Jan-Feb 2008

Vol. 47 No. 3 May - June 2007

Vol. 48 No. 1 Jan. - Feb. 2008

Dr. A.M.K. BharosHarish R. BhatDr. S.P. BhatnagarDr. A.K. ChakravarthyDr. Ranjan Kumar DasDr. S. DevasahayamB.S. KulkarniArvind MishraDr. Geeta S. Padate

Publisher : S. Sridhar

Editorial Board

Vol. 48 No. 1 Jan - Feb 2008

Prof. S. RangaswamiK. Mrutumjaya RaoA.N. Yellappa ReddyDr. Rajiv SaxenaDr. A.B. ShanbhagArunayan SharmaS. SridharDr. Abraham Verghese, FRES (London)

A Skylark sings for maintaining its enduring and dominantpresence in its territory. It usually begins its sustainedrepertoire and allied aerial display from a perch; springingalmost vertically up; singing with swiftly queering wings,feet hanging limply beneath, gradually reaching incredibleheight and almost vanishing in the sky. Subsequently theSkylark remains suspended in the cerulean blue sky moreor less static; hovering on vibrating wings and floating withthe breeze, while continuing to pour out an uninterruptedspi r i ted loud and c lear melodious warb l ing song.Traditionally, several Skylarks perform this aerial acrobaticsand singing revelry throughout the day, over the same bit ofgrassland, as if trying to outsmart their competitors.

But lark lovers are quite mystified by the steady decline anddisappearance of larks, and the recent news about the arkslosing their ability to sing has indeed come as a bolt from theblue. Biologists from the Donana National Park in Andalucia,Spain found that when male larks had fewer birds from whichto learn new notes or ranges their repertoire decreased. Thenumber of notes a male uses is vital in attracting females.Dupont�s Lark (Chersophilus duponti) is found in Europe onlyin southern, central and north-east Spain and there are thoughtto be only 2,000 birds remaining, as their natural habitat hasbeen destroyed by man. In a study published in the JournalPublic Library of Science, this March, Spanish scientistsrecorded the singing range and number of notes of 330 malebirds, in the Ebro Valley region of North-east Spain. Usinghidden microphones in places the birds usually inhabited,they taped mating calls. Paola Laiolo, who led the researchteam, said �The females are attracted by the complexity and

range of the male�s song. We found that lack of variation of

notes in scales corresponded to the areas where thepopulation of larks is smallest. The birds which lacked tutorsor other male birds to learn from had the smallest range.Dupont�s Lark has a range of 12 singing sequences or

phrases and needs flat scrubland, but in Spain much of thishas been used for building development�.

The Indian Skylarks too seem to be facing similar predicamentsas much as their Spanish cousins, if one were to go by therecent sight records. You may visit your neighborhood grasslandhabitat or the meadows to see for yourself, as to how much ofthe skylark�s habitat and landscape has changed, when you fail

to see these elegant birds. All the elements of complex mosaicthat constituted the Skylark�s lifecycle have been thrown off the

air and the bird is silently flying off the track and plummetingtowards local extinction, while nobody seems to notice. Inconsequence, a real good opportunity to have their grievancesaddressed to free them from their misery is being lost.

The Skylarks are fighting shy to sing in a man-mutilated habitatand their progressive silence is rather distressing. Shouldn�twe be blaming ourselves for forcing the Skylarks to becomeshylarks?

Thanking you,Yours in bird conservation,

S. Sridhar, Publisher, NLBW

CONTENTS Note from the Publisher

Are we silencing the Skylarks?

Articles

Birds of Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, India,by P. C. Tak and J. P. Sati

Avifauna in and around the Indira Gandhi ZoologicalPark, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, by RahulPandey, P.S. Raja Sekhar and K.L.N. Murthy

Avian Diversity of Lonar Lake, District Buldana,Maharashtra, by P.M. Vyawahare

Twelve anxious days with a Sunbird family, by J. Sindhuand Vimala Rama Rao

Short note on first reporting of Birds in SitamataSanctuary (Part II), by Gobind Sagar Bhardwaj, IFS

An account of Asian Openbill (Anastomus oscitans)from the Purbasthali-Ganges Islets, Burdwan district,West Bengal, by Arunayan Sharma

Correspondence

Fire-Capped Tit (Cephalopyrus flammiceps), anaddition to the Keoladeo National Park, Bharatpur, byR.Venkitachalam

An interesting nest site selection by Little Brown Dove(Streptopelia senegalensis), by A.M.K.Bharos

Incidence and treatment of Plasmodium spp. in wildWhite-Eyed Buzzard (Batastur teesa) in Maharashtra,by Raju Kasambe, Tarique Sani and Sudhanshu Kothe

Breeding range extension of the Large IndianParakeet (Psittacula eupatria), by Anika Tere and B.M. Parasharya

Note from the Publisher

Dear fellow Birdwatchers,

Are we silencing the Skylarks?In this issue, we have published Vyawahare�s article, �Avian

Diversity of Lonar Lake, Maharashtra�. He has reported four

species from the Lark (Alaudidae) family. As I went throughthe list, I could nostalgically reminiscence the days whenwe used to hear the rippling, bubbling, aerial song of themale Eastern Skylark (Alauda gulgula) over the grasslandsand meadows on the outskirts of Bangalore.

Newsletter for Birdwatchers 48 (1), 2008 1

Girthiganga, Dauliganga, Rishiganga, Nandakini, Pindar,Helang, Garud, Birahiganga, etc..

About 33.60% area (2,698 km2 out of 8,030 km2) of thedistrict is forested (Anonymous, 2003). For In situconservation of its rich biodiversity, the district has one WorldHeritage Site (Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve), oneBiosphere Reserve (Nanda Devi), two National Parks (NandaDevi and Valley of Flowers), one Wildlife Sanctuary (part ofKedarnath Musk Deer), and three Important Bird Areas(Nanda Devi, Valley of Flowers, and part of Kedarnath MuskDeer Sanctuary). The vegetation is mainly composed ofunique sub-tropical, temperate and alpine floral components.The prominent natural vegetation of the area consists oftrees such as: Pine (Pinus roxburghi), Oaks (Quercusfloribunda and Q. leucotrichophora), Rhododendron(Rhododendron barbatum), etc. at lower altitudes (960-1500m); Blue Pine (Pinus wallichiana), Deodar (Cedrusdeodara), Taxus baccata, Spruce (Abies pindrow), SilverOak (Quercus semicarpifolia), etc. in the middle altitudes(1500-2800m); and Birch (Betula utilis), Rhododendron(Rhododendron arboreum), etc. at higher altitudes (2800-3500m), along with Brahm Kamal (Saussurea obvallata),Dhup (Salix sp.), etc. in the alpine zone (above 3500m).

Methodology

The present comprehensive bird list was prepared byconsulting the research papers and reports in original. Thenomenclature as given by Manakadan & Pittie (2001) hasbeen followed. The information on residential status, breedingstatus, basic food habits and altitudinal range of occurrenceof each species is based on Ali & Ripley (1968-78), Grimmettet al. (1998), Kazmierczak (2000) and published ResearchPapers (a-k, as referred in last column of the Table). Theconservation status presented here is as assigned by IUCN(2007), BNHS (2002), and Jhunjhunwala et al. (2001). Forconvenience, altitudinal range in metres (m) of each speciesas documented by Kazmierczak (2000) has also beenprovided in a separate column.

Analysis and Results

A total of 274 species of birds belonging to 142 genera and45 families have so far been recorded from the districtChamoli (Table). It constitutes 22% of the Indian bird diversity(1240 species) and 38% of the Uttarakhand (>700 species,list under preparation).

The family-wise analysis indicates that family Muscicapidae,the most crowded and the most diverse family of thepasserine birds, dominates the scene with 83 species(Turdinae 32, Timaliinae 16, Sylviinae 21, Muscicapinae 11,Monarchinae 1, Rhipidurinae 2), followed by Fringillidae (20),Accipitridae (18), Corvidae (13), Phasianidae (12),

Birds of Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, IndiaP. C. Tak and J. P. Sati, Northern Regional Station, Zoological Survey of India, 218- Kaulagarh Road,

P.O. IPE, Dehra Dun 248 195 (Uttarakhand) India. E-mail:- [email protected], [email protected]

Introduction

Chamoli is one of the northernmost border districts of themountainous state of Uttarakhand. The district is borderedby Tibet in the north, Almora and Bageshwar in the south,Uttarkashi, Rudraprayag and Pauri in the west and byPithoragarh and Bageshwar districts in the east. Since timeimmemorial, due to its multi-dimensional significance(geographical, historical, religious, cultural, etc.), the districthas attracted a large number of sages and saints, touristsand trekkers, mountaineers and sport-persons, naturalistsand scientists.

