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2023 for better or worse _ Soukous

Soukous

By Soukous
in Big Year 2023

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Kalaharikind

Kalaharikind

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Now that's a dramatic start to a BY! Mountain fires past and present, a lovely Karoo house (I could spend my days on that stoep!), beautiful views and lots of wildlife!

 

 

(Birds not too bad, either :D) 

 

 

 

Beautiful birds, actually!

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Soukous
Soukous

I find it a bit strange that my BY 2023 should start with birds from South Africa, but I did not manage to get out and shoot a single shot in the UK in January. Even in SA, with glorious sunshine

Soukous
Soukous

The first bird I photographed is probably the same species I photograph first every time. They make their nests under our stoep so we see them all the time.   #1 - Greater Striped Swallow -

Soukous
Soukous

I've had quite a few fruitless outings lately. I enjoy the walk but coming back empty handed is always a bit frustrating.   not many to keep the total ticking over.   # 171 - Greyl

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Soukous

Soukous

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It seems like forever since I posted an update to my BY, yet it has only been a month.

In that month, I took a trip toIndia, visiting Sundarbans, Kaziranga NP and Manas NP, all three of which are listed among India's top 100 birding locations. Well, we'll see whether they deserve that reputation.

 

It was quite strange being back in India just 4 months after my previous visit, a different part of the country for sure, but still many of the birds were ones I saw very recently. This certainly affected by photography as I held back from taking pictures of birds I took in November when I knew the pictures would be inferior.

 

The Sundarbans, in my opinion, clearly does not. Over 3 days there we saw very few birds and even fewer mammals. When one considers to time it takes to get there, it is hard to recommend it as a destination. Still, I'm glad I've seen it.

 

so what about the birds?

We did see a few - very few.

 

Kingfishers were probably the most common birds we saw

 

#36 - Collared Kingfisher -Todiramphus chloris

Sundarban, India. March 2023

 

Collared Kingfisher

 

 

# 37 - Black-capped Kingfisher - Halcyon pileata

Sundarban, India. March 2023

 

Black-capped Kingfisher

 

Black-capped Kingfisher

 

# 38 Common Kingfisher - Alcedo atthis

Sundarbans, India. March 2023

 

Common Kingfisher

 

#39 - Red-vented Bulbul - Pycnonotus cafer

Sundarbans India. March 2023

 

Red-vented Bulbul

 

#40 - Red-whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus

Sundarban India, March 2023

 

Red-whiskered Bulbl

 

Manas NP

Red-whiskered Bulbul

 

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Soukous

Soukous

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# 41 - Little Cormorant - Phalacrocorax niger

Sundarbans, India. March 2023

 

Little Cormorant

 

# 42 - Little Egret - Egretta garzetta

Sundarbans India. march 2023

 

Little Egret

 

# 43 & 44 - Eurasian Curlew & Whimbrel - Numenius Arquata & Numenius phaeopus

Sundarban, India. March 2023

 

Curlew & Whimbrel

 

# 45 - Asian Brown Flycatcher - Muscicapa dauurica

Sundarbans India. March 2023

 

Asian Brown Flycatcher

 

# 46 Green Bee-eater - Merops orientalis

Sundarban India. march 2023

 

Green Bee-eater

 

# 47 - Eurasian Hoopoe - Upupa epops

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Hoopoe

 

# 48 - Common Iora - Aegithina tiphia

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Common Iora

 

Common Iora

 

# 49 - Oriental Magpie Robin - Copsychus saularis

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Oriental Magpie Robin

 

Oriental Magpie Robin

 

# 50 - White-rumped Munia - Lonchura striata

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

White-rumped Munia

 

Jorhat, Assam

White-rumped Munia

 

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PeterHG

PeterHG

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Perhaps not too many species, but you came back with excellent photos of them!

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Soukous

Soukous

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16 hours ago, PeterHG said:

Perhaps not too many species, but you came back with excellent photos of them!

 

Hmm, very kind, but I threw away as many as I kept. The light & conditions were challenging.

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xelas

xelas

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That is a good start, martin. And the weather looks good. Maybe you should not held back taking all those other birds; one (me) never knows if it is not a lifer :D!

