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Go to India to See Birds in Winter
浏览次数:2022次 更新时间:2018-04-13

Go to India to See Birds in Winter

Writer and Photographer: Beichuang


The best season to travel in India is in winter. There is no more typhoon near the southern seacoast of India since the middle of December. The temperature is not high until March, and it barely rains.

The amount of birds in China and India is the eighth and ninth place in the world( the second and third highest in Asia). There are various ecological environments such as tropical islands, high snow lands, primary forests, prairies and deserts in both countries. The variety of birds are similar, and each has its advantages. So in the past winter, I went to India to see birds.

My first stop was the Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary in Kerala which is located on the west side of Western Ghats. The Western Ghats is the world natural heritage site. The Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary is the most famous place to see jungle birds. The variety of birds here was found by the father of Indian ornithology——Dr. Salim Al in 1933. Fifty years later, under his recommendation, Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary which is the first bird sanctuary in Kerala was built.

As soon as I entered the family inn, Junglebird Home, in the sanctuary, the hostess Ms. Sudah asked the guests to come down and see a couple of Brown Hawk Owls resting on the branch. This was a surprisingly good start. Ms. Sudah wore a green traditional Indian sari which looked like camouflage. Except for the telescope on her neck, you wouldnt believe that she is a professional bird guide recommended by the Lonely Planet.


The temperature was lower at afternoon, the bird pals in the inn followed Ms. Sudah into the nearby forest. We saw Dollarbirds on the high branches, the Golden Orioles eating bugs in the tree shadow, Grey Junglefowls finding food under the bushes, Green Imperial Pigeons flying in the sky, and White-cheeked Barbets flashed across the woods... Ms. Sudah who was not tall was like a bird radar, and she identified every rare bird in the forest for us. Sometimes when a black shadow passed by, she would find direction and keep following the shadow. Then we got to take photos of Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Shikra, and Rufous Treepie. When the day was getting dark, groups of parrots started to dance in the sky. We walked back to the inn to have dinner, though we were reluctant to. During our conversation, we knew bird information from different countries and regions.

The next day, Aunt Sudah( we decided to call her this way last night during dinner) led us to the central region of the forest where was twenty kilometers away by Jeep. After we arrived, we found out that there was a giant rock hidden in the forest. We could see as high as the treetops when we stood on the top of the rock. There were four or five kinds of colorful birds that I had never seen before on a tree nearby. Even though there was fog in the morning, the birds were especially chirpy when the day was still cool. They flew among the trees to find food. I put down my telescope and camera altogether, and for the first time, I saw the colorful birds wave with my own eyes. There were Orange Minivet, Golden-fronted Leafbird, Blue-winged Leafbird and Flame-throated Bulbul. Aunt Sudah was helping us to recognize the birds. I felt like I was short of hearing, vision and bird knowledge. After the fog was lifted, we saw the astonishing Greater Flameback and Malabar Grey Hornbill. Our neck problems which were caused by looking down too much were solved. On our way back, Aunt Sudah worried that we didnt have enough fun, she pointed at a horizontal branch above us which was one or two meters long mysteriously. We looked carefully for a long time before we could recognize the stars of the sanctuary—— a couple of Sri Lanka Frogmouths. Their camouflages were impeccable.

After I left Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary, I took two hours of car and then changed into the ferry to the Indian Gulangyu Island——Fort Cochin. There is a famous tourist site, the Chinese fishing nets, on the seacoast. There are two powers here, one is black, and one is white. They are the House Crows and Egrets. They are waiting to take the fishes from the fishermen. Black Kites( also known as eagles) and Brahminy Kites are owners of the sky. Unlike in China, I didnt have to use the telescope to see the prey birds. I could count the feathers even with my bare eyes.

I needed to go over the Western Ghats so that I could leave Kerala. Along the way, I took photos of Oriental White-eye, Lotens Sunbird, Crimson-backed Sunbird, Plum-headed Parakeet, Yellow-crowned Woodpecker, Crested Goshawk, Crested Serpent Eagle, etc. The happiest thing was that I took a clear photo of Changeable Hawk Eagle and a couple of White-bellied Woodpeckers( the biggest woodpecker in southern India) in the same photo. The forest lives up to its name as one of the eight hottest biodiversity hotspots in the world.