Osmaston (1921) was, perhaps, the f irst to provideinformation on nidification of 88 bird species from the thenBritish Garhwal (covering present Chamoli, Pauri andRudraprayag districts). Thereafter, Lavkumar (1956)contributed a list of 131 bird species from Garhwal.Ornithological information for the district is available mainlyfrom Nanda Devi area: Dang (1963) made a passing referenceof some birds; Reed (1979) added observations for 87 birdspecies; Tak and Kumar (1987) 77; Sankaran (1994) 112;Tak (1997) 170; and Sathyakumar (2003) 49. Mohan andNair (pers. comm. 2003). Islam and Rahmani (2004)identified 82 bird species from the Valley of Flowers area.An unpublished report of the Zoological Survey of India listed39 species from the district in 2004. Singh (2005) observed80 species of birds from the area of Kedarnath Musk DeerSanctuary falling in district Chamoli. Bhattacharya andSathyakumar (2007) recorded 113 species from Chenabvalley of the district located between Kedarnath Sanctuaryand Nanda Devi Biosphere.

This collectively has accumulated into a considerable amountof knowledge on the avian diversity of the district. Therefore,it was thought worthwhile to prepare a comprehensive listof the birds and to analyse their various status for the district.The present communication deals with a total of 274 species.

Study area

The district Chamoli was carved as separate district in 1960out of the erstwhile Garhwal district. The geographical areaof the district is about 8,030 km2 and lies at the co-ordinates79.350 N 30.400 E. The altitudinal range varies from around960 to 7,817m (Nanda Devi west peak) above mean sealevel. The summer temperature ranges from 150-300 C andin winter from below freezing to 240 C. The important groupsof mountain peaks and the glaciers in district are Kamet,Nanda Devi, Dronagiri, Trishul, Devsthan, Satopanth,Badrinath, Neelkanth, Chaukhamba, etc. The district is criss-crossed and drained by several important rivers and theirtributaries, namely, Alaknanda, Bhuynder, Amritganga,

mailto:[email protected]


2 Newsletter for Birdwatchers 48 (1) ,2008

Columbidae (11), Paridae and Cuculidae (09 each) and soon (Table).The following eight species are listed under variousThreat categories by IUCN 2007 (Table).

1. IndianWhite-backedVulture Gyps bengalensis CR

2. Long-billed Vulture Gyps indicus CR

3. Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus CR

4. Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus EN

5. Cheer Pheasant Catreus wallichii VU

6. Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus NT

7. Satyr Tragopan Tragopan satyra NT

8. Yellow-rumpedHoneyguide Indicator xanthonotus NT

Of the 274 species, 16 species are listed under Schedule Iof the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 (amended up to2003), 225 under Schedule IV, and one under Schedule V,while 26 species do not appear in any of these Schedules-NLA (Not Listed in the Act) (Bombay Natural History Society2002), whereas information on the remaining six species isnot available and is indicated with the sign of question mark(?) (Table).

Only three species, viz., Cheer Pheasant (Catreus wallichii),White-throated Tit (Aegithalos niveogularis) and OrangeBullfinch (Pyrrhula aurantiaca) are Restricted Range Species-RRS (4) and occur in endemic area number 4 i.e. WesternHimalayas. A total of 112 species are categorized as theBiome Restricted Species (BRS). Of these, 23 species arefrom the Eurasian High Montane (Alpine and Tibetan)- Biome(05); 65 from the Sino-Himalayan Temperate Forest-. Biome(07); 19 from the Sino-Himalayan Subtropical Forest- Biome(08); one from the Indo-Chinese Tropical Moist Forest-Biome (09) and five from the Indo-Malayan Tropical Dry Zone-Biome (11) (Jhunjhunwala et al. 2001) (Table).

The analysis of various categories and subcategories ofresidential status of these 274 species is summarised below:

Resident (R = widespread, r = sparse local) 91Resident with altitudinal movements (RA, rA) 96Summer visitor (S = Widespread, s = sparse local) 55Winter visitor(W = widespread, w = sparse local) 08Passage migrant (p = sparse local) 03Not known (?) 21

Total 274

As many as 189 species are reported to breed (br+) in thedistrict (Table). Further, an analysis of the basic food habitsreveals that the insectivorous birds dominate the scene with162 species (c. 59%), followed by seed eaters (25 species),frugivorous (15), granivorous (14), carnivorous (13), scavenger(10), vegetable matter (nine), aquatic animals, omnivorous andberries eaters (five each), nectivorous and animal and vegetablematter eaters (four each), and piscivorous (3).

Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Dr. Ramakrishna, the Director-in-Charge, Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata forencouragement throughout, to Shri P. T. Bhutia, Officer-in-Charge, Zoological Survey of India, Dehra Dun for variousfacilities.

ReferencesAli, S. and Ripley, S. 1968-78. Handbook of the Birds of India and

Pakistan. Oxford University Press, Bombay. Vols.1-10.Anon. 2003. The state of forest report. Forest Survey of India, Dehra

Dun.Bhattacharya, T. and Sathyakumar, S. 2007. An ornithological survey of

Chenab Valley,Chamoli district, Uttaranchal, including notes on pheasants. Indian Birds,

3(4): 138-145.BNHS (Bombay Natural History Society). 2002. A BNHS Review of Avifaunal

list of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. Buceros, 7 (3): 1- 56.Dang, Hari 1963. A natural sanctuary in the Himalaya: Nanda Devi and

the RishigangaBasin. Cheetal, 5 (2): 38-44.Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C. and Inskipp, T. 1998. Birds of the Indian

Subcontinent. Oxford University Press, New Delhi.Islam, M.Z. and Rahmani, A.R. 2004. Important Bird Areas in India: Priority

sites for conservation. Indian Bird Conservation Network: BombayNatural History Society and BirdLife International (UK). Pp.xviii + 1133.

IUCN 2007. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <http://www.iucnredlist.org/>/. Down December 2007.

Jhunjhunwala, S., Rahmani, A. R., Ishtiaq, F. and Islam, Z. 2001. TheImportant Bird Areas Programme in India. Buceros, 6 (2): 1-50.

Kazmierczak, K. 2000. A Field Guide to the Birds of India, Sri Lanka,Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. Om BookService, New Delhi.

Lavkumar, K.S. 1956. A contribution to the ornithology of Garhwal. J.Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 53 (3): 315-329.

Manakadan, R. and Pittie, A. 2001. Standardised common & scientificnames of the birds of Indian subcontinent. Buceros, 6 (1): i-ix + 1-37.

Osmaston, A.E. 1921. A note on the nidification and habits of some birdsin British Garhwal. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 28: 140-160.

Reed, T.M. 1979. A contribution to the Ornithology of the Rishi GangaValley and the Nanda Devi Sanctuary. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.,76(2): 275-282.

Sankaran, R. 1994. Ornithological survey of Nanda Devi National Park,India. Forktail, 10 (December): 115-128.

Sathyakumar, S. 2003. Conservation Status of Mammals and Birds inNanda Devi National Park: An assessment of changes over twodecades. In: Biodiversity Monitoring Expedition Nanda Devi 2003,18 June to 8 July 2003.

Singh, A.P. 2005. Bird watching in Kedarnath Musk Deer Sanctuary,Chamoli district, Uttaranchal: the upper Garhwal Himalayas. IndianBirds, 1(5): 104-106.

Tak, P.C. 1997. Aves. In: Fauna of Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve. (Ed:Anon.) (Fauna of Conservation Areas, 9) Zoological Survey of India,Calcutta, 129-150.

Tak, P.C. and Kumar, G. 1987. Wildlife of Nanda Devi National Park: anupdate. Indian J. For. 10: 184-190.

Zoological Survey of India (ZSI). (unpublished). Tour Report of GeneralFaunistic Survey of districts Chamoli and Rudraprayag (2004) by J.P. Sati.

http://www.iucnredlist.org/>/.


