Birds in Our Backyards

[brihacharan]

Hi Guys,
> A big thanks to 'Slingshot' for starting this lovely thread.
> The pics & description posted are very pleasing & informative. Tks to Slingshot / Prashant / Mark / Fantumfan / Mack....
> Makes me twist a well known quote ..... Mine is = "A Bird in a Frame is worth Two on a Branch"
Briha

[airgun_novice]

Beautiful and delightful pictures slingshot et al.

Hey felt good seeing that cardinal again (used to see it a lot in TX). I remember seeing quiet few bald eagles while in AZ on my long drives through the desert. Plus on one particular occasion while driving in the Grand Canyon region saw a really BIG "eagle" which I was later told was probably the totally rare Californian Condor. Very large wing span. During my 20-plus trips to both the North and the South rims and also Glenn and Marble Canyons, saw it only once in my two years of stay in AZ.

There are a few green 'popats' frequenting the tree opposite. Will try to get them on my Cybershot and of course those irritating blue rock pigeons treating my apartment as if it were their's.

[TC]

Gentlemen,
As promised I am trying to fish out pics of some of the birds my wife, an ardent photo essayist if I may use the term, had clicked from different windows of my house in south Kolkata and my cousin's at north Kolkata.



The sparrow, a vanishing specie in cities across the globe thanks to cell phone signals, is still holding the fort in my neighbourhood which still has lots of trees and plants in and around it. They simply fly into our rooms from time to time looking for food and dig into crumbs of bread and biscuits. We feed them everyday and they take care of us....


Their numbers are diminishing but the Kingfishers have been around for decades though most of the water bodies in my neighbourhood died naturally or got filled up in the name of development. But the famous Dhakuria Lakes are close by. So are the big trees. That's a saving grace... This bird often comes visiting and my wife took these pictures from our bedroom window.




The pigeon is still a part of old neighbourhoods. There are at least a hundred where I live in the south and a few thousand in the north. This one was taken at my cousins last Sunday.


There are more birds and more photos. Will post once I have found them.

Cheers
TC

[brihacharan]

TC
> Good to know that your wife too is an avid bird lover & photographer.
> The 'Silhouette' of the Sparrow on the curved grill is quite fetching in composition - a bit of photoshopping would render it even more visually poetic
> The Kingfisher too is well captured
Cheers
Briha

[slingshot]

Mark, TC and Prashant....such beautiful birds. Thank you so much for contributing. Made my day. And mark the Bald Eagle looks stunning. And I loved the Male Cardinal. Such a poser

TC, the Kingfisher looks really gorgeous

Moin....will try to get the Brahmini Eagle. This thread is getting really interesting

And Timmy, we await your pictures

[slingshot]

The Golden Oriole

I am lucky to have got this bird on camera. It was a flash of brilliant yellow as it flew past the window. I had to run to get my camera....and thankfully it was still perched on the tree. The camera unfortunately was a tad out of focus and I have been berating myself for sometime as I thought that this may be a migrant and I will never see it again. But I saw it swoop past the window 3 days ago...again. By the time I got back to the camera...the chap had vanished....so there is still hope to get a better picture

[brihacharan]

The Golden Oriole

I am lucky to have got this bird on camera. It was a flash of brilliant yellow as it flew past the window. I had to run to get my camera....and thankfully it was still perched on the tree. The camera unfortunately was a tad out of focus and I have been berating myself for sometime as I thought that this may be a migrant and I will never see it again. But I saw it swoop past the window 3 days ago...again. By the time I got back to the camera...the chap had vanished....so there is still hope to get a better picture

Hi Slingshot,
> Great pics in-spite of your camera being a tad out of focus
> You are lucky to have such beautiful Avians visiting your backyard
> Just for info.....
The Indian Golden Oriole inhabits a range of habitats including open deciduous forests, semi-evergreen forests, woodland, forest edge, mangroves and open country with scattered trees, parks, gardens orchards and plantations.

Orioles feed on fruits, nectar and insects. They are capable of dispersing the seeds of many berry-bearing plants. Their flight is dipping but strong and has been recorded to reach about 40 km/h. They sometimes bathe by repeatedly flying into a small pool of water. An individual ringed in Gujarat was recovered in Tajikistan more than nine years later.

The breeding season is April to August, the nest being a small cup placed in a fork near the end of a branch. Nests are often built in the vicinity of the nest of a Black Drongo. Two or three white eggs with reddish, brown and black speckling form the typical clutch. Both parents take part in nest and brood care, defending the nest against intruding birds such as Shikras and Crows.
Briha

[fantumfan2003]

I still hear one in our area every morning. Managed to catch a glimpse once.

M.

The Golden Oriole

I am lucky to have got this bird on camera. It was a flash of brilliant yellow as it flew past the window. I had to run to get my camera....and thankfully it was still perched on the tree. The camera unfortunately was a tad out of focus and I have been berating myself for sometime as I thought that this may be a migrant and I will never see it again. But I saw it swoop past the window 3 days ago...again. By the time I got back to the camera...the chap had vanished....so there is still hope to get a better picture

[fantumfan2003]

Incredible.

M.

An individual ringed in Gujarat was recovered in Tajikistan more than nine years later.

Briha

[slingshot]

Plus on one particular occasion while driving in the Grand Canyon region saw a really BIG "eagle" which I was later told was probably the totally rare Californian Condor. Very large wing span. During my 20-plus trips to both the North and the South rims and also Glenn and Marble Canyons, saw it only once in my two years of stay in AZ.

Amazing ....and we look forward to the popats

[slingshot]

Incredible.

M.

An individual ringed in Gujarat was recovered in Tajikistan more than nine years later.

Briha

Amazing

[slingshot]

THE ORIENTAL MAGPIE ROBIN

The Oriental Magpie Robin is a wonderful singer. And they sing LOUDLY. This chap also happens to be the national bird of Bangladesh. Many Bong children have been named after this bird....its called Doel in Bangla....and has no kinship with the Deols of Punjab

The Oriental Magpie Robin is a frequent visitor to the trees behind my apartment.

[prashantsingh]

The Grey Hornbill.
Feeds mostly on fruits and stays on tall trees. Never missed a chance to feast on insects as they come out of their nest in my garden. Mostly found in pairs. The female is a little smaller in size than the male.

[prashantsingh]

Jungle Babbler
A common bird which moves in groups. Also called "seven sisters".
Jim Corbett trusted them when it came to spotting big cats. When hunting during the day. Their noisy alarm calls would alert him and disclose the maneaters location.
Interestingly. These fellows shout like crazy the moment they see my neighbour's pet cat.

[Mark]

Here are some hummingbirds:


Here are some hummingbirds:


This one is a baby, I have only seen two of them: