Friday, January 22, 2010

Indian Birding - Rare & interesting birds

On a bird tour in India many birds are a delight to watch rare and difficult to locate. These birds excite the birders the most. Such rare and attractive birds are targeted by bird watchers on the tours in India.  

India is a heaven for the birds as well as the bird watchers. The topography of the country supports impressive number of bird species. Endemic and rare birds are found all over the country. The bird tours are therefore conducted region wise or to specific destinations. At present the bird tours of North India are the most popular followed by tours in the South and East India. Gujarat in Western India is also an upcoming destination. In South, Munnar and Western Ghats in Kerala offer the best birding. Namdapha Tiger Reserve, Kaziranga and Manas in East India offer good bird watching.

Some of the targeted bird species are:


Pink-headed Duck  - Extinct ?

Himalayan Quail
- Extinct ?

Siberian Crane - Bharatpur - Not seen since last few years.

Ibis bill - Often seen at Koshi River in Corbett National Park.

Forest Owlet - Maharastra and Central India.

Hill Myna - Chhattisgarh, South India and North India

Indian Bustard - Rare Scattered

Cheer Pheasant - Pangot - North India

Lesser Florican - Madhya Pradesh - Gujarat

Bengal Florican - UP, Assam

Greater Flamingo - Gujarat

Lesser Flamingo - Gujarat

Manipur Bush Quail -  Manas National Park, Assam, .

Rusty-throated (Mishmi) Wren-Babbler
  - Mishmi Hills of NE Assam.

Jerdon's Courser
- Sri Lankamalleshwara Sanctuary - Cuddapah District, Andhra Pradesh.

Bugun Liocichla
- North East India

White Rumped Shama  - Many Places North & Central India

White-bellied Heron


Black Necked Stork -
Bharatpur - North India 

Oriental Stork

Greater Adjutant  -
Assam


White-winged wood Duck -
North East India


Nordmann's Greenshank 

Rufous-breasted Laughingthrush


Cinereous Vulture 

White-rumped Vulture 


Long-billed Vulture


Fulvous Whistling Duck -

Blood Pheasant
 

Western Tragopan
 

Satyr Tragopan
 

Blyth's Tragopan
 

Temminck's Tragopan
 

Koklass Pheasant
 

Himalayan Monal
 

Sclater's Monal

Kalij Pheasant


Most of the rare and interesting birds can be seen on a bird watching tours in India. One should make a proper study of Indian birds before deciding to make a birding tour. For some birds it would require travel to far away place in India.

One should book birding tour at good package tours operators in India. The tour operators that specialize in conducting tours for bird watching offer the best. for good birding experience in India professional birding guides should accompany the tour. A birder should be well read on Indian birds. There are many bird books available in India.

Some of the best places for birding are yet unknown and cut away from the regular circuit. In coming few years lot of package tours would be available for birding in lesser known destination.  However prolific birding spots like Bharatpur, Corbett and Chilika Lake are few.  

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