IIT Mumbai 11th Jan 2009

A few of us met early morning at the IIT mumbai main gate.
We drove to the lake. It was very cloudy and not very good light.

There were lot of birds in the lake. There were cotton pygmy teals. On the nearby clump of water hycinth clump were the purple moorhen, as bronze winged jacana and a common moorhen.

Instead of light to improve to decided take a round of the lake on the left side road.

There we got some land birds like the spotted dove, bulbuls, purple rumped sunbird.

Also in the lake where near the road first we got the purple moorhens, cotton pygmy, spot billed duck and glossy ibis.

Cotton pygmy goose





Just then a white breasted waterhen walked past on the road. But it was very fast to take any decent pic. It entered into a compound where there was a lawn. Later at the same spot we got 10+ spotted munias.

Little ahead we took a diversion from the road towards the lake. There we saw a coucal, red breasted or throated flycatcher(not sure), golder oriole, more spotted munias, Ashy prinia.

Red throated or breasted flycatcher



Golden oriole. A lucky shot :-)



In the lake beyond were the spotbilled ducks, black winged stilts, bronze winged jacane, lesser whistling teals flying around, purple moorhens and a purple heron.

Spotbilled ducks, black winged stilts and bronze winged jacana



Spot billed duck



Lesser whistling duck





Spotbilled duck



Wood sandpiper



While returning back to the lake we saw a shrike sitting in very good light giving photographers a good chance.

Long tailed Shrike



Nearby 2 spotted doves were seated on the ground. There were also a number of pied starlings.

Spotted dove



Back to the lack we got the cotton pygmy teals and cormorant. There was also a common kingfisher sitting on the boat in the water. We decided to proceed ahead from here towards the boat club shade.

On this we were expecting some flycatchers and white browed bulbuls but did not get any.

Instead got the chestnut tailed starlings, jungle babblers, more pied starlings and palm swifts.

Pied starling



Very near the boat club shade we got white breasted kingfisher giving very good poses.

White breasted kingfisher





There large number is spotted munias. There was a marsh harrier sitting the grass.

On the grass blades very nearby we got a small bird which we thought to be a prinia but seems more like a paddy field warbler.
Not sure what it is.



There was a pond heron standing still in the grass.

Pond heron



In the water beyond saw the pheasant tailed jacanas and common coots.

Common Coot



The marsh harrier gave good flying shots. There were little terns flying around.

An osprey made a short appearance but it is always a pleasure to even watch it for some time.

Osprey



There were lot of alexandrine parakeets making a lot of noise.

In the grass little ahead i tried to go a little near the spotted munias and got some good shots.

Spotted Munia (scaly breasted munia)



Spotted munia (juvenile)









While returning back got nice green bee eaters and nice surprise in terms of a black hooded cuckoo shrike.

Green bee eaters





Black hooded cuckooshrike





Also there were still the golden orioles on the tree near the hostel and a crimson breasted barbet pecking at the hole in the tree.

Crimson breasted barbet



To end with the purple moorhen in the lake gave very good poses.

Purple moorhen at end

25th December 2008 Uran

Started 7 am with Jayesh and Dr Sangeeta.
First stop was at Jasai where we thought that we spotted a white stork.
But it was on the other side of the highway so we had to take a U turn and come back.
There we spotted a single white stork which flew away soon.

White Stork in flight


Just behind the white stork there was a water body with a huge number of water fowl.
There we saw waders like little stints, plovers, redshanks, pied avocets, etc. Also there were painted storks, grey herons, spoonbills, egrets, white ibis. Nothern shovellers and brahiminy ducks were also present.

Painted storks in flight


Gull billed tern


Spoonbills in flight


On the land bordering this water body is a grassland habitat. There we saw huge number of red avadavats. Also were present the stonechat, larks, a bluethroat hopping in the dense thicket of bushes.

A marsh harrier was disturbing the water fowl in between. A black shouldered kite sitting on a wire was keeping an eye on the ground below.

Going ahead we reached Uran to get very disappointed to see all the wetlands very dried up.
We decided to take a look at the standard road leading into the marshes in front of the police station at the end of which there is a water which normally harbors a lot of waterfowl.

On this we got a long tailed shrike, red avadavats, Stonechat, Grey herons, Cormorants, Green bee eaters,etc.

For other waterfowl there was nothing much except for a few marsh sandpipers and a couple of brahminy ducks.

Brahminy duck


There were a large number of red wattled lapwings atleast 10 of them. On the other side of the same road near the railway track we saw a tree full of rosy starlings and a few brahminy starlings.

Little Grebe


Long tailed shrike


Common Stonechat


When we reached the end of the road we met with 2 other birders Mr Babasaheb gaikwad and Mr Athavle. It was nice meeting with Mr Gaikwad whom i had met virtually though his pics on INW :-)

We had some breakfast here. While we were just about to leave the place to Marsh harriers started a show. They were trying to catch something but finally just settled on the marshes after doing some inflight acrobatics giving us good opportunity to take some pics.

Marsh Harrier








While returning back we again stopped at Jasai first to take the pics of the black shouldered kite seated on the wire, then to take a second look at the water body to see the white storks had settled there. But there were the same water fowl which we had seen while coming.

Black shouldered kit in flight


Black shouldered kite




As we were leaving from the that place we saw a huge number of birds on the other side of the highway. We thought there were white storks there so we decided to get to the other side to get a closer look.
As we were nearing the place it was certain that there were white storks along with spoonbills, egrets and black headed ibises.

But just then 2 men started walking in the open along the railway line disturbed everyone and all flew away. We got some flight shots but that's not what we wanted.

Spoonbills, black headed ibises and White stork


Spoonbill


Anyway for some reason 8 white storks did not fly anywhere and we got to observe them for a long time. In the reeds along the road were lot of red avadavats and stonechats. We also spotted a lone pied bushchat and the marsh harrier was making its rounds keeping an eye of the marshes.

White storks






Common Stone chat


Red avadavat (female)


The other birds sighted were
Ashy prinia
Gull billed terns
Gulls
Common Sandpipers
Black tailed godwits
Black winged stilts (atleast 35)