Coraciiformes

6 Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis R7 Small Blue Kingfisher Alcedo atthis R8 Stork-billed Kingfisher Halcyon capensis R9 White-breasted Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis R10 Lesser Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis R11 Small Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis R

Cuculiformes

12 Banded Bay Cuckoo Cacomantis sonneratii R13 Pied Crested Cuckoo Clamator jacobinus RM14 Common Hawk Cuckoo Cuculus varius R15 Asian Koel Eudynamys scolopacea R16 Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis R

Psittaciformes

17 Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri R

Apodiformes

18 House Swift Apus affinis R19 Asian Palm Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis R

Strigiformes

20 Barn Owl Tyto alba R21 Eurasian Eagle Owl Bubo bubo R22 Spotted Owlet Athene brama R23 Common Indian Nightjar Caprimulgus asiaticus R

Columbiformes

24 Blue Rock Pigeon Columba livia R25 Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis R

Gruiformes

26 Common Coot Fulica atra RM27 Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus R28 White-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus R

Ciconiiformes

29 Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago RM30 Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos RM31 Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus R32 Yellow-wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus RM33 Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus R34 Bonelli�s Eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus R35 Black Kite Milvus migrans R36 Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus R

Avifauna in and around the Indira Gandhi Zoological Park,Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.

Rahul Pandey1, P.S. Raja Sekhar2 and K.L.N. Murthy 31. Curator, Indira Gandhi Zoological Park, Visakhapatnam,

2. Associate Professor, Department of Environmental Sciences, Andhra University.3. Biologist, Indira Gandhi Zoological Park, Visakhapatnam.

A study was carried out on the diversity of avifauna in IndiraGandhi Zoological Park, and its adjoining areas for a periodof 3 months (Oct � Dec, 2007). The Zoo Park is

geographically positioned at longitude 830.04� to 830.20� and

latitude 170.34� to 170.47�. The forest type in the area is

southern tropical dry thorny forest and southern tropical scrubjungle. Unlike conventional zoos, it is situated amidst thevast expanse of Eastern Ghats with a total area of over 600acres, encompassed by hillocks, natural catchment areasand the sea shore of Bay of Bengal at the eastern side.Various species of birds from the nearby KambalakondaWildlife Sanctuary also regularly visit the zoo park forforaging. The study area has red laterite soils and the woodyvegetation is dominated by plant species that include Acaciaauriculiformis, Tectona grandis, Polyalthia longifolia, Acacianilotica, Tamarindus indicus, Borassus fiabellifer, Cocosnucifera, Azardirachta indica, Terminalia catappa andMangifera indica.

Observations were made in morning hours between 6:00AM and 9:00 AM and in the evening between 4:00 and 6:00PM. Binoculars (magnification 8 x 50) were used to spotthe birds located at a distance. Standard field guides (Ali,1996 and Grimmett et al, 2000) were used for identificationand confirmation of the bird species. All accessible routesin the zoo park and surrounding areas were surveyed forthe species documentation. The birds were classified intoResidents (R) and Resident Migrants (RM) as indicated byAli (1996). In the present investigation 78 bird speciesbelonging to 37 families and 12 orders were enumeratedduring our three month study period. Among the 78 birdspecies, 57 were resident species, 21 were residentmigrants.

TABLE 1 :

The systematic list of avifauna documented in the studyarea (between Oct 07 and Dec 07).

S.No. Common Name Scientific Name Status

Galliformes

1 Jungle Bush Quail Perdicula asiatica R2 Grey Partridge Francolinus pondicerianus R

Piciformes

3 Lesser Golden-backed Dinopium benghalense RWood Pecker.

4 Coppersmith Barbet Megalaima haemacephala R

Upupiformes

5 Common Hoopoe Upupa epops RM


37 Crested-serpent Eagle Spilornis cheela R38 Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus RM39 Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus RM40 Pale Harrier Circus macrourus R41 Shikra Accipiter badius R42 White-bellied Sea Eagle Haliaeetus leucogaster R43 Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis R44 Darter Anhinga melanogaster RM45 Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger RM46 Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo RM47 Large Egret Casmerodius albus RM48 Little Egret Egretta garzetta R49 Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis RM50 Indian Pond Heron Ardeola grayii R51 Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax R52 Grey Pelican Pelecanus RM53 Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala RM

Passeriformes

54 Common Woodshrike Tephrodornis pondicerianus R55 House Crow Corvus splendens R56 Jungle Crow Corvus macrorhynchos R57 Indian Treepie Dendrocitta vagabunda R58 Small Minivet Pericrocotus cinnamomeus R59 Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus60 Common Iora Aegithina tiphia R61 Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone paradisi RM62 Orange-headed Thrush Zoothera citrina RM63 Blue-headed Rock Thrush Monticola cinclorhynchus RM64 Oriental Magpie Robin Copsychus saularis R

65 Indian Blue Robin Luscinia brunnea RM66 Common Myna Acridotheres tristis R67 Bank Myna Acridotheres ginginianus R68 Pied Myna Sturnus contra R69 Common Swallow Hirundo rustica RM70 Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer R71 Red-whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus R72 Common Babbler Turdoides caudatus R73 Jungle Babbler Turdoides striatus R74 Purple Sunbird Nectarinia asiatica R75 Purple-rumped Sunbird Nectarinia zeylonica R76 White Wagtail Motacilla alba RM77 House Sparrow Passer domesticus R78 Tailorbird Orthotomus sutorius R

STATUS : R - ResidentRM - Resident Migrant

Acknowledgement

We are thankful to Dr. M. Venkaiah, Dept. of Botany, AndhraUniversity, Visakhapatnam for identification of plant speciesin the study area and the ground staff of Indira GandhiZoological Park, Visakhapatnam for their co-operation duringthe study.

ReferencesAli, S.1996, The book of Indian Birds (12th Revised and Centenary

Edition). Oxford University Press, New Delhi.354 P.

Grimmett, R., C. Inskipp and T. Inskipp 2000. Pocket guide to the birds ofIndian Subcontinent, Oxford University Press, New Delhi. 384 P.

Zenith, 10 x 50 range). The approximate number of eachspecies was counted and highest count was consideredand mentioned in the table.

ObservationsFollowing bird species were observed.R � Resident, LM � Local migratory, M � Migratory

PodicipedidaeDabchick Tachybaptus ruficollis R 30

PhalacrocoracidaeLittle Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger R 60

This bird is seen roosting on trees around the periphery of thelake but they never dive in lake water as there are no fish orfrogs. They feed at a nearby lake in the village.

Ardeidae

Lttle Egret Egretta garzetta R 47Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis R 62Pond Heron Ardeola grayii R 46Night Heron Nycticocorax nycticocorax R 3

Avian Diversity of Lonar Lake, District Buldana, MaharashtraP.M. Vyawahare, Reader, Department of Zoology, Z.B. Patil College, Dhule, M.S.

AbstractLonar Lake is a world famous crater lake covering a hugearea. The lake periphery is covered with bushes and talltrees which provide suitable habitat for many bird species.The lake water, having a pH of 9.5 to 10, is salty and attractsa variety of migratory waders and waterfowl. Since no datapertaining to avifauna of this region is available it was decidedto prepare a checklist of birds along with their approximatepopulation. Observations were carried out during 1999 to2001 and the area was revisited during 2005. The first partwas funded by UGC. The results show that Lonar Lake andnearby area support a total of 109 bird species out of which61 are residents or local species, 21 are local migrants,while 27 are long distance migrants. The present workprovides a base line data of the avian diversity of this regionfor future work.

Material and MethodsLonar lake area was visited many times during study periodand birds were observed by using a field binocular (Super


LaridaeRiver Tern Sterna aurantia R 2

Not observed on Lonar lake water but at another small pond inthe Lonar village.

ColumbidaeBlue Rock Pigeon Columba livia R 20Seen mostly in the village

Little Brown Dove Streptopelia senegalensis R 6Seen on the outskirts of the Lonar Lake

Eurasian-collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto R 4Pompadour Green Treron pompadora R 5Pigeon

PsittacidaeRose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri R 35Small flocks were seen at sunset

Blossom-headed PsittaculaParakeet cyanocephala R 5

CuculidaeAsian Koel Eudynamys scolopacea R 10

They were observed more on the trees and bushes aroundthe lake periphery

Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis R 2

StrigidaeEurasian Eagle Owl Bubo bubo R 1Seen once

ApodidaeHouse Swift Apus affinis R 30Seen in the temples around the lake

AlcedinidaeSmall Blue Kingfisher Alcedo atthis R 1White Breasted Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis R 3These were not observed on lake water, as there were no fishesin it. They were fishing in the lake inside the Lonar village.Lesser Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis LM 2Not observed in Lonar Lake but in a small lake near the Lonar village.MeropidaeSmall Bee-eater Merops orientalis LM 20CoraciidaeIndian Roller Coracias benghalensis LM 3UpupidaeHoopoe Upupa epops R 5BucerotidaeIndian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros birostris R 2

CapitonidaeCoppersmith Barbet Megalaima haemacephala R 2

PicidaeLesser Golden-backedWoodpecker Dinopium benghalense R 1Great Black Woodpecker Dryocopus javensis R 2

AlaudidaeRufous-tailed Finch-Lark Ammomanes phoenicurus R 2

Seen on the agricultural land at the margins of the lake.

