Birds at Ooty sighted during end of Feb and beginning of Mar 2015
We drove from Bangalore to Ooty via Mudumalai, and returned through Gudalur. Both route were amazing to sight animals and birds. The forests were dry; some trees were ready to flaunt tender leaves. While I was wondering if summer will be a dry one, rain showered!
As we drove, we sighted birds but couldn't stop to click photos. Beautiful peacock welcomed us at Mudumalai forest reserve. We saw deers, samba deers, Hanuman langurs, Nilgiri langurs, giant squirrels, and wild boars. We stopped at Pug Mark for lunch, and found out that they had sighted a tiger and a leopard during the morning safari. We were tempted to take the evening safari but then our destination was calling us.
At Ooty, we saw Common Mynas, Spotted Doves, and Red-Whiskered Bulbuls everywhere. The Mynas population seems to out-beat the population of Crows. The Bulbuls weren't shy to be near humans; they happily sang and socialized with their own kind.
The Botanical Garden, Fernhill, Cairn Hill, and a drive around Ooty are good places for birding. We didn't visit Doddabetta, which is excellent to see Nilgiri Pigeons. Cairn Hill has a lot of birds. We were happy to see the Nilgiri Pigeon in flight. We heard and saw several birds, but couldn't photograph them as they perched high and, at ground level, the thicket wasn't favorable to get clear photos of the birds. We watched mating pair of Giant Squirrels. Nilgiri Langurs sat high above the trees, and observed us keenly. Was a pleasant visit to Cairn Hill!
The list of birds that we saw/heard:
List of mammals that we saw:
For photos of flowers, see Colorful Flowers of Ooty.
Regards,
Asha
We drove from Bangalore to Ooty via Mudumalai, and returned through Gudalur. Both route were amazing to sight animals and birds. The forests were dry; some trees were ready to flaunt tender leaves. While I was wondering if summer will be a dry one, rain showered!
As we drove, we sighted birds but couldn't stop to click photos. Beautiful peacock welcomed us at Mudumalai forest reserve. We saw deers, samba deers, Hanuman langurs, Nilgiri langurs, giant squirrels, and wild boars. We stopped at Pug Mark for lunch, and found out that they had sighted a tiger and a leopard during the morning safari. We were tempted to take the evening safari but then our destination was calling us.
At Ooty, we saw Common Mynas, Spotted Doves, and Red-Whiskered Bulbuls everywhere. The Mynas population seems to out-beat the population of Crows. The Bulbuls weren't shy to be near humans; they happily sang and socialized with their own kind.
The Botanical Garden, Fernhill, Cairn Hill, and a drive around Ooty are good places for birding. We didn't visit Doddabetta, which is excellent to see Nilgiri Pigeons. Cairn Hill has a lot of birds. We were happy to see the Nilgiri Pigeon in flight. We heard and saw several birds, but couldn't photograph them as they perched high and, at ground level, the thicket wasn't favorable to get clear photos of the birds. We watched mating pair of Giant Squirrels. Nilgiri Langurs sat high above the trees, and observed us keenly. Was a pleasant visit to Cairn Hill!
The list of birds that we saw/heard:
- Ashy Prinia
- Blackbird
- Black-Orange Flycatcher
- Pied Bushchat
- Hoopoe
- Lesser Yellow Nape
- Common Myna
- Nilgiri Robin
- Flowerpecker
- Canary Flycatcher
- Bushchat
- Heron
- Common Kestrel
- Red-Whiskered Bulbul
- Red-Vented Bulbul
- Peacock
- Bird of Prey (yet to ID)
- Cormorant
- Egret
- Common Crow
- White-Throated Fantail
- Oriental White Eye
- Greenish Warbler
- Sunbird
- Shrike
- Sparrow
- Drongo
- Indian Roller (Bandipur)
- White-Breasted Kingfisher
- Common Kingfisher
- Grey Francolin (Bandipur)
- Jungle Fowl (heard calls)
- Brahminy Kite (on Bandipur to Mysore road)
- Wagtail
- Jungle Babbler
- Spot-Billed Pelicans (Nanjangud-Mysore road)
- Black Kites (Mysore road)
- Laughing Dove
- Parakeet
 |
| Birds |
- Hanuman Langurs
- Nilgiri Langurs
- Wild Boars
- Spotted Deers
- Samba Deer
- Giant Squirrels
- Bonnet Macaque
 |
| Mammals |
Regards,
Asha
