This is the final blog covering a Tansa, South Andaman and Southern India trip with Nick Preston and Paul Noakes and guided by the excellent Jijo Matthews. It has been enhanced with some of Paul's excellent photos. Our time in India was coming to an end although there were a few important species still to see ...
Sunday 29 January. We left Olive Brook
at 06:45 and drove to the school track arriving at 07:30, after an unsuccessful
10 minute stop to look for Rufous Babbler. No luck with Nilgiri Thrush in half
an hour at the school either and we continued driving up to the pass. We stopped there and then
walked sections of the road as it dropped down into tea plantations. Jijo had
told us the 40km from Munnar were realistically our only chance of Rufous
Babbler (we’d rather forgotten to look at Periyar or on the way in to Munnar). We’d seen male Grey Junglefowl and Tytler’s Leaf Warbler but Paul and I were
getting increasingly anxious about Rufous Babbler (Nick having seen it on his
previous trip) when, at 11:20 and 38km out, Jijo heard one calling from
roadside scrub and taped three Rufous
Babblers in. That was cutting it rather fine. We continued to Chinnar Tiger
Reserve and spent 12:45-15:15 there seeing Stripe-throated and Yellow-crowned
Woodpeckers, male and female Jerdon’s
Leafbird (new for Paul and me), Malabar
Woodshrike, an amazing roosting Spot-bellied
Eagle Owl and a Brown Fish Owl
on a nest! The last was another new bird for me and something I’d hoped to see
in Nepal in 1979 and 1982 so it had been a long wait. It was then a long drive
to Ooty where we arrived at Logan Camp at 22:00 having had stops for coconuts
and fried rice on the way.
 |
| tea plantations between Munnar and Chinnar |
 |
| disappointing amounts of rubbish by the roadside was an all too common sight |
 |
Indian Rufous Babbler between Munnar and Chinnar (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| the Chinnar River, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary |
 |
we are in Kerala, the far bank is Tamil Nadu
|
 |
| Orange Minivet at Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary |
 |
| Spot-bellied Eagle Owl at Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary |
 |
Spot-bellied Eagle Owl at Chinnar (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| Brown Fish Owl on its nest at Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary |
 |
Brown Fish Owl on its nest at Chinnar (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
Monday 30 January. We were out at 07:00
and walking around terraced tea plantations playing Painted Bush-Quail recordings. It took a while for one to respond
but when it did we enticed it into view, and excellent start. Less good was seeing the
surrounding hills in daylight and realising how little natural habitat was
left, and none of it was close (both sites we were to visit took at least 30
minutes to reach). We returned for breakfast (the best of the trip for me) and
while waiting for it 5 more Painted
Bush-Quail scuttled past the restaurant. We drove to Carne Hill Forest
Reserve with a few stops on the way to check small gullies for Nilgiri Thrush.
No luck and as most of the gulleys, and roadsides verges, were covered in
litter it was not pleasant. Carne Hill looked more promising with fast moving Nilgiri Laughingthrushes on the
approach road but soon we were seeing little in very sterile forestry
plantations. We eventually found 2 Nilgiri
Blue Robins in an overgrown gulley which also had a male Indian Blue Robin and 2 Black and Orange Flycatchers but that
was basically it. We left, making a couple more abortive gulley stops and were
back at Logan Camp at 14:00. The pre-ordered lunch was not in evidence and as
we were leaving again at 15:15 I decided to skip it and catch up on some notes.
The afternoon session was driving into town again, another 30 minutes in the
minibus, to visit the Government Botanical Gardens. No chance of my hoped for more
prolonged views of Nilgiri Laughingthrush. The gardens were very busy although
the better habit was on the far fringes attracting fewer visitors. Any hopes of
peace and tranquility were soon shattered by what sounded like an acid house
concert going on at full blast. The gardens added Indian Spot-billed Duck, Hoopoe
and female Kashmir Flycatcher, time
I felt could have been better spent elsewhere. Another 30 minutes back to Logan
Camp by which time it was almost dark.
