Photo Span

Baya weaver:Ploceus philippinus (Female)

2015-08-16T02:36:00.000-07:00

Baya weaver:Ploceus philippinus (Female)

Baya weaver: Ploceus philippinus (Female)

Coppersmith barbet: Megalaima haemacephala

2015-08-14T10:51:00.000-07:00

Coppersmith barbet
Megalaima haemacephala

There are reasons for the lull in fresh posting to the blog: besides work grabbing priority, disaster struck me yet again. Way back, on a long tour of Rajasthan with family, I lost data from 32Gb SD card. I learnt my lesson, reduced my ignorance about such tech matters, and went ahead and purchased two large capacity external hard disk drives of reputed brands for backing up my data. I went ahead and backed up my data, distributing it between the two as per relevance and relationship to the theme assigned for each external drive. For the past couple of years, my smugness at my elevation to a reduced level of ignorance knew no bounds and I merrily went ahead storing and processing photos, and expanding my database tables without further reducing my ignorance about data storage do's and don'ts any further. Smugness got hit. By a simple straight punch, but with catastrophic effects - my birding and wildlife TB drive was accidentally disconnected by a careless movement of my arm, and BAM!, my drive went dead. Reputation of a company wasn't a shield after all. Neither was it a panacea for laziness in knowing more about how to store AND protect data. I didn't create "back-up images" or obtain further security through a "cloud". My docketed albums are gone. Along with my reports, databases, reference materials etc. Yet again, I'm wiser after. Now, I have to peck through my SD cards to restore portions of my data. Those deleted or overwritten (thanks to unaware smugness) are efforts up in the sky and clouds or space beyond now. I tried some things through internet tutorials but in vain. The spirit has taken hard kicks in its backside.

Returning to he Coppersmith barbet in hand, let me state that this is my first decent quality photograph of the species. Invariably, they have either been beyond my reach, swifter than my reflexes, or simply well-hidden behind interfering leaves, twigs and branches which is their wont. They seek high perches on old trees to broadcast themselves in the manner of a coppersmith hammering the element to mould something out of it. Here was this specimen cavorting all over a bare trunk of a dead tree at eye-level too! It was a lucky day indeed.

I shall edit later to add the Taxonomy and other details after I rebuild a data storage and retrieval mechanism to house a new database which I will have to build from scratch.

To shake my enthusiasm out of its current dejection, a birding trip is in order to start with. The longish grieving at the start was necessary also.

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghana (Keoladeo National Park), Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India on 29.7.2015 using Nikon D7200 and Tamron 150-600mm system.

Exif data: f/6.3/600mm; ISO 100. Image has subsequently been cropped and exposure adjusted.

White-breasted waterhen: Amaurornis phoenicurus

2015-07-30T10:15:00.000-07:00

White-breasted waterhen
Amaurornis phoenicurus
Display with loud calls.

White-breasted waterhen
Amaurornis phoenicurus

White-breasted waterhen: Amaurornis phoenicurus

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 29.7.2015

T o commoners again! They deserve to be looked at and photographed also.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Gruiformes
Family	-	Rallidae
Genus	-	Amaurornis
Species	-	phoenicurus

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 29^th July, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Nene (Hawaiian goose): Branta sandvicensis

2015-07-28T04:18:00.001-07:00

Nene (Hawaiian goose)
Branta sandvicensis

Nene: Branta sandvicensis

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Vulnerable

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

Nene or Nene goose or Hawaiian goose is the state bird of Hawaii. It is has been declared Vulnerable and conservation efforts are being made successfully to increase its numbers. It is endemic to the Hawaiian islands.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Anseriformes
Family	-	Anatidae
Genus	-	Branta
Species	-	sandvicencis

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

Zebra dove: Geopelia striata

2015-07-28T03:41:00.001-07:00

Zebra dove
Geopelia striata

Zebra dove: Geopelia striata

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

An introduced bird.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Columbiformes
Family	-	Columbidae
Genus	-	Geopelia
Species	-	striata

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

Red-crested cardinal: Paroaria coronata

2015-07-28T02:51:00.001-07:00

Red-crested cardinal
Paroaria coronata

Red-crested cardinal: Paroaria coronata

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

Genders are alike unlike mainland variety in which the female of the species sports a more brownish crest. These are introduced birds on the island.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Thraupidae
Genus	-	Paroaria
Species	-	coronata

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

Indian scops owl: Otus bakkamoena

2015-07-27T02:45:00.002-07:00

Indian scops owl (with two juveniles)
Otus bakkamoena

Indian scops owl: Otus bakkamoena

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult with two juveniles

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 6.6.2015

This is a first for me from a photography point of view. I have seen Indian scops owl before. I knew t then as Collared scops owl but now the two are classified distinctly. The Collared scops is called Otus lettia.

