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From January 14 to February 20, 2015 we joined six Ottawa
friends on a birding trip to northern and southern India.
Our road transportation was by minibus
The northern leg started in Delhi, went up to Pangot in the
foothills of the Himalayas, and ended in Jaipur where we
flew south to Cochin
In the south, we visited a number of national parks
before ending in Bengalaru (Bangalore) for the flight home
The bird list for the trip ended up with just over 480 species, including...
Common Myna
Oriental Magpie Robin
White-throated Laughingthrush
Red-vented Bulbul
We visited a number of cultural sites such as...
Red Fort, Delhi
Humayun's Tomb, Delhi
And - of course - the Taj Mahal, Agra
We also saw some birds...
Red-whiskered Bulbul
Chestnut-bellied Rock Thrush
Tickell's Blue Flycatcher
...and mammals, such as...
Rhesus Macaque
Spotted Deer
Stripe-necked Mongoose
Did we mention that we saw some birds?
Bar-headed Geese
Red-wattled Lapwing
Pond Heron
Asian Openbill
We saw three tigers...
The first tiger exploded from tall grass while we were
on an elephant safari in Jim Corbett National park - it
happened much too quickly for any photographs
However, the second tiger was much more stationary
But then, in Nagarhole National Park, at the edge of a river,
we found a tiger that had killed a Gaur ("Indian Bison" - the
the largest wild bovine in India) . We think he looks kind of
smug about the whole business!
There were more birds...
Rufous Treepie
Bay-backed Shrike
Blue Whistling Thrush
Southern Grey Shrike
The traffic had to be seen to be believed!
And, just how many people do fit on a motorcycle?
Hint - This isn't even close to the record!
Some of the birds also had to be seen to be believed!
Indian Peafowl
Blue-bearded Bee-eater
Common Hoopoe
As did some of the other wildlife, such as...
...a Gharial!
And - over there - next to the log - is a...
25-foot Rock Python!
Some of the faces of India...
And, now for something completely different?
Lesser Whistling-ducks
Sri Lanka Frogmouths
Male (L) and Female (R)
Oriental White-eye
Just one of many temples...
Finally, just a few more birds...
Brahminy Starling
Indian Roller
Yellow-footed Green Pigeon
Rose-ringed Parakeet
...before we see sunrise over the Himalayas
(about 300 km away)
Two happy birders
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