Bird Watching at Barha

Thanks to Holi we are able to indulge in more birding - me and my friend Bittu. Yesterday we visited the Barha Reserve Forest in the evening. The expedition was quite successful and the fine weather regaled us. 

We saw

Coppersmith Barbet by Neeraj Vegad

Yellow Crowned Woodpecker
Common Rosefinch
Orange Breasted Green Pigeon
Coppersmith Barbet
Red Jungle Fowl
Black Naped Monarch
Brahminy Starling
Greenish Warbler
Hume's Warbler
House Sparrow
Red Throated Flycatcher
Pied Buschat
Common Stonechat
Chestnut Shouldered Petronia
Plum Headed Parakeet
Rose Ringed Parakeet
Honey Buzzard
Black Shouldered Kite
Tickell's Leaf Warbler
Tawny Babbler
Racket Tailed Drongo
Black Drongo
Jungle Babblers
Indian Roller
Hoopoe
White Breasted Kingfisher
Little Cormorant
Cattle Egret
Striated Heron
White Eye
Black Redstart
Spotted Redshank
Marsh Sandpiper
Wood Sandpiper
Green Sandpiper
Black Winged Stilt
Temminck's Stint
Red Wattled  Lapwing
Spotted Dove
Laughing Dove
Eurasian Collared Dove
Little Green Beeeater
Common Myna
Grey Breasted Prinia
Ashy Prinia
Plain Prinia
Common Iora
White Eyed Buzzard
Pariah Kite
Streak Throated Swallow
Tree Pipit
Grey Wagtail
Common Tailor Bird
Purple Sunbird
Red Vented Bulbul

These birding trips are exciting and relieve stress.They challenge your memory and other cognitive skills. The exercise does good to your health. And the peace and tranquility in the forests accords peace to the mind. The striking birds affirm one's faith in nature and assure that the World is real.

Western Crowned Warbler in Jabalpur

Red Jungle Fowl

Plain Prinia

Ashy Crowned Sparrow Lark

Bird Checklist Jabalpur 

Sunday 23/10/2011 Barha R.F Jabalpur MP India

I had seen this bird earlier about seven years back but could not confirm the features due to bad light. Today's birding yielded much better sighting and a new bird added to my list.

Western Crowned Warbler
Tickell's Leaf Warbler
Hume's Warbler
Greenish Warbler
Brown Cheeked Fulvetta
Black Naped Monarch
Paradise Flycatcher
Red Throated Flycatcher (Female)
Tickell's Blue Flycatcher
Black Headed Oriole
Golden Oriole Juvenile
Black Drongo
Racket Tailed Drongo 
Pond Heron
Black Redstart
Common Sandpiper
Red Wattled Lapwing
Grey Wagtail
Streat Throated Swallow
Large Cuckoo Shrike
Large Babbler
Jungle Babbler
Common Tailor Bird (Calls)
Gray Breasted Prinia (Calls)
Plain Prinia (Calls)
White Eye
Common Iora (Calls)
Rufous Treepie
Common Myna
Little Grebe
Little Cormorant
Cattle Egret
Indian Robin (Calls)
Rose Ringed Parakeet
Plum Headed Parakeet (Calls)
Common Grey Hornbill (Calls)
Grey Francolin 
Red Vented Bulbul
Pariah Kite
Black Shouldered Kite
Spotted Dove (Calls)
Black Rumped Flameback
Red Jungle Fowl (Calls)
Purple Heron (Flight)
Wooly Necked Stork 
Black Ibis

As the winter sets in more migrants are to arrive this will make birding more interesting. This November I will be leading a group to Kanha and Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in MP. This is a combined tiger safari/birding and wildlife photography tour of 10 days. I am very Happy!

More birds at Barha Jabalpur

Bird watching is exciting and gets more exciting if you see/hear interesting species. In summers birds of diverse habitat congregate around water sources. This is the case of birds at Barha reserve forest near Jabalpur Mandla.

In today's morning birding I heard calls of India Pitta (Pitta brachuyra) just as we entered the forest. This bird I had noted earlier only for a brief period between March and April and thought it migrated locally (Kanha?). But today's calls means it stays here for more extended period or could be permanent resident.

More calls: Indian scimitar babbler, Shikra,

Sightings:

Black headed oriole (Oriolus xanthogenys)

Black-naped monarch

Asian paradise flycatcher

White browed flycatcher

White browed bulbul

Bonelli's eagle

Crested Serpent eagle (Adult + juvenile)

Honey buzzard

Greater racket tailed drongo (Dicrurus paradeseus)

Puff throated babbler

Common hawk cuckoo

Pied crested cuckoo (Clamator jacobinus)

Grey breasted prinia

Brown fish owl (Ketupa zeylonensis)

Crested tree swift (Hemoprocine longipenis)

Common Iora

My checklist of bird of Jabalpur is consistently increasing (over 260). Thanks to frequent bird watching trips lately in all seasons. Except my friend Bittu ,I have yet to come come across bird watchers in Jabalpur town which by all means is a large town in India. It is expected that many more youths/elders/men/women would take interest in our birds and contribute somehow to learning about avian wonders and conserving them as a result.