The parent (both genders look alike) has two juveniles behind and beneath it (poking out from the tree hollow) and they were catching the early morning sunrays for warmth.

I was at a safe distance and took care not to disturb the family. I was well-concealed about 10-15 meters from the hollow on the roof of a structure in the forest crowuching behind a drum and the overhanging branches of the banyan tree.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Strigiformes
Family	-	Strigidae
Genus	-	Otus
Species	-	bakkamoena

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 6^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Blue-cheeked bee-eater: Merops persicus

2015-07-26T22:30:00.000-07:00

Blue-cheeked bee-eater
Merops persicus

Blue-cheeked bee-eater: Merops persicus

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

A peculiarity I noticed while observing this representative – probably a female given its shorter tail compared to the other bird - with a Golden dragonfly catch is she exhibited the prize to at least two bee-eaters who didn’t show much interest and ultimately she flew into one of the holes carved out in the sand dune. This region appeared to be a nesting region and these birds flew in and out of holes carved out of these mud-sand dunes.

Key features are:

1) Summer visitor

2) Passage migrant

3) Bronze-green tail

4) Whitish forehead

5) Turquoise and white supercilium

6) Black eye stripe

7) Turquoise and green ear coverts

8) Yellow chin

9) Chestnut throat

10) Upperparts and underparts are rich green with turquoise wash

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Coraciformes
Family	-	Meropidae
Genus	-	Merops
Species	-	persicus

Photographed at Desert beyond Sultanpur, Distt.Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Yellow-wattled lapwing (Juvenile): Vanellus malabaricus

2015-07-26T08:43:00.001-07:00

Yellow-wattled lapwing (Juvenile)
Vanellus malabaricus

Yellow-wattled lapwing: Vanellus malabaricus

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Juvenile

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Traditionally on-line forums do not permit independent photos of juveniles and nesting. It's not uniform all over the web and important birding websites regularly post independent photos. Photos with Adult and chick in same frame are however permitted. In this case, since there wasn’t much disturbance, this chick/juvenile was exploring the world at a distance from its parent engrossed at its own end. To bring them in same frame, I would have needed a fish-eye lens or a wide-angle lens which I didn’t have at that moment. I was stuck with a telephoto lens. By the time the adult noticed me and hurried towards the young one, the youngster had wandered off into the far thorny bush base and it was not possible to score a clear shot with my lens-camera system from that distance. My apologies therefore, but this is for educational purposes.

They may be found in Nepal.

Key identifying features of this male representative are:

1) Brown cap.

2) Small, dull-yellow wattles; pale yellow legs.

3) White chin.

4) Buff fringes and dark subterminal bars to upperpart feathers.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Charadriiformes
Family	-	Charadriidae
Genus	-	Vanellus
Species	-	malabaricus

Photographed at Village Sultanpur, Diss.Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Yellow-wattled lapwing: Vanellus malabaricus

2015-07-26T08:13:00.000-07:00

Yellow-wattled lapwing
Vanellus malabaricus

Yellow-wattled lapwing: Vanellus malabaricus

Sanskrit: Pittamukhi tittibhak

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Unlike its Red-wattled counterpart, the Yellow-wattled lapwing is and Indian bird and less common. This is my first sighting in all my expeditions. Ok...you may blame it on the “blindness” that creeps in when stalking other exotic birds. I might have overlooked thinking them to be Red-wattled. Not impossible given the state of my eyesight!

They may be found in Nepal.

Key identifying features of this male representative are:

1) Black cap.

2) Yellow legs. Long reedy legs of a wader. However, it is often found in dry countryside, stony terrain, fallow fields and dry stubbles – one can see its habitat in the background in the photograph.

3) Triangular yellow wattles at base of beak.

4) Yellow ring around eye.

5) White eye-stripe from yellow ring of eye to nape of neck.

6) Brown chest band like a necklace. It is not as distinct in this representative which may lead us on to think it is a juvenile, but it has a black cap instead of grey and had a chick...a juvenile...trailing behind and exploring around it. Given the protective nature this bird adopted about its chick, I am convinced it is an adult. Mother of the juvenile perhaps.

