Goa - 4 Kingfishers down before 10 am

Black Capped Kingfisher

As a tourist, Goa's laid-back, charming hospitality often lulls you into a state of supine, semi-conscious satiation. All you feel like doing is parking yourself somewhere to while away the day in the company of some time-appropriate beverage - often Kingfisher. 

Early one morning, my friend Anurag and I set out to seek Kingfishers, this time of the feathered variety. And no, it was not driven by the fact that it was too early to imbibe the bottled namesake of said feathered friend. The truth is that Goa is home to seven different species of Kingfisher and Mr. Balchandra Kamat's birdwatching boat rides on the Cumbarjhua Channel give you as good an opportunity as any to find some of these beautiful little birds.

We were joined at Cortalim pier by friend and fellow wildlife enthusiast Amit Srivastava (he's actually a life enthusiast, such is his joie de vivre) and his brother-in-law. We set out first to see some great crested terns and also to seek White bellied sea eagles or the resident Peregrine Falcon under the Zuari bridge. Sadly neither were in residence and we pulled forth into the Channel proper.

Striated Heron

The waders first came into view (Common & Terek Sandpipers, Eurasian Curlews, Redshanks and Greater Sand Plovers) in the mudflats along with the snowy white egrets and the friendly striated heron, who kindly posed out in the open. Chugging along a bit further and we saw the first raptor of the morning, a beautiful Brahminy Kite posing on one of the bamboo poles. I feel that this handsome bird doesn't quite get the attention or plaudits he deserves, probably because he's just a 'kite' and not a glamorous 'eagle' - a character actor v/s star in the bird thespian directory? Or maybe being commonly visible takes away the impact for people? Either ways, this beautiful bird allowed us to float quite close to him before he decided to fly off and inspect the buffet for his next breakfast course.

Brahminy Kite

We followed that with a raptor who had dipped into the buffet, a magnificent osprey sat on another pole eating the remains of a fish, probably a carp. Now whenever Mr. Kamath spots a bird (and he does it at mind-numbing distances) he gets the driver to cut the engine so we gently float towards the bird with very little noise. Requires great spotting and no little boating skills, especially with the Cumbharjua being a tidal channel and all.

Osprey with breakfast

Coming back to the Osprey, he probably felt we were after his half-eaten fish, so he hastily legged (winged?) it to places safer. And we made for the smaller channels to try and spot Kingfishers within the mangroves. But not before we had a great stork of luck! A Wooly necked stork sharing a branch with his Painted cousin, both in companionable silence.  They both preened and posed and we gratefully clicked.

Different storks

Into the smaller channels and the first thing we see is a massive croc, sunning on one of the mudbanks. Then Mr. Kamat said the magic words - Black Capped Kingfisher and we see one specimen sitting (very kindly, I might add) in the open and in decent light. We got a couple of pictures before he flew away and we carried on. Then Mr. Kamat, muttered 'Mangrove Pitta' under his breath. And as I turned to look at him with amazement, he said he just saw it zip across the channel. No hope of finding it of course, but being on the same boat with someone who spotted it somehow felt like an achievement!

Barn Owl

Further down the channel and we heard a clamorous warbler and saw (me-barely... Kamat - clearly) a slaty breasted rail in the mangroves. Then I finally managed to see something - a barn owl high up in the hollow of a tree. This lovely bird gave us the once over and then sat motionless. Suddenly the owl made a dart up the hollow, evidently there was a nest there. 

Once I started seeing things, it sort of became a habit! We came across another black capped beauty, again in the light and not skulking in the shade. We came back out to the main channel looking for some more. We saw a stork billed Kingfisher, but a skittish fella and then a white throated Kingfisher in beautiful light. Have a picture where the nictating membrane is half across his eye as he 'blinked' which says a lot for timing!

White throated Kingfisher

Collared Kingfisher

Back into the side channel and we saw the Collared Kingfisher almost immediately, sitting in the open and allowing us a beautiful sighting and some pictures.That pretty much wrapped up our morning, though we tried one more shot at the Peregrine Falcon on our way out - we got all excited as a bird approached the bridge and Kamat even said Peregrine, but it turned out to be a crow! So now, all the crows around the Zuari bridge are termed Peregrine Crows. Add a new one to the Grimmett and Inskipp book, what?

That was that for the boat birding and another excellent trip with the fantastic Mr. Kamat and great company thanks to the guys. "4 Kingfishers down before 10 am" is an apt way to describe it, being in Goa and all?

Little Sand Plover

That wasn't the end of the Goa birding though. Found a couple of surprises even while doing the regular 'touristy' stuff. First up on Candolim beach, I saw a bunch of little birds bustling about and pecking at their afternoon snack in the sand. I inched closer and saw they were little sand plovers, beautiful little fellas. Grabbed Anurag's camera and got a couple of frames of these guys against the sand. 