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Soukous

Soukous

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32 minutes ago, xelas said:

Maybe you should not held back taking all those other birds; one (me) never knows if it is not a lifer

 

Possibly true, but it offends my sensibilities to keep crappy photos. DeNoise had enough work to do as it is

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Soukous

Soukous

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#51 - Jungle Myna - Acridotheres fuscus

Sundarban India.March 2023

 

Jungle Myna

 

# 52 - Grey-headed Lapwing - Vanellus cinereus

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

A lifer, and I only managed 1 useable shot.

Grey-headed lapwing

 

#53 - Black-hooded Oriole - Oriolus xanthornus

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Black-headed Oriole

 

# 54 - Blyth's Reed Warbler - Acrocephalus dumetorum

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Blyth's Reed Warbler

 

# 55 - Common Sandpiper - Actitis hypoleucos

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Common Sandpiper

 

Common Sandpiper

 

# 56 - Chestnut-tailed Starling - Sturnia malabarica

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Chestnut-tailed Starling

 

Manas NP

Chestnut-tailed Starling

 

# 57 - Purple Sunbird - Cinnyris asiaticus

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

sunbird-purple

 

# 58 - Asian Palm Swift - Cypsiurus balasiensis

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Palm Swift

 

# 59 - Common Tailorbird - Orthotomus sutorius

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Common Tailorbird

 

Common Tailorbird

 

# 60 - Oriental White-eye - Zosterops palpebrosus

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

Indian White-eye

 

Indian White-eye

 

Indian White-eye

 

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Galana

Galana

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As a rank EBC addict and practitioner I see nothing wrong with any of those. In fact I might have a passing touch of envy. I could mess up that Common Sandpiper in a trice.:P

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Soukous

Soukous

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# 61 - Eastern Cattle Egret - Bubulcus coromandus

Jorhat, Assam India. March 2023

 

Cattle Egret

 

Cattle Egret

 

 and so we move on to Kaziranga

 

#62 - Lesser Adjutant - Leptoptilos javanicus

Kaziranga NP, India. March 2023

 

Lesser Adjutant

 

# 63 - Black-necked Stork - Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

female

Black-headed Stork

 

male

Black-headed Stork

 

#64 - Chestnut-headed Bee-eater - Merops leschenaulti

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Chestnut-headed Bee-eater

 

Chestnut-headed Bee-eater

 

# 65 - Red-breasted Parakeet - Psittacula alexandri

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

badly named, that breast is not red

Red-breasted Parakeet

 

still not red

Red-breasted Parakeet

 

Edited by Soukous
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TonyQ

TonyQ

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@Soukous you may not have got as many birds as you hoped, but you got some really good ones with beautiful photos. The White eye series I particularly like.

 

Some “authorities “ classify the Cattle Egret in India as the Eastern Cattle Egret, a different species to the one in Africa and Europe (Western). Some treat it as a subspecies.

When we went to India, and when we went to Malaysia I counted Eastern as a species. :)

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Soukous

Soukous

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19 minutes ago, TonyQ said:

Some “authorities “ classify the Cattle Egret in India as the Eastern Cattle Egret, a different species to the one in Africa and Europe (Western). Some treat it as a subspecies.

When we went to India, and when we went to Malaysia I counted Eastern as a species.

 

Good to know. If I find one in Africa I will not dismiss it.

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Peter Connan

Peter Connan

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Some really beautiful birds though!

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Tdgraves

Tdgraves

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1 hour ago, Soukous said:

 

Good to know. If I find one in Africa I will not dismiss it.

Or the UK…

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Soukous

Soukous

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39 minutes ago, Tdgraves said:

Or the UK…

 

Indeed

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Galana

Galana

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4 hours ago, Soukous said:

badly named, that breast is not red

Well Peachy-pink breasted Parakeet takes up too many letters when using your keyboard with only two thumbs to contact Merlin.:D

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Soukous

Soukous

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16 hours ago, Galana said:

Well Peachy-pink breasted Parakeet takes up too many letters when using your keyboard with only two thumbs to contact Merlin.:D

 

Pink-breasted would be better - and IMO it is rather sad that so many people have abandoned field guides and now rely solely on Merlin. 

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Soukous

Soukous

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The next one is one that I missed from the Sundarban batch.  I'll let you decide whether it counts.

 

# 66 - Chinese Pond Heron - Ardeola bacchus

Sundarban India. March 2023

 

heron-chinese-pond.jpg.6140e7c8a6de815a891a899f342f90a1.jpg

 

Our guide was adamant that this is a Chinese Pond Heron, not the much more common Indian Pond Heron. As it is not in breeding plumage I agree or disagree.

