A morning to Crow about

An interesting thing happened today. I was having breakfast when my attention was drawn to my balcony by constant cawing. On most days I put out spare food for the crows just outside the dining room window. But this was coming from the other side. Finally when the noise just would not stop, I got up to look.

A crow was cawing away and he was sitting as close as he could to my balcony inner door. On seeing me, he moved to the balcony railing but continued his cawing. And he did not seem to be calling at something/someone outside but towards me. Thinking he was hungry I went in to get him a biscuit. I had already put out the food for the crows in the morning and it was all gone in minutes, as it usually is. I thought maybe this fellow did not get his share and was hungry. But I had my doubts, as this was the wrong balcony.
By the way I have had crows knock on my dining window(thrice at least) when I have not put food out.

So I got the crow a biscuit. It had flown to the lower balcony when I came out to put the biscuit. I came in. The crow came back. Looked at the biscuit and continued its cawing. So much for the biscuit.

In one corner of my balcony, I used to put a wide dish of water for the birds all through summer. But then, I guess the monsoons started and I discontinued the practise.

Well I went and found the dish, filled it and went back in. Immediately two crows flew in to the balcony to the dish. Finally, peace returned to my balcony and I was allowed to continue with my paper reading.

Talk of an elephantine memory in birds.

Salt Rim, Korlai

I have been wanting to write about our trip to Salt Rim for a long time now ....we went there in Sept and now it is December....I have never come back from a trip with such mixed emotions about a place...the best way to describe it would be as follows.....it was the best of trips  and it was the worst of trips.

Let me first cover the 'best' part of it cause if I get started about the other part I will never be able to finish this already delayed post.

This was our first view....Nitin and I had come here on our own as Umang was on a school trip.The weather was beautiful....Mumbai in rainy season is always good and to be able to get out to a beach front property is heaven indeed.

Salt Rim is a beautiful bunglow bang on the beach, beautifully furnished and very well maintained. It is on the other side of Korlai village. Just a few fisherman huts can be seen which works out great because the caretaker/cook is able to source fresh fish and absolutely awesome prawns from them for dinner. Te beach is mainly rocky. So no swimming. In high tide there is a strip of sand one can sit  in and let the waves roll over you. It will also save you some spa money, for if you sit in the waves long enough the sand will give you an excellent body polishing for free.

On day one, we spent most of our time sitting in the deep verandah and looking out to the sea....just watching the changing colours of the sea is good stress relief......that and hearing the rain patter on the palm fronds. One can spend hours(and we did) looking at the rain on the sea and the horizon with the incessant chorus of the cicadas providing the music. When the sea receeds and the clamour of the waves dies down the trilling of the bee-eaters can be heard most of the time. The meadow behind the bunglow is full of wild flowers and thus attracts a full kaleidoscope of butterflies in rainbow colours.

The one mishap that happened as soon as we reached and is the cause of an absolute lack of bird photos in this post. We had just checked in and were settling down that I saw a shrike come and sit in the lawn...as I took the first picture my battery died ...and when I went to charge it my battery charger blew up. End of the photography part of the holiday.

Unfortunately for me but other wise fortunately the place is simply full of birds. I saw at least three/four species of waders on the beach....probably sandpipers, plovers, curlew and Red Shanks. There were no large flocks but a good variety....and more importantly the birds are not so wary and let you approach pretty close....just wish my camera had been working :-(

It is a lovely sight to see swallows and sandpipers cavorting over the waves. In the hedge around the perimeter prinias can be seen all day. Once I saw a harassed parent Prinia being chased among the branches of a nearby Whistling Pine by its hungry offspring. The hedge also provided shelter to a large 'n beautiful Oriental Garden Lizard/chameleon.

