I was pleasantly surprised when I saw a post from the affable
Poonam Kakodkar on the Nature Trails WhatsApp group mentioning a Bird
walk by the Mumbai Birdwatchers Club at Bhuigaon in Nalla Sopara. Having
been into serious birding since 2010 I was blissfully unaware of the
existence of such a club in my own city !!! I immediately registered
myself through the link provided and enrolled myself to be a part of the
group heading to Bhuigaon.
Reached the designated
meeting point of the Bhuigaon church at the fixed time and the group
started for the Bhuigaon beach within 10 minutes. The landscape at Vasai and Nallasopara has different types of habitats for birds which includes Paddy fields, Shrubs, Grasslands and the Beaches. So you get a very wide variety of Bird life in and around Vasai and Bhuigaon. I have usually always gone birding alone or with my brother/s or with some acquaintances (usually not more than 4 in number) I have made over the years while bird watching (due to the very similar interests that Birders share) but seldom have I ventured out for bird watching in a large group.
There were around 35-40 members registered for this walk and the group was led by the very able team of Mandar Khadilkar of Nature India Tours, Mr. Kuldeep Chopudhary from Vasai who is a very famous birder and bird rescuer and Mr. Varun and they were assisted by Mr. Girish Chonkar another local lad from Vasai and a very avid birder.
The road from the Bhuigaon Church to the Bhuigaon leads through the small village of Bhuigaon which has a stark resembelenace to a Goan village or a small village from the Konkan area of Maharashtra with small and large bungalows dotting the quaint landscape of the village. As we were heading towards the beach one of the members of the group Shailaja had stopped to photograph a pair of what I presumed to be Common Mynas when she informed me that one of them was a Coppersmith Barbet the Bird of Mumbai. As we moved ahead there was a small stream flowing parallel to the road and presumably ending in the beach. Someone form the group shouted "Snake" when my sights fell on a beautiful Checkered Keelback snake slithering in the stream and moving in my direction. I impromptu captured some shots which came out a bit blurry as the weather was still overcast by then. Pumping up the ISO of the camera yielded some better results (though not very good) and so the Walk was off to a great start even before the introductions had taken place. Wow.
The Checkered Keelback Snake
A round of very brief introductions was conducted at the overhead water tank which supplies water to the village and for ease of operations the members were divided into 3 groups led by Mandar, Kuldeep and Varun respectively. The birding started at the Water Tank and the area here was a mixed habitat of marshlands, paddy fields and grasslands. In the marshlands some common water birds were seen wading at a very far away distance which made photographing them near to impossible. These included the Common and Green Sandpipers and a few Plovers. No photographs could be taken here due to the vast distance between us and the marshland.
As we moved ahead in our sojourn we could sight some common birds seen along the coastal areas and some woodland and shrub land birds- notable amongst these were the Common Myna, Spotted Dove, Paddy Field Pipit, a few species of Larks, Herons and Cormorants and Long Tailed Shrikes. The area here was interspersed with Banana Plantations and we sighted a pair of Black Drongos perched atop a delicate banana leaf which made a very beautiful sighting.
This was the day of the Keelbacks - just as we moved ahead of the Banana plantations we came across a old village well filled with water and Mandar spotted another Checkered Keelback slithering in the water of the well. What a lovely sight. Moving ahead I came across a Marsh Harrier carrying its aerial survey scouting for food over a waterbody prior to the beach.
Marsh Harrier
We could hear the calls of the Asian Cuckoo and on straining our eyes could spot a very shiny Black Male Asian Koel perched atop a very unusual perch-a Coconut Tree Leaf.
Asian Koel Male
Moving towards the beach we spotted a Long Tailed Shrike and a Pair of Brahminy Starlings perched on two leafless thorny trees looking out in the distance for prey. A bird with an appearance very similar to the Ashy Prinia made a brief appearance on the bushes right in front of me but before I could take a shot it flew away to another shrub. Kuldeep who was very close to me told nme to proceed with caution so as not to disturb the bird as it was not an Ashy Prinia as I presumed but a Lesser White Throat- a very rare bird indeed. I rued my luck at having not been able to photograph it but I was eventually able to shoot it in the shrubbery near the beach later in the day.
Brahminy Starlings
A lone Glossy Ibis was wading in the marshland adjoining a fields and trying its luck at a prey from the waterbody. As we were observing it a pair of Glossy Ibises flew over our heads into the opposite direction.
A Lone Glossy Ibis
A pair of Siberian Stonechats (one male and one female) appeared on shrub branches in the grasslands on either sides of the road and made quite a spectacle. A call of a Bulbul was heard at a close distance and on observation we noticed a White Eared Bulbul perched atop a Bamboo pole used to support creeper vegetable plants. It was very co-operative and posed for photos for quite a long time.