 

# 67 - Bay-backed Shrike - Lanius vittatus

Kaziranga NP, India. March 2023

 

Bay-backed Shrike

 

Bay-backed Shrike

 

# 68 - Spotted Owlet - Athene brama

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Spotted Owlet

 

# 69 - Crested Serpent Eagle - Spilornis cheela

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Crested Serpent Eagle

 

# 70 - Indochinese Roller - Coracias affinis

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

I'd not eard of this sub-species before and I do not think our driver/guide in Kaziranga knew of it either. We had commented a few times on how the Rollers we were seeing were much bluer than other Indian Rollers. It was only when we got to Manas that the guide cleared things up.

 

"brightly colored bird with various shades of blue on the wings, tails, and belly that are often more prominent in flight. Similar to Indian Roller but has a purple-blue breast, a darker olive back, and is generally darker blue. Generally silent, but more vocal in breeding season with harsh calls. Prefers open areas, including agricultural landscapes, sitting on exposed perches including electric wires, occasionally pumping its tail slowly."

The Indochinese roller was formerly considered as a subspecies of the Indian roller because of a narrow hybrid zone in northeast India but a molecular phylogenetic study published in 2018 found that the Indochinese roller was more closely related to the purple-winged roller (Coracias temminckii) than it is to the Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis.

 

Indochinese Roller

 

Indochinese Roller

 

Manas NP

Indochinese Roller

 

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Soukous

Soukous

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# 71 - Grey-headed Fish Eagle - Icthyophaga ichthyaetus

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Grey-headed Fish Eagle

 

Grey-headed Fish Eagle

 

this had us puzzling for a short while but it is a juvenile Grey-headed Fish Eagle

Grey-headed Fish eagle juv

 

# 72 - Red Junglefowl - Gallus gallus

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

male

Red Junglefowl

 

female

Red Junglefowl f

 

# 73 - Darter - Anhinga melanogaster

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

darter

 

# 74 - Asian Openbill - Anastomus oscitans

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Asian Openbill

 

Asian Openbill

 

Openbills & rhino

 

# 75 - Indian Pond Heron - Ardeola greyii

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Indian Pond Heron

 

Edited by Soukous
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Tdgraves

Tdgraves

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Your darter is Oriental and so were you to get an African one, it would be another tick…

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Soukous

Soukous

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14 minutes ago, Tdgraves said:

Your darter is Oriental and so were you to get an African one, it would be another tick…

 

:D

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Dave Williams

Dave Williams

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Chinese Pond Heron? I hear what you are saying and don't have an opinion! I see the difference in the Roller straight away though.

You saw some excellent birds in Kazinranga and depending on how difficult it is to get there I can only say that nearly all can be seen in Bundala and Yala in Sri Lanka which is very easy and to get to. No cute Rhinos there though!!

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Soukous

Soukous

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# 76 - Great Egret - Casmerodius albus

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

I took the photo because of the buffalo, but as the Egret is there....

Water Buffalo

 

# 77 - White-throated Kingfisher - Halcyon smyrnensis

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

White-throated Kingfisher

 

White-throated Kingfisher

 

White-throated Kingfisher

 

# 78 - Stork-billed Kingfisher - Pelargopsis capensis

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Stork-billed Kingfisher

 

# 79 - Bronze-winged Jacana - Metopidius indicus

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

Bronze-winged Jacana

 

Bronze-winged Jacana

 

immature

Bronze-winged Jacana juvenile

 

# 80 -Spot-billed Pelican - Pelecanus philippensis

Kaziranga NP India. March 2023

 

pelicans

 

Pelicans

 

pelican

 

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Soukous

Soukous

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37 minutes ago, Dave Williams said:

You saw some excellent birds in Kazinranga and depending on how difficult it is to get there I can only say that nearly all can be seen in Bundala and Yala in Sri Lanka which is very easy and to get to

 

now you tell me

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TonyQ

TonyQ

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Excellent birds and photos @Soukous. Lovely Roller and the Jacana.

 

When we were in Malaysia the guide we had said it is almost impossible to tell the difference between Indian and Chinese pond heron in non breeding plumage:)

If going to Kaziranga only, and not the other areas it is quite straightforward.

Flight from Delhi to Guwahati is about 2hr45min. Then a few hours drive to the park

 

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