Common Crested Lark Galerida cristata R 1

Grey Heron Ardea cinerea R 2

All the members of Ardeidae roost at trees of the lake, but feedelsewhere.

CiconiidaeOpen-bill Stork Anastomus oscitans LM 1Seen only once.White-necked Stork Ciconia episcopus LM 3

ThreskiornithidaeWhite Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus LM 2Spoon Bill Platalea leucorodia LM 1Seen only once

AnatidaeLesser Whistling Duck Dendrocygna Javanica LM 7Brahminy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea LM 2Comb Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos M 2Cotton Teal Nettapus coromandelianus LM 10Eurasian Wigeon Anas Penelope M 20Mallard Anas platyrhynchos M 2Seen Once only

Spot bill Duck Anas poecilorhyncha LM 150Northern Shoveller Anas clypeata M 153Northern Pintail Anas acuta M 153Garganey Anas querquedula M 60Common Teal Anas crecca M 4Red-crested Pochard Rhodonessa rufina M 12Common Pochard Aythya Ferina M 2Tufted Pochard Aythya fuligula M 2

AccipitridaeOriental Honey Buzzard Pernis ptilorhynchus LM 1Seen only once.Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus R 2Black Kite Milvus migrans R 1White Eyed Buzzard Butastur teesa LM 1Seen OncePhasianidaeGrey Francolin Francolinus pondicerianus R 3Indian Pea-fowl Pavo cristatus R 2

RallidaeWhite-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis Phoenicurus R 6Common Coot Fulica atra R 200CharadrridaeLittle-ringed Plover Charadrius dubius M 13Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus M 3Yellow Wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus R 2Red wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus R 1

ScolopacidaeCommon Redshank Tringa totanus M 2Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus M 5Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola M 6Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos M 21Little Stint Calidris minuta M -

All above members are found mostly around the lake insidethe Lonar village.

Recurvirostridae

Back-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus M 27


Purple Sunbird Nectarinia asiatica R 5

ZosteropidaeOriental White-eye Zosterops palpebrosa

PasserinaeHoue Sparrow Passer domesticus R 4Yellow-throated Sparrow Petronia xanthocollis R 2

PloceinaeBaya Weaver Ploceus philippinus R 6

SturnidaeBrahminy Starling Sturnus pagodarum LM 7Rosy Starling Sturnus roseus M 200Common Myna Acridotheres tristis R 20

OriolidaeEurasian Golden Oriole Oriolus oriolus LM 3

DicruridaeBlack Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus R 9

CorvidaeHouse Crow Corvus splendens R 26

The house crows were not seen roosting on the Lonar lakeperiphery trees.

Jungle Crow Corvus macrorhynchos R 5

ResultsThe avian diversity of Lonar lake and nearby area covers a totalnumber of 109 bird species. Out of this 61 are residents orlocal species, 21 are local migrants while 27 are migrants.The above findings provide a baseline data for future work onbirds of this region.

AcknowledgementAuthor is thankful to UGC for providing financial assistanceand to the Principal of Jai Hind College, Dhule. Thanks arealso due to local forest guard posted at Lonar Lake by theforest department.

ReferencesAli, S.A. (1979). The book of Indian Birds, BNHS, Bombay

Ali, S.A. and Ripley S.D. (1983). The Pictorial guide to the birds of Indiansub-continent, BNHS, Bombay

Ali, S.A. and Ripley S.D. (1987). Compact Handbook of the Birds of Indiaand Pakistan (II ed.) Oxford University Press, Bombay

Woodcock (1986). Collins Hand Guide of Birds from IndianSubcontinent. William Collins and Sons and Company Ltd.London.

Material for publication should be sent

(in duplicate) by post or courier to :

Newsletter for BirdwatchersNo 10, Sirur Park B Street, Seshadripuram,

Bangalore 560 020, India.

along with a soft copy (in MS Word format only) via

E-mail to <[email protected]>

Address for Correspondence :

Newsletter for BirdwatchersNo 10, Sirur Park B Street, Seshadripuram,

Bangalore 560 020, India. Tel. 080 2356 1142, 2346 4682E-mail : <[email protected]>

Printed and Published bi-monthly by S. Sridhar atNavbharath Enterprises, Seshadripuram, Bangalore - 560 020, India.

for Private Circulation Only.

Sykes Crested Lark Galerida deva R 2Eastern Skylark Alauda gulgula R 2

HirundinidaeDusky Crag Martin Hirundo concolor R 2Common Swallow Hirundo rustica M 35Wire-tailed Swallow Hirundo smithii M 1Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica

MotacillidaeWhite Wagtail Motacilla alba M 2Large Pied Wagtail Motacilla maderaspatensis R 2Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea M 4Oriental Tree Pipit Anthus hodgsoni LM 1

PycnonotidaeRed-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer R 30

IrenidaeCommon Iora Aegithina tiphia R 2

LaniidaeBay-backed Shrike Lanius vittatus LM 1Rufous-backed shrike Lanius schach LM 1Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor LM 2

MuscicapidaeTimaliinaeHodgson�s Scimitar-Babbler Pomatorhinus schisticeps R 2

TurdinaeOriental Magpie-Robin Copsychus saularis R 3Indian Robin Saxicoloides fulicata R 2Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros LM 2Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata R 5Indian Chat Cercomela fusca R 2

SylviinaeAshy Prinia Prinia socialis R 10Common Tailorbird Orthotomus sutorius R 1Common lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca M 25Orphean Warbler Sylvia hortensis M 1

TimaliinaeCommon Babbler Turdoides caudatus R 8RhipidurinaeWhite-browed Fantail Flycatcher Rhipidura aureola LM 1

NectariniidaePurple-rumped Sunbird Nectarinia zeylonica R 2

mailto:[email protected]>

mailto:[email protected]>


again, and the mother peeped into the nest also. The chickoutside was not calling continuously after the feeding. After4 feeds, the mother fed the one in the nest at 1420.

The yellow chick was perching on a thin twig at about 8inches from the ground. A pair of Red-whiskered Bulbulsand a White-eye were curious and coming near. I saw thatthe other chick had also come out and was in a cleft in theHenna bush. I clipped the twig and put the yellow chickalso there. The mother came and the chicks were not inthe bush after that. At 1600 a flock of White-headed Babblerscame to the Henna bush. Both the chicks were down onthe ground under a jasmine bush. The male went to theempty nest, hovered for a while. This behavior was verynoticeable whenever there were other birds around. Once iteven went into the nest, possibly to distract attention ofother birds, away from the chicks.

At 1815 a cat appeared and we chased it away and on Mr.Sridhar�s advice brought the chicks indoors. The younger

chick (female) clung to a twig which we brought in. It wasshy of feeding but later lapped up honey-water. On 22-03-07 the yellow chick (male?) was up early and had a goodfeed. The other was still asleep curled up in the soft rag.We took the basket out and put it on the Henna shrub. Theparents came to feed the chicks. The smaller chick wasnot begging for food. By 2045 we tried to feed them, theyellow chick had food; the other did not.

At 1000 the cat was about to spring, and was shooed away;we put the basket inside a larger basket with a lid. On Mr.Sridhar�s advice, we put it on a branch overhanging the drive,

so that a cat couldn�t climb up. At 1030 both parents

inspected the basket, fed the chicks and hovered around.Having been fed frequently, the yellow chick was out sittingon the basket by 1400. Curious squirrels and inquisitivecrows began paying attention.

I brought the basket in and coaxed the yellow chick to enterit with much trouble. We covered the mouth of the basketwith chicken-mesh and tied with string and put it out. Bothparents approached the basket and the chick was seentrying to get out. A pair of bulbuls came and sat inquisitivelyjust a foot above the basket and gazed at the chicks. Theparent sunbirds tried to distract them, such incidentshappened quite often. At 1615 a pair of white-eyes came.They had a fight with the parent Sunbirds and sat near thebasket. These birds persistently tried to come near thesunbird chicks several times a day.

