India, July 6 -- Outside my bedroom in Delhi is a platform on which water is kept in an earthen bowl for birds. To my surprise, a great many come to quench their thirst. Of course, the most common are the crows, pigeons and mynahs. But treepies come too, as do bulbuls-both the white-cheeked and red-vented variety-and flocks of parakeets. Among the more shy visitors is the elusive barbet, with the loudest call and least visibility, thanks to its scruffy rufous colour. On the higher branches of the peepal tree in front of my house, a pair of pariah kites-the common cheel-regularly build a nest every year. Green pigeons are often perched on the tree's lower branches.

In a city that heaves under the weight of its own contradictions, Delhi is...