The cranes seem to like the irrigated fields. Maybe they're fishing as well?
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10 months ago
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Some more paddy fields
I found out that a by-product of the paddy fields is small fish that live in the irrigated land. No fish in these photos but to my western eyes it was an impressive sight. The thing that surprised me was the sound of rushing water as the river drained and cascaded slowly down the land
The paddy is sown in nursery fields after harvest and the seedling transferred by hand into the main paddy fields (padia or bila). This seems to achieve a better rate of germination and seedling survival than scattering and although the work looks backbreaking to my pandered western eyes, provides much needed work and wages for the community.
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I'm told that productivity in the paddy fields can be increased by controlling the spacing of the plants, put them too close together and yield goes down, spacing them a fixed distance apart - sorry can't recall the exact amount - increases the yeild.
ReplyDeleteI suspect the cranes may be fishing, but will most certainly be drawn by the insect life. You'll have also noticed cranes in close proximity to cattle, walking along with them and even riding on their backs - I keep trying to get apicture but they fly off when they see me coming with a camera!
As for the fish, I'm wondering if they are tilapia, a carp which is edible and is used to control aquatic weeeds in rivers, ponds, irrigation channels - Warning, small boast coming up! - I know this because I was instrumental in some of the early research work on these fish done at the Weed Research Organisation field station at Yarnton near Oxford in the late 70s. My experimental ponds made it onto BBC TV's Tomorrows World! And may a hour was spent in chest level waders stiring up suphurous smelling mud in the drainage ditches of the East Anglian Fens, whilst swatting horseflies :)
I'm told the fish are very tasty. I've seen them for sale in little piles held in leaf bowls but not been able to buy as I've been passing by on the back of a motorbike.
ReplyDeleteAs for wandering through sulphurous smelling ponds in waders - yuk!