Newsletter for
Birdwatchers
Vol.38 No. 6 Nov. /Dec. 199B
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Vol.38 No. 6 Nov. /Dec. 1998
Editorial
Editorial
□ Kihim Diary
D Naturalist, by Edward O. Wilson . ~-*s
Articles
D Birds of Pakhui Wildlife Sanctuary in Western
Arunachal Pradesh, by Aparajita Datta, Pratap Singh,
Ramana M. Athreya and S, Karthikeyan
d Glimpses of Kenyan Bird Life, by S. Ashok Kumar,
IAS (Retd.)
d At Home with the Spotted Munias, by Thomas F.
Martin
D Rare Species of Bird atThiruvananthapuram, by K.B.
Sanjayan
a Unexplored Wetland of Uttar Pradesh, by Mohd.
Zafar-ul Islam
Abstracts
□ Birding in the Andamans, by Prof. A. Relton
D Nest-making and breeding of the Purplerumped
Sunbirds, by Dr. Satish A. Pande
d Unusual Tail Pattern of Bronzed Drongo, by R.
Shyama Prasad Rao
Correspondence
D Grey Babbler attacking its reflection, by J.L. Singh
d Koel boom at Jodhpur, by Dr. Ishwar Prakash
d Black Bulbuls and Melia azedarach, by M.L. Narang
& R.S. Rana
D Save the Heronry at Mathikere, by Dr. J.C. Uttangi
d Spotbill Pelican in Jakkur Lake, by George Verghese
D Large clutch size in Grey Francolins, by J.K. Tiwari
□ Darters & Little Egrets Nesting in Gudavi Bird
Sanctuary, by Gurunath Desai
□ Asian Anatidae Atlas, by Asad R. Rahmani
d Costly Geese : $ 5.3 million at J.F. Kennedy Airport.
Courtesy, International Herald Tribune of 1 1 .1 1 .98
D 23rd International Ornithological Congress to be held
in China 11 -17th August 2002
Book Review
□ Communities & Conservation, by Zafar Futehally
^ — x
Wishing all our readers a very happy
and successful New Year - 1 999
Kihim Diary
This year the rains have broken all records and the
unseasonal downpour in Bombay continued until Nc.e~:r-
80% of the paddy crop is ruined and the story of rotting onic-«
with prices rising up to Rs. 60/- a kg is well known. The village
tank in Kihim is full to the brim but with all the vegetate -
cleared the birds were few and far between. Pond herons
cattle egrets, red wattled lapwings, a cormorant and the
unfailing white breasted kingfisher were the lot when as
arrived on 28th October. But for the rest of the time we were
there (till 23rd November) there was often a couple of
gull-billed terns circling the tank, diving (after their miraculous
reverse twist) to pick up prey from the surface of the water.
There is no progress about our proposal to make the tank
into a bird sanctuary. But one day a couple from Nagpur turned
up to look at the house where Salim Ali stayed. They were
apparently planning a seminar on birdwatching somewhere
nearKarad, on 12th November, (S.A.'s birthday). They offered
to pass a resolution on the Kihim tank sanctuary and to send
it to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and to the Collector of
Raigad District. That is the sort of support we need and I
request readers of the Newsletter around Mumbai to do the
same. The beach was full of plovers (lesser, kentish, ringed)
and sandpipers (Terek's too with their red legs & upturned
beaks), oyster catchers, turnstone, whimbrel, red shanks and
others. The plovers were unusually aggressive and I saw
collisions in mid air on a few occasions. Obviously they had
just arrived from their breeding grounds in the north and were
still territorially inclined. On 1 5th November during high tide at
9 a.m. the beach was fuller than usual with birds and a pair of
Caspian terns with their lovely red bills were circling around
gull-billed terns. There was a solitary reef heron in its dark
uniform. As it flew the two white spots at the edge of the
primaries looked very decorative. Why has this colour pattern
not been mentioned in the books? It is such an arresting sign
like the two white spots on the tiger's ears.
At the extreme north of Kihim beach which is separated
from the Awas region by the creek, there is a very productive
scrub jungle with plenty of lantana where bulbuls flourish. A
flock of grey headed mynas, were enjoying the berries of the
lantana. I see that the alternate common name (A.C.N.)
suggested for the species is chestnut tailed myna. I hope the
original name will survive.
Not far from here on two occasions, I saw a lovely solitary
specimen of a minivet on a telegraph wire, but its colours, pink
throat, yellow breast, dark grey body do not match with the
illustrations in the books. Common grey hornbills, small green
bee eaters, redwhiskered and red-vented bulbuls, spotted
doves, and jungle babblers were the commonest birds in our
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
91
garden. The calls of coucals were aplenty. I keep wondering
at the meaning of their numbered calls 4 to 6 and more in
regular patterns. Paradise flycatchers were often seen and a
birder reported a large goup of bluetailed bee eaters Merops
philippinus in a casuarina grove by the beach. I recall seeing
a large flock 30 years ago in the same place, and their calls
te-tew te-tew by which I identified them, are fresh in my
memory.
On 12th November on the road to Kankeshwar I found a
few turtle doves in the same spot where I saw them in May
(reported in the Newsletter of May/June 98).
Just as I was wondering about the absence of wagtails I
saw a couple of white wagtails Motacilla alba on the beach.
From their black and white facial markings I could not tell
whether they were personata or dukhunensis.
But the sight that thrilled me the most was of a
blackcapped kingfisher on the rocks on the beach just
opposite our house where it has often been seen in the past.
At 9 a.m. on 13th November, the light was perfect and the
bird's velvet black cap, broad white collar on the hind neck,
blood red bill, pink legs and rusty brown underneath showed
up to perfection. For a moment it flew on to the ground and
came back to the same spot on the rock with a beakful. The
morsel protruded beyond the mandibles and it took over 5
minutes to crush it to a swallowable size. This bird is certainly
a candidate for a beauty competition among avians.
Naturalists by Edward O. Wilson
Every one who has read this book will agree that is is "one
of the finest scientific memoirs ever written". As one reviewer
says, "no one has been able to connect a "humble detail" so
effectively to a "grand vision". So whether it is the life of ants,
the subject of Wilson's book, or birds, it is the humble detail
which must not be ignored. Every page of this book has a
fascinating ecological insight but one which particularly
pleased me was the author's comment on the concept of
sub-species. In our Newsletter I have often omitted the
trinomial sub-species mainly because sub-species are
unidentifiable in the field, and one is likely to make a mistake.
But there are other reasons why the concept of sub-species
is a questionable one. Listen to Wilson, page 207.
"It was a subject deserving close inspection. Everywhere
taxonomists were treating the sub-species as an objective
category and one of the key steps of evolution. Consider their
logic : species are divided into subspecies, which we must
assume to be real and objective because given enough time
they evolve into species, which are real and objective.
Subspecies were (and still are) given formal latinized names
by taxonomists. The bald eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus for
example, is a species divided by taxonomists into two such
races, the southern bald eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus
leucocephalus and the northern bald eagle Haliaeetus
leucocephalus washingtoniensis.
"For reasons not immediately clear to Brown and me,
subspecies seemed insubstantial and arbitrary. We set out to
conduct a critical review of the premises behind their
recognition, by looking at real cases. The foundaitons proved
even weaker than we had imagined. We discovered that the
geographic limits of subspecies are often hard or impossible
to draw, because the traits used to define them vary in a
discordant pattern. The nature of the discordance can be most
immediately understood with an imaginary but typical
example: colour in a butterfly spcies varies east to west, size
decreased from north to south, and an extra band appears on
the hind wing in a few localities near the centre. And so on for
any number of traits the taxonomist might choose from an
almost endless list available for classification. It follows that
the identity of the subspecies into which the butterfly species
is divided depends on the traits chosen to define them. Pick
colour, and you have two east-west races. Pick colour plus
size, and four races in a quadrant come into existence. Add
the hind-wing band, and the number of races can double
again. Hence the subspecies are arbitrary."
In short, there is a great deal of subjective element in
deciding about the subspecies, and this is something we have
to bear in mind.
Birds of Pakhui Wildlife Sanctuary in Western
Arunachal Pradesh, North East India
'APARAJITA DATTA, * PRATAP SINGH, ++ RAMANA M. ATHREYA and "S. KARTHIKEYAN,
* Wildlife Institute of India, Post Bag #18, Dehradun248 001, U.P., India,
++ Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, 98 bis, Boulevard Arago, 75014, Paris,
"Asst. Education Officer, WWF - Karnataka State Office, Bangalore
During the course of a 6 month study (November 1995 to
April 1 996) on the response of arboreal mammals to selective
logging in Pakhui Wildlife Sanctuary and adjacent reserve
forests in Western Arunachal Pradesh, about 1 50 bird species
sighted were recorded by the first author.
A total of 256 bird species has now been recorded from
the area, the bulk of which were sighted by the second author.
Pakhui WLS (92 ° 7.5'E to 92 ° 22' E and 26 °53.7' N to 27
°16.2' N) covers an area of 862 km 2 and is bounded to the
north and west by the river Bhareli, to the east by the Pakke
92
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
river and to the south by the Nameri WLS and reserve forests
of Assam.
The sanctuary is criss-crossed by a number of small rivers
and perennial streams of the Bhareli and Pakke rivers, both
of which join the Brahmaputra river. The area lies in the
foothills of the Himalaya and the terrain is undulating and hilly.
The altitude ranges from 200 m to above 1500 m above sea
level. The area has a subtropical climate with cold weather
from November to February. Both the south-west and
north-east monsoon are prevalent here. The average annual
rainfall is 2500 mm.
The general vegetation type is tropical semi-evergreen
(Champion & Seth, 1 968). The vegetation is dense with a high
diversity and density of woody lianas and climbers. A total of
234 plant species (angiosperms) was recorded here with a
high representation of species from the Euphorbia^eae and
Lauraceae families (Datta & Goyal, in prep). The major
emergent species are Tetrameles nudiflora and Altingia
excelsa (Singh, 1991). The forest types include tropical
semi-evergreen forests along the lower plains and foothills
dominated by Terminalia myriocarpa, Ailanthus grandis and
Duabanga grandiflora (Singh, 1991). There are certain
patches of tropical evergreen forests dominated by Altingia
excelsa, Mesua ferrea, Dysoxylum species, and middle storey
trees belonging to Lauraceae and Myrtaceae. The hill tops are
dominated by subtropical broadleaved forests of the
Fagaceae. Moist areas near streams have a profuse growth
of bamboo, canes and a palm species, Livistonia jenkinsii,
locally known as Tokko, which is extensively used as thatch.
Along the larger perennial streams, there are shingle beds
with patches of tall grassland, which give way to lowland moist
forests with Dillenia indica and Talauma hodgsonii. Human
settlements along with some cultivation existed in a small area
in the southern part of the sanctuary in Khari area in the past
as evinced by abandoned clearings and gaps with thick weedy
undergrowth. Cane extraction on a commercial basis occurred
here till 1 991 . Occasionally cane-cutters enter the forets here
fr.om the adjacent reserve forests of Assam. Villagers also
come into the sanctuary to fish and to collect honey, agar from
Aquilaria agallocha and dhuna from Canarium species. A
small part of the forest near the southern boundary had also
undergone some felling in the past before the area was
declared a sanctuary in 1 978. This area had several colonizing
species such as Bauhinia purpurea and Mallotussp. common
in secondary forests.
A vast portion in the central and northern part of the
sanctuary is quite inaccessible due to the dense vegetation,
hilly terrain and the lack of trails. Consequently, very few
people, even local tribals, venture into the interior of the forest.
The sole village, Mabusa, to the south of the sanctuary has
been relocated. One or two settlements are present near the
northern boundary. The Bhareli river acts as a barrier to the
pressures of human distrubance, though occasionally local
tribals may cross over. Therefore, most of Pakhui WLS, except
a small strip to the south, has undisturbed primary forest.
