mansagar lake (winter)

lessor cormorant with a catch 

 

 happy new year 2021 to all of you one of the toughest year 2020 passes and  a new ray of hopes rises

 

 

some glimpse of winter season at mansagar lake jaipur rajasthan from our collection this year . 

this year goes out very tough with covid -19 spreading all round the globe so there is limited options and time for bird watching  remains .

early chilly morning snaps at mansagar lake jaipur as the birding  season starts here are some examples of from our collection 

image details -camera used nikon d500, lens used tamron 150-600 mm zoom lens 

shutter speed -500  iso 250 focal length- 600mm aperture -f10

spot billed duck 

Lessor cormorant 

                                                                  

lessor cormorants eagerly searching for food after the sun rises and some soak themselfesin the sunlight after failure or right  attempts 

spot billed duck

                                                          

Spot billed duck is also known as indian spot billed duck has green wing shining at the back of the body but this bird is very shy in showing that green shinning part its beak has two yellow and black colors

                                                                    spot billed duck 

                                                                     Spot billed ducks 

spot billed ducks are present all round the lake in the morning they are good in number they are one of the most populated species of ducks in this lake 

                                                       

drinking water

                                                             

spot billed ducks flock all roam around in search of food they are spotted easily on the bank of the lake 

mansagar these ducks are common specie in this place with cormorant (lessor) sharing the list

 

Anas poecilorhyncha is scientific name for these spot billed ducks these dabbling ducks are seen mostly throughout the year around the lake

 

 

 

                                                                         Lessor cormorant

lessor cormorant with a fish 

                                                                     Lessor cormorant

Lessor cormorants are expert fish catchers when it came to hunting but sometimes their effort will be gone waste as some bigger birds snatch fish from them after the catch and some times fish is luck to escape .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 lessor cormorant with fish they are nice divers they float like little submarines and came out with their prize they also hunt in group 

eurasian coot 

 

 

eurassian coot also arrived in lake scientific name Fulica atra, also known as australian coot 

It is found in Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and parts of North Africa . eurasian coot arrived during the mid of novembor at lake masnasagar  During the non-breeding season they may form large flocks, possibly related to predator avoidance, coot is an omnivorous bird which feeds on algae ,eggs of other water bird, vegetation,seeds,fruits. 

they are distributed in good numbers  all around the lake with cormorants and other water birds 

 

 

 

 

Eurasian coot

                        

spot billed ducks

   spot billed ducks and cormorant

                          

wood sandpiper 

wood sandpiper (Tringa glareola) is very small and can be seen mostly on the edges of the water body they are small wader they eat insects and small prey in this picture wood sandpiper with reflection in still water at  the lake

 

 

 

squirrel

 

comb duck

    there  are also unexpected visitors this year like comb duck , comb duck was seen in between spotbilled ducks in this picture at mansagar lake 

common teal

common teal also spotted there in between flocks of ducks ,common teal also use to remain in between their groups have brownish head and a green band coming across eye to the back side 

 

 

 

greater cormorant

 greater cormorants arrive in large number and did a lot of fishing between mid november and some went to other places after within a week and some remains in the lake but when they come they are large in numbers and they hunt in large  group . 

gulls

gulls are also unexpected visitors to te lake this time pallas gull(Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus) in yellow beak swimming with other birds . pallas gull is bigger in size then the other gulls and sometimes pallas gull snatches fish from lessor cormorant who dived and catch fish on own  and after this process cormorant has to dry his whole body in sunlight pallas gulls are migratory birds who breeds from russia o mongolia and winter season in Mediterranean  ,Arabia and India

pelicans are expected to visit  like each year this time also but there are no pelicans there in the lake this time

if you  like our photography then stay tuned,and also write in comments 

camera used nikon d 5 lens used -tamron 150-600 mm  

In the end 2020 has passed away and 2021 has come with new rays of hope  but there is not a clear way out so stay safe with your family during this tough time of covid -19 take necessary precautions.

new you tube video link - https://youtu.be/LPIfaWHVWZY

instagram id - @ctiwari911, @birdingbros1

facebook id - sagphotography

Indian peacock and leopard]



indian peacocks in group walks slowly towards leopard who is in sleeping mode moving his tail only ,he

does not minds the presence of these birds coming and is about to sleep .
all male and female peacocks move towards leopard and make warning calls also
video taken at jhalana forest jaipur,rajasthan
camera nikon d3100
lens nikkor 55-300
morning safari 2018
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i also make calendars of my wildlife photography

                             Velavadar National Park

Located in Bhavnagar District of Gujarat state, India

Known for:  Savanna type Grassland, Blackbucks, Wolves and Many Migratory Bird species. It is world’s largest Harrier Roosting site.

           Blackbuck in Savanna type Grasslands of Velavadar NP

Best Time to visit: November to March

Park Timings:  Morning 6.30 am to 1 pm   Evening 4 pm to 6 pm

How to reach:

By Rail: Nearest Railway Station is Bhavnagar and it has good connectivity, one can get down at that place and hire a taxi to reach Velavadar NP which is 45 Km away.

By Bus: One can reach Bhavnagar and then Hire a taxi or if coming from Ahmedabad then you can get down at velavadar which is on Bhavnagar -Ahmedabad Route

By Air: Nearest Airport is in Bhavnagar.

By Road: If you are planning to come from Ahmedabad then you have to take S.G. Highway and drive 60 Km on it, after reaching Bhagodara you have to take a left turn and continue on the road past pipli and dholera to reach here.

Places to stay: You can find accommodation at Blackbuck Lodge which is situated near the National Park. Forest Department also provides accommodation inside the park but for that you have to enquire about the availability beforehand and then send a Demand draft to the Range Forest Officer, Bhavnagar to book your accommodation. Another option is to stay in Bhavnagar itself and then come back to NP during your safari time.

