, usually in the monsoon. After a week of aerial display they break little twigs with their strong feet to build platform nests in leafy trees. The nesting period happens to be the best time to observe and photograph these stealthy birds. We continue to see these silent hunters in many villages in Bangladesh although their population has been dwindling over the past decades.   

The Shikra that fortuitously visited our neighbourhood was obviously a lovely male. From our vantage point we could see its red eye, steely-grey wings and tail; but not the fine rufous lines of its chest. The hysterical Babblers were screaming in the Jarul grove ever more loudly to drive the Shikra away. 

A poised Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
A poised Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

The Babblers' histrionics did not go in vain. The Shikra moved away to a Sissoo trunk focusing its attention on an auburn gecko lurking in the bush down below. The gecko had heard the alarm raised by the Babblers and knew what to do when the Shikra made its move. Gecko turned green and dived into the thickets quickly.

The thwarted Shikra sat still, poised and unruffled. Perhaps the wise bird did not have a very high hope of success ever since the Babblers began the rumpus to broadcast his presence. The life of Shikra has never been easy; patience has been a part of his hunter's psyche. 

Toes and talons of Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque
Toes and talons of Shikra. Photo; Enam Ul Haque

Predictably enough, the Shikra did not attempt to threaten or chase the marauding Babblers out of the grove. This astute hunter is not known to have anger issues. We never saw a Shikra attack a critter vengefully. It hunted for food; not retribution. 

Soon the Shikra took off silently and vanished into the eventide. It definitely knew that there would always be a new hunting ground and a new prey when a new day dawned. 

 

Features / Top News

Birds / Shikra

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • Illustration: TBS
    Tax-free income ceiling to be raised, slabs restructured
  • Infographic: TBS
    Govt targets Dec opening of Dhaka airport's 3rd terminal but Japanese consortium wants 2 more months
  • Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus returns to Dhaka on 1 June 2025, wrapping up his four-day official tour to Japan. Photo: Courtesy
    CA Yunus returns home wrapping up Japan tour

MOST VIEWED

  • BAT Bangladesh has to vacate Mohakhali HQ as SC rejects lease appeal
    BAT Bangladesh has to vacate Mohakhali HQ as SC rejects lease appeal
  • Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus speaks to Nikkei Asia in Tokyo on 29 May. Photo: Nikkei Asia
    Bangladesh ready to buy more US cotton, oil to reduce trade gap: Yunus
  • UCB approves 2024 financials, allocates entire profit to NPL provisions
    UCB approves 2024 financials, allocates entire profit to NPL provisions
  • Tax exemptions for key industries to go, sweeping tax hikes planned
    Tax exemptions for key industries to go, sweeping tax hikes planned
  • Matarbari 1,200MW coal-fired plant in Moheshkhali, Cox's Bazar. File Photo: Nupa Alam/TBS
    Supplier slapped with 5 conditions to unload rejected Matarbari coal shipment
  • US Embassy Dhaka. Picture: Courtesy
    Birth tourism not permitted on US visitor visa: US Embassy Dhaka

Related News

  • Hundreds of birds burnt in Jhenaidah shop fire
  • 3 arrested with 697 slaughtered birds in Chattogram
  • 1,200 trapped birds rescued, freed in Bagerhat
  • Large influx of migratory birds enhances scenic charm of Ramrai Dighi in Thakurgaon
  • Experts warn of rising bird strike risks at Dhaka airport

Features

Babar Ali, Ikramul Hasan Shakil, and Wasfia Nazreen are leading a bold resurgence in Bangladeshi mountaineering, scaling eight-thousanders like Everest, Annapurna I, and K2. Photos: Collected

Back to 8000 metres: How Bangladesh’s mountaineers emerged from a decade-long pause

1d | Panorama
Photos: Courtesy

Behind the looks: Bangladeshi designers shaping celebrity fashion

1d | Mode
Photo collage of the sailors and their catch. Photos: Shahid Sarkar

Between sky and sea: The thrilling life afloat on a fishing ship

1d | Features
For hundreds of small fishermen living near this delicate area, sustainable fishing is a necessity for their survival. Photo: Syed Zakir Hossain

World Ocean Day: Bangladesh’s ‘Silent Island’ provides a fisheries model for the future

2d | The Big Picture

More Videos from TBS

Fuel prices cut; effective from June 1

Fuel prices cut; effective from June 1

7h | TBS News Updates
News of The Day, 31 MAY 2025

News of The Day, 31 MAY 2025

10h | TBS News of the day
Which way will the job crisis take the Chinese young generation?

Which way will the job crisis take the Chinese young generation?

11h | Others
How Banglalink is implementing Veon DO 1440

How Banglalink is implementing Veon DO 1440

9h | TBS Stories
EMAIL US
contact@tbsnews.net
FOLLOW US
WHATSAPP
+880 1847416158
The Business Standard
  • About Us
  • Contact us
  • Sitemap
  • Advertisement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
Copyright © 2025
The Business Standard All rights reserved
Technical Partner: RSI Lab

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - oped.tbs@gmail.com

For advertisement- sales@tbsnews.net