Phenological data on trees in 210.25 ha plots is being
gathered to document the fruiting patterns in these forests.
Certain hypotheses regarding the factors underlying fruiting
patterns would also be tested. Besides information on hornbill
diet, breeding biology, roosting and nesting habitat and their
effectiveness as seed dispersers, data on frugivore
assemblages at fruting trees and overlap in food species
among frugivorous birds is being collected during
observations at fruiting trees (mainly figs) and adlibitum
sighting records of bird species on fruit trees. At fruiting figs
visited by hornbills, the other frugivorous birds are mainly the
pintailed green pigeon (flocks over 100 at any one time), the
lineated barbet, blue- throated barbet, the hill myna and the
fairy bluebird.
Notes on some birds of the area (by Aparajita Datta)
Of the waterbirds, the black stork is usually sighted along
the perennial streams in Khari area. This year, I saw a flock
of more than 20 on Khari nala, though usually solitary birds or
pairs are more commonly seen. I also saw juvenile storks on
a number of occasions. Common mergansers are usually
seen in winter (from November to February) both on the Pakke
and Bhareli river. In the winter of 1 995-96, bigger flocks were
seen throughout the day in Pakke river. In the last two years,
fewer birds were seen. In the early morning, a few hunters
often take potshots at these birds. In February 1997, I saw a
tribal hunter trying to retrieve a merganser he had shot in the
fast-flowing water. Gunshots are commonly heard from the
river in the morning.
I have sighted the ibisbill only on Khari nala, though RA
& SK have sighted these birds even on the Bhareli river in Tipi.
Once I recovered an injured bird from the nala which had
probably been pecked at by some raptor. Again, this year, I
did not see any ibisbills on the nala.
The Elwe's crake was sighted around a still natural pool
in the middle of dense evergreen forest (probably one of the
finest patches of undisturbed primary forest in Pakhui). This
pool is called Pukhri and is situated on top of a plateau. It is
about 10 km from Khari and one has to cross the various
meandering streams of the Khari nala more than 20 times on
the way to this area. This pool is stagnant, and is probably
formed by rain water collecting in a natural depression. There
is overhanging vegetation, floating logs and the area seems
like an ideal habitat for the white-winged wood duck. In fact,
the white-winged wood duck occurs in the adjacent Nameri
National Park in Assam, so it is likely that this duck occurs
here too. Pratap Singh and I saw the rare green cochoa on a
walk through this dense forest. It was the first and only sighting
of the species here.
There are a total of 9 species of pigeons and doves
occurring here. Of this, I have sighted flocks of the
grey-fronted green pigeon feeding on fruits of a Garruga
species, while large flocks of pin-tailed green pigeons were
the only pigeons sighted feeding on fruiting figs such as Ficus
nervosa, Ficus elastica and Ficus hookeriana. I have several
observations of the bar-tailed cuckoo dove feeding on the very
small black juicy fruits of several medium-sized trees such as
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
93
Callicarpa. sp. and Ostodes paniculata (locally called
Khujli-pat). Barbets and maroon oriole on the other hand were
very commonly seen feeding on fruits of Hovenia acerba
which are also eaten by locals here. The small rounded black
ripe fruits of Vitex pentaphylla formed a very important food
source for the smaller frugivorous birds from December to
February. The fruits of the palm species, Livistonia jenkinsii
are also an important food source for frugivorous birds and
mammals from October to January. There was a total failure
in fruiting of this species in the winter of 1 995-96, but this year,
most individuals had large fruit crops. Flocks of hill mynahs,
pigeons, fairy bluebirds were common on fruiting individuals
of this species. They also form an important food source for
hornbills in this period, since most of their food species ripen
later during the breeding season. There is a dearth of fleshy
ripe berries of lipid-rich capsular fruits during the period.
Hornbills share their fig fruit resource mainly with barbets, hill
mynahs and green pigeons. Among non-fig fruits, only species
bearing medium-sized fleshy berries seem to be shared by
barbets and hill mynahs. Over 20 food species for hornbills
have been identified during this study. A captive wreathed
hornbill was fed fruits of these species to determine gut
passage rates.
An amazing 13 species of woodpeckers are recorded
here. The goldenbacked, yellownaped and rufous
woodpeckers are very common. The great slaty woodpecker
uses treeholes on trees of Tetrameles nudiflora for nesting.
So do redbreasted parakeets, hill mynas and of course the
hornbills. Nests of magpie-robin and the shama were also
observed in tree hollows or holes.
Bulbuls are represented by 8 species here, of which the
most common species is the white-throated bulbul, flocks of
which are very conspicuous due to their noisy calls. I observed
a nest of the blacknecked yellow bulbul in April 1 997. The nest
was a cup-shaped structure knit together with small thin twigs,
bark shreds and dry leaves and spider webs on a shrub about
2 m from the ground. The nest was right on the edge of a forest
path used by Forest Department staff under a tall Tetrameles
tree in which there was a wreathed hornbill nest which I used
to observe regularly. The bulbul nest had two newly-hatched
chicks on 8th April and there was usually one parent in
attendance throughout, but since there was regular movement
of people, the agitated parent would fly away nearby and
return again when the coast was clear. A few days later while
I was watching the hornbill nest, there was a commotion near
the bulbul nest and I suddenly saw two crows flying low and
a flurry of feathers in the air. They had killed one parent. I
would visit the nest, in the next two-three days to feed the two
chicks with little insects and rice grains. They were still altricial,
and one chick was more active and stronger, so all the food I
gave was taken by only this chick. I saw no sign of the other
parent for at least a week, then one day to my surprise, I saw
a bulbul sitting on the nest. Maybe the other parent had been
in attendance throughout. By this time, the wing feathers of
both chicks had developed and a few days later when I
inspected the nest, I found an empty nest. But I wonder if they
were big enough to have flown or were killed by predators,
though the nest was still intact and there were no other signs
of predation.
I have also seen the nests of the largely solitary
blue-bearded bee-eater which is more of a forest bird than the
other two bee- eaters recorded here, viz. the chestnut-headed
and bluetailed bee-eater which are in larger flocks near open
grassy areas near rivers, cliff sides and streams. The nests of
the bluebearded bee-eater was on the soft clayey soil banks
along sides of trails in the forest. They excavated tunnel-like
holes in the soil.
Two birds recorded in the list here were sighted at much
lower altitudes than reported by Ali (1983). These were the
scarlet finch, a flock of which I actually saw just outside Pakhui
in the Doimara R.F. at about 900 m elevation. Another species
is the grey-headed parrotbill, which I saw again in Doimara
R.F. nearTipi.
Several roost sites of hornbills were identified. Roost trees
were generally tall thinly-foliaged deciduous trees near the
river banks, cliff edges of perennial streams. The main roost
tree species were Bombax ceiba, Tetrameles nudilfora, and
Albzzia sp. At some roosts only small flocks of a single species
such as either the great or wreathed hornbill were seen. But
sometimes roosts were of both species together in the same
location along the cliff edges at these roost sites. This year in
January, over 150 wreathed hornbills and about 100 great
hornbills roosted at the same location every evening. Flocks
of the smaller Indian pied hornbill also roosted some distance
away from the other two species near the river.
Relative abundances (encounter rates) of both pheasants
and hornbills were recorded along trails during the logging
study in 1995-96. Pheasant abundance was found to be
lowest in logged forest and plantation (Doimara and Papum
R.F.) and highest in unlogged forest (Datta, in prep.). While
wreathed hornbill abundance did not differ between habitats,
the great hornbill was more abundant in unlogged forest and
the Indian pied hornbill occurred only near river margin
secondary forests (Datta, in review).
References
Ali, S. (1993). A Pictorial Guide to the Birds of the Indian
subcontinent. Bombay Natural History Society - Oxford
University Press.
Ali, S. and Ripley, S.D. (1 983). Handbook of the Birds of India and
Pakistan. Compact edition, Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford, New
York, Delhi.
Athreya, R. and Karthikeyan, S. (unpubl. manuscript). A report on
a visit to the Wildlife Sanctuaries of the Dafla hills of Arunachal
Pradesh.
Champion, H.G. and Seth, S.K. (1968). A revised survey of the
forest types of India. Manager, Publications Division. Govt, of
India, New Delhi.
94
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
Datta, A. (in review). Preliminary observations on hornbill
abundance in untagged forests, selectively logged forests and
a plantation in western Arunachal Pradesh, north-east India.
Oryx.
Datta, A. (in prep.) Pheasant abundance in selectively logged and
untagged forests in western Arunachal Pradesh, north-east
India.
Datta, A. and Goyal, S.P. {in prep.) Responses of arboreal
mammals to selective logging in western Arunachal Pradesh.
Report to be submitted to Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun.
Singh, P. (1991). Avian and mammalian evidences in Pakhui
Wildlife Sanctuary in East Kameng district, Arunachal
Pradesh. Arunachal Forest News 9(2), 1-10.
Singh, P. (1994). Recent bird records from Arunachal Pradesh.
Forktail 10, 65-104.
Checklist of birds of Pakhui Wildlife Sanctuary
(East Kameng district, Western Arunachal Pradesh)
The initials after each species refer to species sighted
only by one of the authors.