After I went over the Western Ghats, I arrived Mysore on the Deccan Plateau which is the most famous city in southern India. Even though this is a big city, there are eagles flying in the sky as much as crows in other cities. The Eagles have a king aura. I remember that once an Austrian friend of mine who studied in biology came to travel in Beijing, basically the first thing he asked me was why there wasnt any bird of prey in the sky. Later I thought it was because of manual deratization. The Long-eared Owls lived in Temple of Heaven has gone for years.

I went to Dandeli afterward which is a small town near the border of Karnataka. And it is three hundred kilometers north-west from Mysore. The Kali River here ( which means river of black water because of the black stones in the river) is originated from the east side of Western Ghats and ended on the west side. The river attracts many Indian from nearby big cities to vacation here because of its rich outdoor water sports. The locals are very hospitable. I got food and drinks for free( omit five thousand words here), and I took a car to the forest park beside the Kali River for free. At last, under the guidance of a group of teenagers, I took as many photos of Malabar Pied Hornbill as I want!

Going to west from Dandeli and go over the Western Ghats again is a seaside resort Goa. I found Indian Roller, Orange-headed Thrush, and two kinds of Bee-eaters easily around the inn that I stayed at thanks to the introduction of the Indian bird pal from Thattekkad. Early next morning, I rent a bicycle to the Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary. I was amazed when I arrived the front gate—— the 2nd Bird Festival of Goa opened that day. I signed in as soon as possible.

The opening address was made by the Chief Minister of Goa and awards of bird photography were given. Except for the local dances, they invited bird experts to give speeches. The most enjoyable speech among them all was the one given by the famous international animal animator Rohan Chakraborty( website: www.greenhumour.com). He mentioned Chinese bird painting art and the Chinese fine brushwork flower-and-bird painting of Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty at the beginning. There was the display of Goa bird photos, bird books and bird watching equipment outside the venue. My horizon was widened, and I felt connected with Indian bird!

Of course, the main course of bird festival is to see real birds. The host arranged different routes in the dozens of square kilometers wide sanctuary day and night. The routes included vehicle and food service, led by professional bird guides and escorted by policemen. The woods were dense sometimes, but the bird guides could identify the birds from a long distance according to the sound which was admirable. That was how I could take photos of several kinds of Barbets which were on the top of the tree. There were two bird observatories inside the crown of the trees. From there, you could look down and see Black-naped Monarch and Asian Paradise-flycatcher closely. How fun was that!


The last day of the bird festival, we set off on a fish boat to observe birds on the sea. We did not sail along the seacoast, but we sailed toward the middle of the ocean for three hours then we turned around. I saw an old man with deep and firm eyes. He sometimes took pictures with a telephoto lens and sometimes he sketched the view of the sea on the paper book while standing on the gunwale. After talking to him, I learned that he was the organizer of the bird festival and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests & Chief Wildlife Warden of Goa——Mr.Ajai Saxena. He used to be the student of Doctor Salim Ali when he was young. He has loved outdoor sketching and bird observing. He often rides the bike along the seacoast highway to exercise. I think the reason why Bird Festival of Goa was fantastic had everything to do with the love of nature that is in the heart of this leader.

The other place you have to go to observe bird in India is the Keoladeo National Park at Rajasthan. It is a wild bird sanctuary that is listed as one of world natural heritage site. Its geographical location in India is almost like Baiyang Lake, Hebei in China. The east side is mountains, and the west side is the plateau. It is a natural wetland which is over a hundred kilometers away from the capital Delhi. Every winter, many migratory birds from middle Asia, Siberia and north China will come here to find food and live through the winter. Just like a saying said by a predecessor of bird watching which is you do not have to worry about finding birds because they are everywhere and you have to worry about recognizing precious birds instead of their appearance.


Because it is a wetland, so there are mainly waterfowls. It happens made up for the previous trips which were mainly jungle birds. There were countless small waterfowl. I was lucky enough to observe Sarus Crane, Painted Stork, Black-necked Stork, and Black-headed Ibis closely. Those wading birds could only be seen in Zoos most of the time. Birds here do not seem afraid of people. Several Bar-headed Geese flew toward me under the sunlight of the setting sun, as if they were saying hello to fellow-townsman from the other side of the Himalaya mountain. I hope I can fly back to India and see these beautiful, real and free creatures like migratory birds the next winter.


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