Just outside the property behind the caretakers cottage is a large Banyan tree which attracts almost all the resident birds during the day. So one can do most of the birding standing the verandah. The bird list is as follows; Egrets, Pond Herons, Golden Orieole, Lapwings, Spotted Dove, Parakeets, Red Vented Bulbul, Indian Robin, Common Mynas, Drongos and a small bird with a yellow beak, delicate head and a brown garland over the throat/chest. There are big flocks of swallows and Sparrows. The latter can be seen mostly around the fisherman huts. A pair of Scaly Breasted Munias were trying to build a nest in the eves of the cottage and were being harassed by the ubiquitous crows.The crows also were a pain for the White breasted Kingfisher and the Green Bee-Eaters and kept chasing then off. In the meadow behind the house I saw a small Coucal and a Hoppee being chased off by  a pair of Mynas. Brahminy kites were also spotted swooping down over the beach and soaring over the waves.

One afternoon I saw a couple of village children closely examining a bush just off the beach. When I went to investigate I found it contained  the nest of a whiskered bulbul with beautiful eggs. I skedaddled off quickly. 

On an afternoon walk I found a tiny fresh water stream just ahead of the house. In many such streams I have often found tiny fish, usually brown with mottled markings. But in this stream very close to where it meets the sea( infact on the beach itself when the tide was out) I found these tiny fish which actually had a kind of bulls-eye pattern on their backs. Wonder how they fare with the kingfishers and other predators.

Many a time I have seen local fishermen/women spend a long time on the rocks when the tide is out.This time I was able to find out exactly what they were doing. On the rocks which are usually under when the tide is high,  I have seen white shells which are stuck fast but there are usually open with the occupants missing. I had thought that these were half shells which had fallen prey to shore birds. On my walk that day I met an old fisherwoman who was prying them open with a bent iron rod and extracting the tiny creature inside. It takes quite a bit of force and a good eye to spot the tightly closed shells which are exactly the colour of the rocks they are clinging to. And the end result is a mottled black rock with white spots. I believe they make a curry out of the shellfish. But I do not know what they are called.

While exploring the rocks I came to an area which was nor black like all the others but here the rocks were more like pink and in a pink pool I foung the prettiest crabs I have ever seen, Though they were moss grey on top they had an ivory belly and deep wine pink claws. One of then was eating some kind of barnacle or mollusk.

I later took Nitin to see this coloured pool . While we were coming back we saw this huge White bellied Fish Eagle come in from the water's edge. It had a pure white head and Breast , a black border to its wings and a light grey back. Really missed my camera. But before Nitin's Phone battery died I was able to get this picture of the pool.

The resident crabs were wearing these same colours.

I am no expert on butterflies but I counted at least 10 different types all colours and sizes and as many tiny wild flowers.

With an area so rich in flora and fauna it is but natural that some of them found their way into the house itself. It was nice to share the house with them.

This handsome fellow usually made his appearance at night just outside the main door.

This fellow lives in the drawing room cupboard and is no trouble at all.

This green clad fellow dropped in to say hello the first evening we were there.

Now for the 'WORST' part of the trip.

Apart from the two caretakers(who cook reasonably well) the cottage is also 'home' to five dogs. And I use the term HOME very reluctantly...a better term would be JAIL, TORTURE HOUSE....YOU GET MY DRIFT. 

Now I am very fond of dogs and it is unthinkable for me to be around them without making friends with them. But I did not...did not pet them...did not play with them...did not touch them.....MIND YOU they are not a bit ferocious, on the other hand they are always wagging their tails and shirnking down low whenever you pass by. They were not skin and bone but their coats were dull and one really did not want to pet ot touch......By the way I have seen shinier coats on strays.

Let me tell you where the dogs live.....two of them are tied in a separate dog house next to the care takers cottage.....one is tied just outside the door of the caretakers hut and two are tied on either side of the main house door. IN ALL KINDS OF WEATHER ....EVEN IN THE POURING RAIN. Its not really sheltered.

After a few hours of our arrival we asked the caretakers not to keep the dogs tied for our sake....for we were not afraid and they seemed to have been tied for quite some time now......but we were told it was ok....not to bother. And this continued for all THREE DAYS.

Nitin too had observed the condition of the dogs and was very smart in keeping me out of the house the first two days....we went to Alibag, Murud, Kashid, Chaul. For such a nice place ( and the fact that we had gone for a rest), we did not spend much time there.