7) Wings and back are light brown with a purple sheen. This is clearly visible in this specimen.

8) White plumage runs from the brown chest band down belly and up to tail.

9) White greater wing coverts are visible in flight as white wing bars with black flight feathers.

10) Tail has white tip with a black subterminal band.

Males and females are indistinguishable from a distance – the male is slightly larger than the female and have a longer carpal spur.

There are no known subspecies.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Charadriiformes
Family	-	Charadriidae
Genus	-	Vanellus
Species	-	malabaricus

Photographed at Village Sultanpur, Diss.Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Red-wattled lapwing: Vanellus indicus indicus

2015-07-26T07:16:00.002-07:00

Red-wattled lapwing
Vanellus indicus indicus

Red-wattled lapwing: Vanellus indicus

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern (Declared ‘Vulnerable’ status in western edge of its range in Turkey, Europe, in 2015 – European Red List 2015)

Sighted at: Central Ridge, New Delhi, India.

Date: 31.5.2015

Commoners, I have oft reiterated, have special qualities we frequently ignore just because they are commoners. This 60s-70s ‘Flower Child’ among birds who is so common in the Indian subcontinent, is not a hot click among birders. One will not find it a frequent upload to forums; or, with as many ‘Like’ numbers or comments as the more exotic. But if one looks again at this bird, you can see Hare Rama Hare Krishna’s Zeenat Aman in its appearance, flight, courtship, excitability, and in its calling.

Nobody can forget its call once heard. It has been variously described but the closest approximation, to my mind, is the commonly described did-he-do-it did-he-do-it during courtship or when alarmed, and the softer monosyllabic did did when in calmer frame of mind. So much so, this bird is also called the ‘Did-he-do-it bird’.

These birds are known to stay near waterbodies. By waterbodies, one usually imagines a largish sort of water-holding formation; therefore, imagine my surprise when I heard its call back in July 2013 when I was in Rajasthan’s Thar desert in the Jaisalmer region! I had stopped at a ‘dhaba’ in the middle of a desert – not a single structure as far as the eye could see and nothing but sandy desert all around. But this ‘dhaba’ had probably commandeered a small oasis near it and built a small bank ll around it. This little 2-3 metre diameter waterbody was enough to sustain this graceful bird in Thar desert!

Key identifying features of this male representative are:

1) Black cap, neck and chest.

2) Red bill with a black tip.

3) Yellow legs. Long reedy legs of a wader.

4) Wings and back are light brown with a purple sheen. This is clearly visible in this specimen.

5) White plumage runs from the edge of eye, ear coverts and down sides of neck, flanks, belly and up to tail. These are secondary wing coverts and visible in flight as white wing bars.

6) Tail is black-tipped.

7) Red eye-rings.

8) Red wattle in front of the eye, in the lores region which wraps around the front of the head but stops short from joining up at the forehead.

9) The iris is rusty-brown and along with the eye-ring, wattle and clear cornea give the impression of one wearing funky shades without arms going over ears.

Males and females are indistinguishable from a distance – the male is slightly larger than the female and have a longer carpal spur.

Anybody who has encountered this bird while birding would know they are alert birds and give away a stalking birder to other birds with their agitation, loud did-he-do-it-ing and circling flight. Like Jungle babblers who follow a birder’s back, ensuring other birds are well alerted. As if taking up a cause and broadcasting to others.

There is no funkier, hippie, flower child bird than this in looks as well as behaviour other than its cousins.

The birds are monogamous. The way they look, who woulda thunk it?

This species is polymorphic with four subspecies. The commonest one in India is the widespread V.i.indicus (the nominate race) and the V.i.atronuchalis found in the NE region of India and adjacent SE-Asian countries. Differ mostly in glossiness of plumage – the other three subspecies are duller than the nominate race. V.i.agneri is found from Turkey to Pakistan while V.i.lankae is found only in Sri Lanka.

This representative was about 30-35 cms in size and about 45 cms tall.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Charadriiformes
Family	-	Charadriidae
Genus	-	Vanellus
Species	-	indicus

Correct me if I’m wrong, this is perhaps my most detailed write-up – it’s my tribute to exceptional qualities in all ‘commoners’ out there.