Family : Phalacrocoracidae
I) Large cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo, 2) Little cormorant
Phalacrocorax niger AD; 3) Indian darter Anhinga rufa RA & SK
Family : Ardeidae
4) Indian pond heron Ardeola grayir, 5) Little green heron Ardeoia
striatum, 6) Little egret Egretta garzetta; 7) Cattle egret Bubulcus ibis
PS
Family : Ciconidae
8) Black stork Ciconia nigra
Family : Threskiornithidae
9) White ibis Threskiornis aethiopica PS
Family : Anatidae
10) Common merganser Mergus merganser
Family : Accipitridae
II) Brahminy kite Haliastur indus AD; 12) Crested hawk-eagle
Spizaetus cirrhatus cirrhatus; 13) Crested serpent eagle Spilomis
cheela; 14) White-backed vulture Gyps benghalensis; 15) Blyth's
baza Aviceda jerdoni; 16) Paraiah kite Milvus migrans govinda RA &
SK; 17) Hen harrier Circus cyaneus RA & SK; 18) Short-toed eagle
Circaetus gallicus RA & SK; 1 9) Honey buzzard Pemis ptilorhyncus
PS; 20) Hodgson's hawk-eagle Spizaetus nipalensis PS; 21) Pied
harrier Circus melanoleucos PS; 22) Osprey Pandion haliaetus PS;
23) Sparrowhawk Accipter nisus PS; 24) Shikra Accipiter badius PS
Family Falconidae
25) Whitelegged falconet Microhierax melanoleucos; 26) Kestrel
Falco tinnunculus PS
Family Phasianidae
27) White-cheeked hill partridge Arborophila atrogularis PS; 28)
Kaleej pheasant Lophura leucomelana lathamr, 29) Red jungle fowl
Gallus gallus, 30) Peacock pheasant Polyplectron bicalcaratum
Family : Rallidae
31) Elwe's crake Amauromis bicolor; 32) Whitebreasted waterhen
Amaurornis phoenicurus AD
Family : Ibidorhychidae
33) Ibisbill Ibidorhyncha struthersii
Family : Burhinidae
34) Stone curlew Burhinus oedicnemus AD
Family : Glareolidae
35) Small Indian pratincole Glareola lactea
Family : Charadriidae
36) Redwattled lapwing Vanellus indicus; 37) Spurwinged lapwing
Vanellus spinosus; 38) Green sandpiper Tringa ochropus; 39)
Common greenshank Tringa nebularia; 40) Blacktailed godwit Limosa
limosa PS; 41) Common sandpiper Tringa hypoleucos; 42) Little
ringed plover Charadrius dubius
Family : Laridae
43) Indian river tern Sterna aurantia
Family : Columbidae
44) Pintailed green pigeon Treron apicauda; 45) Pompadour or
greyfronted green pigeon Treron pompadora; 46) Thick- billed green
pigeon Treron curvirostra; 47) Green imperial pigeon Ducula aenea;
48) Mountain imperial pigeon Ducula badia; 49) Bartailed cuckoo
dove Macropygia unchat, 50) Rufous turtle dove Streptopelia
orientalis, 51) Spotted dove Streptopelia chinensis; 52) Emerald dove
Chalcophaps indica
Family : Psittacidae
•
53) Redbreasted parakeet Psittacula alexandrr, 54) Indian lorikeet
Lohculus vemalis, 55) Alexandrine parakeet Psittacula eupatria RA
&SK
Family : Cuculidae
56) Rufousbellied plaintive cuckoo Cacomantis merulinus; 57) Large
greenbilled malkoha Rhopodytes tristis; 58) Lesser coucal Centropus
toulou; 59) Drongo-cuckoo Surniculus lugubris; 60) Indian cuckoo
Cuculus micropterus PS
Family : Strigidae
61) Barred owlet Glaucidium cuculoides; 62) Spotted owlet Athene
brama PS; 63) Scops owl Otus scops PS; 64) Collared scops owl Otus
bakkamoena PS; 65) Brown hawk owl Ninox scutulata PS; 66) Forest
eagle-owl Bubo nipalensis AD
Family : Caprimulgidae
67) Longtailed nightjar Caprimulgus macrurus
Family : Apodidae
68) House swift Apus affinis AD; 69) Palm swift Cypsiurus parvus, 70)
Large whiterumped swift Apus pacificus, 71) Cochinchina spinetail
swift Chaetura cochinchinensis PS; 72) Himalayan swift Collocalia
brevirostris RA & SK
Family : Trogonidae
73) Red-headed trogon Harpactes erythrocephalus
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
95
Family : Alcedinidae
74) Himalayan pied kingfisher Ceryle lugubris; 75) Lesser pied
kingfisher Ceryle rudis; 76) Small blue kingfisher Alcedo athis, 77)
Whiteb'reasted kingfisher Halcyon smymensis, 78) Blue-eared
kingfisher Alcedo meninting PS; 79) Ruddy kingfisher Halcyon
coromanda PS
Family : Meropidae
80) Chestnutheaded bee-eater Merops leschenaultr, 81 ) Bluebearded
bee-eater Nyctyomis athertoni; 82) Bluetailed bee-eater Merops
philippinus PS
Family : Coracidae
83) Indian roller Coracias benghalensis; 84) Broadbilled roller
Eurystomus orientalis
Family : Upupidae
85) Hoopoe Upupa epops
Family : Bucerotidae
86) Rufousnecked hornbill Aceros nipalensis AD?, PS; 87) Wreathed
hornbill Rhyticeros undulatus; 88) Indian pied hornbill Anthracoceros
malabaricus; 89) Great pied hornbill Buceros bicornis
Family : Capitonidae
90) Great hill barbet Megalaima virens; 91) Lineated barbet
Megalaima lineata; 92) Bluethroated barbet Megalaima asiatica; 93)
Blueeared barbet Megalaima australis
Family : Picidae
94) Rufous piculet Sasia ochracea; 95) Large yellownaped
woodpecker Picus flavinucha; 96) Small yellownaped woodpecker
Picus chlorolophus; 97) Larger goldenbacked woodpecker
Chrysocolaptes lucidus; 98) Great slaty woodpecker Mulleripicus
pulverulentusr, 99) Lesser goldenbacked wookpecker Dinopium
benghalense AD; 100) Fulvous breasted pied woodpecker Picoides
macei AD; 101) Redeared bay woodpecker Blythipicus pyrrhotis AD;
102) Speckled piculet Picumnus innominatus PS; 103) Grey-crowned
pygmy woodpecker Picoides canicapillus PS; 104) Rufous
woodpecker Micropterus brachyurus, 105) Blacknaped green
woodpecker Picus canus PS; 106) Pale headed woodpecker
Gecinulus grantia PS
Family : Eurylaimidae
107) Collared broadbill Serilophus lunatus, 108) Long tailed broadbill
Psarisomus dalhousiae
Family : Pittidae
109) Bluenaped pitta Pitta nipalensis RA & SK; 110) Hooded or
Greenbreasted pitta Pitta sordida PS
Family : Alaudidae
111) Bush lark Mirafra assamica PS; 112) Eastern skylark Alauda
gulgula PS
Family : Hirundinidae
113) Swallow Hirundo rustica; 114) Collared sand martin Riparia
riparia PS, RA & SK?
Family : Laniidae
115) Greybacked shrike Lanius tephronotus; 116) Brown shrike
Lanius cristatus; 117) Rufousbacked shrike blackheaded subspecies
Lanius schach tricolor PS
Family : Oriolidae
118) Blackheaded oriole Oriolus xanthornus; 119) Maroon oriole
Oriolus traillii
Family : Dicruridae
120) Black drongo Dicrurus adsimilis; 121) Grey drongo Dicrurus
leucophaeus; 122) Bronzed drongo Dicrurus aeneus; 123) Lesser
racket-tailed drongo Dicrurus remifer, 124) Haircrested drongo
Dicrurus hottentottus, 125) Greater racket-tailed drongo Dicrurus
paradiseus
Family : Artamidae
126) Ashy swallow-shrike Artamus fuscus
Family : Sturnidae
127) Greyheaded mynah Sturnus malabaricus; 128) Pied mynah
Sturnus contra PS; 129) Common mynah Acridotheres tristis, 130)
Jungle mynah Acridotheres fuscus PS; 131) Grackle or hill mynah
Gracula religiosa
Family : Corvidae
132) Green magpie Cissa chinensis; 133) Indian tree pie Dendrocitta
vagabunda RA & SK; 1 34) Blackbrowed tree pie Dendrocitta frontalis;
135) Himalayan tree pie Dendrocitta formosae; 136) House crow
Corvus splendens; 137) Jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos
Family : Campephagidae
1 38) Large wood shrike Tephrodornis virgatus; 1 39) Common wood
shrike Tephrodornis pondicerianus; 140) Large cuckoo shrike
Coracina novaehollandiae; 141) Smaller grey cuckoo shrike Coracina
melaschistos; 142) Scarlet minivet Pericrocotus flammeus; 143)
Longtailed minivet Pericrocotus ethologus; 144) Shortbilled minivet
Pericrocotus brevirostris; 145) Yellowthroated minivet Pericrocotus
Solaris PS
Family : Irendiae
1 46) Gold fronted chloropsis Chloropsis aurifrons; 1 47) Orangebellied
chloropsis Chloropsis hardwickir, 148) Fairy bluebird Irena puella;
149) Common iora Aegithina tiphia
Family : Pycnonotidae
150) Blackheaded yellow bulbul Pycnonotus melanicterus, 151)
Whitecheeked bulbul Pycnonotus leucogenys; 1 52) Redvented bulbul
Pycnonotus cafer, 153) Redwhiskered bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus;
1 54) Whitethroated bulbul Crinigerflaveolus; 1 55) Browneared bulbul
Hypsipetes flavalus, 1 56) Black bulbul Hypsipetes madagascariensis;
157) Rufous-bellied bulbul Hypsipetes mcclellandi PS
Family : Muscicapidae
Subfamily : Timalinae
1 58) Greyheaded parrotbill Paradoxomis gularis AD; 1 59) Necklaced
laughing thrush Garrulax moniligerus; 160) Blackgorgeted laughing
96
thrush Garrulax pectoralis; 161) Whitecrested laughing thrush
Garrulax leucolophus Crimson winged laughing thrush Garrulax
phoeniceus PS; 162) Silver eared mesia Leiothrix argentauris; 163)
Yellownaped yuhina Yuhina flavicollis; 164) Blackchinned yuhina
Yuhina nigrimenta AD; 165) Whitebellied yuhina Yuhina zantholeuca;
166) Nepal babbler Alcippe nipalensis; 167) Longtailed sibia
Heterophasia picaoides, 168) Abbott's babbler Trichastoma abbotti;
169) Spotted babbler Phellorneum ruficeps RA & SK; 170) Lesser
scaly-breasted wren babbler Pnoepyga pusilla; 171) Black-throated
babbler Stachyris nigriceps; 172) Yellow-breasted babbler
Macronous gularis; 173) Tickells' babbler Trichastoma tickelli PS;
174) Marsh spotted babbler Pellorneum palustre PS; 175)
Blue-winged siva Minla cyanouroptera PS; 176) Red-tailed minla
Minla ignotincta PS; 177) Spectacled barwing Actinodura egertoniRA
&SK
Subfamily : Muscicapinae
178) Redbreasted flycatcher Muscicapa pan/a; 179) Little pied
flycatcher Muscicapa westermannr, 180) Large niltava Muscicapa
grandis; 181) Small niltava Muscicapa macgrigoriae; 182)
Rufous-bellied niltava Muscicapa sundara AD; 183) Tickell's blue
flycatcher Muscicapa tickelliae; 184) Verditer flycatcher Muscicapa
thalassina; 185) Eastern slaty blue flycatcher Muscicapa
leucomelaneura minuta PS; 186) Brown flycatcher Muscicapa
latirostris RA & SK; 187) Orange-gorgeted flycatcher Muscicapa
strophiata; 188) Rufous-breasted blue flycatcher Muscicapa
hyperythra RA &SK; 189) Ferruginous flycatcher Muscicapa
ferruginea PS; 190) Pygmy blue flycatcher Muscicapa hodgsoniiRA
& SK; 191) Greyheaded flycatcher Culicicapa ceylonensis; 192)
Yellowbellied fantail flycatcher Rhiphidura hypoxantha; 193)
Whitethroated fantail flycatcher Rhiphidura albicollis; 194) Paradise
flycatcher Terpsiphone paradisr, 195) Blacknaped flycatcher
Hypothymis azurea
Subfamily Sylviinae
196) Tailor bird Orthotomus sutorius; 197) Tickell's leaf warbler
Phylloscopus aflinis; 198) Yellow-browed leaf warbler Phylloscopus
inornatus PS; 1 99) Blackbrowed leaf warbler Phylloscopus cantator,
200) Slaty bellied ground warbler Tesia olivea; 201 ) Chestnut-headed
flycatcher warbler Tesia castaneocoronata; 202) Chestnut-headed
flycatcher warbler Seicercus castaniceps 203) Allied flycatcher
warbler Seicercus aflinis; 204) Grey-headed flycatcher warbler
Seicercus xanthoschistos PS; 205) Broad-billed flycatcher warbler
AbroscopushodgsoniHA & SK; 206) Yellow-bellied flycatcherwarbler
Abroscopus superciliaris PS
Subfamily Turdinae
207) Himalayan rubythroat Erilhacus pectoralis AD; 208) Magpie
robin Copsychus saularis; 209) Shama Copsychus malabaricus;
210) Black redstart Phoenicurus ochruros; 211) Daurian redstart
Phoenicurus auroreus; 212) Guldenstadt's redstart Phoenicurus
erythrogaster PS; 213) Plumbeous redstart Rhyacornis fuliginosus;
214) Blackbacked forktail Enicurus immaculatus; 215) Slatybacked
forktail Enicurus schistaceus; 216) Leschenault's forktail Enicurus
leschenaultr, 217) Little forktail Enicurus scouleri PS; 218) Collared
Newsletter for Birdw atchers
bush chat Saxicola torquata;2\ 9) Dark grey bushchat Saxicola ferrea;
220) Whitecapped redstart Chaimarrornis leucocephalus; 221) Blue
rock thrush Monticola solitarius; 222) Blue whistling thrush
JJIyiophonus caeruleus; 223) Orangeheaded ground thrush Zoothera
citrina; 224) Greywinged blackbird Turdus boulboul, 225) Lesser
shortwing Brachypteryx leucophrys RA & SK; 226) Whitebrowed
shortwing Brachypteryx montana RA & SK; 227) Whitetailed blue
robin Cinclidium leucurum RA & SK; 228) Orange-flanked bush robin
Erithacus cyanurus PS; 229) Rufous bellied bush robin Erithacus
hyperythrus PS; 230) Green cochoa Cochoa viridis
Family : Cinclidae
231) Brown dipper Cinclus pallasii
Family : Paridae
232) Sultan tit Melanochlora sultanea; 233) Grey tit Paws major RA
& SK; 234) Black spotted yellow tit Parus spilonotus RA & SK
Family : Sittidae
235) Chestnut-bellied nuthatch Sitta castanea; 236) Velvet fronted
nuthatch Sitta frontalis RA & SK
Family : Motacillidae
237) Indian tree pipit Anthus hodgsonr, 238) Paddyfield pipit Anthus
rufulus PS; 239) Grey wagtail Motacilla cinerea; 240) Pied wagtail
Motacilla alba
Family : Dicaeidae
241) Scarlet backed flowerpecker Dicaeum cruentatum; 242)
Yellow-vented flowerpecker Dicaeum chrysorrheum PS; 243)
Plaincolored flowerpecker Dicaeum concolorPS; 244) Fire breasted
flowerpecker Dicaeum ignipectus RA & SK
Family : Nectariniidae
245) Streaked spiderhunter Arachnothera magna; 246) Little
spiderhunter Arachnothera longirostris PS; 247) Blackbreasted
sunbird Aethopyga saturata; 248) Nepal yellow backed sunbird
Aethopyga nipalensis; 249) Rubycheek Anthreptes singalensis; 250)
Yellow backed sunbird Aethopyga siparaja PS
Family : Zosteropidae
251) White-eye Zosterops palpebrosa;
Family : Ploecidae
Subfamily Passerinae
^€
252) House sparrow Passer domesticus; 253) Tree sparrow Passer
montanus PS; 254) Whitebacked munia Lonchura striata
Family : Fringillidae
255) Scarlet finch Haematospiza sipahi AD
Family : Emberizidae
256) Crested bunting Melophus lathami AD; 257) Little bunting
Emberiza pusilla PS
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
97
The end of August being the best season, a wildlife study
tour of Kenyan game reserves was organised by the Bombay
Natural History Society under the leadership of P.B. Shekar.
