Bulbul

 Bulbul , there is something about this name. A common bird easily sighted at least in Delhi and most parts of India. Bulbul belong to the family Pycnontidae (order of Passeriformes) of Africa and Asia.

There are 140 to 150 species of birds in this family. 

The word bulbul derives from Hindi or Persian or Arabic, meaning nightingale, but in English, bulbul refers to passerine birds of a different family.

During my travels and when observed I can identify between only 3 among these species.

1) Red-vented Bulbul

2) White cheeked Bulbul

3) Red Whiskered Bulbul

However, if you go on lower classification and run a google search you will find more varieties of the same. 

Red-vented Bulbul are a perky smoke brown bird with partially crested black head, scale like markings on breast and back, a crimson or red patch below root of tail and a white rump.  Usually I have spotted them in pairs of small groups in gardens.

They feed on banyan and peepul figs and winged termite swarms. They also eat insects , fruits and berries, peas and suchlike vegetables and flower nectars. Nesting Season is between February and May.

This picture is from Delhi.

White Cheeked Bulbul

An earth-brown bulbul with black head, white cheeks, and Sulphur yellow under root of tail. The crest varies from the rudimentary round black tuft of the race to long forwardly curving pointed crest. They eat berries of peeloo and wild caper. Insects and flower nectar are also eaten. Nesting is March to September.

I haven't seen this bird in Delhi. However, did spot them in Sabathu, Himachal Pradesh.

Red Whiskered Bulbul

Same size as the Red Vented Bulbul. Brown above , white below with a broken blackish necklace on breast. Black, upstanding pointed crest, crimson whiskers and patch under root of tail are distinguishing features. Nesting season is from February to August.

This picture is from Wayanad, Kerala.

My pictures were selected to show the differences and similarities visibly.

Some more:

All pictures in the post are taken by me. Hope you enjoyed them.

Painted Stork

Painted Stork an apt name for this bird, one might even say slightly poetic. I saw this beauty in the wide Puttenahalli Lake in Bangalore in June 2019. It is not easy to ignore them and move away as  they stand tall with colours of white, black, pink and an orange head with a yellow beak. I thought that is it, a one time wonder and beauty to see.

 

But I saw them again right here in Delhi. In our very own Sanjay Lake, what caught my eye was the spread of its wings and the ease of its flight as it came down to very close to where I stood. I was like a kid who had been given her favourite toy!  I somehow got a picture of the stork flying too in all that excitement.

The painted stork is found in the wetlands of the plains of Tropical Asia and extends into South-east Asia. They forage in flocks in shallow water near rives or lakes. The long yellow bill slightly curves like that of an Ibis. They forage in quest of frogs and fish. Nesting season is between August and January varying with local conditions and lay 3 to 5 eggs.

I thought they were migratory birds as I had never seen them in Delhi before, or maybe it's because I didn't frequent a lake in Delhi as recently in past three years. However, they are not migratory birds and fly very short distances in their range depending on the weather or food or for breeding. They are seen to soar on thermals like other storks. It is amongst the 17 species of storks found around the world.

The species is currently classified as Near Threatened, wouldn't it be a shame to loose such a beautiful bird? These two pictures are of the stork standing on the opposite side of the lake.

 

 In these pictures it is very close to where I was standing. :)

Common Tailor Bird

While chasing the sun bird, I saw another small bird. After few close up shots, I saw it to be the Common Tailor Bird.

It's chirp is distinct like the sunbird and cannot be missed. It has this constant chewy- chewy- chewy or cheup -cheup sound which I feel is at the same pitch and is a repetitive call.

The name itself tells us why it is famous, it is known widely for its skill to tailor its nest made out of leaves. I have seen you tube videos of how they do it, but haven't seen a nest to capture their handiwork.

It is a common resident in the urban gardens. They seem to be shy and usually hide under the vegetation.

The one I saw and shot as you see has rust coloured forehead, green upper body plumage and an upright tail. This here is a male tailor bird. Females are usually described as dull in colour or fully green.             

This bird reminds me of another bird I saw a Wren. They are almost similar in their appearance and their upright tails. They are insectivorous.They feed on beetle and bugs. They also have nectar from some flowers. The breeding season is March to December peaking from June to August in India. There are at least 13 species of the tailor birds. Their nests are like deep cups.  Tailor birds keep flitting so it can be a task to capture them. Well I have more reasons to capture them for more decent shots next time, I see this tiny friend.

This was taken when it was flying from one branch to another.

The flower from where I saw it collect its nectar.

The last spot where I saw it before it disappeared.

KOEL

The crescendo call of Kuooo- Kuoo- Kuoo may be what some of us wake up to on most or some days. As a child, I had always heard its call but had never actually seen one. So when my interest in birding began to grow, I always thought someday I maybe able to follow its call and see what it looks like. The first time I saw it, I thought is was a crow. It took a photograph to reveal the visible differences more clearly.

