Archive for the ‘Birds’ Category

Belonging to the Wader family, Sandpipers are small birds with longs legs and slender, yet long bills. With dull colored underbellies, with brown and grey plumage on their torsos, these birds have spots arrayed on their necks. (more…)

The Purple Swamp Hen, also called the Purple Moorhen or Purple Gallinule, is normally found on the edges of water bodies poking among reeds. Their long red legs and very long toes make walking on water plants and reeds practically effortless. (more…)

Darters, also called ‘Snakebirds’, are a species similar to Cormorants, and have very long necks, much larger and longer than that of Cormorants. (more…)

I like owls. But I cannot explain why I have a soft spot for them. Fortunately for me, we had quite a few owls that could be spotted around the Orange County campus. (more…)

A large bird, often standing over 3 feet tall with a magnificent wing span of over 6 feet, the Grey Heron is a majestic wader of the Heron family. Predominantly grey plumage, with splotches of black and white, gives it its name. (more…)

The characteristic wag of the long tail and darting glance, along with a distinct yellow tinge, gives the Yellow Wagtail its name. (more…)

At around 30 cm long, the Flamebacks are among the largest woodpeckers. The female of the species sports a spotted black and white fore-crown and a red patch on the rear crest while the male is easily identified by its large red crown and crest. (more…)

The Loten’s Sun Birds share species space with flower peckers. They are tiny little birds rarely growing beyond 15 cm in length, while their characteristic curved bill combined with bright shiny purple coloured feathers, short legs and circular wings, set them apart. The females are a bit dull in colour when compared to males. (more…)

One evening, as I was strolling along the Kabini, I chanced upon a small inlet that was well- wooded with small trees and bushes with branches overhanging the water. It was here that I stumbled upon a colony of Baya Weavers. (more…)

Tiny little Passerines, black and chestnut in colour, with brown patches, these cute little birds are commonplace in the woods. Their classic Robin pose, a tail pointed to the sky, is a unique characteristic of this 20 cm ‘bundle of energy’. (more…)