The main focus was on African game animals, yet we saw
plenty of birds during our visits to Masai Mara, Lake Nakuru,
Amboseli and Tsao West National Parks.
Since many African birds are closely related to those of
India, I thought this article may interest readers of the
Newsletter.
Armed with Collin's Field Guide we set out for Masai Mara
and enroute saw inumerable colonies of Buffalo weaver birds,
their untidy nests hanging from low boughs. Our first sighting
was the superb starling Spreo superbus similar to our common
myna but with brilliant metallic blue green body, chestnut
underparts with a white band, slaty grey bill. Also its cousin
Hilderbrant's starling Spreo hilderbranti with its orange red
eyes feeding on the ground. We noticed the ubiquitous
anteater chat Myrmecocichia aethiops akin to our pied bush
chat, glossy black all over with a white shoulder patch. In the
dry thorn bush near the Sekenani gate we encountered the
helmeted guinea fowl Numida nitrata with their conspicuous
cobalt blue head and neck yellow bony crest and red and blue
wattles. The graceful crowned crane Balearica regulorum, the
size of demoiselle crane was cocking its head with its crown
of stiff golden bristles shining in the sun. On the banks of the
Talek river was a large marabou stork Leptoptilus
crumeniferus, a scavenging bird very much like an abridged
version of our adjutant stork. On reaching the riverside tsnted
camp site we noticed flocks of yellow vented bulbuls
Pcynonotus goiavia, similar to our redvented species except
for the yellow vent, perched on the wiremesh of the
ramshackle dining hall, calling joyously.
On 27th August, we came across the fear-some looking
secretary bird Sagittarius serpentarius, a characteristic bird of
Africa striding through the savanna with its long heeled legs,
making constant head movements and intently searching the
grass for prey. A flock of masai ostriches Struthio camelus,
the largest living birds, was strutting in the bushveld. The
familiar grey herons Ardea cinerea and yellowbilled egrets
Mesophoix intermedius similar to our median egret had
gathered near a stagnant pool while a liliac-breasted roller
Coracias caudata resembling the Indian roller except for the
colour flew overhead.
In our second ride we saw a flock of 20 helmeted guinea
fowl scratching the ground for insects. In the grassland ahead,
a group of hungry whitebacked vultures, were pecking fiercely
at each other and tearing flesh from the carcass of a wild
beast. On the last day we headed south for Mara river and
enroute noticed a small group of crested f rancolin Francolinus
sephaena very similar to our partridges. An eagle sent them
scurrying and they quickly took cover under a bush. Around
Glimpses of Kenyan Birdlife
S. ASHOK KUMAR, IAS (Retd.), Plot 491, Road No. 10,
Jubilee Hill, Andhra Pradesh 500 033
Keekorok logde, Hilderbrandt's francolin Francolinus
hilderbranti scampered at the approach of our Combi, the
8-seater van. There was a mixed group of male, female and
baby hippos in the Mara river frolicking in the muddy water.
African pied wagtails Motacilla aguimp similar to our large pied
wagtails with white eye-brows but smaller in size were having
a free ride on the floating islands of hippos. Redbilled
oxpeckers ortickbirds Buphagus erythrorhynchus resembling
the greyheaded myna but with pale ashy brown upper parts,
bare facial area, red bill, blackish legs and yellow orbits like
our common myna's were picking ticks and flies on the backs
of hippos which were jostling for space on the river bank like
oil tankers in a dockyard. While returning to camp we observed
a group of four black-bellied Hartlaub's bustards Lissotis
melanogaster akin to the lesser florican but with a short crest
and prominent black belly in the male and a white belly in the
female. Near the Naivasha Ebony factory were flocks of pied
crows Corvus albus with their conspicuous white necks and
throat.
Lake Nakuru National park was created in 1 960 as a bird
sanctuary. A flash of pink along the lake edge turned out to
be the hundreds of thousands of lesser flamingo
Phoenichonaias minor and greater flamingo Phoenicopterus
ruber. The firebirds of the Rift Valley had gathered in this
shallow alkaline lake to harvest the abundant food supply of
blue algae. A large flock of white pelicans Pelecanus
onocrotaluswere foraging alongside the flamingos. According
to the guide these birds have increased in number after
introduction of alkaline tolerant fish Talapia grahami in the
lake. Other waterbirds sighted were the familiar blackwinged
stilt Himantopus himantopus, greyheaded gull Larus
cirrocephalus looking like brown-headed gulls in winter
plumage, blacksmith plover Hoplopterus armatus very much
like the little ringed plover but larger in size with black cheeks,
throat, nape and breast, white forehead and crown and black
spur on wing. The yellowbilled stork or wood ibis Ibis ibis had
white plumage partly tinged with crimson, black flight feathers
and tail, red head and yellow bill. The longtailed cormorant
Phalacrocorax africannes is the large cormorant while the
cattle egret is the buffbacked heron Ardeola ibis and both were
found in the company of grey herons. Grey rumped swallows
Hirundo griseopyga akin to redrumped swallows were making
crisscross flights overhead while the augur buzzard Buteo
rufofuscus was gliding effortlessly. Among the sedges and
reeds we spotted a male Egyptian goose Alopochen
aegytiacus with white wing coverts, black primaries, green
secondaries, chestnut patch round eyes and a ring round the
neck foraging. Red-billed oxpeckers were riding on the back
of common waterbucks and white rhinos in the grassland.
In Amboseli a mixed flock of superb starlings including a
few immature ones with dusky eyes and Hilderbrandt's
starlings had descended on our breakfast table to partake of
98
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
bread crumbs. They were later joined by whiteheaded buffalo
weaver birds Dinemellia dinamelli and redbilled buffalo
weaver birds Bubalornis n/gerslightly larger than baya weaver
bird. There was a solitary D'arnaud's barbet Trachyphonus
darnaudin with prominent white and yellow spots. In the first
game ride a group of yellownecked spurfowl Francolinus
leucoscepus, masai ostriches and crowned cranes were
sighted. Amidst the large swamp, cattle egrets were riding on
elephant back while grey herons, long-tailed cormorants and
sacred ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus similar to white ibis but
with iridescent green tipped flight feathers were seeking food.
African jacana or lily trotter Actophilornis africana looking
more like the non-breeding pheasant-tailed jacana but with
chestnut brown body, wings, tail, white neck front and golden
yellow upper breast was busy among the water lilies while the
African black crake Limnocorax flavirostra having the profile
of our brown crake, with black body, greenish-yellow bill,
flirting its tail like moorhen was hurriedly crossing the reed
beds. Blacksmith plovers were flying low over the swamp. In
the Acacia woodland a greenwood hoopoe Phoeniculus
purpureus, a glossed green and violet bird with a red bill and
white-tipped long tail was seen. In the low bush near our tent
we saw for the first time a pair of speckled mouse bird Colis
striatus, a drab coloured endemic bird of Africa. The guide
explained that its habit of creeping along the branches like a
mouse earned its name. In Enkongu Narok swamp were flocks
of lesser and greater flamingos, white pelicans, cattle egrets
and sacred ibis. On our way back to the camp we recorded a
pair of dignified kori bustards Ardeotis kori with mottled black
and white crown tapering to crest and white "eye brows". While
savouring the aromatic Kenyan coffee in the shack we noticed
a bird alighting on a huge tree branch. Focussing our
binoculars we could see its black beak, pale grey back, head,
crest, chest and pure white belly. It was identified as a male
white-bellied go-away-bird Corythaixodes leucogaster, a
typical African bird. According to the guide its call is harsh
sheep-like bleat "go-away" and hence its name. We also
spotted the white-browed coucal Centropus superciliosus
similar to lesser coucal but with different plumage colouration.
The last leg of our journey was to Tsavi West. Around
Kulagani lodge were redbilled hornbills Tockus
erythrorhynchus with white spots on wing coverts hopping
from one branch to another. In the vicinity of Tsavo river we
came across yellowbilled hornbills Tockus flavirostris and a
pair of Egyptian goose. By dusk we reached Ziwani Tented
Camp in the heart of the jungle. Over-looking the Thende
waterhole, this camp is best located for game viewing. While
sipping tea, one can view in the comfort of a chair hippos,
crocodiles and other game animals a few metres away. A
surprise announcement of a night safari thrilled us. We drove
into the adjoining jungle to see the night life. Besides big game
we saw thick-knee or spotted stone curlew Burhinus capensis
closely resembling the stone curlew gazing at the search light
while a dusky night jar Caprimulgus fraenatus was lying
huddled on ground.
Next morning we went bird watching accompanied by an
experienced guide. Among the extensive sedges and reeds
of the waterhole we sighted the hadada ibis Hagedashia
hagedash having the general profile of glossy ibis but with
olive-grey head, neck and underparts, iridescent green
showing on back and rounded wings in good light. Other birds
recorded were the African jacana, African black crake, African
pied wagtail, marabou stork and Egyptian geese with
gooselets. In the proximity of the camp we came across the
greyheaded social weaver bird Philetairus socius and
goldenbacked or Jackson's weaver bird Ploceus jacksoni.
Along the bank of the watercourse we saw grey herons, lesser
Jacana Microparra capensis, crowned plover Vanellus
coronatus, great white egret Casmerodius albus resembling
large egret, hammerkop Scopus umbretta with its
characteristic hammerhead silhouette, greyheaded kingfisher
Halcyon leucocephalis, pigmy kingfisher Ispidina picta and the
Tsao purple-banded sunbird Nectarinia tsavoensis similar to
our purple sunbird. It was time to go and John, the driver
reminded us of the long journey back to Nairobi.
