It is the pre-dawn hour in early September 2010 and I am headed out towards the Amer hills north of Jaipur. This year the Monsoon has gathered pace in August and is forecast to continue bringing rain through much of this month. As I drive past the Amer Fort I am stunned by the spectacle of low rolling clouds obscuring the higher ramparts of this magnificent structure. Through the open windows faint tendrils of moisture laden mist waft past my face. The first bird sounds of the morning appear curiously muffled.
I am meeting up with Udaijit at his Dera Amer, and he has also invited Madhav, who is a keen Naturalist. I have not met Madhav , even though we have both visited here before separately. Soon I have turned onto the rough track that winds its way to the Camp. The light is already stronger and bird activity is picking up. Udaijit has often seen a Dusky Eagle Owl on its favourite perch just off the track, and even though I remember to scan all these likely roosts and perches today, I have yet to add this species to my personal list.
We meet at the Camp and introductions are made over a cup of Masala Chai. We are sitting by the Elephant Polo grounds and I pick out the movement of a small bird beyond the main Gate on a Babool tree. It is whistling a dulcet sounding half-familiar call. Quickly I check it with the binoculars. The bright yellow, black and white plumage and size could only mean one of the Ioras. We walk across briskly, Madhav is armed with a sophisticated lens on his Canon. But the Iora is hidden from view in the fresh greenery. At that moment an adult Oriental Honey Buzzard flies closer low to the ground, and we notice another much smaller juvenile. Now the Ioras shows themselves, it is a pair, and they are gathering nest material. From the white edges to tail feathers we know these are the Marshall’s Iora, a rare endemic. What a great start to the day !
My companions are enthusiastic and we feed off each others energy. Udaijit is still recovering from a horrific road accident and I think this is one of his first outings since. Despite our protestations to allow one of us take the wheel, he insists on driving his Jeep. Just outside the property we notice a large Cuckoo perched on the low wire fencing. Madhav gets some good photos and only later are we able to identify it properly as a juvenile Eurasian Cuckoo. There are a pair of Long-tailed Shrikes close by, and I do know that this species is often the foster parents of the Cuckoo.
Within a few minutes we enter the Nahargarh Bio-diversity Forest, as I believe it is now called. We have been here before, but none of us can believe the transformation brought about by the copious rains. Where there were sun-scorched acacias and other hardy dry deciduous trees with their gnarled trunks and sparse thorny foliage, now the fresh branches thrust upwards clothed in sparkling green. Dusty boulders are now hidden by lush wavy grasses, many topped with small yellow flowers on stems. Several bushes have these incredibly beautiful flowers, the scarlet and yellow petals curling upwards like twisting flames, and the horizontal stamens shooting outwards like the points of a star. We later identify these as Gloriosa superba or Glory Lily, and apparently they are deadly poisonous. I’m glad we didn’t pluck any since even handling the flower can cause severe skin irritation I later read.
Just inside the forest, as the path twists past a saddle between two hills there is a dumping ground for bones from the Animal Rescue Centre. From previous visits I know this is a good birding spot if you can stand the smell. We do see several Pied Cuckoos, Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters and European Rollers amongst other common birds. My best sighting here has been that of a Red-tailed Wheatear in April 2009. In the distance one can occasionally hear the Centre’s Tigers and Lions (rescued from the Circus after legislation banned animal performances). There is also a Tigon, he is huge with paws as big as dinner plates. And the bones at this dump are not from animals at the Centre dying of old age, they are from the leftover meals brought daily for the big cats !
As we wind our way deeper into the forest we come across several natural springs, the fresh water bubbling forth from cracks between lichen-covered rocks. This once common sight in the hills had all but disappeared for the past few near-drought years. As we climb a steep hill an unfamiliar looking raptor is disturbed and it flies off to a perch further away. We are careful not to get out of the Jeep and it allows us to approach closer. It is a Buzzard for sure, but all of us think it is somewhat large for a White-eyed Buzzard (which we have all seen before). Later checking of the photos, the dark gular stripe on whitish throat and the diagnostic white eyes confirm the sighting as the WEB. Another good bird is identified as the Black-headed Cuckoo-Shrike. It is quite shy and just does not allow one to get inside its comfort zone for close observation.