Photographed at Central Ridge, New Delhi, India, on 31^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

- Prashant V Tenjarla

Chestnut-bellied sandgrouse (Male): Pterocles exustus

2015-07-25T05:49:00.002-07:00

Chestnut-bellied sandgrouse (Male)
Pterocles exustus

Chestnut-bellied sandgrouse: Pterocles exustus

Gender: Male.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Villlage Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

A first for me! About 30-35 cms in size, the size of a small hen, it looks low-slung in comparison to hens. It lives in barren plains, sandy deserts or sparse thorn-scrub, fallow dry fields like this specimen, or stubbles at edge of deserts. It is a vegetarian feeding on legumes and grass seeds.

Know to fly long distances in search of water.

Key identifying features of this male representative are:

1) Pin-tailed.

2) Dark underwing.

3) Dark underbelly

4) Dark necklace like colouring on chest.

5) Dusky buff in colour.

6) Yellowish tinge to face.

7) Black-fringed yellowish spots on wing coverts.

8) Diffuse blackish-chestnut belly.

9) Dark-tipped slate-blue bill.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Pteroclidiformes
Family	-	Pteroclididae
Genus	-	Pterocles
Species	-	exustus

Clucking sound.

Photographed at Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Pied bushchat (Male): Saxicola caprata

2015-07-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

Pied bushchat (Male)
Saxicola caprata

Pied bushchat: Saxicola caprata

Gender: Male

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Commoners are pretty. Yet another reed-top minstrel of tall grass fields.

Key identifying features of this representative as a non-breeding adult are:

1) Black in colour

2) White rump and patch on wing

3) Small passerine bird.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Muscicapidae
Genus	-	Saxicola
Species	-	caprata

Summer Birding 2015 in and around Delhi.

Photographed at Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Plain prinia: Prinia inornata

2015-07-19T10:41:00.000-07:00

Plain prinia
Prinia inornata

Plain prinia: Prinia inornata

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Plain is not always plain.

Key identifying features of this representative as a non-breeding adult are:

1) Pale base of lower mandible

2) Warm brown upperparts

3) More rufuscent wings and tail

4) Buff tips and dark subterminal marks to rectrices

5) Warm buff wash to underparts.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Cisticolidae
Genus	-	Prinia
Species	-	inornata

An avid singer.

Summer Birding 2015 in and around Delhi.

Photographed at Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Barred buttonquail (Female): Turnix suscitator

2015-07-19T04:15:00.001-07:00

Barred buttonquail (Female)
Turnix suscitator

Barred buttonquail: Turnix suscitator

Gender: Female

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Farrukhnagar, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

I couldn't move lest these shy birds vanished in the undergrowth. I was close...too close in the bushes. Pardon the twigs and all in the photograph therefore.

The central black neck and chest feathers are typical of females of the species.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Turniciformes
Family	-	Turnicidae
Genus	-	Turnix
Species	-	suscitator

Photographed at Farrukhnagar, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Barred buttonquail (Male): Turnix suscitator

2015-07-19T04:06:00.002-07:00

Barred buttonquail (Male)
Turnix suscitator

Barred buttonquail: Turnix suscitator

Gender: Male.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Farrukhnagar, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

I couldn't move lest these shy birds vanished in the undergrowth. I was close...too close in the bushes. Pardon the twigs and all in the photograph therefore.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Turniciformes
Family	-	Turnicidae
Genus	-	Turnix
Species	-	suscitator

Photographed at Farrukhnagar, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Grey bushchat (Male) : Saxicola ferreus

2015-07-19T03:03:00.001-07:00

Grey bushchat
Saxicola ferreus

Grey bushchat: Saxicola ferreus

Gender: Male

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Pangot, Distt.Nainital, Uttarakhand, India.

Date: 4.4.2015

It’s a small bird and this species is a resident breeder in Himalayas..

Key identifying features are*:

1) White supercilium

2) Dark mask

3) Upperparts grey to black depending on wear

4) Underparts are whitish

5) Grey chest and flanks

*Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Leiothrichidae
Genus	-	Trochalepteron
Species	-	lineatus

Photographed at Pangot, Distt. Nainital, Uttarakhand, India, on 3^rd and 4^th April, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Streaked laughingthrush: Trochalopteron lineatus

2015-07-19T02:37:00.000-07:00

Streaked laughingthrush
Trochalapteron lineatus

Streaked laughingthrush: Trochalapteron lineatus

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Chanfi and Pangot, Distt.Nainital, Uttarakhand, India.

Date: 3.4.2015 and 4.4.2015

It’s a small bird and this species is limited to eastern Himalayas and Uttarakhand. Earlier it was part of four to five subspecies but they have been reclassified.