That night also we brought the basket in, fed the chicksand kept them safe indoors and they had a good feed ofhoney and water. On 23-03-07 at 0700 we put the basketout with the mesh open. By 0900, the yellow chick was

Twelve Anxious Days with a Sunbird Family J. Sindhu and Vimala Rama Rao, No 267, Sadashivanagar, Bangalore 560 080

After the strange episode of infanticide by a female Purple-rumped Sunbird (Nectarinia zeylonica) (NLBW, Vol.46, No.3,PP.44-45), we had no sunbirds nesting in our garden forabout 17 months. On 16-08-06 a nest was started in a Hennashrub and completed in a week. But it was not used. Fivemonths later on 22-1-07, a male Sunbird came into the housefrom an open window and sat on the ceiling fan, a lightfixture and the loft, spending a good twenty minutes movingabout the house and then going out through the window ofanother room.

On 31-01-07 a new nest was started a foot or so away fromthe unused nest and completed in a week. On 18-02-07 thefemale bird was sitting in the nest. By the 14th of Marchcheeping was heard from the nest and the mother was feedingchicks. The male came and hovered in front of the nestoften. 16-03-07 � Two small beaks were peeping out. On

going close to the nest with its north-eastern entrance, I(VRR) noticed two beaks, one above the other.

After I came in, both parents came and sat near the window,scolding loudly. The chicks seemed very active, shakingthe nest with their movements. On 20-03-07 the nest wasthinned out with the chicks moving about and at about 1800hrs., we noticed one of the chicks on a thin twig of Henna,about four feet from the ground. At dusk, on Mr. S. Sridhar�sadvice, we brought it indoors by clipping the twig and put itin a basket with soft rags. We fed it honey and water whichit learnt to lap up with its tongue from the narrow channel ofa spoon handle. It had two feeds that night and we put thebasket on a stand in a plate of water to prevent ants fromgetting at it; and a soft cloth on the basket handle to keepout mosquitos.

On 21-03-07, we fed the chick and at 0640 put the chickback in the nest. Soon the mother came and fed the chicks.I had fashioned an old sari like a hammock and placed itunder the nest to prevent the chicks falling on hard groundand stones. At 1030 the chick had fallen out and I coaxed itback towards the nest using the cloth and never touching itby hand. It sat just an inch above the nest and preened. At1050 the mother fed the chick in the nest. 7 feeds later thischick had not been fed. At 1200 the male came and made alot of noise near the window from where I was watching. At1230 the chick came on to the nest and begged its motherfor food. The mother did not respond. This happenedrepeatedly, and the chick was cheeping continuously andwas in the hot sun. At 1320 I tried to feed it honey-waterwith a small steel bowl and spoon, but could not reach itsbeak. But the sunrays flashed on the bowl and the motherbegan to protest loudly. At 1330 the mother who had ignoredthe chick for 3 hours though it was on the nest, now cameand fed it in its new perch a couple of feet away. At 1342 fed


sitting on the edge and by 1000 it was out on the groundunder the red hibiscus shrub. Then it hopped on to a lowtwig and at about 1115, it flew 7-8 feet to the Henna shrub.The mother continued to feed it, when I noticed the cat onprowl, and I chased it away promptly. At 1130 the chickmade a 12 foot long flight to the hibiscus bush. After this,the yellow chick which turned out to be a male never had tobe brought in, or guarded. It was seen off and on and seemedquite independent; only its fluttery flight revealing its chickstatus. On 1st April morning the mother came and was seenimparting flying lessons to its fledgling.

The second chick was much slower in its development andlearning skills. On 22nd March, when the other one fledgedsuccessfully, this remained in the basket and the motherwas not feeding her (most probably it was a female). Bigvicious ants were attracted to the fecal matter. We got rid ofthe ants and threw away the cloth lining the basket. Themother started feeding the chick quite frequently through agap in the basket, till evening. We brought the basket in,fed the chick honey-water and it was asleep by 1920. On24-03-07 the same procedure was repeated in the morningat 0700. By 1000, the chick would not come to the gap inthe basket to accept the feed and the mother was evidentlyanxious. I opened the lid and found the chick sitting on aglove with which we had brought it in the previous day. Soonbig black ants were swarming all over. We removed the glovewhich had the faecal matter and put the chick into an openmetal basket with mesh on the top. Ants were seen movingalong the twig towards the basket again at 1020 and on Mr.Sridhar�s advice, we drew Krossline (insect repellent) chalk

all along the twig holding the basket. The mother startedfeeding the chick after inspecting the basket which had holesall over. Ants stopped coming after the lines were drawn.

On that day, the mother was bringing insects but the chickwould not accept unless it was made into pap. Insect feedswere alternated with honey from the hibiscus flowers rightthere. At 1120 two Red-whiskered Bulbuls came, and sattwo feet away from the chick. The mother Sunbird was visiblyagitated. I threw a comb right away from the window at thebulbuls and they flew off summarily.

The basket was in full sun and being made of metal, wasmoderately hot. Therefore, I (VRR) pulled the branchanchoring the basket into the shade and tied it, a few inchesfrom the window. Feeding went on all day and at 1710, Ireleased the branch back to its original position. The chickwas seen hopping about inside the basket. At night fall webrought it in and fed it with mashed rice and honey dilutedwith water. It slept without curling up in the soft clothprovided.

On 25-03-07, we put out the basket, with the mesh open at0720, but the chick preferred to stay put. By 0840 after themother had given it many feeds and coaxed it to come out.It sat on a nearby twig for hours, being fed by both parents,and at very short intervals. On an average the chick was fedfive times in 10 minutes. By 1830 in the evening it took off

and flew 4-5 feet away and the mother went away. Webrought the chick indoors by clipping the twig on which thechick had perched.

Crows come often to the Henna to get twigs for their nestsvery early in the morning. The chick had honey-water, refusedboiled rice, slept in the basket safely. On 26-3-07 thingswere much the same. The chick was taken out with thebasket and a little later it came out and flew into the shrub.It made short flights of a few feet to nearby tangles. Butmostly, sat in one place and was being fed frequently. Atdusk it flew off into the bougainvillea and morning glorythicket and was heard cheeping. It was its first night alonein the open, after leaving the nest/basket.

On 27th, 28th and 29th, it stayed in the Henna and Hibiscushedge, never going very far and the mother was seen feedingit. On the 30th & 31st it was seen making short flights. On 1-4-07 the older chick came and enticed its younger siblingto fly to the backyard. It was seen infrequently in the vicinityand seemed to be quite independent.

On 2-4-07 the younger chick mostly stayed in the familiararea drinking honey from jasmine flowers, not flying awaywhen I (VRR) went to get flowers. But yet the mother wasfeeding her every now and then. It seemed to be quite slowin learning survival-skills. In the 12 days that we have closelyobserved the growth of these chicks, there have been severalinstances of common garden birds showing curiosity. Theyhave gone very near to the sunbird chicks and I have shooedthem away. Only a wagtail with a brown head tried to peckthe chick. White-eyes, four of them, were very aggressivebut, did not attack the chick. Another bird, much biggerthan sunbirds grey-beige in colour, was a very frequent visitor.The parent sunbirds did not mind it.

After our experience of 18th March 2005, when we saw anest attacked and two chicks killed, the new nest was botha pleasure and a source of anxiety. Luckily, squirrels whichabound here did not harm the nest. But we had to interveneso many times and the chicks had to be moved to differentbaskets and locations. Luckily, the parents seemed toaccept us and our help.

Perhaps they were glad to have someone baby-sit thechicks at night, wash their soiled cloths and hand themover safe and sound in the morning!

Summing up the Utopian Experience

From the first evening we took in the chicks, we noticedthat they were temperamentally very different. One chickwas at a more advanced stage of development; it was alsomore aggressive and demanding whenever we attempted tofeed them. On the first night, the aggressive chick lungedat the spoon that held honey-water; even after it had its fill,it did not let us feed the other chick without fighting for thespoon. However, it did not show any aggression towardsthe smaller chick, which was rather quiet and docile. Afterwe fed both, we bedded them down for the night on softrags in a spacious basket. The next morning, we found that


the bigger aggressive chick was sleeping on top of thesmaller docile sibling, in the same manner as we hadobserved when they were still in the nest.

The bigger chick learnt to fly the same day, hence wereleased him. He was quite confident and his maiden flightcovered a long distance for such a small bird. His learningquotient was a cut-above his smaller sibling. For the nextfew days, we took care of the smaller chick, which theparents kept feeding (mainly the mother; the father merelyhovered around).

Every evening we took the chick in, fed her for the night andput her to sleep. In the morning, she usually would nothave stirred from the position in which she had gone tosleep. Two days after the older chick had fledged and gone,the smaller chick decided to perk up and demand food moreloudly. Until then it had a tiny voice and used to remainquiet because its sibling made all the noise to attract theparents� attention.