At home with the spotted munias
THOMAS F MARTIN, # 386, 1st Main Road, SFS 407, GKVK Post,
Yelahanka New Town, Bangalore 560 065
It was on the 29th August 98, at about 5 p.m., )hat my
grand daughter Patricia drew my attention to a pair of spotted
munias Lonchura punctulata perched a foot apart on an
overhead electric wire above our main gate. The two of them
were gazing down on a pair of weeping Ashoka trees
Polyalthia longifolia var. pendula in our front garden. After a
couple of minutes or so, the pair indulged in a series of dulcet
notes and faced each other as if in conversation. Then one of
the pair flew down onto the smaller of the two trees and made
a series of nods to the right, left, above and below, as if to
ensure that its actions were not being watched by some
intruder. It then decided to spring to the larger tree alongside
and made a hasty entrance into the heavy foliage. After a few
moments this investigating bird uttered a train of soft
bi-syllabic whistling notes, not unlike t-sit t-sit. to which
the partner on the overhead electric wire responded by flying
down onto the smaller tree alongside the one in which the
mate was hidden by the foliage. In a very short while the
confined bird let out a soft sounding call to which the partner
responded by leaping onto and then entering the foliage that
ensconced the caller. After what seemed like a couple of
minutes, the pair of spotted munias emerged from the leafage
and flew away to a spot in my neighbour's garden. Having
watched the behaviour of this pair of spotted munias my
suspicions were aroused, in that the two were seeking out a
place to build their nest; and I told my grand daughter that the
Newsletter for Birdwatchers ^^^^^^_^__
following day may well confirm my surmise that the pair were
looking for a suitable nesting site.
Next morning at about 08.00 tars, the 30th Aug'98, my
suspicions were confirmed, for the pair of spotted munias were
now very busily engaged in the task of nest building. They
were flying in with great speed and haste with lengths of
approx. 1 /3 metre or so of somewhat dry tubular stalks of grass
with attached blades trailing from their beaks. This hectic nest
building activity kindled my imagination and thus gave me the
urge to cary out a time and motion study on their endeavours.
So with the aid of my wife Cynthia and grand daughter Patricia,
I got down to the task of recording the frequency and timings
of their visit to the nesting site and arrived at the following. The
birds flew in at almost regular intervals of 2 minutes each, with
a minute separating their coming to and going away from the
site of nesting. During each visit the individual bird remained
inside the leafage for a period ranging from 1 to 1 2 seconds.
This activity remained the norm for the entire period of the
days spent by the pair for nest building. On a very conservative
estimate, each bird made 30 visits per hour to the site; thus
making a combined total of 60 trips per hour. On this day
alone, the 30th Aug'98, the pair had laboured for 7 hours 18
minutes and carried a cumulative length of 144.54 metres of
grass.
On the 31 st Aug'98, the pair turned up at 07. 1 hours and
spent a total of 7 hrs 48 mins in nest building activity,
employing the same time period of 2 minutes per trip to and
fro to the site, with a minute separating their coming to and
going away from the site, and the 10 to 12 seconds each bird
spent inside the foliage attending to the construction of the
nest, but with a slight change in the material employed, which
were long blades of fresh grass in similar lengths of 1/3 metre,
thus making a running length of 154.44 metres.
On the 1st Sep'98, the pair turned up rather late and
laboured for only 3 hrs 18 mins(from 13.05 to 14.38 hrs and
then again from 15.00 to 16.45 hrs), and utilised broad flat
blades of fresh green grass in lengths of approx. 1/3 metre.
Thus a total running length of 65.34 metres of grass was
employed by the pair of spotted munia.
99
On the 2nd Sep '98, the pair resumed their nesting activity
from 11.25 to 12.55 hrs and then again from 14.45 to 16.30
hrs (a total of 3 hrs 15 mins), but this time they brought in
tubular stalks of grass with withered leaves in the usual
lengths of approx. 1/3 metre; thus totalling 64.35 metres in
running length.
On the 3rd Sep'98, the pair spent 1 hr 40 mins in building
activity and utilised a total of 33.00 metres of dry stalks of
g rass. The pair were not to be seen after completing their work
(which lasted from 1 0.23 to 1 2.03 hrs) until about 6 p.m. when
they returned and entered the foliage in the weeping Ashoka
tree to settle down for the night.
On the 4th Sep'98, the pair were conspicuous by their
absence until they showed up at around 6.1 5 p.m. and settled
down in the nest for the night.
The weeping Ashoka tree in which the nest is built is three
years old and stands 5 metres high. The nest is located at a
height of roughly 3 metres, but due to the long slender
drooping branches with heavy leafage the nest is not visible
to the naked eye, except by pushing aside a few of the slender
branches and peeping through the inner openings. This I did
on the very first day of nest building, when the birds were
away, in order to ascertain the height of the nest, but desisted
from further intrusions so as not to disturb their tranquillity and
wellbeing.
The spotted munias had spent a total of 23 hrs 19 mins
in labour, and carried a total running length of approx. 461 .67
metres of grasses of sorts in the 1399 trips they undertook
during the nest building. Verily an amazing feat of endurance
and tenacity for so small a bird as the spotted munia.
In view of the confined nature of the nest and the aversion
I have to disturb the birds in any way, I now look forward to
the arrival of the chicks in the hope of listening in to their
plaintive calls for food, and to the moment when they emerge
from the foliage to take wing.
Sighting of a rare species of bird
at Thiruvananthapuram
K.B. SANJAYAN, T.C.XII/1082, Law College Road, Kunnukuzhy P.O., Thiruvananthapuram 695 037, Kerala
I participated in the bird survey conducted by Warblers
and Waders in the Wyanad wildlife sanctuary in December
1996. 1 returned home on 27th December, after the week long
survey, and on the very next day, an unusual bird was
observed in the backyard of my residence at Barton Hill,
Thiruvananthapuram.
My house stands in the middle of a compound measuring
8.08 Acre. There are a few wild trees in the compound :
coralwood Adenanthera pavonina, Indian coral tree Erythrina
indica, Vatta Macaranga roxburghii, Vengai Bridelia
squamosa, Margossa Azadirachta indica and also jack tree
Artocarpus heterophyllus. Even though the area has been
fragmented into tiny residential blocks with the rapid growth
of the city, three adjoining plots belonging to Dr. Kurien
Chandy, Mr. Pereira and this writer have escaped this general
trend. It reamins vegetated and a good habitat for birds.
As stated above the bird was first sighted in the backyard
of this house on 28 Dec. 1996. Thereafter it was seen almost
regularly, except for three or four days. It was always seen
single.
The bird was akin to the Indian blue chat, but slightly
larger. At first sight it was persumed to be an Indian pitta but
its characteristic greenish colouraiton was totally absent (Pitta
had been sighted and recorded in this compound in the winter
of 1968 and 1983)
100
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
The sighting was first reported by Rohith at the monthly
meeting of Warblers and Waders on 4 January 1 997. With the
help of C. Susanthkumar, Co-ordinator, Warblers and
Waders, the species was conclusively identified as
Orangeheaded ground thrush Zoothera citrina.
The head, neck and chest are dull orange, while the wings
are smoky blue in colour. There is a white patch on the greater
wing coverts which is visible while resting. The tail is short and
wedge-shaped and its ventral side is white. There are white
under tail coverts also. The beak is sturdy and brownish black,
the legs are pale yellow. The tarsus is very slender and slightly
elongate^ which looks like continuation of an almost straight
shank. The shank is covered thickly with white tiny plumes.
There is a white spot on the lower belly at the point where the
shanks meet the body.
The bird was seen hopping about on the ground under
the trees. It feeds on tiny worms, ant lions, termites, maggots,
spiders, grubs etc usually by upturning dead leaves. It takes
to the lower branches of small trees when disturbed. When
the disturbance ends it returns to the ground. It is seen actively
searching for its prey in the mornings by even resorting to fast
runs whereas in the evenings it is less active. It is greatly
inclined to perch on tree stumps which are hardly a foot in
height or on granites strewn on the ground, especially in the
evenings. It continues to sit motionless up to thirty minutes at
a stretch or until a worm attracts it.
During the month of January, it used to roost by about
6.00 p.m. By the middle of March the roosting was at late as
6.40 p.m. Before roosting it drank water from an earthen pot
kept under the trees, cleansed its beak by rubbing against a
twig and flew to different trees in increasing height and finally
roosted in the jack tree. The branch selected was about 24
feet from the ground. On some other days it roosted on
another jack tree in a neighbouring plot.
On subsequent mornings, it was again observed on the
ground vigorously engaged in feeding. In the month of
January it was seen spending the whole day in the same plot,
but in early March it was seen only in early mornings and
evenings. In between it must have been in neighbouring villas.
Amazingly the bird did not chirp even once until the third
week of March. But on 20th March 1997, it got a companion,
a whitethroated ground thrush. In the evening just before
roosting it made a harsh alarm-like screech with regular
pauses in between. It again chirped on subsequent evenings.
One book states its call as
"a peculiar loud whistle, something like the screeching of
a slate pencil a pleasant song".
The whitethroated ground thrush was again observed on
23rd March at about 1 1 .00 am for 30-35 mintues. Then there
was a small duel between them and the whitethroated ground
thrush flew away.
The orangeheaded ground thrush is a rare bird as far as
the state of Kerala is concerned. Shri K.K. Neelakantan has
not included it in his Magnum Opus, Keralathile Pakshikaf 2
(Birds of Kerala) whereas he has mentioned about another
subspecies, whitethroated ground thrush Zoothera citrina
cyanotus. Dr. Salim Ali has also not mentioned this species in
the "Birds of Travancore" 3 . It is obvious that this is a rare visitor
to this State. Dr. Salim Ali states "it winters in the subcontinent
locally; Sri Lanka; Andaman and Nicobar Is" 4 .
The only two references I have on this bird having been
sighted earlier are from my friend, Shri C. Susanthkumar, who
has observed it twice in the backyard of his residence at Indira
Nagar, Thiruvananthapuram in 1985 5 . On March 20, 1986 he
had again observed a pair of orangeheaded ground thrush at
Kallar Valley, 45 km east of Thiruvananthapuram in the
foothills of Western Ghats. He states "It was early in the
afternoon (March 1 986). But the rain forest in the Kallar Valley
was dark and gloomy. The forest was silent Luck
seemed to have favoured me that day. As I turned a corner, I
noticed two orangeheaded ground thrushes feeding in the
narrow path. It is one of the rarest winter visitors of Kerala 6 ".
However the bird finds a place in the Book of Kerala Birds It
is^also included in the field guide, "Important birds of Periyar 8 ".
A Field Guide to Birds of South East Asia gives its range from
West Pakistan to S. China, Hainan, Andamans, Nicobars,
Greater Sundas .
The bird is observed in Thiruvananthapuram for the first
time in a decade. It is noteworthy that of the three recorded
sightings of this bird since 1 985, two are from the heart of the
city, obviously revealing the birds inclination for a metropolitan
habitat.
The sighting has been reported in the Nature View
Newsletter . Being a rare visitor there was a constant flow of
bird watchers to observe it. Apart from C. Susanthkumar, M.
Ramesh, S. Rajeevan, K. A. Kishore, R. Jayaprakash, K.
Rafeek, Neetha, Babu P. Ramesh et al of Warblers and
Waders have observed it and studied the habits. M. Ramesh
has succeeded in photographing this rare visitor which was
also published in the Nature View Newsletter.
The exact habits of the bird, especially its migratory
trends, have to be closely observed and studied. The bird was
last observed on 3rd April 1997.
In the 1997-98 season also the bird did land on this
particular spot, on 1 6 Dec. 1 997. It spent the whole day in the
plot, but it resumed its southward journey thereafter probably
to its destination in Jaffna (?) It was not spotted thereafter.
I thank C. Susanthkumar for his consistent
encouragement in observing and recording the habits of the
bird and M. Ramesh for painstakingly photographing it. I also
thank K. Rafeek for the constant encouragement given by him
for preparing this report for publication in the Newsletter.
