Bharatpur in the holidays

Taking a direct train from Haridwar proved to be a good idea as I reached Bharatpur at about 3 in the morning. Despite the lack of sleep we were hoping for a good session as the weather had cleared up and minimal fog was expected. However being Christmas and a Friday (Taj Mahal was closed), the park felt more like a jogging park. Despite local city rickshaws also being brought in, there were still lots of people looking for more cycles and rickshaws. The roads until Sapanmori and the canteens were packed with people by the time it started getting warm.

 
The mornings on all three days started well. We began by searching for mammals crossing the roads and silhouettes against the rising sun's reflection along the smaller roads. We saw a few jackals, ungulates and monkeys this way. On the first day we also caught glimpses of the Siberian Rubythroat at the first checkpoint but the constant crowds getting inquisitive with our cameras kept scaring it away. For most of the trip, as soon as the sun came up, we consciously moved deep into the park to avoid the crowds.While most regular spots had been disturbed, we managed to find a large tailed nightjar and a lone python thanks to the efforts of our rickshaw pullers.

Evenings saw the crowds concentrated at the "Darter point". A lone stick where a darter would perch daily as the sun set behind it. Our rickshaw guide told us how he had put up the stick and it was not a natural perch even as a couple of tourists discussed who had "invented" the shot. There were of course multiple other jokes we overheard with the naive locals and tourists. Someone mistook pigeons for owls, a shikra to be Shakira, while a city rickshaw puller took a shot at the origin of the purple heron's name - it seems 'palpal hairaan' (hindi for surprised every moment). Other rickshaw pullers occasionally pointed at us and identified us as "photographers". Our host at the Iora, Mr Devendra, provided us with a few more of these jokes in the evenings involving amateur photographers and their equipment.

Despite the crowds, and the constant push to get away from them, we managed to see quite a few raptors, owls and owlets and the usual storks. One of the mornings also had 2 pairs of sarus cranes on either side of the road. Monitors and turtles were fewer but occasionally visible as the sun came up. Kingfishers pied  and commons were also easily spotted near the canteen. Black bitterns and little herons were found in the evenings while waders, ducks, storks, ibis and spoonbills filled up the park due to abundant water this year. A number of raptors constantly disturbed the ducks while crows tried to chase them away during the day. Overall, as always there was plenty of wildlife on display despite the crowds, but I would recommend any serious visitors to avoid the rush during the year end holidays. The crowds do get on your nerves quite a bit.

Bharatpur - again :)

 A short stopover at Delhi gave me enough time for a quick visit. Although the first day was foggy and the threat of rain was constant, we still managed to spot a few migrants. The painted storks were conspicuous by their absence. They were disturbed due to some construction work - our rickshaw driver told us. The fog throughout the day made it quite difficult to spot anything but raptors were still easily visible. We must have seen at least about 10 spotted eagles and multiple harriers.

 
A lone juvenile python crawled out to find some sun but came up against a crowd of tourists. It went back in quick time. A black necked stork along with the juvenile hungrily went through a common coot while raptors swarmed around trying to get a bite. A sick monitor lizard lay near the canteen while a jird was spotted engrossed in eating.

The next day was brighter if not more eventful. The sun was up by the afternoon and by then we had spotted a water snake, few more of the migrants and while everyone I met seemed to be looking for a blue throat, I spotted at least 5 males and 3 females. We got out by the afternoon to catch a train and it was just in time as hundreds of kids started pouring in owing to school holidays and the weekend.

Bharatpur - Land of snakes??

Normally I head down to Bharatpur towards the end of December, however this time we went in a little earlier in November over a weekend so Madhu could see what the place was. As always this trip to Bharatpur was as different as everyone of the other trips.

Although the train was a little bit late, we managed to spend about 10 hours on the first day and 12 hours on the second. Without a guide, we went along with the cycle rickshaw fellow carrying our baggage on the rick. The migratory ones had started arriving and the eagles (spotted) had also come down but the grass prevented us from seeing much. Still there were a couple of lifers there and a European turtle dove at the end was a nice way to wrap up the trip.

The highlight of the trip though were the snakes. We counted a total of 11 that we saw including 2 pythons, 2 cobras, checkered keelbacks and water snakes. One of the larger pythons was stalking jackals. Although it backed off when it realized we were there, the jackals were spooked and howling about continuously. Among the mammals of course were the usual jackals, boars and Nilgais. 

Bharatpur - Again

I had originally planned to make Bharatpur an annual trip, but last year due to a general lack of time and other plans, I had to drop it. This year though, I had a day off to revisit the place. The roads to the place haven't changed much. There are still the bright yellow fields, the irritating rail crossing with endless jams and the usual rollers, kites, painted storks and the occasional adjutant to be found along the roads. Have always preferred the roads to travel rather than the train and hadn't changed that even though this was my 3rd trip there.