 |
| views over Ooty's environs from Logan Camp |
 |
| Painted Bush-Quail at Logan Camp, Ooty |
 |
| I had collected Brooke Bond PG Tips Tropical Bird cards as a boy and this was one I'd not seen in the wild. Just two to go now though I'm not confident of seeing either of them (African Pitta and Java Sparrow) |
 |
Painted Bush-Quail at Logan Camp (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| female Pied Bushchat in tea plantations at Logan Camp |
 |
| tea plantations at Logan Camp |
 |
satellite village at Ooty
 | | Nilgiri Laughingthrush in Carne Hill Forest Reserve (photo: Paul Noakes) |
|
 |
| Nilgiri Blue Robin in Carne Hill Forest Reserve |
 |
I moved slightly to my left hoping to photograph its unobscured head but it chose that moment to face the other way before flying off. Nice bird though as the following photos show
 | | Nilgiri Blue Robin in Carne Hill Forest Reserve (photos: Paul Noakes) |
 |
 | Indian Spot-billed Duck in Ooty Botanical Gardens
|
|
 | | a smart bird when seen well but I still preferred Andaman Teal |
 | Hoopoe in Ooty Botanical Gardens
 | | Indian Pond Heron in Ooty Botanical Gardens |
 | female Kashmir Flycatcher in Ooty Botanical Gardens (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
|
|
 |
Indian White-eye in Ooty Botanical Gardens (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| map of India in Ooty Botanical Gardens |
Tuesday 31 January. We left Logan Camp
soon after 07:00 and headed out of Ooty making several short stops for Nilgiri Laughingthrush (successful on
the second, in the best looking bit of habitat we’d seen around Ooty) and Nilgiri Thrush (successful on third
stop, just before Pykara, in a roadside gulley that surprisingly wasn’t full of rubbish). We
ended up watching the stream at the bottom of the gulley for about an hour
during which time the thrush, first spotted by Paul with his thermal imager, appeared
four times. In the gulley, the bottom of which was very dark, we also saw Orange-headed Ground Thrush, Nilgiri Blue Robin and for Paul and
Nick Indian Blue Robin. At about 10:00
we continued on to Jungle Hut, dropping down into dry forest and going through
Mudamalai Tiger Reserve where we saw an Elephant. We arrived at Jungle Hut at
14:00 seeing single White-rumped and
Red-headed Vultures on the approach
road. We dumped our bags in very spacious accommodation, had a quick lunch and
birded the extensive grounds for an hour or so until we met Jijo for the
afternoon session. In the grounds were Yellow-crowned Woodpecker, Bay-backed
Shrike, Indian Nuthatch, Brahminy Starling. With Jijo and a
local guide picked up in the nearby village we birded in some grassy fields and
up a rocky hillside where we sat until dark. Birds seen included a flock of 8+ Jungle Bush-Quail, Booted Warbler and Jungle
Nightjar. Back at Jungle Hut dinner (a special non-spicy option for me) was
interrupted to say there was a bull elephant in the camp, by our chalet as it
turned out. It was a massive tusker, very impressive.
 |
| Grey Junglefowl outside Ooty (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
| by the time I had my camera ready the Grey Junglefowl was crossing the road |
 |
| Nilgiri Blue Robin on the edge of Ooty |
 |
| Nilgiri Laughingthrush on the edge of Ooty |
 |
Nilgiri Laughingthrush on the edge of Ooty (photos: Paul Noakes)
 | a damp roadside ravine near Pykara - it looked worth checking, it certainly was
|
|
 |
| Nilgiri Thrush deep in the ravine |
 |
the Nilgiri Thrush unobscured (photo: Paul Noakes)
 | White-rumped Vulture near Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes)
 | Red-headed Vulture near Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
|
 | Red-headed and White-rumped Vultures near Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes)
 | White-cheeked Barbet at Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
|
 | Spotted Dove at Jungle Hut
|
|
 |
| Magpie Robin at Jungle Hut |
 |
| straw-coloured dying bamboo as far as the eye could see, Mudumalai |
 |
| team photo at Mudumalai - Nick, me, Jijo and Paul |
 |
| Vibudhi Malai Murugan Temple, Mudumalai |
 |
| Yellow-billed Babbler at Mudumalai |
 |
Yellow-billed Babbler at Mudumalai (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| Jungle Nightjar at Mudumalai |
 |
Jungle Nightjar at Mudumalai (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| Bull Elephant behind our chalet at Jungle Hut |
 |
Bull Elephant at Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
Wednesday 01 February. We were out as it was
getting light at 06:30 and birded around jungle /hut until Jijo arrived at
07:00. We drove out of the camp, picked up a guide from the local village and
drove for a few kms to a dirt track running through scattered scrub. Our target
White-bellied Minivet could be tricky to see, a situation not helped by not
being allowed out of the car. With no success we continued to a more open area
where we could walk although the habitat wasn’t as good. After a fair amount of
walking, but probably little more than a km, we came to a less open area and
after half an hour of playing recordings, as we had been all along, Jijo spotted
a female White-bellied Minivet in
the top of a nearby acacia type-tree. Quite a relief, although a thorough
search of the area failed to locate a male which left us feeling a little
dissatisfied. First rule of birding – no matter what you’ve seen you always
want more. We headed back to the minibus and were back at Jungle Hut by 10:10
for a late but very pleasant breakfast. We packed but only had time for a short
wander in the grounds before leaving soon after 10:00. We drove to Mysuru,
arriving at the Southern Star Hotel at 14:10, with a brief stop for a very
distant, unidentifiable for me, Indian
Spotted Eagle on the way. Jijo picked us up at 15:45 and we drove out along
the Bannur Road to a canal where we looked for and eventually saw 2 Indian Eagle Owls, although it wasn’t
until dusk that I had a decent view of one’s head. We returned to the hotel at
20:15, having become a bit lost on the way. Just one day to go and still one
potential new bird for me.