References :
King, Ben F and Dickenson, Edward C : A Field Guide to Birds of
South East Asia. Reprinted 1991. p 346.
Neelakantan, K.K : Keralathile Pakshikal (In Malayalam) Ed 3
March 1996. p 413.
Ali, Salim Dr : Birds of Travancore and Cochin. 1 953.
Ali, Salim Dr : Book of Indian Birds. Ed 12 Feb 1996. p 60.
Susanthkumar, C : Personal communications. 1 997.
Susanthkumar, C : Birds of Ponmudi Hills and Kallar Valley 1 989.
Neelakantan, K.K : Ed. Book of Kerala Birds. 1990
Kerala Forest Dept. : Important Birds of Periyar. March 1995.
p58.
Same as Ref No. 1
Warblers & Waders : Nature view Newsletter No. 3 March 1997.
P 4.
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
101
Unexplored Wetland Of Uttar Pradesh
MOHD. ZAFAR-UL ISLAM, Bombay Natural History Society, Hornbill House,
S.B. Singh Road, Mumbai 400 023
Uttar Pradesh is very rich as far as wetlands are
concerned. Some are remarkable for their floral and faunal
diversity. One of them is "Rati Ka Nagla (RKN)".
Location
Rati-ka-Nagla wetland is about 400 acres, 13 kms from
the Sikandra Rao Tehsil of Aligarh district, and 55 kms east
of Aligarh city. It is perennial and receives water from rain and
also from small canals. Fortunately Water Hyacinth Eichornia
crassipes is present only in a small part of the wetland.
In the last week of February 1997 when winter was
blinking its eyes and ready to say good bye and inviting the
scorching summer to help wheat to ripen, we started our
excursion to Patna Bird Sanctuary. This team consisted of
eminent ornithologist Dr Asad R. Rahmani and other students
of Centre of Wildlife, AMU, Aligarh. We enjoyed immensely
the bird sanctuary where we saw thousands of birds. In the
last week of February 1 997 on the way back from Patna Bird
Sanctuary to Aligarh, we were watching hundreds of birds
flying to neighbouring wetlands. We decided to investigate
and followed the flight of the birds. After about 1 km we came
to a flat area which apparently was covered with vegetation.
A flock of ducks appeared and settled about 500 m away.
When we searched thoroughly, we found that we were
standing near a huge wetland with thick growth of emergent
and floating vegetation. I climbed on the top of the vehicle and
saw that further up, the water surface was free from vegetation
but it was covered with an immense number of ducks. We
decided to return to Aligarh.
After a week we again went to explore Rati ka Nagla. We
reached there by noon. We were surprised to see how
beautiful it was! The whole jheel was full of birds, however less
in number compared to the last visit one week back because
the majority of birds had started flying back to their breeding
areas. We felt that it could be an ideal foraging habitat for the
Siberian crane.
In the evening we saw flocks and flocks of Sarus crane
Grus antigone coming to the jheel for roosting. We counted
nearly 115 Sarus. I have never seen such a congregation of
Sarus in my life. Another interesting observation was a roost
of about 75 harriers on the ground.
Conservation
The villages surrounding Rati-ka-Nagla are dominated by
Thakurs, Yadavs and Gujars. They regularly hunt birds and
other small animals. While we were observing birds, we saw
poachers at the far corner of the jheel. The wetland is
surrounded by waste land locally known as "Usar", but
villagers have started converting Usar into crop fields. Since
British days the Jheel has been a haven for hunters, but now
it must be conserved in the interest of wildlife and humanity
alike.
Checklist of birds of Rati-ka-Nagla (Jheel) and its
surrounding areas
1) Little grebe Podiceps ruficollis, (2) Little cormorant Phalacrocorax
niger, (3) Darter Anhinga rula; (4) Grey heron Ardea cinerea; (5)
Cattle egret Bubulcus ibis; (6) Large egret Ardea alba; (7) Smaller
egret Egretta intermedia; (8) Little egret Egretta garzetta; (9) Painted
stork Mycteria leucocephala; (10) Openbill stork Anastomus oscitans;
(11) Whitenecked stork Ciconia episcopus; (12) Blacknecked stork
Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus; (13) White ibis Threskiomis aethiopica;
(15) Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia; (16) Greylag goose Anseranser,
(17) Barheaded goose Anser indicus; (18) Ruddy shelduck Tadorna
ferruginea; (19) Pintail Anas acuta; (20) Common teal Anas crecca;
(21) Spotbilled duck Anas peocilorhyncha; (22) Mallard Anas
platyrhynchos; (23) Wigeon Anas penelope; (24) Garganey Anas
querquedula; (25) Shoveler Anas clypeata; (26) Redcrested pochard
Netta rufina; (27) Cotton teal Nettapus coromandelianus; (28) Comb
duck Sarkidiomis melanotos; (29) Pariah kite Milvus migrans govinda;
(30) Whitebacked vulture Gyps bengalensis; (31) Egyptian vulture
Neophron percnopterusr, (32) Common peafowl Pavo cristatus, (33)
Sarus crane Grus antigone; (34) Whitebreasted waterhen Amaurornis
phoenicurus; (35) Moorhen Gallinula chloropusr, (36) Coot Fulica atra;
(37) Redwattled lapwing Vanellus indicus; (38) Redshank Tringa
totanus; (39) Greenshank Tringa nebularia; (40) Ruff & reeve
Philomachus pugnax, (41) Indian river tern Sterna aurantia; (42)
Crow-pheasant Centropus sinensis; (43) Pied kingfisher Ceryle rudis,
(44) Whitebreasted kingfisher Halcyon smymensis, (45) Green
bee-eater Merops orientalis, (46) Crested lark Galerida cristata; (47)
Wiretailed swallow Hirundo smithii; (48) Grey shrike Lanius excubitor,
(49) Black drongo Dicrurus adsimilis, (50) Common myna
Acridotheres tristis, (51) Bank myna Acridotheres ginginianus; (52)
House crow Corvus splendens; (53) Stone chat Saxicola torquata;
(54) Pied bushchat Saxicola caprata; (55) Large pied wagtail
Motacilla maderaspatensis; (56) House sparrow Passer domesticus
102
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
c
ABSTRACT
3
BIRDING IN THE ANDAMANS. PROF. A. RELTON, Staff
Advisor, Nature Club, Bishop Hebbar College, Trichy62001 7,
Tamil Nadu
Professor Relton spent six weeks in the Andamans (and
recorded 1 1 1 species of birds including 26 endemics. He says
that 242 species and subspecies are reported of which 95
species (39.5% are endemics). The dangers of introducing
species into the islands are well known, yet the following birds
have been introduced — the house sparrow, common myna,
grey partridge, pea fowl.
There are 1 5 wildlife sanctuaries and national parks in the
Andamans covering an area of 640 sq kms (18% of the land
surface). The author emphasises the following conservation
problems.
C2T— •-
JIuTTli ANDAMAN .»•
lHOT,A y ^STUDyAAlA
MEAT WCO»A*
INOIAN KM"
Rich forests are still being clear felled.
Many Nicobaris are now using air guns Most of the
birds they shoot are endemics including rare birds
such as pigeons, doves and megapodes.
Trade in wildlife continues with South East Asian
countries. Parakeets and hill m'ynas are exported in
large numbers.
Since tribals have special rights in protected areas,
people on the mainland use these loopholes to
engage in illegal trade in wildlife.
• An impressive list of references is given which is
reproduced here.
References
Abdulali, H. (1965). The Birds of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
JBNHS, 61(3): 483-571,
Abdulali, H. (1 967). More New Races of Birds form the Andaman
and Nicobar Islands. JBNHS, 63(2) : 420-422,
Abdulali, H. (1967). The Birds of the Nicobar Islands with notes
on some Andaman Birds. JBNHS, 64(2) : 139-190,
Abdulali, H. (1981). Additional notes on Andaman Birds. JBNHS,
78(1): 46-49,
Bhattee, S.S. (1986). Forest and Forestry in the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands, Forest Department, Port Blair,
Ali, S. and S.D. Ripley (1983). Hand Book of the Birds of India
and Pakistan (Compact Edition), Oxford University Press,
Kailash, C. and K. Sanjeev (1994). Observation on Avifauna of
Great Nicobar Island, India. Indian Forester, October 1994,
953-955,
Kailash, C. and P.T. Rajan (1996). Observations on the Avifauna
of Mount Harriett National Park, South Andaman (A&N
Island). Indian Forester, October 1996, 965-968,
Hume, A.O. (1874). Additional notes on the Avifauna of the
Andaman Islands. Stray Feathers, 2 : 470-501,
Hume, A.O. (1876). Additional notes on the Avifauna of the
Andaman Islands. Sfray Feathers, 4 : 279-294,
Subba Rao (1879). Fauna and Andaman and Nicobar Islands:
Diversity, Endemism, Endangered Species and Conservation
Strategies : E.I. A. Report on A&N and Lakshadweep Islands.
Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. Ltd. Edited by Cecil J. Saldanha,
pp 74- 82,
South Wood, T.R.E. (1978). Ecological Methods, Chapman and
Hall, London.
4 4 4
NEST MAKING AND BREEDING OF THE PURPLE
RUMPED SUNBIRDS. Dr. SATISH A. PANDE, C-9, Bhosale
Park, Sahakamagar-2, Pune-9
The author has done a remarkable job in observing the
nest making of a pair of purplerumped sunbirds in his garden
in Pune.
In the last week of March 1 997, "in 8 days the typical pear
shaped suspended nest made of twigs, dry grass blades,
cobwebs, spider droppings, threads, plastic, paper and hair,
with the classical portico was completed. The inner lining was
of white soft cotton. The male was definitely seen assisting
the female. With the daylight span of 12.5 hours an average
of 65-70 visits were made to the nest in a day ... 2 eggs were
laid over 24 hours. During her brief absence from the nest, the
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
103
male kept vigil from an overhanging branch but was never
seen incubating.
During a storm the nest collapsed and one of the chicks
fell off. Dr. Pande repaired the next and replaced the chick not
in the original nest but on a support created near the nest. It
was observed that the injured (chick) was continually pushed
out by (the other). The author has supplied the following
information about his observations.
1. Nesting period of purplerumped sunbirds is variable.
The present nesting was in April-May. I have seen
nesting in October in the same locality.
2. The usual clutch is of two/three.
3. Nests are subject to damage from unseasonal rain.
4. Parents accept nest repair with cloth.
5. If one sib is in the nest and the other in an artificial nest,
the latter is not fed.
6. Only if the original nest is broken, the replaced sibs in
the alternative nest, close to the original nest, are fed
by the parents.
7. I have once observed that before the hatching of the
eggs a purple rumped sunbirds' nest was destroyed by
rain and the eggs broke. The pair quickly rebuilt a nest
on an adjacent tree and successfully reared a new
clutch of three.
8. The females of the purple rumped sunbird have a red
iris, while those of a purple sunbird have a brown iris.
9. Injured sibs are neglected by the family.
4 4 4
UNUSUAL TAIL PATTERN OF BRONZED DRONGO
(DICRURUS AENEUS) R. SHYAMA PRASAD RAO,
Biosciences Dept, Mangalore University, Konaje 574 199
The author says that on 5th Jan 1988 he saw a bronzed
drongo "with a pentaigitate fan like feathers instead of (the)
usual blunt forked tail feathers". V. Santharam comments that
the 'forked' appearance is often lost during the moulting.
Moulting involves extra energy. The timing of the moult "is
done when food is available in abundance". Hence the timing
depends partly on food availability.
4 4 4
C
CORRESPONDENCE
")
GREY BABBLER ATTACKING ITS REFLECTION. J.L
SINGH, D-3/1, Rites Flats, Ashok Vihar (Phase 3), New Delhi
110 052
In the late 70s, I was posted in Bhavnagar and was
allotted one of the old colonial-style bungalows to live in. The
building was a rambling affair with a broad and wide verandah
all around. Near the main entrance was a mirror, which most
such bungalows had in the era they were built.