One night we fed it mashed cooked rice (it ate 2 1/2 grains)and honey water, since its mother had been feeding itinsects all day. We noticed that she punctuated insectfeeds with nectar feeds, because it was high summer andthe chicks get very quickly dehydrated from continuouscalling. On the day we released the smaller chick, it wouldnot come out of its cage at all. Only when the mother cameinto the cage to feed it and coaxed it to come out, did itventure to hop out. Even then it sat on a nearby twigthroughout the day, without moving about. It would cheepand beg for food continuously and become excited wheneverit saw its mother coming.

When bigger birds such as bulbuls or even crows came tothe bush, the little one only closed its eyes and froze; itdidn�t try to fly to a safer spot. All day we kept shooing

squirrels, white-eyes and other regular garden birds awayfrom the little one. Between 1740 and 1840 hrs, when wereleased it, it hopped from twig to twig until it reached thehenna plant, which is a few feet away from where we hadreleased it. It went to sleep there, perched on a very thintwig. We cut the twig without touching the baby and put itindoors in its basket for the night. On the morning of 26th

March 07, we released it for good.

Throughout our involvement with the chicks, we did not touchthem with bare hands; always with garden gloves. We foundthat they are very trusting and quickly got accustomed tofeeding from a steel spoon. We used the handle of the spoonto convey food to their beaks; they lapped up the honeywater with their long tubular tongues. Also, their behaviorwas to a large extent triggered by light; for e.g. when webrought them asleep at dusk into a brightly-lit room, theywoke up and started cheeping. Similarly when we turned offthe lights, they would become quiet and fall asleep at once.

Another amazing fact which we experienced was that theparent sunbirds were very accommodating and tolerant ofour interference with the chicks. It was almost as if they

knew that we were only concerned for the chicks� safety. So

even if we used three different baskets (two were dull; onewas bright orange) to put the chicks in, on different occasions,they showed no fear or distrust. The mother sunbird fed themas if the baskets were no different from the nest. Also, thefather exhibited some strange behavior throughout the timewhen the mother was feeding the chicks in our basket. Hewould fly to the empty nest (which we had earlier fortified withan old sock) and perch at the entrance and peep in and staythere for as long as the feeding at the basket continued. Whenthe mother flew off, he would fly off too. It was almost as if hewas trying to mislead possible predators away from the basket,by pretending to be feeding the chicks at the nest. (At firstwe suspected that there might be a third chick, but therewere only the two which we handled).

The regular garden birds were very curious about the chicks;we both felt that they posed a real threat to them. One (dun-colored, small) bird (silent mostly) acted the role of nursemaidand babysitter throughout the period when the babies werenearing the fledging stage. Even this nurse-bird tried to peckthe smaller chick when the parents were away, and we hadto chase it off. It would never go far, but would hop around inthe immediate vicinity, eating insects.

Another threat to the chicks came in the farm of big black orred stinging ants. They were attracted to the fecal matterdeposited on the rags by the chicks. In order to protectthem at night, we filled a large plate with water, put a dining-table stand in the middle of the water and placed the babies�basket on the stand. To protect them from mosquitoes, wedraped a soft thin cotton rag over the basket handle like amosquito net. In the daytime, we drew the toxic insectrepellent �Laxman Rekha� or �Krossline� on the branch where

we had hung the basket, on either side of the basket-handle.Both methods proved highly effective. Since one of thebasket used was full of holes, we placed it on a newspaperon the floor, and drew �Laxmanrekha� all around the

newspaper. This also worked very well as an ant-repellant.

The bio-clock of the chicks was in no way disturbed or alteredby our interference. They went to sleep at dusk and remainedasleep all night. They would wake up very early in the morningand start cheeping as soon as other bird calls could beheard outside the house.

The second chick, on the whole, was slower in every learningprocess and also grew at a slower pace compared to itsolder sibling. On the day before we released it for good (26th),it cheeped only when it heard its mother coming, with foodand not otherwise, as if conserving its energy. The feedingpattern for both chicks was the same, as far as the motherwas concerned, she fed them more and more often towardsdusk, (as if to help them surmount the night ahead) andmore frequently as they approached fledging-stage.

Subsequently, we have had two more sunbird nests indifferent locations of our garden and both were successful.Two male chicks fledged from the last nest on 24-02-08.


Part II

Indian Cuckoo (Cuculus micropterus) (Cover Pic 6)

While I was observing the Black-naped Monarchs at nest, Inoticed some movement in a tree adjacent to the mangotree. A cuckoo had alighted on a branch and I took a fewphotographs of the cuckoo for comparison and identification.It was an Indian cuckoo.

The dark band on the tail was clearly visible. The head wasgrey with brownish upper parts on the wings, and it hadbrownish iris (the iris is yellow in Eurasian Cuckoo). Nodark barring was present on the white band of the wings, asseen in the Eurasian Cuckoo.

Eurasian Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus)I had also sighted the Eurasian Cuckoo on 12th of October,2006 near Bansi, which is around ten kilometers away fromthe Sitamata Sanctuary. I again saw this bird near JawaharNagar area of Dhariawad which is around 5 kilometers fromthe boundary of the Sitamata Sanctuary boundary

Eurasian Sparrow Hawk (Accipiter nisus) (Cover Pic 3)I spotted an Eurasian Sparrow Hawk on 17th June 2007about half a kilometer ahead of the Sitamata temple. Thisbird was seen perching on a branch of a mango tree adjacentto the stream.

Jungle Owlet (Glaucidium radiatum) (Cover Pics 1 and 2)I had recorded Jungle owlets from three different sites of theSitamata Sanctuary. On 18th of June 2007, I saw one nearRanna area and one nest with two chicks in Sitamata area,(where I had recorded the White throated ground thrush,the black-naped monarch, the Indian cuckoo and theEurasian sparrow hawk. Again on 1st of July 2007, I sawone in the evergreen forest patch along the Jakham River.

Short note on first reporting of Birds in Sitamata Sanctuary, Gobind Sagar Bhardwaj, IFS, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Pratapgarh,

Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, E-mail: [email protected]

(Continued from last issue : Vol 47 No 6 Nov - Dec 2007)

Common-hawk Cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius) (CoverPics 4 and 5)

Six individual Common-hawk cuckoos were seen on 17th ofJune 2007, three in Valmik Ashram area and three morenear the Sitamata temple. On 1st of July it was again sightedin the same area. During my observation period they wereseen perching adjacent to the streams.

Changeable Hawk Eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus)

It was a hot day of March 2007. I was returning fromDhariabad via Punga talab area. This is an area of Sitamatasanctuary where the highway passes through the forestmainly dominated by Teak (Tecona grandis), Gurjan (Lanneacoromendelica), Tendu (Diospyros melanoxylon), Dhawra(Anogeissus latifolia) etc., which were nearly leafless duringthat period.

There is no perennial source of water in this area. In theevening I heard shrieking calls of some raptors. They werethree in number. Their crests were clearly visible. They allwere perching in three different trees of Gurjan. When I gotdown from the vehicle, they flew away. It was on 20th April2007, that I could sight one of these eagles again nearArampura of the Sitamata Sanctuary.

Unidentified birds in Sitamata Sanctuary (Cover PicsUIB 1, 2, and 3.)

I have also photographed three birds which I found difficultto match with the images given in different books. I requestthe knowledgeable readers of the Newsletter to identify thesethree birds.

I went to Purbasthali-Ganges Islets for a survey of thewaterfowl for three days from 26th January 2007. Duringthe survey along a stretch of 20km long from this freshwaterriver system, I recorded large number of Asian OpenbillsAnatomus oscitans (Table1). Some small groups andscattered individuals were also recorded from the area duringthe survey. A roosting colony of Asian Openbills were alsorecorded at Idrakpur Char and counted every day (Table 2).Highest number of Asian Openbill was recorded on 26th

An Account of Asian Openbill Anastomus oscitans from thePurbasthali-Ganges Islets, Burdwan district, West Bengal

Arunayan Sharma, Centre for Ecological Engineering, Netaji Subhash Road, In front of T.O.P,Malda � 732 101, West Bengal. Email : [email protected]

The River Ganges forms a number of islets at Purbasthali,between the districts of Burdwan and Nadia in WestBengal. The 20km long wetland habitat of Purbasthali isnear Kasthashali in Chupi in Burdwan district. This wetlandcomplex is actually a cluster of riverine isles, ox-bow lakesand river channels. A large number of migratory waterbirdsespecially waterfowl arrive in this fresh water andpartly marshy habitat which provides a wide variety of foodsfor waterbirds.




