Home
Checklist
Bengal Florican
It was our first evening in Nameri when Nikhil Devasar, of Delhibird,
casually mentioned that their team had seen (and photographed) an Asian
Emerald Cuckoo in the Panbari forest, next to Kaziranga, a few days
back. His tone was so nonchalant, as if to indicate that he saw this
extremely difficult bird every day.
Asian Emerald Cuckoo ~ by
Anand Arya
I tried to keep my composure but was consumed by acute jealousy and
envy. This, coupled with a photograph of the Silver-breasted Broadbill,
taken by Ravi Chand in the same forests a year back, made me work on my
fellow travellers Sumit Sen and Bittu Sahgal to take the drastic step of
cutting a day out of our Nameri itinerary and making a quick dash to
Kaziranga. I have, in the past, hunted for the above-mentioned birds for
several years and have scoured the forests of Assam, Arunachal and West
Bengal without seeing as much as a quill of these beautiful but elusive
birds.
So an early morning in April, saw us leave the pleasures of the Wild
Mahseer Lodge, in Balipara Tea estate and wend our way to Kaziranga,
just two hours away. We crossed the Brahmaputra by the Koliabhomora
Bridge near Tezpur and our first stop was at the Gajraj View Point.
While counting the several Rhino's that peacefully grazed, we were
surprised by a pair of very inquisitive Greater Racket-tailed
Drongos who kept us amused by their great mimicry. A Kalij Pheasant
startled by us, hurriedly scampered across the road. The next stop was
the offices of the forest department at Kohora, where we were to pick up
our armed escort and complete our mandatory paperwork. While the wheels
of bureaucracy slowly worked their way, we were delighted at the
abundance of birdlife in the trees outside the building. Both
Long-tailed and Scarlet Minivets, with their yellow spouses, flitted
through the trees.
Scarlet Minivet
Black-headed Cuckooshrikes and Golden-fronted Leafbirds pranced in the
branches. A dhaba was soon found on National Highway No. 37 and we
breakfasted grandly on chapattis, aloo bhajji and masala omelettes. Thus
fortified we moved on to the Panbari Forest, along with a young
birding-guide that we had purloined from the Wild Grass Lodge.
We donned our anti-leech gear (a wise move!) and silently entered the
legendary semi-evergreen forests of Panbari, keeping a wary eye for the
omnipresent elephants. Our instruction to the guide was that we were not
to be diverted by the lone resident Hoolock Gibbon, but were to
concentrate purely on birds. A set of Fairy Bluebirds was a good start,
and our mood became more optimistic. When Sumit declared he could
clearly see a pair of Silver-breasted Broadbills at close distance, I
knew the trip had been worth it just for this sighting.
Silver-breasted Broadbill
This duo was amazingly confiding and provided several photographic
opportunities. The Dark-necked Tailorbird was a great find as was the
rare Blue-eared Barbet that cried weakly from the dense trees. A
Golden-spectacled Warbler suddenly popped out of the bushes to disappear
again. Black-crested and White-throated Bulbuls were seen, but there was
no sign of the Emerald Cuckoo, nor of the Red-headed Trogon. By this
time the leeches were becoming more troublesome and the offer of
crawling through the low bushes to see the Blue-naped Pitta was promptly
declined, no matter how alluring.
A low tapping sound had us puzzled as we traced its origin. It always
kept a step ahead of us and several minutes later we managed to get a
not-so-good view of the White-browed Piculet, a busy little jewel of a
bird. We soon reached an area where the forest opens up a bit and we saw
a raptor that had us foxed. Sumit took several photographs and on later
scrutiny it turned out to be a Crested Goshawk.
Crested Goshawk
Time was running out and we grudgingly bade farewell to Panbari,
promising to return soon to give the Cuckoo another go.
The plot was to enter the park from the Eastern range and drive through
the Central to emerge at the Western. One of the advantages of having
Bittu Sahgal, the Editor of Sanctuary Magazine, with you is that several
doors open magically. At the Agaratali entrance, we managed to get
special permission to go to the Debeswari camp, an area closed to
visitors. This locale is the north-eastern boundary of the park and is
on the banks of the Brahmaputra. Its original claim to fame was that the
Phragmites reeds on the banks of the river were home to the little known
Black-breasted Parrotbill. We had recently seen these birds in
Dibru-Saikowa, and the disappearance of suitable habitat has made this
bird extremely difficult to see here. But here, also lurked the large
and highly endangered Bengal Florican and it was reportedly seen doing
its amazing mating flight. It had been years since we had seen one and
hoped we would get lucky.
The dominant tree in Kaziranga is the Bombax Ceiba or Simul as it is
locally known. In early summer large red flowers appear giving the
landscape a rosy hue. During this period it is the beloved of several
species of birds, including starlings, drongos, barbets and
Red-breasted Parakeets
Red-breasted Parakeet
The rare forest starling - the Spot-winged, arrives in droves in May and
the Lesser Adjutants often use them as perches. The uncommon Finn's Baya
too nests on them, and we tried to separate this weaver from others of
their kin, but it was little too early for them to don their breeding
plumage and they remained indistinguishable.
