(IN) Sparrows on menu to whet libido

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http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1184510

 

Sparrows on menu to whet libido

 

Sexologist rubbishes claim that meat of the bird boosts sex drive

MUMBAI: If sparrows are disappearing from the city, it could be because some

Mumbaikars, desperate to spice up things in the bedroom, are feeding on yet

another myth.

The common house sparrow has suddenly found shelf space in Crawford Market,

which is otherwise a bazaar for exotic and rare birds.

According to Karim Khan, founder president of People in Defence of Animals

(PIDA), the demand for the bird shot up suddenly after some hakims claimed to

have prepared a potion from the bird's meat which works as an aphrodisiac.

" The medicine, made from the flesh of the male sparrow, has suddenly become

sought-after and most wealthy people in the city are the biggest consumers, "

Khan said.

Hakims in Pydhonie, Bhendi Bazaar, Nagpada and Mohammed Ali Road are known to

prepare the medicine. The clientele includes industrialists and film stars,

claims Khan.

It is learnt that the birds are trapped from various parts of the city using

nylon nets. " Since the bird is small in size, a large number of birds is

required to make a single dosage cycle, " Khan said.

Sexologist Dr Prakash Kothari has ridiculed the claim. " The thinking works on

sexual signatures. People assume that since the bird moves so swiftly, it would

work on their sex organs too, " he said.

Volunteers of the Plant and Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) stumbled upon the

trade during a routine visit to the market last week. " Some people are trying to

save the bird as its population is on a decline and, on the other, thousands are

being openly sold, " said Sunish Subramanian of PAWS.

" This kind of sale must be stopped immediately and it doesn't matter what the

status of the species is. It sets a bad and disturbing precedent, " naturalist

Sunjoy Monga said.