White rumped munia

The last little surprise was right outside our home. A little black bird flitted in and out of a densely wooded tree right outside and I saw it was a white rumped munia, obviously building a nest inside. I carefully took up a position not too close, in case I spooked the little bird, and managed to get a few frames.

Next time, with a little more planning, trips to Bondla, Vagator beach and the water bodies around are definitely on the Agenda. Viva Goa!  

That was Goa then, lots of birds, but Kingfisher was indeed King!

Goa Birding Guide:

Lots of birding in Goa, from the forest  birds at Bondla, Bhagwan Mahaveer and Cotigao to the waders at various beaches. And then this buffet at the Cumbharjua channel.

For the boat trip (morning & afternoon) you can reach Mr. Kamat on +91 9822127936

You can also join the excellent Birdwatchers Goa Facebook group for a lot of guidance and help with sightings and planning

Dandeli/Ganeshgudi - Birds of many a feather....

White Bellied Blue Flycatcher

The annual Christmas-time pilgrimage to Goa was preceded by a quick two day detour to fulfill a long-cherished ambition - that of visiting the beautiful Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve. Not so much for tigers but for the bewildering variety of bird species on offer and a one-in-a-million shot at that dark prince of cats - the black panther.

We arrived at the Kali Adventure Camp in Dandeli one afternoon (a 90 minute drive from Hubli, where we flew from Mumbai) just in time for a safari. And had our first peek at the beautiful, lush green Dandeli forests. The dense undergrowth didn't allow us to see much at all, a couple of spotted deer were all we could feast our eyes on, but the view of the valleys from the high point was the highlight of the trip - even looking into the setting sun the sight was absolutely stunning. May God (and man) save these beautiful forests!

Little Spider hunter

Asian Brown Flycatcher

The next morning, I set out for Ganeshgudi, while the rest of the family stayed behind for some rafting. I'd always heard of this birding paradise, but didn't know that here, unlike in most places, the birds came to you! The beautiful settings of Jungle Lodges' other property (The Old Magazine House) entertain a mind-boggling variety of feathered guests. And the people at the lodge have put up a few bird baths (and a few perches around) and created a barrier a safe distance away for people to come and watch the birds indulge. So, as a photographer, you have to set your tripod at the barrier and just wait (and pray) for the birds to descend. And if you're lucky, you can get upwards of 25 different species in a single morning or afternoon. 

Flame throated bulbul

I went there that morning, all excited at the prospect of a few flycatchers, shamas, warblers, babblers and maybe even the malabar trogon or scimitar babbler if the gods smiled on me. That morning, all I heard was how wonderful the previous morning had been. Not all, I do admit to seeing a beautiful ruby-throated bulbul, asian brown and tickell's blue flycatchers, brown cheeked fulvettas and emerald doves.  Not bad for a morning's work, or so I thought as I headed back to try my luck with the black panthers.

As soon as we entered the park gates, I encountered a strange sight. Two stray dogs from the village nearby were standing on the path and barking their heads off at something in the bush. And the fright and urgency in their barking made it clear that it was a predator; and very possibly a member of Dandeli's leopard fraternity. Our guide stood up to take a look and announced that he saw the grass part and something move away into the jungle. He didn't see what it was, but it almost definitely would have been a leopard - and given the odds at Dandeli, it could have even been a black panther! That was the closest we would come to a predator sighting, though our driver/guide Arjun toiled tirelessly. He pointed out sambhar deer with some excitement, but for those of us who've gorged on a herd of hundred at Ranthambhore's Raj Bagh, we didn't quite share the enthusiasm. Nevertheless, a close shave with a predator was highlight enough.

Verditer Flycatcher

That afternoon wasn't all barren though. Before the safari, I was speaking to my good friend Amit Srivastava and I told him that I missed out on Verditer Flycatchers in Ganeshgudi. He told me that the Dandeli resort has a pair of Verditers, so armed with that info, I tracked down the head naturalist Mr. Shashidhar and he asked a couple of the staff to take me where the Verditers were. And barely a 100 feet from our tent, nestling in a tree, was a beautiful male Verditer. The light and his fickle nature made photography a real challenge, but I did manage a few half-decent pics of the male. The female was far more shy and disappeared after a brief appearance.

I headed back to Ganeshgudi the next morning (my last) hoping for better luck. And as I took my place within the assembled tripod throng, I was entertained by reports of the previous evening's performance, where seemingly every species known to man had made a visit. And as that morning began as quietly as the previous one, I quickly began to curse everything from my stars to the feathered fiends who made a cameo yesterday but cried off this morning. When all I needed to evaluate was my own decision making - the birds prefer afternoons at this time of year. A simple thing I should have checked first.