Keoladeo itself though has been changing gradually. There is quite a bit of work going on at the perimeter disturbing the pythons which were found at the edges of the park. Saw none of them this time. The dusky eagle owl had changed its nest as well to a further off place where it was much more difficult to see let alone photograph, the Siberian ruby throat hadn't arrived and the humongous monitor lizard near the cafeteria in the park was nowhere to be found. There is of course much more water in the park which allows more more birds to settle in even if they are too far to get a snap. The number of jackals, boars and deer seen on the road has also reduced considerably.

Some of the other subjects from the previous year though hadn't changed their spots much. The common kingfisher was still there, the storks colony remained, my guide confirmed that the grey nightjar was still around the same place and barbets, spotted owlets, thrushes and green pigeons stuck to their same trees. The roads were all now open since the tiger from 2 years ago had been relocated. Further into the park is a lot quieter with the number of casual visitors dropping beyond the cafeteria.

Overall though there was still plenty to see and the changing ecosystem with more water in the park has made it much better. The migratory birds were there (the sarus cranes even had a chick), the tortoises were out in great numbers, the water birds seemed to be increasing and there is still enough to keep any photographer busy for a while. Would be certainly looking forward to going there next year as well.

Bharatpur Revisited

On my way back from Ranthambore, I had a one day stop at Bharatpur before I got back to Delhi. With the road from Lalsot to Dausa being pretty bad and an unscheduled stop at Balaji, managed to get to Bharatpur only in the noon. There was of course a lot more water there this time. Due to the escaped tiger from Ranthambore some of the routes deeper in were closed. I had found quite a few raptors on that side last year and pythons were also more commonly found there so I was a little disappointed but the increase in birds more than made up for it.

Spending the remaining part of the day and another entire day there was a very different experience from last year. With many more water-birds, it was possible to see nesting and fishing. Pick of the day being a purple heron catching a frog. Some of the older roosting spots for the owls that I found last year had moved but did see a few collared Scops owls and spotted owlets. On the other hand, the mammals had gone in deeper. Did spot a jungle cat hunting in the late evening but the multitudes of jackals, boar and deer seemed a little less visible unlike last year. Also with the water level being what it was, getting closer to the birds was also not as viable.

On the brighter side though the reptiles really were out due to the cold. Managed to spot a huge python and quite a few monitor lizards (one full grown one was always found near the canteen basking near a pile of wood). Mongoose were also active. In between Sapanmori and the temple, at a small junction, a common kingfisher was always changing perches and nearby a painted stork would always be found with a catfish in the mouth, marsh harriers were always present and did see a honey buzzard and a common hawk cuckoo. As for the water-birds, along with the usual storks and herons there were black bitterns, comb ducks, whistling ducks, shovelers, grebes, gueese and of course a few sarus cranes as well.

Came back again after a couple of days with Sandeep. This time with lesser time on my hands and a guide instead. He of course managed to show us a lot more. Grey and large tailed nightjars, a dusky eagle owl, and others. On the last day morning he took us to a nearby field where sarus cranes would come down to feed and there we saw them dance and call. Other birds outside the park were Egyption vultures and a painted snipe. In the park, we saw a Siberian ruby throat, a spotted eagle and a few flycatchers.

Bird Sanctuary sans water

Bharatpur is one of the best known bird sanctuaries in north India. There hasn't been much rain but this being the season for migratory birds there it seemed like a place to check out. Got there by bus and already had a guest house booked which was cheap while also being really nice. Had an hour of daylight left when I reached there so walked in to the park. Cycle rickshaws are also an option and I saw a lot of people using it to carry equipment while walking. Caught a few sambhar, boars and jackals other than some babblers, barbets, parakeets, mynas, bulbuls, peacocks, starlings and kites. Had to hunt around for a place to eat but then was not much of a problem.

The next day decided to take a cycle rickshaw. The drivers there are trained and they can recognise most birds very easily. Also they have an idea of what to find where, so a guide or a rickshaw is recommended. Early morning pickings were great. Saw owls, owlets, kites and shikras as well and in the slightly wet areas saw a black necked stork, egrets and grey herons other than the water fowl and ducks. The area where pythons are found was empty and just managed to see some prints and holes but on the way back saw a tortoise. A temple nearby also has a grand collection of turtles which the pujari feeds. He also takes care of a few deer and peacock though I did see his assistants driving a sambhar off with a stick.

The final day was more eventful, found a dusky eagle owl nest with the huge bird standing nearby. Saw a spoonbill and an orange headed thrush (quite rare). Among animals along with the jackals, boars and deer, we saw a jungle cat hunt some rodent and a hare running about as well. Kingfishers, hoopoes and the other common birds were of course ever present. I would certainly like to go back some time when there is water as from what I heard, this was about 10 percent of the birds that where there last year this time. Sure enough the migratory birds arrived in delhi zoo told the entire story. The painted storks colony and the pelicans show how different it can be. They were far more than in Bharatpur.