Hi everyone,
This weekend, six of us, Savithri, Sudeshna, Mohit Aggarwal along with two of his colleagues and I visited the spectacular Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary which is nestled between Corbett and Rajaji National Parks. The unpredictable weather during this time of the year did not dampen our spirits and luckily it was quite pleasant during our stay in the sanctuary.
We set out by road early on Saturday morning with camera batteries charged and binoculars wiped squeaky clean. As soon as we left the NCR region Spotted Doves became a common sight along roadside wires. Fresh rains had created various small wetlands and as we drove along, Asian Openbill, Black Necked Stork, Wire tailed and Red Rumped Swalllows could be spotted from the car window itself.
The ascent into the Kumaon hills starts immediately after the town of Kotdwar and it is a very scenic ride. Slopes were gentle and there was an occasional light drizzle as we drove through meandering hills roads flanked on either side by tall broadleaved trees. Hungry for some birding action, we stopped at several places where we sensed bird activity. Crested Kingfisher, Black Throated and Cinereous Tits were added to our list in the process!
We reached Magpie Cottage in Dhautiyal around 2pm and all tiredness was forgotten once we had a look at the beautiful forests that surrounded our abode. The flowering trees right outside our cottage were a favourite among Purple and Crimson Sunbirds and as a result all of us got beautiful photographs of the same.
Later in the afternoon we took a slow walk along a nearby road. Cute pairs of Scaly Breasted Munia were easy to spot on overhanging wires. An Asian Brown Flycatcher was a nice lifer for me to lap up as it perched quietly up in the mid-storey. As we continued our walk, a pair of Tickells Blue Flycatchers was also a nice addition. When we were heading back to the cottage, I was startled by what appeared to be an orange ball in the undergrowth! It turned out to be a Black Chinned Babbler, another lifer.
The next morning turned out to be a wet one as there was a steady drizzle that refused to cease. After waiting for a couple of hours we decided to go out and explore the nearby jungles anyway. What followed was a most unique experience of birding; where we often held an umbrella in one hand and camera/binocs in the other. This was difficult at first, but surprisingly this technique helped me add many lifers-most of them fluke shots of some activity in the canopy! Rosy Minivet, Chestnut Bellied & Velvet Fronted Nuthatch were added in this way.
We all got out of our car further on when the distinctive call of a Common Green Magpie were heard. The bird initially gave us a hard time but was seen a short while later as it moved along the canopy. Pin Tailed Green Pigeons would perch out in the open with their Yellow Footed cousins. A distant Dollarbird and Ashy Bulbul were nice additions just before we began to head back to the cottage.
We set out back for Delhi in the afternoon but a flypast by Emerald Dove made us stop at one point along the road. There was a lot of activity in the nearby bushes and trees-Slaty Headed Parakeets, White Throated Laughingthrush, Grey Treepie and many others gave their darshan before allowing us to bid adieu to the lovely Kumaon hills.
The list of birds that could be identified on this trip fell one short of a century, which is still very good for a short and wet weekend. 14 of these were lifers for me and there could have been many more had we identified everything we saw.
The ebird list is here:
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