After a couple of wrong turns we finally find the right approach track to Aodhi Ram Sagar. Here a series of seasonal rivulets debouch down from the surrounding Amer and Nahargarh hills into small lakes leading towards this superbly located Shooting Lodge. There are also two old Shooting Towers made for the Jaipur Royalty. These command a wide field of fire, now of course the views are fabulous. I can almost picture in my mind’s eye how the game would have been driven down by beaters to the waiting guns. The main Lodge overlooks a small lake. Perhaps Royal Ladies would have had occasion to shoot downwards (from the relative safety of the high turret) at a Tiger or a Leopard drinking water in the late evening many decades ago ? While the gentlemen would have hunted on elephant back further afield armed with heavy bore rifles?
We have seen excellent birds here including the rare endemic White-naped Tit, White-capped Buntings and Paradise Flycatchers. This is also a good area for several raptors. Tawny Eagles apparently breed in the crags above. We have observed Steppe Eagles (5 individuals together once). Long-legged Buzzards are occasionally seen. Last year there was a juvenile Eurasian Griffon that was severely dehydrated and had to be rescued, cared for and later released in the wild. I have also seen Common Kestrel, and once the absolutely fantastic Eurasian Hobby. Surprisingly this was at about 11 am, unusual for the Hobby because they are largely crepescular. This little Falcon gave us a spectacular flight display of high speed stoops, driven with quick wing beats and diving with his long narrow wings folded back and sudden jinking turns.
We have now been rambling for hours and my stomach is rumbling. So when Udaijit suggests we head back to the Camp for breakfast, we concur quickly. Particularly since from previous visits I know that meals at the Camp are always splendid. Soon we are tucking into platters piled with two-eggs sunny-side-up, crispy bacon rashers, juicy sausages, baked beans and oven-fresh bread. All washed down with freshly brewed coffee. Ah ! This is the kind of birding I like.
Madhav shows us some of the photos he has taken today, and many are stunning. The light too has been friendly and many of the compositions are worth framing I am sure.
Udaijit tells us of the extraordinary incident involving 4 Bar-headed Geese making a surprise touchdown in the middle of the floodlit Elephant Polo ground on a winter’s night. Luckily this was between Chukkers (else they would have been trampled by the eles)! He describes them as appearing somewhat disoriented but not unduly alarmed. This was the night of 21st January 2009 and inevitably there was fog and clouds in the sky. Obviously the birds got confused in the fog and decided to come down and have a closer look at this pool of light in the middle of the forest. I have read of birds getting disoriented in similar conditions and crashing into lighthouses on the shoreline, but I do not know of a similar case as this. Yes, the story ends well, and the Geese team soon flew away unharmed.
Just as we must fly away today from this cracker of a weekend outing, till we meet again with tales of other trips …
I am meeting up with Udaijit at his Dera Amer, and he has also invited Madhav, who is a keen Naturalist. I have not met Madhav , even though we have both visited here before separately. Soon I have turned onto the rough track that winds its way to the Camp. The light is already stronger and bird activity is picking up. Udaijit has often seen a Dusky Eagle Owl on its favourite perch just off the track, and even though I remember to scan all these likely roosts and perches today, I have yet to add this species to my personal list.
We meet at the Camp and introductions are made over a cup of Masala Chai. We are sitting by the Elephant Polo grounds and I pick out the movement of a small bird beyond the main Gate on a Babool tree. It is whistling a dulcet sounding half-familiar call. Quickly I check it with the binoculars. The bright yellow, black and white plumage and size could only mean one of the Ioras. We walk across briskly, Madhav is armed with a sophisticated lens on his Canon. But the Iora is hidden from view in the fresh greenery. At that moment an adult Oriental Honey Buzzard flies closer low to the ground, and we notice another much smaller juvenile. Now the Ioras shows themselves, it is a pair, and they are gathering nest material. From the white edges to tail feathers we know these are the Marshall’s Iora, a rare endemic. What a great start to the day !
My companions are enthusiastic and we feed off each others energy. Udaijit is still recovering from a horrific road accident and I think this is one of his first outings since. Despite our protestations to allow one of us take the wheel, he insists on driving his Jeep. Just outside the property we notice a large Cuckoo perched on the low wire fencing. Madhav gets some good photos and only later are we able to identify it properly as a juvenile Eurasian Cuckoo. There are a pair of Long-tailed Shrikes close by, and I do know that this species is often the foster parents of the Cuckoo.