A Koel is almost the size of a house crow but a little more slender, with a longer tail. After seeing one, I thought all Koel's were glistening black in colour and had red or crimson eyes. But that changed after I saw the second variety which I slowly learnt is the female Koel. The calls I personally feel are different but similar in pitch. I feel the females are slightly high pitched. But they are beautiful. 

 

This here is the male Koel.

You can see them singly or in pairs, sitting in the groves of trees.

Koels are found in the entire Indian Union, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Burma.

They are arboreals who frequent gardens and open country abounding in large leafy trees.

Below is the image of a female koel. The female is brown and spotted.

They are silent in winters but become increasingly noisy in hot weather.

Food is largely fruits and berries; also caterpillars and insects.

Nesting Season: mainly April to August similar coincidentally with crows.

They are a genus of Cuckoos and lay their eggs in the nests of other species, who raise their young.

The bird is widely used in Indian poetry and by writers in songs. So, I was thrilled when I could click them.

Here are some of my photos of the male and the female koel:

What to do if you see a baby bird ?

Well, this was not what I had in mind however, this topic came to me as it happened to me while I was walking in the park  and I saw a tiny body sitting tight on a small plant. 

This has never happened to me before, I have always only seen people in other parts of the world saving and taking care of baby birds. While I secretly hoped that I too would take care and make a connection with a little birdie, preferably not a caged one some day.

Trust me the moment I saw the bird, the first thing I did was run back to my house and get a cloth to pick and wrap it and take it home. But as I was walking back to the spot where my husband was made to stand guard, I realised I know nothing about taking care of a bird. If I decide to take it home, then it was up to me to ensure its survival. Besides, what to feed? how to feed? and make sure it lives?  

So, I paused and then took to Google for some advice and tips. This is what I discovered about baby birds that you may see one of the two types: a nestling or a fledgling.

A nestling would be the ones that should be in the nests and do not have wings.  If you find a nestling, you might have to locate its nest and put it back, that is, if it is within your reach. Birds, unlike some other animals, don't reject a baby because it has come in human contact or touch. If you cannot find the nest, then you may call your local wildlife community helpers for support and rehabilitation.

if it is a fledgling then you can be happy. A fledgling is a baby bird learning to fly. It may have fallen or has taken a spot to sit while learning to fly. Usually the adult bird is close by to keep an eye. This I can attest to as after I read this, we went for our second walk and as we neared the spot we saw the adult bird sitting close to it.

Only if no adult is nearby then, you may do the same as for a nestling and ask for help from community helpers.

So, while we walked we saw the adult bird return to the fledgling to feed, so I did not touch or take the bird, as was my first instinct. However, I could not resist from taking pictures of this close encounter with a White Eye fledgling.

So, next time you see a baby bird, first check for if it is a nestling or a fledgling and then decide your next step of action.

If you are an upcoming birder like me and want to share your blog posts or write a blog you can connect with other influencers by sending an email to Feedspot media database. https://blog.feedspot.com/bird_blogs/

Sunbird

Seven is a good number, so for my seventh entry I wanted a special bird. Just when I was thinking this black beauty chirped and flitted around my balcony everywhere and I knew.

The purple sunbird has a shiny/metallic blue or purple head which is glossy and its sweet consistent chirp is difficult to miss if you are paying attention.

It can be easily confused with a hummingbird. It's size is that of a sparrow. A male Purple Sunbird is  similar looking to a  Loten's Sunbird and are found through out India. They can be seen in gardens, groves, cultivated and scrub country as well as light deciduous forest.

The first time I saw it was in front of my house but by the time I fetched the camera it had flown away.  The second time I saw it I was almost lucky and I managed to capture the silhouette. Well, they say third time is a charm and it was, this time for some reason, it was like it knew I wanted to photograph it, so it stayed a little longer and closer. I got a few shots. But the fourth time was special - it came close to where I was standing and the feeling was surreal.

This little tiny bird eats insects and spiders, and very largely flower nectar. 

It has a very slender curved bill as similar to other sun birds. 

Nesting season is March to May.

The males are black while the females are olive above and yellowish below.

This is my third sighting of the third kind of a sun bird.

This is the first type which was hard to miss and it was hitting consistently on our window. This bird is Purple rumped sunbird from Wayanad.

This is the second one in Sabathu, Himachal Pradesh again an aunt's garden. This is a Crimson Sunbird.

Sunbirds are found in 145 species (in 16 genera) and I am happy to have spotted at least three kinds.  Their counterparts are hummingbirds and honey eaters. They can hover like hummingbirds while drinking nectar but they usually perch to feed.

I have to learn a lot more and hopefully see more of these sunbirds with their iridescent colours around the world.

