In the mountains of the Indian state of Assam, there is a mysterious place where unexplained events take place every August. At night, birds begin to fall from the sky for no apparent reason. This area is called Jatinga or the valley of falling birds.
The night of falling birds
An amazing and unique valley, surrounded on all sides by a forest, is located not far from a small village, the inhabitants of which annually organize a festival called "The Night of Falling Birds" during the birdfall. In recent years, in addition to guests from neighboring villages, curious tourists from countries far from India have begun to flock here.
The action begins on one of the last August nights. The birds first circle above the ground at a very small distance from it, and then begin to fall flat. Local residents gather prey and cook on fires made in advance. This birdfall has been going on for 2 or 3 nights in a row for many decades.
Jatinga Valley Phenomenon
The interest in the Jatinga Valley came from the English tea grower E. P. Gee, who in 1957 accidentally discovered such a unique phenomenon in India and described it in his book "The Virgin Nature of India". But initially, few people believed him, because he is not a scientist and described the events taking place in the valley of falling birds like an ordinary tourist.
Only one bird watcher was not afraid to waste time and check the words of the tea grower. It was an Indian scientist named Sengupta. He visited the valley in 1977 and became another witness to the amazing action. According to his descriptions, the behavior of the birds was completely uncharacteristic, they even allowed themselves to be taken in hand. Individuals that were specially caught on such a night, in the morning without signs of any violations, calmly flew away.
Until now, bird watchers around the world cannot give a clear answer to the question of why healthy birds fall annually in this area. In addition, scientists declare that this does not happen anywhere else in the world.
According to the first researcher Sengupta, the fall of birds is the result of geophysical anomalies and a special state of the atmosphere, which affect the nervous system of birds, plunging them into a state similar to a trance.
The inhabitants of Jatinga believe that the birdfall is a gift from the gods for leading a righteous lifestyle. Indeed, in their village for many years there have been no illegal events - murders, robberies, adultery.
Scientists are also trying to figure out what birds are guided by when flying, possibly to the Sun, stars, the Earth's gravitational field … Having found the answer to this mystery of nature, ornithologists hope to understand the phenomenon of the Indian Jatinga Valley.