But it had to happen.......by the third day I was in tears.....Nitin was ready to leave. I tried to explain to the caretakers, what exactly they were doing....dont think I got across to them....and then we threatened(and we were about to) LEAVE. They insisted that the dogs would get out of the boundry....so I said why dont you just secure the boundry and at least let them stretch their legs inside the compound. But I guess that was too much work. That they would take them out for a walk on the beach was out of the question....five dogs ...what were we thinking! On our insistence they let out two dogs....and sure enough they went out of the boundry...ran around on the beach...played with the strays there and came back in some time. That they rarely if ever got to get out was obvious from the fact that one of the dogs who came back after a run slept for the rest of the day, he was so tired and so out of shape. 

One dog which is tied outside their door is taken out daily to do his busines.....he is taken from his place outside the house to a pole two meters from the gate and tied there and then brought back after some time. The rest of the dogs eat sleep and do their business tied where they are on two foot chains. One dog stayed out the night  for the simple reason that she was in heat and I could see her playing with the dogs on the beach. If the caretakers had wanted to they could have gone and got her anytime they wanted....but.....

Before leaving I tried again to explain to the guys about the needs of their dogs ...they did not argue but I have ABSOLUTELY no hope for the poor things who seem to be condemned to live a life of horrific captivity . WORST OF ALL WHEN I CAME TO MUMBAI, I WROTE TO THE OWNER RADHIKA. IT WAS A VERY SWEET NON OFFENSIVE LETTER......BUT I DID NOT GET ANY REPLY.

I JUST DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO.....

PLEASE DO NOT GO TO SALT RIM EVEN THOUGH THE PLACE IS LOVELY. I CANNOT AND I WILL NOT CONDONE ANIMAL CRUELTY. 

AND IF YOU CAN FORWARD THIS POST TO SOME ANIMAL CARE ORGANISATION I SHALL BE GRATEFUL.

THANKS.

WILL BE POSTING THIS LINK IF I CAN ON TRIP ADVISOR ALSO.

My first post from Mumbai......Today was the first day I was able to go for a walk.......since I am (hopefully) finished with my daily house hunting I hope I shall be able to continue. Really enjoyed myself...after a long time...walked all the way from the hotel to Carter road...walked down most of the water front and back. The tide was out.


My first impression of Carter road yesterday while driving around, was not that positive....the sea view is in a large part blocked with the mangroves which seem to serve as a collection point for all the rubbish we throw into the sea  and is mainly populated with lots and lots of house crows. Boy! Was I wrong.


As soon as I reached the first bit of mangrove I heard some chirruping and spotted a small brown bird, which I identified to my utter surprise, as a White-browed Fantail. I have met this bird just once earlier at Tikli near Gurgaon and that glimpse was just a glimpse...and a blurred picture. Wish I had taken the camera along today. The mangrove along carter road is alive with birds, if one can tune out the noise of the traffic. Of course there are a lot of crows. But I also saw the larger glossier pure black crow and heard three calls which I could not spot or identify. Think I shall go for my morning walk a little earlier when the city has not awoken.Also saw a pond heron catching its breakfast...a tiny little fish. Missed a lovely picture there too...sigh! 


All in all a lovely walk, a great start to my day and best of all I think these sightings will make me more inclined to keep up with my exercise schedule. A promising start to our Mumbai stint! :-)

A spring evening

Here are two pictures of Sun birds and I did not have to go anywhere farther than my garden to get these shots. A couple of days ago I heard a squirrel calling repeatedly. I stepped out to my back lawn and saw that the cat who comes in occasionally for a drink of milk(nothing else will do and will be rejected outright) had after a meal decided to catch a 'cat nap' in my pot of basil. The squirrel for reasons only to herself did not appreciate this and continued to scold the cat for quite some time. So I got the opportunity to click them both.

As I did not seem to be disturbing either the cat or the squirrel I turned my attention to some more chirping around. Had been hearing a lot for the last week. First spotted the male sitting high on the tree and then captured the female sunbird with a bit of feather/down in her beak. That caught my eye and so I stood waiting to try and see where she was heading. In the meanwhile Nitin managed to get a good picture of the male with all his plumage. Since I had been shooting against the light my pictures did'nt do justice to its wonderful colouring.