January 2007 and lowest number was recorded on 28th

January 2007 (Table 3).Within the surveyed area along theeither banks of the river; I did not notice any nesting activitiesof the Asian Openbills. On the contrary, they seemed to bepreparing to migrate to other places.

Table 1. Showing an account of groups of Asian Openbillsrecorded from various locations of the Purbasthali-GangesIslets, Burdwan district, West Bengal.

Kashthasali Nidoya Medtala Shankarpur Baladanga Rukunpur TotalDate Char Char Char Char Char Char

26-1-07 384 870 435 920 640 611 386027-1-07 292 825 637 870 655 484 376328-1-07 307 796 458 745 687 532 3525

Table 2. Showing an account of individual Asian Openbillsrecorded form the Purbasthali-Ganges Islets, Burdwandistrict, West Bengal.

Date Scattered Roosting Population Population

26th Jan 07 240 124

27th Jan 07 128 87

28th Jan 07 198 62

Table 3. Showing an account of total individuals of AsianOpenbills recorded form the Purbasthali-Ganges Islets,Burdwan district, West Bengal.

Date Group Scattered Roosting TotalPopulation Population Population

26th Jan 07 3860 240 124 422427th Jan 07 3763 128 87 397828th Jan 07 3525 198 62 3785

The Asian Openbill has a large range with an estimatedglobal extent of occurrence of 1,000,000-10,000,000 km². It

has a large global population estimated to be 130,000individuals (Wetlands International- 2002). Global populationtrends have not been quantified, but the species is notbelieved to approach the thresholds for the population declinecriterion of the IUCN Red List (i.e. declining more than 30%in ten years or three generations). For these reasons, this

species is evaluated as �Least Concern � (Birdlife

International-2007). This species is native to and breeds inBangladesh, India, Bhutan, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam,Laos, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka (BirdlifeInternational- 2007).

The total breeding population of Asian Openbills in the SouthAsia is more than 1, 25,000 and the 1% threshold populationis 1,250 individuals (Wetlands International- 2002). As perthe recent records of Asian Openbills from the Purbasthali-Ganges Islets in their non-breeding season, in winter, outsidea heronry reveals that this stretch of islets of the GangesRiver holds more than 3 % existing population of AsianOpenbills of South Asia, even during the non breedingseason. As per the criteria of Important Bird Area, thePurbasthali-Ganges Islets of Burdwan district, West Bengalwhich supports such large number of Asian Openbills evenin winter must be protected and designated as an ImportantBird Area of West Bengal under the category Congregation(A4i) of Waterbirds (Islam & Rahmani 2004). However asper its avifaunal wealth the Purbasthali-Ganges Islets hasbeen evaluated, estimated and qualified as a top priority listto be declared as a Ramsar site (Vijayan et. al � 2004). If

protected and with some conservation efforts this stretchalong the river can be developed as an excellent heronry.

References:

Birdlife International (2007): Species factsheet: Anatomus oscitans.Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org

Islam, M.Z. & Rahmani A.R (2004): Important Bird Area in India: Prioritysites for conservation. Indian Bird Conservation Network: BombayNatural History Society and Birdlife International, U.K.

Javed, S. & Kaul, R (2002): Field Methods for Bird Surveys. BombayNatural History Society-Mumbai, Department of Wildlife Sciences,Aligarh Muslim University- Aligarh and World Pheasant Association,South-Asia Regional Office (SARO), New Delhi, India.

Kumar, A; Sati, J.P; Tak, P.C & Alfred, J.R.B (2005): Handbook on IndianWetland Birds and their Conservation, Zoological Survey of India,Kolkata.

Vijayan, V.S., Prasad, S.N., Vijayan, L & Muralidharan, S (2004): InlandWetlands of India-Conservation Priorities. Salim Ali Centre forOrnithology and Natural History, Coimbatore.

Wetlands International (2002): Waterbird Population Estimates � ThirdEdition. Wetlands International Global Series 12, Wageningen, theNetherlands.

CORRESPONDENCE

FIRE-CAPPED TIT (Cephalopyrus flammiceps), ANADDITION TO THE KEOLADEO NATIONAL PARK,BHARATPUR, by R.VENKITACHALAM, Scientist �A�.Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai. E-mail:[email protected]

Keoladeo National Park situated between 27°29,5 N and

77°33,9 E and lies 50 km west of Agra and 150 km south of

Delhi. Its total area is about 29 sq.km out of which about8.9 sq, km is wetland.

Vijayan (1987), Kumar (1997) and L, Vijayan (1994), hadstudied the avifauna of this park. So far, 354 species hasbeen reported.

During field visit to the park on 24.09.05, I have sightedFire-Capped tit on Acacia tree in the woodland. It wasforaging on top of the tree canopy. It was a small bird, hadred crown and throat. Green above with two thin, white wingbars (Ali and Ripley, 1971).

References:Ali and Ripley, S.D (1971) Handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan.

Oxford University Press. Delhi and Oxford.Vijayan (1980-90) Keoladeo National Park Ecology Study. Bombay Natural

History Society (Final report).

http://www.birdlife.org



Acknowledgement:

I am thankful to the Principal Chief Wildlife warden, ArunPrasad, Park Director and Rajasthan State forestDepartment for permission to work and for his co-operation.I also owe my deep gratitude to Lalitha Vijayan and Dr.V.S.Vijayan, Director of SACON.

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AN INTERESTING NEST SITE SELECTION BY LITTLEBROWN DOVE. (Streptopelia senegalensis)A.M.K.BHAROS. B-101, Gayatrinagar, PO; Shankarnagar,RAIPUR. CG, 492 007

The species is known to breed practically throughout theyear chiefly from January to October. Its nest is ridiculouslyflimsy and sketchy platform of twigs and grass placed lowdown in bushes, cornices and rafters or on a rolled up chik,in inhabited dwellings. Invariably two eggs are laid (Ali &Ripley-1987). Whereas Stuart Baker mentions that thenests are occasionally built on bare ground. Grimmett &Inskipps �1998, describe the nests being built on lowbushes, date palms etc.

On the morning of 1st May 2007, on our residence and attop roof floor, about 11 meters above ground and concealedamongst the stacked old unserviceable furniture and otherhousehold articles; a nest with two fledglings was spotted.It was a flimsy platform built of mostly of dry grass stemsuntidily and placed directly on bare concrete floor. A rolledold mat provided partial shade to the nest and itsoccupants from above. There was no vegetation of any kindwithin 15 Meter radius of the nest. However it was quiteinvisible and cleverly concealed to protect it from Shikra(Accipiter badius), House Crows (Corvus splendens) andother predators of the locality. The nest with chicks wasphotographed by removing few of the household articles.

This summer, when at that time the day temperature hadrisen to 40- 42O C, the overheated floor and almost directsun did not provide any comfort to the occupants. Obviouslythe nest was built without taking into the account thesecontingencies. Yet surprisingly the two chicks survived,despite intense heat both from the nest floor and the topand other archetypical threats. These chicks were seenwith other birds when they left the nest.

The building of the nest on bare concrete floor about 11meters above ground, exposed to sun and heat both fromtop and bottom, with only partial shade was rather unusualand interesting.

References :Salim Ali & S. Dillon Ripley, Compact Hand Book of the Birds of India &

Pakistan, Ed 1987. Vol.-3, P-218.

E.C. Stuart Baker, The Fauna of British India, Ed-1924. Vol �5, P-247.

R. Grimmit, C. Inskipps & T. Inskipps, Birds of the Indian Subcontinent,Ed 1998, P-540

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INCIDENCE AND TREATMENT OF PLASMODIUM SPP. INWILD WHITE-EYED BUZZARD (Batastur teesa) INMAHARASHTRA by RAJU KASAMBE*, Dr. TARIQUESANI** & Dr. SUDHANSHU KOTHE. *G-1, LaxmiApartment, 64, Vidya Vihar Colony, Pratap Nagar, Nagpur-440022 (Maharashtra) e-mail: [email protected]**361, Shankar Nagar, Nagpur - 440010 (Maharashtra)e-mail: [email protected]

On 26th February 2006 Raju Kasambe found a sick WhiteEyed Buzzard (Batastur teesa), a resident raptor species,lying on the forest floor in the Gorewada range of forestsnear Nagpur city of Maharashtra. The geographical locationof Nagpur city is 21006� N and 79003� E. The bird was lying

on the ground with both the wings spread. It did not fly whenapproached. Then we found that it could not fly as it wasparalyzed. The buzzard was brought to one of the author�s(TS) residence. The symptoms were: Half body includingone leg paralyzed, toes tightly closed, the legs shaking,drooping wings, tongue pale (pallor), and paralyzed, gapewas looking bloody red, but no bleeding could be seen inmouth.

