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.

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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. 😍