Today armed with the camera I spent a fruitless half hour searching the bushes for the nest. Then gave it up as a bad job and decided to wait for the pair to turn up again. Had to do a bit of running to and fro - wait for the bird to go into the bushes and then run and try to see them from the bathroom and last room window - and finally saw it. In the picture above, the nest seems big but actually it is small and I had dismissed it for garbage hanging from the bushes when I had gone to look for it earlier. That's some camouflage..... I saw it but did not see it for what it was. Why do we call them bird brains!!! That's one smart bird.

I am also including another picture of the sleeping cat after the squirrel went away and all was at peace.

A white brested kingfisher was also attracted to by all this activity and was duly captured by Nitin. The sky was pretty too with both the setting sun and the moon keeping us company. All in all A very nice evening.

I think I should call this piece " The birds make merry while the cat sleeps".

This frisky little fellow is called the Streaked laughing Thrush. Very common around our house in Shimla, this particular picture was taken by Umang at The Institute of advanced Studies. By far my favourite place in Shimla. We were just walking around the beautiful grounds (if you are visiting the place the first time the tour of the inside of the building is not to be missed). The grounds are filled with very pretty flowers and trees and the facade of the building is very impressive. As it is located on a hill top the views are many and very pleasing. From Umang's point of view you can see the Train track and get an excellent view of the airport at Jubbarhatti. Some time we intend to be there early morning , me for the birds which are many(if I saw so many during the afternoon I am sure I will get more early in the day) and Umang for a view of the plane landing. An excellent vantage point.

Umang was a long time taking this picture. Though not a rare,tiny or very shy bird they are rather tricky to click as they barely sit in a place for more than a second.

One thing that photographing birds is sure to teach us is the art of patience, waiting for the bird to come out in the open to be photographed, waiting for a hidden bird identified only by its call, waiting for the person with the camera to finish(that takes really long :) ). That and very strong neck and shoulder muscles. Even though I did not do any neck exercises this summer, I believe my muscles are in excellent tone from continuously looking up into the trees for a glimpse. The shoulders benefit from hauling all the rather heavy paraphernalia of lenses camera etc over long walks and holding up the camera to the trees for long stretches of time. :) I am enjoying myself.

Our trip to Chail was very fruitful. Very lucky indeed. after spotting the Green Pigeon we came to Sadhupul after lunch.

A pretty place (although it was smelly this time) and the only place to go if one wants to see water around Shimla. An enterprising dhaba wala has placed tables and chairs in the water itself - the water is generally 4 -6 inches deep. We often stop here for tea.

Before these 'amenities' came to Sadhupul we would come here for Picnics with packed food from home(I would still suggest you get the food from home- I am not too fond of the food provided by the guy currently).

One summer when Shimla's water supply failed for 10 days we came here with our guests (10-15 people) only because we would be able to wash the utensils afterwards.

Despite us being such regulars at Sadhupul this was the first time I have spotted these delightful birds. Delightful because they are not only a treat to look at but they posed so patiently for the camera. Got a large number of lovely pictures. Hope they like the place and stay on.We saw six of these Crested Kingfishers.

This is a Blue Laughing Thrush. Picture taken at Sadhupul.

We have a pair of these birds living around our house in Shimla. Nice, peppy, noisy creatures, not shy or too swift(from the cameraman's point of view) and very territorial. Have often seen them chase away the large pitch black crows and other pairs of their species.

Though before I got my bird book I thought they were black birds. Reminded me of the old nursery rhyme

'Sing a song of six pence,

A pocket full of Rye,

Four and twenty black birds,

baked in a pie,

When the pie was opened,

The birds began to sing

Wasn't that a dainty dish

Fit for a king.

Made me think that these rather cantankerous birds would do a lot of mischief before being persuaded to sing. :)

The book also goes on to say that they are found around streams... so this bird is in the correct place.... as for the ones around our house I guess they have learnt to get their water from more man made sources.