Birdwatching - My new-found hobby

I had always enjoyed being amidst nature. However, I had never given a serious thought into bird watching. Nevertheless, I always enjoy the chirping of the birds.

Off late, I have started enjoying my new-found hobby - Birdwatching! It is kind of recreation for me from the hectic schedule and from the hassle bustle of city life. I agree we hardly get to spot any birds around the city. Where are the birds, which we used to find in the gardens in our childhood? Are all of these birds threatened with extinction?

One Sunday morning, I was in my deep sleep and my friend calls me and says, “I’m at Kaikondrahalli Lake and there are lot of birds here. Come over here and you’ll enjoy.” I din’t want to wake up early, but somehow I made my mind to go there once and see what kind of birds are there. So unwillingly, I woke up and headed towards Kaikondrahalli Lake.  It was a pleasant morning. Cool breeze, tranquil lake and serene environment! Even though the lake is beside the Sarjapur main road, as you enter the lake you will not feel you are in the city. I felt refreshed as I entered.

Now comes the exciting Birdwatching part. My friend went busy with his photo shoots.  I started spotting different varieties of birds. I never knew Kaikondrahalli Lake had so many species of birds. Yes, I heard amateur photographers heading towards Hebbal Lake, Lalbaugh to name a few. I was stunned to find these varieties of species here. I found few birds and I did not know their species, what are they called, I was seeing them for the first time.  That day when I came back home, I searched for the bird species information and their habitats.

After that, almost every weekend I try to join my friend at Kaikondrahalli. An added advantage for my for friend as he says my eyes are sharp and I spot the birds easily. That helps him in his photography. :P So far at Kaikondrahalli Lake I have spotted these species of birds:

• Green bee-eater
• Ashy Prinia
• Indian small cormorant
• White browed wagtail
• Yellow Wagtail
• Jungle Myna
• Common Kingfisher
• Pied Kingfisher
• Pond Heron
• Grey Heron
• Purple Heron
• Black Drongo
• Red Wattled Lapwing
• Paddy Field Pipit
• Common Coot
• Spot Billed Duck
• Common Moorhens
• Kites
• Brahminy kites
• Sparrows
• Parakeets
• Sunbirds
• Small Egret

I might have not yet noticed few of the water birds. My favorite among all these birds are Pied Kingfisher. I spotted this bird at Kaikondrahalli Lake only once. This bird is so awesome. The way it flew and attacked on its prey, unbelievable. I was just starring; it was so quick in its action. I just went crazy for this birdie. J

Next on my list are Grey and Purple Heron. It is because; there are quite a few Grey and Purple Heron at Kaikondrahalli Lake. However, they sit on the islet or hide near the bushes waiting for its prey or they will just sit quite and silently in the tree far from the shore. I sit near the lake and watch these birds, waiting for prey, they just concentrate without any movement, and sometimes you can only see its long neck.

Green bee-eater, this bird is not shy about human beings. :P When my friend was photographing, this birdie used to come sit close and kind of shows it’s attitude. Common click as many as pictures you want. LOL.

There are plenty of Little Cormorants at Kaikondrahalli Lake or you can say anywhere in India you can find lot of Cormorants. Nevertheless, you will not get bored watching this bird. They are very funny. The way they get wet and the way, they keep their wings open. I assume they dry the water after refreshing in the water. You will love to watch that scene. They most of the time fight with each other.

There are couple of Brahminy Kites, if they see Human beings coming close by they don’t mind but if they see Camera’s with big lens focusing on them they just escape. These birds are very smart you know.

Kingfisher, they are so shy birds yet so beautiful. I will be so excited when I spot Kingfishers. But, they just fly away when they hear human beings coming near them. I recently visited the Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary just for Pied Kingfisher and the Common Kingfisher. I was content with my trip as I could spot these birds there. Someone had mentioned in a blog that Pied Kingfisher is the super model of Ranganathittu. Yes, indeed it’s the supermodel over there. :P

On my last visit to Kaikondrahalli Lake, I saw a little birdie; I am yet to research about its species and habitat. I loved the texture and the color of this bird. God has created amazing creatures on this earth. Truly, god is the great artist. He has used all the beautiful color in his creations.

Another inspiration for my newfound hobby is the Rio movie. This movie inspired me a lot in terms of Bird watching and learning more about the bird’s habitat and their behavior.

On my last visit to the Kaikondrahalli Lake, I also spotted a Reptile - a huge Spectacle Cobra. After seeing the snake so close to me, I could not get my nerve to stay there for long.

You can find my experience at Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary at http://travelsoiled.wordpress.com/. I will put up a post about my experience about the birds at Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary and our Mysore visit soon.

Overall, I am really enjoying this hobby. With all the hectic schedule and city lifestyle, this rather gives me relief from all the stress. Yes, for me bird watching is a stress buster!

You can view the bird photos captured at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/meprashant/sets/72157627662109439/ and http://www.flickr.com/photos/meprashant/sets/72157627703116508/. The pictures will be updated randomly. All the images here are copyright protected to Prashant Bhandare. Anyone who wants to publish or use these images for any purpose, please contact the concerned for permission.

Day train to Mangalore through Western Ghats

Day train service from Bangalore to Mangalore started few years back. I've always heard from my friends that the scenic journey would be mesmerizing. Since then, I wanted to take a day train journey to Mangalore. Moreover, during monsoon the journey through the Western Ghats would be more enticing.

