Dodging its way past a murder of crows the two-month-old Pariah found refuge in the fourth-floor flat of Manhas in the campus.

The bird had been wounded due to the pecking of the crows and in all probability would not have survived if it hadn't taken shelter in his flat. ``The first day I fed the kite with small mutton pieces and kept it in a cool room. It seemed to respond to this treatment,'' Manhas said.

On Tuesday, when it gained a little more strength, Manhas brought the bird to Colaba handed it over to the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).

The BNHS director Dr Asad R Rahmani told Express Newsline that the Pariah Kite is the only raptor (flesh-eating bird) with a forked tail and is considered to bea strong predator. ``But as in all organisms, some babies are born weak and usually die as per the law of nature. But this baby bird got lucky,'' the ornithologist noted.

Another bird-watcher at BNHS, Rex Pimento, informed that every year, at the onset of monsoon, they get cases of worn-down migratory birds like Pied Crested Cuckoo, the Kestril, various species of Eagles and the Sparrow Hawk. ``The crows usually attack these alien birds, but one must appreciate the fact that these very crows clear out 30 per cent of the garbage daily in the city due to their large numbers!'' he said.

The BNHS director now plans to take the Pariah Kite home and tend it till it's ready to take on the world again.