After a very long time I birded on both days of the weekend – Saturday it was Daurala Wetalnds - beyond Basai and Sultanpur Flats and Sunday I was back at Dadri. Thank you Anandji for making it happen. Here is the report for Saturday, 7th Dec 2013.
So we decided that early birding didn't make sense and reached on location around 8 AM. Along the road there were several Black shouldered kites perched on wires. Coming down from the flyover towards the Basai, we saw 3 cars already parked there and we decided to give it a miss and go directly to Daurala. As we moved past the Plane Martin mound, no bird was in sight and sun was barely peeping through the haze and so with some trepidation we moved on. On both sides of the road, water had dried up, the fields were ploughed, wheat sowed in and not a bird in sight. We soon reached the place where the first water body was supposed to be. With nothing to see on ground we looked up and around and immediately spotted a Long Legged Buzzard. Farther ahead a Sarus family (3 individuals) appeared almost out of thin air and shimmered in the haze. Little by little we started hearing bird songs and we followed them to lantana bushes lining the fields where Black Breasted Weavers kept us on our toes. In an attempt to get closer to them we came across an Isabelline Shrike sitting on a boundary wall that enclosed a pond. Sorrounding the pond were reeds that were full of Black Breasted Weavers. Darting around us were a whole bunch of Plain Prinias including a tail-less one who seemed to suffer no ill effects from its loss. As we climbed up the wall and/or went around it we spotted a Marsh Harrier that danced around us. Joining in the dance were two Blue Throats competing for our attention. As we moved back on road we saw Paddyfield pipits and a mystery pipit (I will be posting the picture to seek id confirmation) and a lone Green Sandpiper. Some wagtails – Citrine, White browed and white, kept us interested.
And then Anandji spotted another water body and we walked towards it. And what a marvel it was. It was full of Pied Avocets, Black Tailed Godwits, White Tailed Lapwings, Ruffs, Sandpipers – Common, Green and Marsh and in the back tucked away were Greylag Geese, Pintails, Northern Shovellers, Common Teals and a Common Snipe. A Black Shouldered Kite gave us some really nice views. Moving back on road we saw more Plain Prinias and Zitting Cisticola. The Long Legged Buzzard came back and created circles overhead. As we turned around we discovered that a Common Kestrel had taken the place of the Buzzard on the tree. On our way back we saw some Plain Martins.
Saying bye to Daurala, we headed to Sultanpur Flats aiming for the Wheatear which gave us a miss. May be we should have used the magic word "Lakshya". In past it has always worked for us. But as they say, there were other fish to fry and so we focussed on what we could get. We saw Siberian Stonechat, Shikra, Long Tailed Shrikes, larks – Crested, Ashy Crown Sparrow and Short Toed. Big misses were Yellow Wattled Lapwing, Coursers, Sandgrouses and Thick knee. But that should not be a surprise as almost all land is now fenced or walled giving very little space to birds to move around.
In all not a bad day, Sumptuous Food – Sandwiches, Paratha, Gobi Aloo ki subzi, tea, lassi, laddoos and mathris kept our energy levels up. Multiple Raptors - 6-8 Black Shouldered Kites, Marsh Harrier, Long Legged Buzzard, Common Kestrel, Shikra, tons of Siberian Stonechats and Black Breasted Weavers and lovely Pied Avocets made our day.
Vineeta Dixit
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "delhibirdpix" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to delhibirdpix+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to delhibirdpix@googlegroups.com.
Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/delhibirdpix.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
No comments:
Post a Comment