The compound in which the bungalow stood had both a
kitchen as well as a flower garden. Bird life was thus ubiquitous
and abundant. Almost from the first day that I moved into this
bungalow, I noticed that a grey babbler (Turdoides malcolmi)
regularly approached the mirror and fought with its own
reflection. There was a small ledge in front of the mirror on
which the babbler stood and pecked at its reflection quite
vigorously. I had no way of knowing if it was the same bird or
if a new one continued the struggle day after day. I was in this
bungalow for roughly a year and my estimate is that the
babbler must have had its fight at least 60-70% of the days.
The interesting thing is that there were many other birds
in the area, a large number of which came into the verandah.
No other species indulged in this behavior. At other times I
have seen house sparrows {Passef domesticus) displaying
similar activity but not in Bhavnagar. •
I forgot about this till recently. I am now posted in Delhi
and about a month back was taking a walk in one of Delhi's
many gardens. On the fringe of a garden in Ashok Vihar in the
North of the city, was a parked scooter. As I walked past the
scooter, I noticed that a grey babbler was busy fighting itself
in the rear view mirror of the scooter. Since there was no ledge
in front of this mirror, the bird was having difficulty balancing
itself on the shaft on which the mirror was fixed. But without
much ado, the babbler was fighting itself with abandon.
I may have overlooked this but on two more occasions in
the same scooter stand, I have seen a grey babbler fighting
its reflection. The area has Jungle babblers (T.striatus) also,
perhaps in greater numbers, but the fight is only by the grey
babbler.
4 4 4
KOEL BOOM AT JODHPUR. ISHWAR PRAKASH, Desert
Regional Station, Zoological Survey of India, Jodhpur342 009
Urbanisation is usually considered a major factor for the
shrinkage of biodiversity in a region. My observations during
the last fortysix years in the desert city of Jodhpur prove to be
an exception to this concept.
When I moved in Jodhpur during 1952, it was spread
hardly over five square kilometers. Water was a scarce
commodicty. The vegetation within the town was mostly khejri,
Prosopis spicigera and the vilayati bobool, Prosopis juliflora.
The sand dunes in the southeastern fringes were studded with
bordi, Ziziphus nummularia and bekaria, Tephrosia purpurea.
The rocks in the west were full of thor, Euphorbia caducifolia
and a herb, goondi, Cordia gharaf. Accordingly, the avian
fauna was mostly deserticolous : doves, pigeons, abundant
104
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
crows, kites and lots of vultures. On the outskirts larks,
wheatears, common myna and babblers were commonly
found. During the monsoon, we rarely used to hear Koel's
music and it used to be a big attraction to children as well as
the adults.
During the last four and half decades, Jodhpur city has
spread over more than 20 kilometers, all sand dunes have
been levelled, the adjoining hillocks have turned into greenery
though a large number of buildings have been constructed
overthem. Along with this expansion, three eco-friendly efforts
occurred. Drinking water was made available through a canal
from Jawai dam, about 175 kms down south in the Aravalli
range. Secondly, the Jodhpur municipality formulated rules to
construct houses only on about 60% per cent of the plot size.
Thirdly, the Central Arid Zone Research Institute distributed
trees (mostly neem) and ornamental plants (bougainvillaea)
free of charge. Because of available free space, the people
took to their hearts to grow neem trees and ornamental plants
in their compounds. As a consequence the desert city has now
changed to a well vegetated city with a large number of trees.
With the revegetation of the town the first to appear was crow
pheasant, then the golden oriole and during the last three
years, the koel population has enhanced so much that their
Kuhu-kuhu sometimes turn into intolerable cacophony. We
conducted a reconnaisance survey of the expanded city and
found that 4-6 koels are inhabiting every colony, usually
roosting on neem trees as permanent residents. However, the
crow population has noticeably gone down.
Urbanisation, if carried out in an eco-friendly manner, can
be a boon to bird life in a city.
4 4 4
BLACK BULBULS ASSOCIATION WITH MELIA
AZEDARACH. M.L. NARANG and R.S. RANA, AINP on
Agricultural Ornithology, University of Horticulture & Forestry,
Solan (H.P.).
This is in response to Dr. S. Thirumurthi and C.P.
Banumathi's observations on Melia azedarachtree which they
describe as keystone species for frugivorous birds in HP.,
Newsletter for Birdwatchers, 38(4), July/Aug 1998.
We have been working on bird-tree association in this
university campus for the last five years and have made a
detailed study of birds interacting with trees/shrubs for fruits
and nectars. Melia azedarach a common tree in the mid-hills
of H.P. produces fruits which ripen during winter. Flocks of
black bulbuls descend on these trees during winter and feed
on Melia fruits from dawn to dusk. But it is not correct to state
that no other wild fruit is available for.frugivores during winter.
Even black bulbuls have been recorded to feed on
fruits/berries of Ehretia accuminata, Rosa muschata, and
Celtis australis during the month of January although these
birds prefer to feed on fruits of Melia during the months of
December-February when these fruits are available in plenty.
When the fruits on the trees are finished, black bulbuls
descend on the ground beneath the trees of Melia and feed
on fallen fruits. But apart from occasional foraging by
Himalayan bulbuls, no other avian frugivore has been
recorded to feed on fruits of Melia during our five years of
observations. So Melia azedarach could in no way be
described as a 'keystone' species as described by the authors.
Though wild fruits like Bauhinia variegata, Celtis australis,
Rosa muschata and Ethretia accuminata are available to
avian frugivores during winter the status of 'keystone' species
could be given to Celtis australis which sustains nine species
of avian frugivores during winter months as has already been
reported by us at Pan-Asian Ornithological Congress and XII
Birdslife Asia Conference held at Coimbatore in Nov., 1966
(Abstract P.52). The avian species recorded feeding on fruits
of Celtis australis are : (in order of relative abundance)
(1) Common myna Acridotheres tristis; (2) Himalayan bulbul
Pycnonotus leucogenys; (3) Grey treepie Dendrocitta formosae; (4)
Alexandrine parakeet Psittacula eupatria; (5) Rufous treepie
Dendrocitta vagabunda; (6) Plum-headed parakeet Psittacula
cyanocephala; (7) Bluethroated barbet Megalaima asiatica; (8) Black
bulbul Hypsipetes madagascariensis; (9) Redvented bulbul
Pycnonotus cafer
The detailed study has already been submitted for
publication.
4 4 4
SAVE THE HERONRY AT MATHIKERE. DR. J.C. UTTANGI,
Convener, Dharwad Bird Club, 36, Mission Compound,
Dharwad 580 001
It is shocking to hear that the age old Ficus tree standing
in front of the bus-stand at Mathikere about 70 km from
Bangalore may be axed down because of the proposed
Mysore Highway. This huge tree has been serving many
waterfowl species like the grey heron, little cormorant and
night heron as a heronry to nest and breed. On February 2nd
1997, a visit to this heronry was made by a group of
birdwatchers from Dharwad, Hubli and Haveri towns. It was a
spectacular sight to watch the Grey herons pairing. There
were 40 pairs of grey herons, 20 pairs of little cormorants and
10-15 pairs of night herons. Grey herons are diminishing and
it would be a folly to cut this tree.
[Citizens of Bangalore and Mysore recall with sadness the
large scale slaughter of the Ficus and Banyan trees on the
Hosur road when the highway was built a few years ago. A
representation is being made to the Public Works Department
that during the construction of the Highway from Bangalore to
Mysore some of the more spectacular and ecologically
valuable trees should not be destroyed. In this connection, the
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
105
letter from J.C. Uttangi is welcome and other readers of the
Newsletter are requested to write if they are aware of any trees
that need to be saved].
Editor
4 4 4
SPOTTED BILLED PELICAN IN JAKKUR LAKE,
BANGALORE. GEORGE VERGHESE, Centre for
Environment and Education, Infantry Road, Bangalore
560001
I am a regular visitor to the Jakkur area as part of my
research sampling on dung beetles. For the past two years, I
have been visiting Jakkur lake area and seen many common
water birds. These include pond herons, cattle egrets, little
egrets, little grebes, coots and whitebreasted and pied king
fishers. I have at times seen grey herons and blackwinged
stilts.
Of late Jakkur lake's water level has gone up due to heavy
monsoon showers. It was 8th September 1998 around
10.30 am as I and my assistant proceeded towards the lake
for sampling, scores of coots, little grebes and some egrets
could be spotted here and there. However, I was taken aback,
by the presence of a single huge whitish bird, swimming
gracefully at one end of the lake. At the first sight itself, I knew
it was a pelicanW. I slowly moved towards it and in no time I
knew it was the spotted billed pelican (Pelecanus philippensis)
with typical spots beneath its beak.
This was the first time, I have seen one during my two
years of visits to Jakkur lake. After sometime, it quietly took
off towards Yelahanka leaving me wondering whether it was
a "Losf wanderer".
4 4 4
LARGE CLUTCH SIZE IN GREY FRANCOLIN
(FRANCOLINUS PONDICERIANUS). J.K. TIWARI,
Assistant Manager (Wildlife and Environment), Nature
Conservation Centre, Sanghi Industries Ltd. (Cement
Division), Sanghipuram, Motiber, Abdasa, Kutch,
Gujarat 370 655
The grey francolin Francolinus pondicerianus is a
common and widely distributed species in Kutch. My studies
in Kutch with the BNHS projects over six years in the Banni
grasslands and other areas indicate that the grey francolin
numbers have increased with the spread in the cover of the
exotic weed "Prosopis juliflora".
The nests of grey francolins are concealed inside clumps
of grass. The nesting season is generally before the monsoon.
On 8th May 1998 I came across a nest of the grey francolin.
The nest was in a tussock of grass well concealed. There were
1 1 eggs in the nest. I have never seen such a big clutch of
grey francolins. Another nest in the Nature Conservation
Centre had seven eggs. The biggest clutch (but how many
eggs? Editor) so far reported was by Eates(?) (Unpublished
manuscript notes) seen in Sind, Pakistan (T.J. Roberts 1991),
The Birds of Pakistan, pp 232-233.
4 4 4
DARTERS & LITTLE EGRETS NESTING IN GUDAVI BIRD
SANCTUARY. GURUNATH DESAI, Civil Engineer &
Contractor, 31, Ashok Nagar, Hubli 580 032
On 9th August 1 998, 25 members of the YHAI, Dharwad
Chapter were on a bird watching visit to Gudavi Bird Sanctuary
(GBS) situated in Shimoga district (Karnataka). The sanctuary
spreads over 182 acres with a large lake in its centre.
Deciduous forests, grasslands, marshes, paddy and
pineapple fields surround the sanctuary.
Having reached Gudavi at 12.30 pm, we were in for a
surprise. There were literally hundreds of darters nesting. I am
told that darters are getting endangered and so seeing such
a large flock at Gudavi was indeed a pleasure. Over 2000 +
white ibises were also nesting, and semifinished ibis nests
were in the process of completion.
Another surprise was the presence of well over 1000
nests of little egrets.
The other birds seen were little cormorants (2000); Indian
shag (300); night heron (100); pond herons (50); large egrets
(10); coots (50); bronze-winged jacana (2); purple moorhen
(2).
According to Salim AN darters, little egrets and white
ibises, breed in November to February in South India, where
as all these birds were nesting at Gudavi in the month of
August.
My sincere thanks to Shri S.G. Neginhal for his guidance.
4 4 4
ASIAN ANATIDAE ATLAS. ASAD R. RAHMANI, Director,
Bombay Natural History Society, Hombill House, Shaheed
Bhagat Singh Road, Mumbai 400 023, Maharashtra
The Wetlands International is planning a publication of a
preliminary inventory of habitat of international importance for
Anatidae (ducks, geese and swans) in the form of Asian
Anatidae Atlas. It will complement the Wetlands
Internationals' (Wl) publication of Atlas of Anatidae
Populations of Africa and Western Eurasia, which covers
some common species and populations. Two basic criteria
are used to identify internationally important sites > 20,000
individuals of Anatidae supported, and > 1% of a population
106
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
of more than one Anatidae species supported. These criteria
are compatible with the Ramsar criteria for identification of
wetlands of international importance.