Key identifying features are:

1) Small passerine abut 15-20 cms in size.

2) Fine dark streaking on crow and nape.

3) Fine white streaking on mantle and underparts.

4) Greyish crown and nape.

5) Rufous ear-coverts.

6) Grey-tipped olive-brown tail with diffuse black subterminal band on outer feathers.

7) Grey underparts

8) Rufous-brown wings.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Leiothrichidae
Genus	-	Trochalepteron
Species	-	lineatus

Photographed at Chanfi and Pangot, Distt. Nainital, Uttarakhand, India, on 3^rd and 4^th April, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Crested kingfisher (Female) : Megaceryle lugubris

2015-07-19T01:20:00.000-07:00

Crested kingfisher (Female)
Megaceryle lugubris

Crested kingfisher: Megaceryle lugubris

Gender: Female.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Chanfi, Distt.Nainital, Uttarakhand, India.

Date: 3.4.2015

Lugubris: Latin root of Lugubrious. But there’s nothing lugubrious about the Crested kingfisher’s looks though. It sports a punk-like shaggy crest, snow-flecked dark grey head, back, wings and tail. White underparts and the female has black and white spotted moustachial and chest, and grey-barred flanks. The males have a white collar and rufous tinge to chest. The fully erect crest looks blackish with two white patches.

It’s a large kingfisher – almost a foot to foot-and-a-half in size with a strong flight.

It can be confused with the smaller and differently patterned Pied kingfisher which is more ubiquitous than the Crested kingfisher which prefers higher altitudes and colder climes. Therefore, it is also called Himalayan kingfisher.

The only thing lugubrious about this lady was her adherence to her perch. She simply wouldn't budge to dive for fish!

The male counterpart was AWOL.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Corciformes
Family	-	Cerylidae
Genus	-	Megaceryle
Species	-	lugubrious

Photographed at Chanfi, Distt. Nainital, Uttarakhand, India, on 3^rd April, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Bank myna: Acridotheres ginginianus

2015-07-18T20:29:00.000-07:00

Bank myna
Acridotheres ginginianus

Bank myna
Acridotheres ginginianus
(Habitat Shot)

Bank myna: Acridotheres ginginianus

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Samchana, Rohtak, Haryana, India.

Date: 20.6.2015

Another hot summer noon, and yet another thin stream between tall sun-baked mud banks. There's a bridge nearby. Ideal habitat for Bank mynas and Wire-tailed swallows. I stopped to check, and sure enough, I found them both. A flock of Bank mynas living in burrows in the small mud mountains lining the canal and a family of Wire-tailed swallows beneath the bridge. The sleepy nothingness of nowhere wasn't without life.

Smaller than Common myna, slate-grey plumage, black head and a black frontal crest, orange-red orbital patch, orange bill, red iris, orange-buff patch at base of primaries and underwings coverts, orange-yellow feet and orange-buff tip of tail.

I thought a habitat shot would be in order. Why don't you move on mate? Not too welcoming, are they? By the way, both genders look similar.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Sturnidae
Genus	-	Acridotheres
Species	-	ginginianus

#SummerBirding2015 (In and around Delhi series)

Photographed at Samchana, Distt. Rohtak, Haryana, India, on 20^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Golden jackal (Male): Canis aureus

2015-07-18T19:38:00.000-07:00

Golden jackal (Male)
Canis aureus

Golden jackal: Canis aureus

Gender: Male.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 6.6.2015

On a hot summer noon in a forest of skeletons

Sightlines clashed at a pass through vital juices

Not a bark was exchanged yet warning taken -

My obedient eyes slid behind the camera.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Mammalia
Order	-	Carnivora
Family	-	Canidae
Genus	-	Canis
Species	-	aureus

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 6^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

Common hawk-cuckoo (Subadult): Hierococcyx varius

2015-07-04T03:34:00.000-07:00

Plate 1: Common hawk-cuckoo (Subadult(: Hierococcyx varius

Plate 2: Common hawk-cuckoo (Subadult): Hierococcyx varius

Plate 3: Chevron marking of a Subadult
Common hawk-cuckoo: Hierococcyx varius

Common hawk-cuckoo: Hierococcyx varius

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Subadult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 6.6.2015

Also known as Brainfever bird, this bird’s call is heard in and around Delhi in the summers and just prior to the monsoons. It has a three-note call that rises in a rapid crescendo to stop abruptly in a pause before repeating incessantly all over again. There is one such cuckoo in the tree outside Sharang’s room in Pune, and he vouches for the fact that this bird knows no sleep or rest other than the pause after a crescendo’s high. It goes on and on. I’ve heard that bird via Skype at different times of the day and night as well!