Ticket Charges is 100 Rs. per person for Indians and 400 Rs. Per person for foreigners. Then you have to pay for the guide fees also which is 100 Rs. per safari. If you are carrying a camera with you then charge for that is 100 Rs. per camera.

One needs to hire a vehicle to go for safari, jeeps are provided by Blackbuck Lodge at the cost of 1800 Rs. For two hours and if you are bringing your own vehicle then you need to pay 400 Rs. For the whole safari duration.

Our Visit: We started from Ahmedabad early in the morning at 4.30 a.m. and reached Velavadar around 7 am, We entered into park around 7.15 am. Our guide was very helpful and had a good knowledge about the species present there.

Our first sighting was of Short Toed Snake Eagle which was sitting on the top of a tree at a distance of 200 meters, we stayed there for a while and clicked many shots. After that we moved on the trail and saw a big group of blackbucks comprising male, female and the small ones. 

Also, there was a flock of rufous skylark and stonechat.

 Short toed Snake Eagle perching on a tree

          A group of Blackbucks

        Common Stonechat (male)

After moving further ahead, our guide pointed us to a waterhole where he saw three wolves few days back, he then mentioned that wolves are the top carnivores of the park and they like to hunt blackbucks, rabbits and small blue bull.

Our next sighting was of Greater Indian Spotted Eagle who was sitting on the safari trail itself, we stopped our vehicle at the safe distance and clicked many images of the bird, we do not have any other option other than to wait as it was sitting on trail, Eagle stayed there for fifteen minutes and gave us some really good shots to capture.

    

Greater Spotted Indian Eagle Sitting on the trail

      Common Babbler

      Indian Bushlark

    Black Shouldered Kite perching on the tree

    Ashy Crowned Sparrow Lark on the trails

  Eagle and the Blackbucks

Moving on the trail we saw female pallid harrier in the flight, it was our first harrier sighting of the day. Our guide mentioned that this year they observed Early departure of the harriers as they generally stay till march end. This year very few harriers have stayed otherwise harrier sighting is very good both inside as well as outside the national park during this season.

      Pallid Harrier in Flight

      Rufous-tailed lark

There was a crested lark which was sitting in front of our vehicle on the trail when we were busy clicking its images a group of wild boar crossed the trail and went to the other side, our guide told us that they generally feed on roots and tubers but sometimes can be seen eating small herbivores also. Velavadar has a good population of them.

    Wild Boar in Velavadar NP

After moving ahead on the trail we saw a small water body in which there was a pair of ruddy shelduck, some spotbilled ducks , stilts, red wattlled lapwing and a common kingfisher. To our surprise, suddenly a steppe eagle appeared from nowhere and started chasing the shelducks. It caused a commotion among the birds, Shelducks then quikly moved into a safe place and eagle was left with no option other than to move on. We also saw a pair of black eagle in flight over that water body.

     Steppe Eagle causing commotion

   Crested Lark sitting on the trail

Our safari continued till 11 am and that point it became very hot and we were tired from our long drive and excursion so we decided to call it a day. When we were heading back to the gate our guide shared many interesting stories related to his previous visits with other tourists. We saw a group of common cranes, a big herd of blackbuck and some other small grassland birds.

      Common Crane in Velavadar

       Blackbuck in Velavadar NP

         Common Kestrel  Perching in Velavadar

         White Eyed Buzzard (Juv.) in Velavadar

After coming out of the park we went to the opposite side which is a water reservoir and also comes under the protected area, our guide said that we can see some wetland birds there but we were disappointed after seeing that place as it does not have more than two three species over there.

At 11.45 am after saying goodbye to our guide we started our journey towards Bhavnagar with our plan of coming back to evening safari. Our Evening safari was also good and we sighted many species in that, overall it was a visit worth remembering.

           Velavadar- adobe of Blackbuck

Some Points

• Take a good Binocular and a camera with you
• Try to visit the Park in Morning Safari as Bird Sighting is good that time.
• Carry some water and eatables with you as nothing is available around the park.
• Wear light colored clothes
• Most Important, Respect Nature

           Enjoy your visit to Velavadar.

Important Links

•         http://www.theblackbucklodge.com/
•       http://www.gujarattourism.com/destination/details/12/223

LANDSCAPE BEAUTY

 

Snow clad Mountains and Pine forest
Ranikhet, Uttarakhand 

 

Early morning view of Jal mahal from Nahargarh fort road, Jaipur

Jal Mahal is a palace located in the middle of the Man Sagar Lake in Jaipur city.The lake was created by constructing a dam across the Darbhawati River, between Khilagarh hills and the hilly areas of Nahargarh, in the 16th century. 

                              carved mountains at ajanta and ellora caves ,Mahrashtra-India

                                                            Fatehsagar Lake, Udaipur (Rajasthan)

Nasik,-Maharashtra(India)

.

 Scattered sunlight at jhadol ,60 kms from Udaipur Rajasthan -India 

nearest sanctuary is Phulwari WLS which is also known for landscape beauty.

     Sunset point , Ramgad dam,Jamwa Ramgad 35 kms from Jaipur .

This dam was host of asian game events like water sports but due to illegal encroachments water in the dam dried up .
Once used as water storage to fulfill needs during scarcity but now left with no sign of water,nearby wildlife sanctuary is Jamwa Ramgad WLS.

Beautiful Jaipur

 Siliserh Lake is situated just 13 Kms from Alwar city and also can be used as stop over before you move on Sariska Tiger Reserve

Fatehsagar lake at evening, Udaipur- Rajasthan

Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary ,Maharashtra

          Tryambkeshwar Temple in natural landscape manner at Nasik ,Maharashtra