As we drove towards the large Sohola Beel, we kept ourselves busy
separating the White-vented Mynas from their more widely distributed
relative - the Jungle. Strangely these two keep together. A Swamp
Francolin crossed the road and we heard the shrill call of an Abbot's
Babbler. The Sohola Beel is a large waterbody, whose levels fluctuate
according to the season. Now it was low, exposing large tracts of
pasture which was dotted with Wild Buffaloes, rhinos and a few isolated
elephants. Both the Swamp Deer and Hog deer grazed peacefully. In the
distance we picked up the fast dwindling Greater Adjutant and it's, only
marginally more prolific sibling, the Lesser Adjutant. Both these
graceless storks, have suffered heavily by the felling of tall trees,
all over their territories and it is only the protection that Kaziranga
provides that enables them to survive here, however precariously. We
picked, in the far distance, some lingering Bar-headed Geese
and a few Northern Shovelers.
Bar-headed Geese
The ochre colour of the Ruddy Shelducks,
made them easier to spot. A lone juvenile Black-necked Stork made
sallies over the trees. The water-body held Spot-billed Pelicans too.
These ungainly birds also suffer from the loss of tall trees on which
they breed. The larger and rarer Great White Pelican was nowhere to be
seen.
We moved on, past the Rangamatia Forest check-post and crossed a small
bridge when a largish bird caught our attention. It was a Blue-bearded
Bee-eater, a bird notoriously difficult to photograph. Sumit spent some
frustrating minutes before he achieved success.
Blue-bearded Bee-eater
We drove on, with a canal on our right. This stretch is particularly
good for the Oriental Darter, and seeing them in large numbers here made
you wonder why it is labelled as endangered. Rhinos wallowed in these
shallow waters and a few resident Spot-billed Ducks took off as we got
closer. A Stork-billed Kingfisher sought its prey from a low branch,
while a Grey-headed Fish Eagle was spotted with a fish which was almost
as big as him. As we approached silently, it flew off with its food,
which weighed it down. This ritual was repeated several times, but at no
point did the raptor ever release its hard-earned catch. Eventually it
flew high on to a tree and devoured its dinner in peace.
Grey-headed Fish Eagle
A single Oriental Pied Hornbill flew across. Suicidal Spotted and
Oriental Turtles Doves took off at the last moment as our jeep almost
ran them over.
The wizened tree-trunks on the left of the road held Rufous and
Black-rumped Woodpeckers, while the higher canopies had Spangled and
Bronzed Drongos. The road then went into a dip and when we emerged on
the other side, the landscape had changed into a sea of grassland. This
was typical Debeswari terrain. We drove towards the Forest out-post and
saw Zitting Cisticola, Ashy and Plain Prinia and a few Striated
Babblers. The pipits were represented by the Paddyfield and the Rosy.
Rosy Pipit
The only shrike seen was the Brown. We spent considerable time sitting
on the low verandah of the forest hut, sipping green tea provided by the
thoughtful staff. This vantage point provides a panoramic view of the
grassland and any amorous Florican doing its popping-up-and-down dance
would have caught our attention. It was noon by now and hot and the
guards told us that it was the wrong time of the day. Reluctantly we
abandoned our perch and as we were driving back, we stopped to
photograph a fire that had set parts of the grassland ablaze. Less than
five feet away was a Florican, hidden from view and it took-off like a
rocket away from us and we had long and prolonged views as it sailed a
considerable distance. There are less than a hundred (out of an
estimated 400 countrywide) left in Kaziranga and it was a thrilling
sight and we felt so privileged to see one of these.
We turned towards the central range, past a forest outpost and had
hardly gone a few kilometres when we managed to get out jeep stuck in
slush created by the recent rains. The more we tried to extricate
ourselves the deeper the jeep sank. It took over two hours of
back-breaking toil to finally free the jeep. By this time it was too
late to proceed any further and we were forced to return reluctantly to
Rangamatia for a much deserved wash and tea. The surrounding area
abounded with Green-billed Malkohas.
Green-billed Malkoha
Recently a spurt of photographs have appeared on the net of the
Stripe-breasted Woodpecker, taken in this part of the world (much to our
surprise) and we very keen to see one. It looks notoriously like the
commoner Fulvous-breasted and we looked at every likely specimen with
great intent. Finally we saw one that looked marginally different and I
requested Sumit to take as many pictures as he could. Just as well for
it allowed us to consult several experts and it now points to this
obscure woodpecker.
Stripe-breasted Woodpecker
So ended a great day and it was three happy men who returned to Nameri
that night. So rich is the birdlife of Kaziranga that even a day's
outing can be so productive.
END................................................................................................
© Bikram Grewal
New Delhi, June 2008
A day's birding in Kaziranga