The fact that the member above is a subadult is deduced by it being slimmer, chevron marking on its belly and underparts (Plates 2 and 3), and pronounced rufous markings on tail and tail-tip. Underwing coverts are rufous and only faintly barred.

The yellow eye-ring is typical. Whitish-grey chin and throat, and uniform grey upperparts are features. Adults have indistinct barring instead of chevron making of Subadult on belly and underparts.

In all other aspects this cuckoo is a visual mimic of Shikra – a raptor. It is a brood parasite and lays its eggs in nests of Babblers.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Cucliformes
Family	-	Cuclidae
Genus	-	Hierococcyx
Species	-	varius

Along with the Koel, the Brainfever bird is the bard of Indian summers before the monsoons roll in.

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 6^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

- Prashant V Tenjarla

Red-naped ibis: Pseudibis papillosa

2015-07-03T14:04:00.001-07:00

Red-naped ibis: Pseudibis papillosa

Red-naped ibis: Pseudibis papillosa

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Vill. Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Pelicaniformes
Family	-	Threskiornithidae
Genus	-	Pseudibis
Species	-	papillosa

Photographed at Village Dharampur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

- Prashant V Tenjarla

Jacobin cuckoo: Clamator jacobinus

2015-07-03T13:24:00.000-07:00

Jacobin cuckoo: Clamator jacobinus

Jacobin cuckoo: Clamator jacobinus

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Basai wetlands, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Looking back down the trail you came from is a good thing in birding. Many birds which hid from you, teased you but remained unseen, fall for the safety of emptiness one leaves behind and creep out of their hiding places. I had heard this cuckoo’s call but couldn’t spot him in the dense fresh-foilaged kikars. However, when I looked back, just in case, there he was peeking out at the rising sun. It’s another matter he dived into the dense undergrowth at my first step back towards him. And then he flitted across into the tall reeds and was gone. But no worries – I have unprocessed photos of Jacobin cuckoo from my earlier trip to Keoladeo Ghana at the start of this month. That too was in a thicket but body shots are there.

Also called Pied cuckoo, black and white in colour and has a black crest. It’s about 20-25 cms in size, has white patch at base of primaries and tips of tail feathers.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Cucliformes
Family	-	Cuclidae
Genus	-	Clamator
Species	-	jacobinus

Photographed at Basai-Dhankot wetlands, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

- Prashant V Tenjarla

Green bee-eater (Juvenile): Merops orientalis ssp.orientalis

2015-07-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

Green bee-eater (Juvenile): Merops orientalis ssp.orientalis
(with dragonfly catch)

Green bee-eater (Juvenile): Merops orientalis ssp.orientalis

Green bee-eater: Merops orientalis ssp. orientalis

Gender: Both look alike.

Age: Juvenile

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Basai wetlands, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Birding is also ruminative besides the thrill and excitement of spotting. Every now and then it throws at the eye a bird, a situation, which urges a reappraisal, a second glance - removing the cataractous opacity towards ‘commoners’ developing in the birder’s eye with each passing sortie. It was so with this member and I.

A Green bee-eater dived from a branch, caught a dragonfly and returned to its perch. All in an instant. I had already passed by the bird and wouldn’t have turned to look again if a Yellow-bellied prinia hadn’t struck out with a song. I caught the action and was mildly thrilled at recording a portion of the hunt. After all, we see many such hunts in birding and GBE hunting forays have been well observed.

However, when the photo is opened in the computer, the dull eye blinks once, blinks twice and forces the head to lean forwards and peer closely – Is that a juvenile? Is that a juvenile of the beludschicus sub-species or an orientalis orientalis? A small question consumes an hour of research on a commoner to find an answer. Never take birds for granted.

The square-ended tail instead of an elongated one of the adult; a green crown and mantle; a pale yellowish or green throat lacking the black gorget of adult, all point to a juvenile. I did not have a photograph of a juvenile before now.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Coraciformes
Family	-	Meropidae
Genus	-	Merops
Species	-	orientalis
Sub-species	-	orientalis

There are many subspecies.

Photographed at Basai-Dhankot wetlands, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

- Prashant V Tenjarla