The Wetlands International has identified BHNS to
collect, collate and analyse information from India. The time
schedule is very tight. In order to achieve this target, we seek
your co-operation. Information is needed to identify key sites
for each species throughout its range and we seek the
following :
Name of the site:
Coordinates of centre of the site;
Protected status of the site; protected/partially
protected/not protected/unknown;
Population size/estimate the site supported; number,
date/month/year, published or unpublished reference(s).
All persons providing information for the preparation of
the publication will be duly acknowledged and will receive a
complimentary copy of the publication.
For India, information on the following species is required:
1 ) Siberian redbreasted goose Branta rulicollis, 2) Bean goose Anser
fabalis; 3) Whitef ranted goose Anser albifrons, 4) Lesser whitef ronted
goose Anser erythropus, 5) Greyleg goose Anser anser, 6)
Barheaded goose Anser indicus; 7) Bewick's swan Cygnus bewickir,
8) Whooper swan Cygnus cygnus; 9) Mute swan Cygnus olor, 10)
Lesser whistling teal Dendrocygna javanica; 1 1.) Large whistling teal
Dendrocygna bicolor, 12) Ruddy shelduck Tadorna ferruginea; 13)
Common shelduck Tadorna tadorna; 14) Marbled teal Marmaronetta
angustirostris; 1 5) Pintail Anas acuta; 1 6) Common teal Anas crecca;
17) Baikal teal Anas formosa; 18) Grey teal Anas gibberifrons; 19)
Spotbill duck Anas poecilorhyncha; 20) Mallard Anas platyrhynchos;
21 ) Gadwal Anas strepera; 22) Falcated teal Anas falcata; 23) Wigeon
Anas penelope; 24) Garganey Anas querquedula; 25) Shoveller Anas
clypeata; 26) Redcrested pochard Netta rutins, 27) Common pochard
Aythya ferina; 28) White-eyed pochard Aythya nyroca; 29) Baer's
pochard Aythya baerr, 30) Tufted duck Aythya fuligula; 31 ) Scaup duck
Aythya mania; 32) Cotton teal or quacky duck Nettapus
coromandelianus; 33) Comb duck Sarkidiornis melanotos, 34)
Whitewinged wood duck Cairina scutulata; 35) Longtailed or old
squaw duck Clangula hyemalis; 36) Goldeneye duck Bucephala
clangula; 37) Smew Mergus albellus; 38) Goosander, common
merganser Mergus merganser, 39) Whiteheaded stifftailed duck
Oxyura leucocephala
4 4 4
COSTLY GEESE : $ 5.3 MILLION AT J.F. KENNEDY
AIRPORT. Courtesy, International Herald Tribune of
11.11. 1998 '
The agency that operates John F. Kennedy International
Airport will pay Air France $ 5.3 million to settle a lawsuit over
damage done to a Concorde jet by a flock of geese that were
sucked into its engines.
Air France contended that the Port Authority of New York
and New Jersey had failed to perform required "runway
sweeps" to frighten birds away before every takeoff or landing
of a Concorde flight.
Air France said repairs to the plane after the 1995 landing
took five days and cost more than $ 9 million. No one was
injured.
Neither the Port Authority nor the airline would discuss
the matter, which was reported on Monday by The
Star-Ledger of Newark, New Jersey.
4 4 4
23RD INTERNATIONAL ORNITHOLOGICAL CONGRESS
TO BE HELD IN CHINA 11-17TH AUGUST 2002
At the 22nd International Ornithological Congress held in
Durban, South Africa, 16-23 August 1998, the International
Ornithological Committee voted to accept the invitation from
the Chinese ornithologists to host the 23rd International
Ornithological Congress in Beijing, Cfiina on 11-17 August
2002. Information can be obtained via e-mail
■cinfocenter® ioc.org. en >, via the internet at
<http://www.ioc.org.cn>, or via the home page of the 22nd
congress at <http://www.ioc.org.za>, it will be possible to
register and to submit abstracts via the internet. The following
are contact addresses of people responsible for the 23rd
Congress in Beijing. Professor Xu Weishu,
Secretary-General of the 23rd Congress, Beijing Natural
History Museum, 1-1-302, Beijing Science and Technology
Commission Apt., Balizhuang, Haidian District, Beijing
100037, CHINA. Phone & Fax: + 86-10-6846-5604; e-mail
<s-g@ioc.org.cn>. The Honorable Liu Feng, Assistant
Secretary-General of the 23rd Congress, China
International Conference Center for Science and Technology,
Xueyuan Nan Road, Beijing 100081, CHINA. Phone:
+ 86-10-6217-4953; Fax: + 86-10-6218-0142; e-mail
<liufeng@public.bta.net.cn>. Requests to be included on the
mailing list for brochures and for information on the 23rd
Congress should be sent to the Secretary-General or the
Assistant Secretary-General of the 23rd Congress. Dr
Fernando Spina, Chair, Scientific Program Committee,
23rd Congress, Istituto Nazionale per la Fauna Selvatica, Via
Ca' Fornacetta 9, 1-40064 Ozzano Emilia (BO), ITALY.
Phone: + 39-51-65-12-111; Fax: + 39-51-79-66- 28; e-mail
<infsioc@iperbole. bologna. it>. All inquiries about the
scientific program of the 23rd congress, as well as comments
and suggestions for the general program, plenary lectures,
and symposia should be sent to him. Dr Walter J. Bock,
Newsletter for Birdwatchers
107
President of the 23rd Congress, Department of Biological
Sciences, Columbia University, 1200 Amsterdam Avenue,
Mail Box 5521, New York, NY 10027-7004, USA. Phone:
+ 1-212-854-4487; Fax: 1-212-865-8246; e-mail
<wb4@columbia.edu>. General questions and comments
should be sent to him. Dr Dominique G. Homberger,
Secretary of the International Ornithological Committee,
Department of Biological Sciences, 508 Life Sciences
Building, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge,
LA 70803-1715, USA. Phone: + 1-504-388-1747; Fax:
+ 1-504-388-2597; e-mail <zodhomb@lsu.edu>. Inquiries
about the International Ornithological Committee should be
sent to her.
4 4 4
C
REVIEW
3
COMMUNITIES & CONSERVATION
Edited by : Ashish Kothari and others, Published by : Sage
Publications, New Delhi, SOS pages. Price : Rs 495/- (cloth), Rs
325/- (paper)
In 1967 I attended the First International Short Course on
Management of National Parks and Equivalent Reserves,
organised by the IUCN and the University of Wisconsin in the
USA. We had a splendid time for 6 weeks visiting some of the
grandest natural areas of the world, and attended lectures by
the leaders of the emerging conservation movement. Much'
emphasis was laid on the fragility of nature. In one park a
machine was demonstrated which simulated the impact of
human feet on the soil to impress upon us the importance of
treading lightly on the earth. At the same time the Course
emphasised that with proper planning thousands of visitors
could enjoy the scenery and wildlife of the park and "yet leave
them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."
In the Grand Teton National Park in the Rockies 6000
people can be accommodated in the night. The Principle of
Built-in Friction enunciated by Sir Frank Fraser Darling was
put to good use. 99% of the people prefer to sit in their cars
and watch the scene around them. Only 1% want to walk in
the wilderness. A good hard-topped road prevents erosion
and at the same time prevents people from spoiling the
wilderness by entering it.
But in this Course, 30 years ago, we learnt very little about
the problems of dealing with residents within the Park.
Wilderness had to be cleansed of humanity and parks had to
consist only of unimpaired natural habitat and their denizens.
These conservation ideas proliferated rapidly and widely
through the two major organisations concerned with the
saving of the natural world — the World Wildlife Fund and the
IUCN, now known as the World Conservation Union. While
many scientific projects were initiated to study the ecology of
wild animals, the population dynamics of predators and prey,
the vital importance of separate ecological niches for different
species of life, a major problem in India and other countries
on the role of tribals and resident populations in areas recently
designated as sanctuaries and national parks was not
considered at all. Obviously this was a serious shortcoming
and it is only now that the problems of people within parks is
recognised as one of the most serious constraints from the
ecological point of view.
In the Survey of Environment 1998 published by The
Hindu newspaper, Madhav Gadgil has an interesting point to
make. He denigrates the elitist genesis of the conservation
movement in India. He refers to a meeting in Bangalore in the
early 70s where there was a discussion about the monkey
menace in our cities, and also to the destruction of crops in
rural areas by elephants. With regard to the monkeys it was
thought necessary to deport them out of bounds of the city so
that the citizens should not be troubled. But with regard to the
elephants the villagers needed to be educated about the value
of wildlife. Over the years this favouritism for city dwellers is
slowly diminishing but there is no doubt that the burden of
wildlife protection falls heavily on the rural population.
In the book under review we have a very complete
discussion about the problems of humanity in our natural
areas. We are also informed about the agelong ecological
wisdom of tribals and local residents and the importance of
taking their interests into account when producing
management plans for our sanctuaries.
The book consists of 4 parts. In the Introduction the issue
and prospects of community based conservation and the
diversity and sustainability of community based conservation
are discussed. In Part 2 there is a discussion about the
problems in other countries including the Maldives, Mongolia,
Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. In Part 3 the emerging issues
as a result of the worldwide movement for empowering local
people, and protecting the rights of communities are
discussed by various experts. In Part 4 there are case studies
relating to some of the natural areas of India such as the
Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, Biligiri Rangaswamy Temple
Sanctuary, Chinnar Sanctuary, Kailadevi and Dalma
Sanctuaries and others.
This is a book which will undoubtedly play a significant
part in the future conservation movement of our country.
Zafar Futehally
VVi
\ r
ETLANDS
INTERNATIONAL
Please participate in the Asian
Mid-winter Waterfowl Census :
9th - 24th January 1999
Contact your Regional
Coordinator for further details
and count forms
Newsletter Calling
Enrol A Friend : If every Newsletter Member could enrol just
one new member our effectiveness would be doubled
immediately)
Will you help T : Please give copies of the membership forms
to your friends and urge them to join. s
Please renew your membership: If you have not yet renewed
your membership please do so by paying Rs. 60/- (Rupees Sixty)
for one year or Rs. 160/- (Rs. One Hundred and Sixty) for three
years. Please add Rs. 15/- as bank collection charges if you are
paying by cheque or draft.
Editor
Front Cover : Male Painted Snipe {Rostratula bengalensis) approaching nest. This wetland bird is more closely related to jacanas than the
true snipes and exhibits strongly developed sexual dimorphism. Builds its nest among emergent vegetation in swamps, marshes, and over-
grown paddy fields. The brighter female is polyandrous and may lay several clutches, each for a different male. Nest building, incubation and
chick rearing tasks are exclusive to the male snipe. Photo : M. Venkataswamappa & R.S. Suresh.
Back Cover : Male Indian Shama {Copsychus malabaricus). This magnificient song bird frequents well wooded forest tracks, bamboo facies,
hill-stations and deciduous foothills forest. Lucidly sings with several rich fluty melodious notes altered with long pauses. The shama builds
its nest in the hollows of trees and bamboo during May-June. Photo : M. Venkataswamappa & R.S. Suresh.
Editor: ZAFAR FUTEHALLY, No. 2205, Oakwood Apartments, Jakkasandra Layout, Koramangala 3rd Block, 8th Main, Bangalore - 560 034,
Kamataka, India, Printetf-end Published Bi-monthly by S. Sridhar at Navbharath Enterprises, Seshadripuram, Bangalore 560 020, India,
Ph. : 336 4142 / 336 4682. Email : <navbarat@blr.vsnl.net,in>. For Private Circulation Only.
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