Here are more shots of the Purple Sunbird in a video:

Black Rumped Flameback

As a beginner birder I was truly happy when I sighted this bird. I was sitting in the balcony when I heard a consistent pecking sound. As I looked closely, I spotted this beauty hidden. It kept circling the tree, but I finally managed to get one or two clear shots.

As I pay more attention to birds I see so many different and beautiful birds, and each time I see a new bird, I want to know its name, learn something about it and if possible listen carefully to its call, so that I can differentiate them.

The black rumped flameback is also called the Golden-backed Woodpecker. It is practically distributed around the entire Indian Union, but it takes only 35 + years to spot them for the first time. Kidding :) 

They are partial to Mango tops, groves of ancient trees and coconut plantations. They chisel away at rotten wood for beetles  and insects. Black ants, pulp of ripe fruit as well as flower nectar also count among favourite foods. 

Their nesting season is between March to August. Apparently this species is seen in pairs, however, I saw only this as a single bird.

There are 12 different species of woodpeckers in India.

Happy to have caught at least one🙈 or at least it is a start.

Here are some pictures:

This is all I saw at first, then slowly I saw the whole bird.

Love the red or crimson crown and the occipital crest.

So I took around 10 pictures but only one was relatively a clear shot. Rest of the time we were playing hide and seek.

But when it flew away I got a silhouette from a distant tree.

Hope you will get to see it too. 😍

Barbet Bird

Barbet - just the name is so adorably cute, wait till you see the picture! It is really a small power packed bird which loves hiding behind thick foliage and is very quick to flee. I feel it is a very shy bird.

I first saw this bird on my sister's phone as she had caught the birding bug from me and took a shot on her way to meet me.  Then, I had a chance to see it up close at my parents home. My parents home is on a higher floor and very close to the Sanjay Lake Park, where we have a few trees very close to our balcony, which offers an ideal spot for many birds to come by. My favourite activity when I reach their home is to sit on their balcony!

Just like that there it was the brown-headed Barbet.

It was quite a rainy and windy day, but here is the close up:

They look very similar to the other species which is a Lineated Barbet.

There are 30 or 80 species of this bird from Tibet to Indonesia. They usually live in the inner forests.

I have seen two types but mostly only as  singles. So, my reading confirms that they are solitary birds.They feed on fruits and insects. They love figs, so you may spot them on fig trees easily.

Barbets are considered important birds for seed dispersal. From Youtube I learnt that it is a Barbet call I wake up to on most days but never recognized the call. It is a repetitive and long sound like a "Kuk kuk kuk" or "Kutroo kutroo kutroo". They can go on and sound maddening at times.

Here are few more shots of the Barbet:

Nesting Season: Overall March to June. 

They usually nest in a hole of a dead tree- trunk or branch. 

3 to 4 eggs, and both sexes share all domestic duties.

Recently after M S Dhoni saved a Barbet, I learnt there was another variety named Copper Smith Barbet too. It is beautiful and I had a chance to see one accidentally during my morning walk.

So the Coppersmith is slightly smaller,  the size of a sparrow.  it is mostly found on a Banyan or Peepul tree for fruit. Nesting season for this bird is January to June and it lays upto 3 eggs. It is also called the Crimson-breasted Barbet and it is green with a red head, yellow cheeks and yellow throat. Its underparts are streaked in grey and black.

Here is the accidental shot, hope to catch a clear shot soon.

But the one I hope to see and capture sometime soon is the Blue Throated Barbet.

Treepie

Treepie - just the name has a beautiful ring to it. I saw a treepie for the first time last year in Sabathu, Himachal Pradesh. It has this beautiful long tail, which is hard to miss as it flutters or flies.

I was lucky to get a close view from an aunt's garden bird bath.  There are 11 species and are similar to Magpies. I have seen two colours grey and brown, but after reading I know there are black and white ones too. They are found in Southeast Asia and live in tropical forests.

The first one I spotted was in October of 2019, in this garden alone I spotted for the first time 12 varieties of birds.

So the ones I have spotted so far are Rufous Treepie and Grey Treepie. I have after that sighted them in Delhi also thrice. This bird's call is very distinct and one day I opened my house gate to find it perched well on the electric wires and calling out loudly. The call varied from soft, mild, loud to very loud, sometimes continuous ones. 

First view of the Grey Treepie and watch closely for the long tail.

On ground to get closer to rice strewn on the ground.

 A quick drink and bath.

Back to the safety and cover of the branches.

Here is the capture of a Rufous treepie, notice the difference in colour but same long tails. 

If you look closely they are so similar to the crow family too. So these birds are adaptable and omnivorous.The breeding season in India is April to June. From my reading I have learnt the local name is "Taka chor" literally translated or means "coin stealer". They are called so on account of its habit to seek out and steal shiny items such as coins, jewellery. They collect these objects and often line them up in their nests to possibly attract the female treepie. The bird lays a clutch of 3-5 eggs.