warmth. I was walking along the forest trail. There was no one around.
The entire forest was painted with different hues of green…Complete
slience prevailed in this lovely forest of Sal and Teak. A pair of
Black-hooded orioles started their early morning raga with fluty
calls. A herd of Chital deer stared at me from a distance. Suddenly I
heard movements in the undergrowths. I stopped and waited. A flock of
Jungle Babblers started warned the denizens of the forest with their
continuous racous calls. Suddenly I heard some movement in the
undergrowths. I stood there still and quiet, waiting for the drama to
unfold.
A huge Indian Rock Python slithered out of the bushes and crossed the
path. The babblers and pied starlings kept calling loadly till the
danger passed. The predator was on the hunt. I cliked a few snaps of
the gigantic reptile. After a few tense moments, the calling stops and
regular forest sounds replace the high tension alarms…… I stood there
almost spellbound.
I was in Bethuadahari Wildlife Sanctuary. Suddenly planned to go for
birding alone in this forest to spend my Dewali holidays, and spent
two lovely days in the lap of nature. Located in the Nadia district of
West Bengal, this sanctuary is a birder's paradise and has a high
diversity of bird species. Besides the different species of birds,
this forest is also home to a viable population of Cheetal deer,
Jungle cats, Small Indian Civets, Common plam Civets, Black-naped
Hares, Porcupines, Grey mongoose, Bengal Monitors. And with a bit of
luck, you can also get huge Rock Pythons here.
My dewali trip to this sanctuary had been really fruitfull. A Greater
Flameback was spotted high up in the canopy. There is a high
concentration of Common Woodshrikes in these forests, and it's a nice
place take good close ups of this bird. Common Ioras was also quie
common in the open forests. The berry-laden bushes near the fringe
attracted huge flocks of Red vented and Red-whiskered Bulbuls. They
were also joined by Blue-throarted and Lineated Barbets. Ashy drnongos
were seen few times. A spangled Drongo was also spotted in the dense
parts. Its easy to get Grey wagtails near the sides of the lake. The
Fulvous breasted woodpecker was often seen pecking the bark in search
of grubs. The Lesser Flameback announced its presence from time to
time with its loudly cackling call.
Bethuadahari forest is perhaps the best place to watch and photograph
the marvelous and hyper-active Great Tits (Grey tits). These bluish
grey birds with black collars are really handsome…A few of these birds
were busy collecting insects from the branches, almost ignoring my
presence. I sat on the forest floor and watched their activities. They
flitted among the branches emitting low whistles, and sometimes came
very close to me allowing me to take some nice shots. I spent almost
an hour with them one morning.
A Brown-throated Flycatcher perched on the tip fo a dry branch of a
dead tree. It darted into the air to catch insects and returned back
to the same spot. It was seen at the same place during all my birding
sessions.
In the evening, the trail leading to the pond is particularly
recommended for Nightjars. Its "chuk-chuk-chuk-chuk" call is
frequently heard in Bethua at dusk. I saw one that took of from the
ground and perched on the telegraph wires. The Indian Cuckoo that
fills the forest with its melodious ku-ku-ku-ku call ( sounding like
bou kotha kou) during April-May was not seen or heard at this time of
the year. The call of the extremely vocal Brain fever bird (Common
Hawk Cuckoo) was heard, but only occasionally. Orange-headed Thrushes
were spotted in the thick undergrowths and bamboo-glades.
A Brown fish owl resides in the big Nagalingam tree near the pond.
The juvenile Open-bill stork visited the pond every morning and probed
the mud with its strange bill.
It was heartening to see that this patch of forest is protected and
well-maintained by the Forest Dept, and tourists are not allowed to
carry polythene bags inside the sanctuary.
Tourists can enter the forest at 8.30am, but I had to take special
permission for birdwatching in the early morning hours.
Bethuadahari with all its magic...is going to satisfy the needs of
avid birdwatchers and nature-lovers.....or one can visit this
wonderland just for some relaxation. Hope this panoramic forest will
continue to provide a safe habitat to the many species of lifeforms.
pic of Asian Openbill stork from Bethuadahari WLS attached.
Regards
Shantanu.
Shantanu Bhattacharya.
M.Sc (Zoology)
University of Calcutta.
Teaching Faculty.
Dept. of Biology.
Vivekananda Mission School(ICSE).
Joka. Kolkata.
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