White Eared Bulbul
A Black Shouldered Kite was basking in the early morning sun on one of the various Bamboo poles used to support vegetable creepers in the field but was sitting against the direction of the Sun.
Black Shouldered Kite Shot against the Sun
As this setting was not yielding the desired results me and another person from the group circumvented the field to get a better shot of the Kite and look what we got. Phachak !!!
Phachak !!!
Just as we started to come out of the field after shooting the Black Shouldered Kite we were greeted with the sighting of a Juvenile Rosy or Blyth's Starling (I am not sure which) perched on an electric wire which allowed us to shoot a few shots before flying away into the distance.
Rosy Starling???
Moving ahead it looked as if the trail on the way to the beach was
coming to an end with some houses coming up near the shore and the
sounds of the waves being heard from the distance. It was not the end of
the Birding though. Just as we moved ahead a Purple Rumped Sunbird caught my eye flitting around on an Eucalyptus tree inside the compound wall of a village house. As I was focusing my camera on the Sunbird a Fluffy Orange Ball started to appear into the frame into the upward direction. As its head and then the rest of the body appeared completely into the frame, I noticed it to be an Asian Paradise Flycatcher -Female which was making its way into the upper parts of the tree. Now I had two birds in the frame and luckily for me nothing went wrong. I could get both the Sunbird and the Flycatcher in the frame.
Purple Rumped Sunbird & Asian Paradise Flycatcher
They stayed together in the frame till the Paradise Flycatcher decided it was not befitting its stature to share the frame with a Sunbird and flew away. We then came across a pair of Juvenile Scaly Breasted Munias perched on an electric wire and their parents (most probably) in the mood of creating a new clutch to add to this lot.💕
Juvenile Scaly Breasted Munias
Love is in the Air
Pati Patni aur Woh- A Second Male trying his luck at breaking up the Couple
Just as the beach was in sight we were greeted with the sightings of a Brahminy Starling and a Pied Bushchat on an electric wire. The Bushchat then flew away into a thicket of scrubs to give me a good habitat shot. Here they are for your eyes.
Brahminy Starling
Pied Bushchat
Pied Bushchat
The beach was within a striking distance now and we were all looking forward to the waders on the beach. Alas it was not to be and there were very few birds on the beach because of the extreme low tide prevalent at that time. We could observe a few Lesser Sand Plovers, Kentish Plovers and a few other shore birds but all of these were at a very far distance and very skittish, making it extremely difficult to photograph them.
A Lesser Sandplover
A lone Osprey was making its rounds over the sea looking for prey and allowed us a few in flight shots of this majestic bird. But the shore birds were sadly not to be seen , the only respite being the majestic displays put on by a flock of large plovers or a flock of Ducks flying in groups which was a sheer treat to watch.
The Solitary Osprey
Ducks in Flight
With the shore being virtually devoid of birds we focused our energies on the green patch adjoining the beach where we could see a lot of avian activity. And sure enough we could sight a few more birds like the Stonechats,The Bushchats and yes the elusive Lesser White throat which I had not been able to see or photograph properly. Here are a few bird shots shot in the green patch along the beach.
Female Pied Bushchat
Female Siberian Stonechat
The Elusive Lesser White Throat
The Elusive Lesser White Throat
This walk was primarily dedicated for bird watching but how can a true nature lover miss out on all things natural. So here are some shots of other natural beauties seen and photographed on this trip.
A Monstrous Jellyfish Washed on the Shore
Crimson Rose Butterfly in Flight
Crimson Rose Butterfly
A Dainty Damsel - I have seen this colour for the first time
A Dainty Damsel
Frontal View of the Damselfly
Angled Sunbeam Butterfly
Ready for a Bout of Boxing: A Crab in the Stream Threatens me
A small photo session of the entire group was conducted at the end of the trail. The trail ended with the sighting of a Shikra feasting on a Garden lizard just on a tree at a distance of a few hundred meters away from the beach.
Shikra Feasting on a Garden Lizard- Sighting by Nikhil Lukluke/ Nitin Anjaria
Shikra Feasting on a Garden Lizard- Sighting by Nikhil Lukluke/ Nitin Anjaria
Thanks Nitin Anjariaji for the drop back to the Fountain Hotel. It was nice interacting with you all and had a great time with all the bird lovers. Made some new friends during this trip like Hetal Doshi, Nitin Anjaria, Girish Chonkar , Kuldeep Choudhary.
Please forgive if I have missed out a few names.
P.S:
Criticisms and comments are most welcome. Please comment in the space provided below.
Sorry for a lengthy blog. Thanks for your patience.