So far I did not get an opportunity to travel via day train. Either the reservations would be full or I wouldn't have a company and above all the journey takes 10 hours while compared to the 7 hours KSRTC Volvo bus journey. When comes to Mangalore travel I would hop, jump, run, and twirl to reach Mangalore at the earliest. This time, I did not let all those reasons stop me from taking a day train journey. Though I had to travel alone, I made up my mind I would GO!

My journey begins on 22nd July. Morning at 7.30, the train departs from Yesvantpur station. And at 6.15AM I start from Koramangala. And this day being Auto strike, I wondered if I could get any Auto or if I could get any direct bus or at least towards Majestic. I finally get an auto, who agreed to charge me Rs. 200 after bargaining a lot! I wondered, the train journey from Bangalore to Mangalore which is around 451Kms charged just Rs. 100 plus the reservation charges. But just 30Kms in Auto charged me Rs. 200.

I reached the station at 07.00AM and the train was already at the platform number 1. I had booked a Window seat and the seat assigned was on the right side facing the engine. One of my friends too had planned to come in the same train and I got to know from him that to enjoy the scenic beauty of Western Ghats we need to get a seat on the left side facing the engine. Ah!!! I was disappointed. The journey began from Yesvantpur and went through Tumkur, Tiptur, Arsikere, and so on. Between these places we got to see few lakes. The train would stop here and there either for crossing or track change. Then we reached Hassan. It was around 12:30PM and they dint stop for long there for lunch. The next stop was Sakleshpur.

When we reached Sakleshpur there were little bit of chaos here and there. Yes, those who knew about the day train journey or have experienced started jumping towards the doors on the left side facing the engine. I was hungry as well as I wanted to jump towards the doors to hold a place. We got some Mangalore Buns and ran towards to door. When the train departed from Sakleshpur station you get to see the real beauty. The beauty of Western Ghats! The greenery, the paddy fields, the tunnels, there are around 30 Tunnels from Sakleshpur to Kukke Subramanya. It was an awesome experience, when the train passed through the bridge, when you look down, the water flows several meters n depth, the Western Ghats completed covered with fog.

I reached Mangalore around 5.30PM. It was a prodigious experience every must experience once in their life time. I would travel once again with a bunch of friends. That will be really exciting.

However, as it is in Indian train, the trains are not in good condition, you'll not feel like placing your hands on windows, doors, or even you won't feel like entering the W.C. I don't know when Indian Railways will be tidy and hygienic. I wish that will happen soon or will it ever happen in India?

All in all, it was a very pleasant journey and I feel so good when I'm back home. I feel blessed to be born in the land of Mangalore. People, Place, and Food - best in the world! :-)

Here are the pictures which I tried to capture on the move: https://picasaweb.google.com/107767421120953479303/DayTrainWesternGhats02#. Beautiful scenes captured but I could not capture them beautifully.

His first DSLR…Yes!! Dreams come true!

Getting his DSLR was his dream and yes, dreams come true. Having great passion for photography, he’d been hunting for the right camera. Buying the right one took its own sweet time. There were lots of Canon models in his wish list. Again, dreams come true, but how much ever you chase your dreams, destiny rules. There’s a perfect time for everything and that’s when your dreams come true. This is what I believe.

With his first DSLR in his hands, happiness fills in his heart! Though he had his hand on high end SLR’s earlier, this one is his own very first DSLR. What more can I ask for on my special day. Nothing more than finding happiness in someone’s face, on a special day. :)

A few shots of the gear and few pictures shot using this gear. As I update this post, these are the only pictures which I have at this moment. 

Haji Ali

Haji Ali

Update - Marathahalli Snake catchers number...

It's going to be a year after the snake's visit to our place. We were lucky enough to find a snake catcher at the midnight for our rescue. I hope the snake will be fine in the forests somewhere.

Today when I was looking for the updates on my blog, I found this comment from Kannan on my previous post Snake...Snake..Snake inside the house!

I was glad that these details what I post on my blog is helpful. This is what Kannan says: 

Hi,

Thank you very much for sharing the Snake catchers number in your blog. I spoke with Mr. Hariharan, Marathahalli for catching snake in my apartment car parking area hid in a rat pothole. He said now a days he is not available for the snake catching, instead he recommended his father Mr. Kumar. His number is 9********. I spoke with him and he said will reach my apartment with 45 minutes to come from old airp ort area. He came within the time he mentioned and did some enlargement of the pothole and caught the snake. It was a cobra. He will take it to Bannerghatta National park. We paid him Rs.500/- as his service charge. Felt very happy to save a snake. Thank you very for your help in sharing the phone number of Mr. Hariharan 

Thanks Kannan for sharing this information. So, anywhere nearby if anyone finds a snake, please call Mr. Kumar at 9*********. Please don't harm them, and the snakes will not harm you too. call the snake catchers, they have the tricks to catch snakes without harming them. Hope this helps you when in need.

Update 07 September 2015: The person mentioned above is no more into snake catching. He's been recieving many calls regarding the same so I have masked his number. There was a snake in our apartment yesterday and when I called the number we got to know that he doesn't do this anymore as he is old and his treatment is going on.