Agasthya
A newsletter on the Natural History, Ecology
and Conservation of the Agasthyamalai region, Western Ghats, India.
Any and all opinions expressed in this newsletter are solely those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinion of ATREE.
Centre for Excellence in Conservation Science
Royal Enclave,Srirampura,Jakkur Post
Bangalore-560064
Telephone: 080-23635555 (EPABX)
Fax : 080- 23530070
Wetland surveys rarely fail to excite any bird watcher, especially when done in a 'biodiversity hotspot'. With its high bird diversity it constantly tests ones identification skills and in the process sharpens it too! Being assigned the tanks of Koonthakulam, Vijayananarayana, Nanguneri, it was not a surprise that our team (comprising me, Mr. and Mrs. Rajan, and Mr. and Mrs. Vijayavel) accumulated a long list of birds including flamingos, avocets and a lot of ducks. But something special awaited us in Nanguneri, the last tank that we surveyed. While we were watching bar-headed geese, suddenly something made me turn back. As a flock of glossy ibis took off and settled, a big raptor sitting on a kill came in my view. Peering through my binoculars I realized that it had swooped on a black winged stilt, which was dead in an instant. As I slowly and noiselessly crept up to the bird, I realized that it was a booted eagle. After a few pictures the majestic bird took off to air with the stilt dangling in its legs. We saw it settle at some distance among the prosopis weeds to relish its prey quietly, away from our intruding gaze and attention. We too headed right back to the car realizing that if not the birds, a well deserved meal at Koonthakulam certainly awaited our attention.
Editorial Team
Editor: Allwin Jesudasan
Associate editor: Rajkamal Goswami
Editorial Review: R. Ganesan, M. Soubadra Devy, T. Ganesh
Design and presentation: Kiran Salegame
A S H O K A T R U S T F O R R E S E A R C H I N E C O L O G Y A N D T H E E N V I R O N M E N T
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