The bird was force-fed with 30-40 grams of mince-meat onthe day and was kept in a room. The next day the buzzardstarted feeding of it�s own. It became more aggressive. In

the evening it opened the toes, stood on its feet and onlythe left wing was drooping now. It struggled to fly. Hencephysical contact with the bird was kept to the bare minimum.

Blood smear samples of the buzzard were taken on thethird day (on 28th) and sent for pathological investigations toa private laboratory. The report showed presence ofPlasmodium spp. in the blood. Hence microphotography ofthe pathogen was done. Dr. Kolte, a veterinarian wasconsulted, who recommended oral Primaquin. The drug(Primaquin 1 mg liquid) was administered orally as per bodyweight using an empty sterile syringe. On 10th March, thebird took small flights in the room and became difficult tohandle. Everyday 30-40 grams of mincemeat was kept inthe room twice for the buzzard, which it consumed inabsence of the authors. The bird had recovered fully after13 days stay at the residence of two authors (RK & TS) andshowed no signs of sickness.

Hence the authors released the buzzard into the Gorewadaforest at the same place from where it was rescued. Thebird took a strong flight and perched on a tree.

Incidence of Plasmodium spp. has been reported in manyspecies of raptors and other species of birds by Bensch,et. al. (2000), Huff & Bloom (1935), Iezhova, et.al. (2005),Manwell & Goldstein (1938), Manwell & Sessler (1971) (intoucans), Wolfson (1936) (in owl and canaries) and Yakunin(1972). Among migratory raptors, overall prevalence ofinfection with Plasmodium spp. has been reported to be5% in Accipiter breviceps and 3.6% in Buteo buteo at Eilatin Israel (Paperna et. al., 2007). Probably this is the firstreport of incidence of Plasmodium in wild Buzzard from India.




Acknowledgements:Thanks are due to Dr. Kolte (veterinarian) and Mr. Salim ofBird Rehabilitation Centre, Bangalore who guided usthroughout the rehabilitation of the wild buzzard, and to Dr.Reuven Yosef, Israel, for providing his paper and thereferences.

References:Bensch S., Stjernman M., Hasselquist D., Ostman O., Hansson B.,

Westerdahl H. & Pinhero R.T. (2000): Host specificity in avianblood parasites: a study of Plasmodium and Haemoproteusmitochondrial DNA amplified from birds. Proceedings of the RoyalSociety of London. 267: 1583-1589.

Huff C.G. & Bloom W. (1935): A malarial parasite infecting all blood andblood-forming cells in birds. Journal of Infectious Diseases. 57:315-336.

Iezhova, T.A., Valkiunas G. & Bairlein F. (2005): Vertebrate host specificityof two avian malaria parasites of the subgenus Novyella: Plasmodiumnucleophilum and Plasmodium vaughani. Journal of Parasitology.91: 472-474.

Manwell, R.D. & Goldstein F. (1938): Life history and immunity studies ofthe avian malaria parasite, Plasmodium circum-flexum. Proceedingsof the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine. 39: 426-428.

Manwell, R.D. & Sessler G.J. (1971): Malaria parasites of toucans. Jounalof Protozoology. 18: 570-574.

Paperna, I., Yosef, R. & Landau I. (2007): Plasmodium spp. in raptors onthe Eurasian-African migration route. Mémoire Parasite.

(Communicated).Valkiunas, G. (1997): Avian malaria parasites and other Bird

haemosporidia. Acta Zoologica Lithuanica. 35: 607.Wolfson, F. (1936): Plasmodium oti n. sp., a Plasmodium from the

eastern screech owl (Otus asio naevious) infective to canaries.American Journal of Hygiene. 24: 94-101.

Yakunin, M.P. (1972): Haemoparasites of wild birds of south-eastKazakhstan. Trudi Instituta Zoologii Akamedia-Nauk Kaza-khkoiSSR. 33: 69-79.

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BREEDING RANGE EXTENSION OF THE LARGE INDIANPARAKEET (Psittacula eupatria) by ANIKA TERE, AINPon Agricultural Ornithology, Anand Agricultural University,Anand -388 110, Gujarat. Email: [email protected];[email protected] and B. M. PARASHARYA,Associate Professor, AINP on Agricultural Ornithology,Anand Agricultural University, Anand -388 110, Gujarat.

Email:[email protected]

The Large Indian Parakeet Psittacula eupatria was knownto occur in Mahal (Dang), Waghai (Surat), Rajpipla(Narmada) and Gangasagar (Banaskantha) districts ofGujarat State (Ali 1954). In recent publications the speciesis reported from the Rajpipla forest, but is uncommon (Mongaand Naoroji, 1983, Desai et al. 1993, Narve et al. 1997).Khacher (1996), Grimmett et al. (1998) and Kazmierczak,(2000) do not add any new information about its distributionin Gujarat State. However, recently Mukherjee et al. (2003)have reported its presence at Jambughoda WildlifeSanctuary (Panchmahal District), Ratanmahal WildlifeSanctuary (Panchmahal District), Vadodara (VadodaraDistrict), Anand (Anand District), Nadiad (Kheda District),

Ahmedabad (Ahmedabad District) and Bhavnagar(Bhavnagar District). Mukherjee et al. (2003) also reportedits breeding in some parts of Sabarkantha (Vatrak) andKheda Districts.

Since last two years a pair of P. eupatria is nesting onSterculia foetida tree in the nursery of Anand AgriculturalUniversity (220 32� 05.350" N; 720 58� 54.936" E). The nesting

cavity is ca.12m high above ground. In March 2005, the pairhad two chicks which were taken away by a laborer. In March2006, one chick had fallen on ground which was again takenaway by another laborer. However, one chick could fledgeand was seen being fed around the nest site by the parentsduring the last week of March 2006. Since the Large IndianParakeet is quite common around Anand, it is likely thatmany more pairs may be nesting around. The bird feedingon the tender fruits of Sivan tree Gmelina arborea duringApril 2002 is a common sight in our campus (Tere andParasharya, in Press).

At Bhavnagar, a pair was seen regularly entering a cavity ofSterculia foetida tree at Piele Garden during the winter of2002 (Jayanti Golania and I. R. Gadhvi, Pers. Comm.). Sincewe too have seen the species at Bhavnagar round the year,there is a need to keep watch for additional nest records.The above records prove that the species has now extendedits breeding range in Gujarat State. If monitored regularly,its nesting may be found elsewhere too.

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to Shri Jayanti Golania and Dr. I. R. Gadhviof Bhavnagar for providing information on the nesting of thespecies. We also thank Officer-in Charge, Biological ControlResearch Lab., AAU, Anand for the encouragement.

References:

Ali, S. (1954). The birds of Gujarat, Part I. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 52(2 & 3): 374-458.

Desai, I. V., B. Suresh and B. Pilo (1993). Birds of ShoolpaneshwarWildlife Sanctuary. Pavo 31 (1 & 2): 55-72.

Grimmett, R., C. Grimmett and T. Inskip (1998). Birds of the IndianSubcontinent, Oxford University Press, Delhi.

Kazmierczak, K. (2000). A Field Guide to the Birds of India. Om BookService, New Delhi.

Khacher, L. (1996). The birds of Gujarat � A Salim Ali Centenary year

review. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 93(3): 331-373.Monga, S. G. and R. Naoroji (1983). Birds of the Rajpipla forests � south

Gujarat. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 80(3): 575-612.Mukherjee, A., C. K. Borad and B. M. Parasharya (2003). Range extension

of Alexandrine Parakeet Psittacula eupatria in Gujarat. J. BombayNat. Hist. Soc., 100(1): 135-136.

Narve, D. S., C. D. Patel and N. P. Pandya (1997). Avifaunal diversity inShoolpaneshwar Sanctuary. Tigerpaper 24(1): 17-22.

Tere A., The Large Indian Parakeet Psittacula eupatria feeding on fruitsof Siven Gmelina arborea. Flamingo, Newsletter of the BirdConservation Society, Gujarat. (In Press).

Cover: Photographs taken during a study of the Birdsin Sitamata Sanctuary (part II). For details and photo captions readthe article (page 10). Photographs by Gobind Sagar Bhardwaj, IFS





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