 |
| Bonelli's Eagle at Mudamalai |
 |
Bonelli's Eagle at Mudamalai (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
Jerdon's Bushlark at Mudamalai
|
 |
| Common Woodshrike at Mudumalai (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
Bay-backed Shrike at Mudumalai
 | Bay-backed Shrike at Mudumalai (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
|
 |
| Mudumalai |
 |
| female White-bellied Minivet at Mudumalai |
 |
| it was a major target and took some finding, but despite scouring the area we failed to find a male |
 |
| female White-bellied Minivet at Mudumalai (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
| Coppersmith Barbet at Jungle Hut (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
back at Jungle Hut to check out
|
 |
| our chalet was the distant one, the elephant having been in the trees behind |
Egyptian Vulture near Mysuru (photo: Paul Noakes)
 | | Sykes's Warbler near Mysuru (photos: Paul Noakes) |
 |
Indian Eagle Owl at Mysuru, thanks to Jijo I later had better views but then completely messed up attempting to photograph it
 | | Indian Eagle Owl at Mysuru (photos: Paul Noakes) |
|
Thursday 02 February. We left Southern Star
in Mysuru soon after 07:30 heading for Bangaluru. Our first stop (approximately
08:00-09:30) was in very dry scrub by the main road just outside Mysore. Here
we saw 5 Jungle Bush-Quail, 2 Yellow-wattled Lapwings, 3 Indian Grey Hornbills, 2 Ashy-crowned Finch-Larks, Blyth’s Reed, Booted and Sykes’s Warblers
and 70 Red Avadavat most of which
were not red. Several much briefer roadside stops to scan wetlands (paddyfields
and pools) produced Black-necked, Red-naped and Glossy Ibis, Wooly-necked,
Painted and Asian Open-billed Storks and a few Wood Sandpipers. I stayed outside scanning for raptors during a
mid-morning tea stop seeing 2 Crested
Serpent Eagles, 5 Spot-billed
Pelicans, 2 Oriental Darters and
a selection of storks overhead. At our final stop, at a small roadside pool
approaching Bangaluru, we saw a pair of Bronze-winged Jacanas with fully grown
juvenile, a pair of Grey-headed Swamphens with 3 tiny chicks and a fairly
distant Indian Spotted Eagle. The
latter was the second of the day and the third of the trip, the previous two
being very distant (Aquila sp views). Distant though this one was I did see the
distinctive pale patches in the upperwing. It was a new bird for me and
completed a clean sweep with Jijo of all my feasible new birds! We arrived at
the rather more grandly named than seemed appropriate Presidency Hotel around
14:30. Jijo had been brilliant and Rajeeb a very reliable driver.
 |
| Brahminy Kite near Mysuru (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
| Jungle Prinia near Mysuru |
 |
| Ashy-crowned Finch-Lark near Mysuru |
 |
| Booted Warbler near Mysuru |
 |
| Yellow-wattled Lapwing near Mysuru |
 |
| Indian Grey Hornbills near Mysuru |
 |
Indian Grey Hornbills near Mysuru (photo: Paul Noakes)
|
 |
| Black Kite near Mysuru |
 |
| Purple Sunbird near Mysuru |
 | | Purple Sunbird near Mysuru (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
| Oxen v Tractor in paddyfields on the way to Bangaluru, it looked like a tough 0-0 to me |
 |
| Red-naped Ibis between Mysuru and Bangaluru |
 |
| Ring-necked Parakeet between Mysuru and Bangaluru |
 |
Spot-backed Pelican between Mysuru and Bangaluru
|
 |
| Indian Spotted Eagle near Bangaluru, the last new bird I saw on the trip (photo: Paul Noakes) |
 |
| Bronze-winged Jacana near Bangaluru |
 |
| Glossy Ibis between near Bangaluru |
 |
| Indian Silverbills near Bangaluru |
 |
| Little Cormorant near Bangaluru |
 |
| Red-wattled Lapwing near Bangaluru |
 |
| view from our hotel in Bangaluru, lots of building going on everywhere |
Many thanks to Nick Preston and Paul Noakes for their excellent company and a lot of help getting onto birds. Nick for arranging the trip and being my food taster, Paul for joining us (a definite benefit of our Covid-19 postponements), suggesting adding Tansa to the itinerary, some crucial thermal imaging and providing excellent images for this blog and last but not least Jijo Matthews for top-class guiding, flexibility and being an all round good guy.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.