Within a few minutes we enter the Nahargarh Bio-diversity Forest, as I believe it is now called. We have been here before, but none of us can believe the transformation brought about by the copious rains. Where there were sun-scorched acacias and other hardy dry deciduous trees with their gnarled trunks and sparse thorny foliage, now the fresh branches thrust upwards clothed in sparkling green. Dusty boulders are now hidden by lush wavy grasses, many topped with small yellow flowers on stems. Several bushes have these incredibly beautiful flowers, the scarlet and yellow petals curling upwards like twisting flames, and the horizontal stamens shooting outwards like the points of a star. We later identify these as Gloriosa superba or Glory Lily, and apparently they are deadly poisonous. I’m glad we didn’t pluck any since even handling the flower can cause severe skin irritation I later read.
Just inside the forest, as the path twists past a saddle between two hills there is a dumping ground for bones from the Animal Rescue Centre. From previous visits I know this is a good birding spot if you can stand the smell. We do see several Pied Cuckoos, Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters and European Rollers amongst other common birds. My best sighting here has been that of a Red-tailed Wheatear in April 2009. In the distance one can occasionally hear the Centre’s Tigers and Lions (rescued from the Circus after legislation banned animal performances). There is also a Tigon, he is huge with paws as big as dinner plates. And the bones at this dump are not from animals at the Centre dying of old age, they are from the leftover meals brought daily for the big cats !
As we wind our way deeper into the forest we come across several natural springs, the fresh water bubbling forth from cracks between lichen-covered rocks. This once common sight in the hills had all but disappeared for the past few near-drought years. As we climb a steep hill an unfamiliar looking raptor is disturbed and it flies off to a perch further away. We are careful not to get out of the Jeep and it allows us to approach closer. It is a Buzzard for sure, but all of us think it is somewhat large for a White-eyed Buzzard (which we have all seen before). Later checking of the photos, the dark gular stripe on whitish throat and the diagnostic white eyes confirm the sighting as the WEB. Another good bird is identified as the Black-headed Cuckoo-Shrike. It is quite shy and just does not allow one to get inside its comfort zone for close observation.
After a couple of wrong turns we finally find the right approach track to Aodhi Ram Sagar. Here a series of seasonal rivulets debouch down from the surrounding Amer and Nahargarh hills into small lakes leading towards this superbly located Shooting Lodge. There are also two old Shooting Towers made for the Jaipur Royalty. These command a wide field of fire, now of course the views are fabulous. I can almost picture in my mind’s eye how the game would have been driven down by beaters to the waiting guns. The main Lodge overlooks a small lake. Perhaps Royal Ladies would have had occasion to shoot downwards (from the relative safety of the high turret) at a Tiger or a Leopard drinking water in the late evening many decades ago ? While the gentlemen would have hunted on elephant back further afield armed with heavy bore rifles?
We have seen excellent birds here including the rare endemic White-naped Tit, White-capped Buntings and Paradise Flycatchers. This is also a good area for several raptors. Tawny Eagles apparently breed in the crags above. We have observed Steppe Eagles (5 individuals together once). Long-legged Buzzards are occasionally seen. Last year there was a juvenile Eurasian Griffon that was severely dehydrated and had to be rescued, cared for and later released in the wild. I have also seen Common Kestrel, and once the absolutely fantastic Eurasian Hobby. Surprisingly this was at about 11 am, unusual for the Hobby because they are largely crepescular. This little Falcon gave us a spectacular flight display of high speed stoops, driven with quick wing beats and diving with his long narrow wings folded back and sudden jinking turns.
We have now been rambling for hours and my stomach is rumbling. So when Udaijit suggests we head back to the Camp for breakfast, we concur quickly. Particularly since from previous visits I know that meals at the Camp are always splendid. Soon we are tucking into platters piled with two-eggs sunny-side-up, crispy bacon rashers, juicy sausages, baked beans and oven-fresh bread. All washed down with freshly brewed coffee. Ah ! This is the kind of birding I like.
Madhav shows us some of the photos he has taken today, and many are stunning. The light too has been friendly and many of the compositions are worth framing I am sure.
Udaijit tells us of the extraordinary incident involving 4 Bar-headed Geese making a surprise touchdown in the middle of the floodlit Elephant Polo ground on a winter’s night. Luckily this was between Chukkers (else they would have been trampled by the eles)! He describes them as appearing somewhat disoriented but not unduly alarmed. This was the night of 21st January 2009 and inevitably there was fog and clouds in the sky. Obviously the birds got confused in the fog and decided to come down and have a closer look at this pool of light in the middle of the forest. I have read of birds getting disoriented in similar conditions and crashing into lighthouses on the shoreline, but I do not know of a similar case as this. Yes, the story ends well, and the Geese team soon flew away unharmed.
Just as we must fly away today from this cracker of a weekend outing, till we meet again with tales of other trips …
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