(delhibirdpix) Sanjay Van this Sunday

Hi,

This Sunday morning saw around 15-20 of us turning up at Sanjay Van to have a look at the breeding residents of this pristine city forest. This was my first visit to the area after a gap of nearly two years and I'm glad to report that it has significantly improved.

Within a few minutes of entering the forest, the trees and bushes were abuzz with the distinctive calls of Grey Breasted Prinias. These tiny birds, now dressed in their fine breeding plumage, were easy to hear but quite difficult to spot the spiny acacia canopy.

We quickly payed a visit to a small pond and were rewarded with close views of a Common Hoopoe, Black Winged Stilts, Wire Tailed Swallows and a Black Crowned Night Heron. Moving further along the trail we reached some high rocks that proved to be an ideal vantage point to scan nearby Acacias. It was great to see a glittering male Golden Oriole chasing the rather dull female through the trees. Also seen were Silverbills, Pied Bushchats and the usually shy Grey Francolin feeding out in the open.

As the forest opened into scrub, several Flamebacks along with a Yellow Crowned Woodpecker were spotted at regular intervals along the dry tree stumps that dot the undulating landscape.

At the main waterbody, several pairs of Little Grebes showed up, with the males in their striking breeding plumage. Also seen were Black drongos, Egrets, Bee Eaters and the like. Soma may have spotted a Yellow Bittern here, which wouldn't be surprising owing to the dense cover of Hyacinth and Typha reeds over a significant portion of the lake.

We now made an ambitious (but rather blind!) attempt to locate the watch tower. Though we succeeded in the attempt, the strong sun ensured that they only highlight was a a close flypast by a Honey Buzzard. We however did spot a beautiful male Calotes lizard nearby. The group now began to head back.

And then the Highlight of the Trip! It came as a bright Rufous streak in a rather dark portion of the forest. I immediately knew what it was. The elusive Asian Paradise Flycatcher! At least two birds, both males in rufous morph gave several flypasts much to the delight of the group, their long tail ribbons gently fluttering behind them. This was a pretty good way to round up an exhausting trek through the city forest!

Though there may have been some misses today like Small Minivets and Woodshrikes, summer sightings of Paradise Flycatchers go to show that when it comes to woodland birds, Sanjay Van does indeed rule supreme!

Thanks for reading,

Udiyaman

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