Pakshi Loka: May 2011

We were on our way to Bandipur and it was a suprise call from Balu that made us to visit Ranganathittu. With nesting season around and we were lucky to spot these..

A loud shrill call made us to look up and a crested serpent eagle was sitting up there. The boat man told us there was a nest around and he took us nearby. There was another one sitting in the nest, probably there were chiks inside. We kept watching that for a few minutes expecting some chicks, but it didn't move a bit.

Further down, these Streak Throated Swallows had made their nest, and were moving around in unison. Further reading pointed that, these swallows build colonial nests like a honeycomb with mud.

This pond heron in breeding plummage was sitting pretty...

So was this Spot Billed Pelican family...

and there was this Black Crowned Night Heron..

Got to know, why a Spoon Bill is named as Spoon bill :-)

Painted Storks were in plenty and doing acrobatics

and this Open billed Stork, Posed for a good shot with its open bill clearly visible.

After more than four months from the trip to Hampi, here comes a post on it along with some pictures. Apologies to those who we kept waiting for this long....

The 3 day trip in the end of December was an amazing one, with a pretty decent list of birds, for us beginners. What was satisfying was that this time I religiously maintained notes during all the three days while birding. As always, we spent more time with the nature than with the monuments and ruins :) There were birds almost everywhere - in and around the ruins, on the road sides, Kamalapur, the JLR property (we didn’t stay there but visited there and went on the nature walk with them), the road next to the canal, leading to Daroji....

This White throated Kingfisher in one of the ruins site let us go very very near to it - up to almost 8-10 feet! Every time I see it, I am awed by the beautiful, vibrant colors it is made of!

Rose ringed Parakeets were in huge number

So were Plum headed Parakeets; watched a huge group for a long time.

Saw the Pied Kingfisher for the first time. It’s amazing to watch it fishing. It eyes on its prey in water at almost 20-30 feet above the surface of water and stops mid air at the same point by continuously flapping its wings. And at a suitable point in time, sometimes after about half a minute of staying at the same point in mid-air, it dives down straight into the water - as if it fell off losing gravity. And in the next moment, comes out flying, if lucky, with a fish in its beak! We were lucky to witness the whole drama many times during those three days.