The teeth-gnashing gotten over with, I decided to be patient and wait it out. And the birds did give me a really good time. A Blyth's reed warbler started the parade, followed by a beautiful blue capped thrush. A black-throated munia skulked in the undergrowth without ever coming front and center. Puff throated babblers announced their imminent coming, but apart from one individual who zipped across, they didn't really make an appearance. And the morning looked like it would peter out without much more action.

Blyth's Reed Warbler

White Rumped Shama

The turning point was my decision to skip breakfast and wait for the birds - I was rewarded with a Tickell's blue and blue capped thrush in quick succession followed by a white rumped shama. But the highlight was a little spider hunter - a busy little bird who zipped around the water bath, barely pausing for a second. Then came a beautiful white bellied blue flycatcher, who kindly perched in the light and posed for some pictures before having a dip and flying off. Another thrush was followed by an emerald dove; this green-brown beauty was a real treat.

Blue-capped rock thrush

The shama came back for another photo-shoot, a magpie robin joined the cast and then a greenish warbler added another character to the shoot. The action then shifted into the bushes at the side where a Tickells Blue was having breakfast. He grabbed a couple of juicy little bugs and swallowed them in no time before wandering off; fully sated, no doubt.

Tickell's Blue Flycatcher

With the water-baths being completely quiet, we scoured the trees in the campus and were rewarded with a beautiful scarlet minivet couple and a bunch of plum headed parakeets. The male minivet had starry airs and refused to give us a good picture, while the female was far more approachable. I got a couple of decent pictures of her before she bid adieu. I headed further towards the gate and Vinayak, the excellent guide at OMH pointed out a Malabar Grey Hornbill really close in a nearby tree. I was so close that I could only get a close up of his face!

Malabar Grey Hornbill

Back to the (now) thinning crowd at the water-baths and the general mood was that of 'pack-up'. But like King Vikram, I gave up not and stood my little tripod against the barrier for that last ten minutes before I had to leave for Goa. And my faith was rewarded by a yellow-browed bulbul and Blyth's Reed warbler in quick succession to round off what finally was a pretty amazing visit. So many new bird species (for a beginner like me) and a brush with a predator were both special memories.

Definitely deserves a spot on the annual winter calendar!

Brown cheeked fulvetta

Emerald Dove

Scarlet Minivet Female

Yellow browed bulbul

Dandeli/Ganeshgudi trip guide

Getting there:

Dandeli town (and Kali Adventure Camp) is about 80 kms from Hubli, the nearest airport and big town. 

It is around 145 kms from Goa's Dabolim airport, the second closest air head.

Ganeshgudi is 20 kms from Dandeli on the Goa route.

Goa has flights from key cities around India, while Hubli has flights only from Bangalore and Mumbai.

For cars from Hubli to Dandeli, you can book with Mr. Paul Terant on + 91 9945142781. It is approximately Rs. 3700 for the trip.

Stay:

The key decision is whether to stay in Dandeli Or Ganeshgudi. For safaris and a shot at the Black Panther, Dandeli is a better option while Ganeshgudi is clearly the superior birding destination.

At Dandeli, Kali Adventure Camp offers typical Jungle Lodges hospitality - comfortable but not fancy accommodation and excellent food! The stay package includes one safari and a coracle ride every day.

At Ganeshgudi, the avid birder need look no further than the Old Magazine House - again typical Jungle Lodges. Definitely not fancy, but comfortable and fabulously located.

Check both options at www.junglelodges.com

There are also a couple of other near Ganeshgudi, both proper 'resorts' with their own birding and naturalists - The Hornbill River Resort (www.hornbillriverresort.com - +91 98806 83323) comes highly recommended for the accommodation and facilities.

The Bison River Resort is near the Hornbill and is the other private resort in the area - (http://www.indianadventures.com/BisonRiverResort.htm)

Safaris:

As with other forests in Karnataka, Jungle Lodges run jeep safaris into the forest. The cost of a safari is included in the stay package while additional safaris can be arranged at a cost. 

There is obviously a lot of birding around the forest area with every resort having their own naturalists and birding experts. The Old Magazine House is a sure-shot bird magnet, but Hornbill also has some very skilled birders.

Other Activities:

Rafting: The Kali river is a very popular rafting choice with rapids up to level 3, so beginners too can have a real thrill. All the resorts can arrange for rafting

Coracle rides - peaceful river rides in these little round coracles help round off a really nice morning or afternoon activity, not to mention an opportunity to see some birds at the river bank

Treks and rock climbing - Hornbill offers both options for their guests

Other tips:

If you're staying at Jungle Lodges, please make sure you inform them of your safari plans well in advance, they don't always account for everyone in the resort wanting to go on a safari.

The camera charge for big lenses (400mm?) up is a steep Rs.1000 per safari, so factor that into your plans. A 300mm apparently has no charge, so it's all a bit random as with most such rules. This is only for the Jeep safaris and not for the birding.