Birds of Mount Abu APRIL 2019 mountabubirds.blogspot.com

Birding in the First week of April 2019. Mt Abu

The end of March saw a steep spike in the rising temperature. The days of the first week of April have been hot, it seems early summer has set in for our part of the world. Most of our winter migrants have left. It's nesting season right now for most of our local birds. I do a spot of birding in the late evenings. Appreciate my collection of birds made during this month.

1 April 2019

Grey Wagtail - Motacilla cinerea 

House sparrow - Passer domesticus - Male

Red-vented Bulbul - Pycnonotus cafer

Red-wattled Lapwing - Vanellus indicus

2 April 2019.

Common Rosefinch -  Carpodacus erythrinus - Male

House Sparrow Passer domesticus indicus   - Juvenile

3 April 2019 

Common Rosefinch -  Carpodacus erythrinus  - Male

Common Rosefinch -  Carpodacus erythrinus  - Female

House sparrow - Passer domesticus - female 

House sparrow - Passer domesticus - Male 

4 April 2019.

Common Tailorbird - Orthotomus sutorius

Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea - Male in breeding plumage

Shaheen Falcon - Falco Peregrinus peregrinator

5 April 2019.

Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea - Male in breeding plumage

Indian Silverbill  - Lonchura malabarica

Long-legged buzzard - Buteo rufinus

Long-legged buzzard - mobbed by Jungle Crow

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Territorial Dispute The Jungle Crow rule the roost in this area.

Red-wattled Lapwing - Vanellus indicus TRYING TO ATTACK DAMAN

Red-wattled Lapwing - Vanellus indicus - injury-feigning

To read more on this episode click the link below

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Red-wattled Lapwing NO match for the Daman Snake 

6 April 2019.

Went to the Duck Pond on the 6 April 19, probably for the last time this year to check and see how many of our winter visitors were still there. Was surprised to see a solitary Common Teal - Anas crecca - Female. There were a handful of black-winged stilts, a few Red-wattled lapwings, two woolly necked Storks, a few sandpipers and an Indian Pond Heron. Earlier in the day early morning visited another water body the Jawai catchment water body. The duck had also left from here. Here I photographed alone little egret and a little cormorant.  

Common Teal - Anas crecca - Female

( The solitary  Winter visitor still to depart )

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus 

Little Egret Egretta garzetta 

Little Egret Egretta garzetta 

Red-vented Bulbul - Pycnonotus cafer

7 April 2019

Common Rosefinch -  Carpodacus erythrinus

( Passage migrants )

Eurasian Craig Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris   - In flight

( Winter visitor )

Red-wattled Lapwing - Vanellus indicus - At nest 

Red-wattled Lapwing - Vanellus indicus - injury-feigning

Shaheen Falcon - Falco Peregrinus peregrinator

Birds of Mount Abu FEBRUARY 2019 mountabubirds.blogspot.com

Birding in the third and Fourth week of February.

24 February 2019.

Today got a call of a sighting of the Blue-capped Rock Thrush around the Sunset point area. We immediately dashed off to see if we could photograph this extremely rare species in this part of the world. Unfortunately, we did not get to record this bird, we then planned to cover as many birding areas as we could. Appreciate the birds photographed on the 24 Feb 2019.

Black-winged stilt -  Himantopus himantopus 

Common Teal - Anas crecca - Male

Dusky Crag Martin - Hirundo concolor

Gadwall Anas strepera - Pair

Northern Pintail - Anas acuta

Northern Shoveler  -Anas clypeata

Northern Shoveler  -Anas clypeata - Female

Red Whiskered Bulbul - Pycnonotus jocosus

Shaheen Falcon - Falco peregrinus peregrinator 

Shaheen Falcon - Falco peregrinus peregrinator 

Shikra Accipiter badius 

White-bellied drongo - Dicrurus caerulescens 

Yellow-crowned Woodpecker Dendrocopos mahrattensis 

Yellow-crowned Woodpecker Dendrocopos mahrattensis 

Yellow-crowned Woodpecker Dendrocopos mahrattensis 

25 February 2019

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus   - Female in flight

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus   - Female in flight

White-spotted fantail Rhipidura albogularis 

27 February 2019.

Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata fasciata 

Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata fasciata 

Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata fasciata 

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 

Long-legged buzzard - Buteo rufinus 

Shikra Accipiter badius

28 February 2019

Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata fasciata

Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris
 

Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris

Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris - flock

Eurasian Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris

This species was a lifer for me. Never really looked at the photographs carefully let it pass assuming it to be the residential Dusky Crag Martin. On Scrutinizing my previous year's photographs I realized I had snapped this species before. I assume it must be a winter visitor like the Alpine Swift.   This last find sure made my Feb birding experience a memorable one.