View allAll Photos Tagged telangana
A medium sized bird around 50-55 cms, this owl frequents rocky areas near green vegetation. Often found on rock edges sitting silently and active at night, the bird is very easy to miss. It primarily hunts rodents, but also eats snakes, lizards, frogs and maybe other agricultural pests.
I got this shot and sighting quite by accident. After searching a place for this bird, we sighted 3 of them flying far away, so I turned back in disappointment and was leaving. But I stopped for a minute to remove the 1.4x TC and when I turned back the fourth Owl was right behind me - sitting very quietly. I took several shots, and gently moved 1 step forward and the bird gave me this wide-eyed look to say - what the hell! And a few seconds later flew away!
Many thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
A formidable small bird of prey known for its high speed flight and impressive hunting skills. The bird is currently nesting in the countryside and is seen throughout the day every 30-45 mins. Maybe there are two of them, hard to tell!
This is a small falcon, maybe half the size of a peregrine and a resident bird of the country. The bird was flying over a large patch of fields where there were 100's of swamphens, mostly nesting on the edges in the reeds. After 2-3 flyovers, the Swamphens flew away enmasse towards the opposite side of the lake where they could find some protection. The falcon briefly landed on some dry bushes in the water logged fields and I went after it in the ankle deep water, but after a few shots it flew away the opposite side.
Many thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
A small wild cat found in the woody areas, forests and wetlands and places with vast amounts of dense vegetation. They are - I think - more common than we see them. Wikipedia says they are common across parts of Asia.
These animals are almost twice the size of a domestic cat and is often sighted hunting in the wild. They hunt rodents, quails, small ground birds, reptiles and maybe smaller raptors as well. I have seen this cat many times, but this time, spent 45 minutes with it. It didn't mind our presence and let us get close, but the light was poor and I had difficulty holding the heavy lens for long at low shutter speed.
Many thanks in advance for your views and kind feedback.
Another resident bird of the subcontinent though some of the subspecies migrate within the country. This particular species, the white chinned one doesn't migrate.
The bird is found in similar habitat as that of the Black Naped Monarch and in fact, we sighted them close in the last couple of trips. Both prefer semi /evergreen forests with lots of foliage and cover. They both are found near water streams trying to catch flies and other insects. One difference though is the behaviour. Thrushes in general are mostly sighted on the ground picking up leaves and trying to find small insects under them. This was found the same way, but it flew to this branch after seeing me from far.
Thank you so much in advance for your views, feedback and faves.
In their prime breeding season, the birds are quite active and end up chasing the other half. But since they are not sexually dimorphic, it is hard to know the male from the female unless they are next to each other. In this picture, I suppose this is the male since it was chasing another very similar looking bird which was a maybe 50m ahead of it. Both landed in a far off field.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
A native mongoose common to the Indian Subcontinent and seen around the countryside, cultivated fields and open scrublands. They are usually seen in a small group and often dart away on seeing people. I laid down flat on the ground for about 30-40 mins and watched them play around and come closer.
They prey on small birds, rodents, snakes, birds eggs, lizards, frogs and other type of invertebrates. I have seen them a few times trying to raid a Baya Weavers nests after climbing a tree though they were unsuccessful. These are not known to attack people, but I read a research article that 95-97% of Mongoose attacks carried rabies. So not dangerous, but infectious.
Many thanks in advance for your views, likes and faves. Much appreciated.
A migratory raptor from Central Asia, Eastern Europe that winters in India. They are quite similar to the Pallid Harriers and both these birds are often seen together and even hunt in the same habitat - grasslands. The prey base is also quite similar.
There were several males when I went there over the weekend. In fact, the females were barely seen which is kind of new since every year, the females outnumber the males by a huge ratio - this year it was the opposite. The birds were gently gliding across the grasslands hunting. It was evening and they also started sitting on the ground or on rocks - we had a good time, but the low light meant not many action shots. That grasslands is the only place where we are seeing some bird action these days, hopefully the action picks up soon.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
We were lucky to sight this delightful Hoopoe enjoying a sand bath on a country road. After making sure it wasn't disturbed by our presence, we lay down flat on the ground and watched it for about 10-15 minutes. The bird was throwing dust on itself on all sides and turning 360 degrees continuously.
Hoopoe are resident birds in India and could be seen throughout the year. But the end of rainy season and early winter brings them out more often. Soon the breeding season will start and hence there will be lot more activity.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
A beautiful snipe species resident in the country and sighted more frequently during the breeding season in summer. The bird is prized by the photographers due to its beautiful plumage. The one here is a female which is more colorful and beautiful. I sighted 2 males and 2 females and think may have seen 2 more, but I was focused on those that are visible to photograph in a better angle. The species exhibits reverse sexual dimorphism - meaning females are more beautiful than the males.
Outside of the breeding season they are quite hard to spot. The bird has a preference to the wet areas where we find them pretty much there most of the time.
Thank you so much in advance for your views, feedback and faves.
One of the several species of wagtails that are found in the country during winters. The bird migrates from Europe, central Asia and parts of China to India during the cold season.
Their behavior is quite like the other wagtails, but they seemed a tad bigger to me compared to the ones we have here - I could be wrong though. The bird continuously wags its tail giving it that name. This one is in its 1st winter probably and a pro birder who was with me during the trip remarked it could be a sub-adult.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
Soon it caught a large caterpillar for lunch, but the bird was quite eager to fly back to its nest and hence couldn't capture it. There were two of them, a pair I suppose and both were looking for food constantly making me suspect that there could be a nest and chicks nearby.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback.
A sparrow sized beautiful yellow bird that is delightful to watch. I love Yellow and in the morning sun the bird was all the more amazing. It has a very recognizable call and one of those birds easy to hear than see. They were close to a dozen of them, all busy foraging in the bush, often fighting and sucking up nectar from the flowers. Sighted a few of them even catching insects. They are resident birds here and seen all round the year. About ~12-15 cm in size and equal weight, they are a treat to watch.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
A beautiful song bird with a long tail and known for its pretty loud calls and songs. The calls are so easy to recognize since they are quite loud in the forests. The bird is also known for imitating other bird calls - I am not sure why it does that since there is ample food in the forest spot we visited. Maybe birds find comfort in the presence of other safe birds - a theory that I am seeing lot more.
Sighted this in a forest overlooking a temple on a hillside. The area hosts a variety of birds and is fantastic for great perches and shots if we can find the birds. The Shama was perched on a tree overlooking the valley below and was singing out loud. The berries in the picture are preferred by many birds and we sighted a barbet, green pigeon, magpie robin, parakeets, and several sunbirds grabbing them.
Thank you so much in advance for your views, feedback and faves.
Qutb Shahi Tombs, Golkunda, Telangana - India
Although it would be more romantic to have here a husband and wife, these are the twin mausoleums of the two favourite hakims (physicians) of Sultan Abdullah — Nizamuddin Ahmed Gilani and Abdul Jabbar Gilani — which were built in 1651.
See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qutb_Shahi_tombs for more details.
Many thanks to Manfred Sommer (www.flickr.com/photos/asienman) and his spectacular Flickr account, which enabled me to ascertain the identification of the tombs.
A Cyclone battering the nearby state has brought lot of clouds and overcast sky to the forest area. But we started hoping that the sky will clear up sufficiently for photography. This was the first shot of the day which was almost after 45 mins of looking around for birds. The Brown Shrike, a less common cousin of the Shrike Family, easily identified by the Brown Plumage on the belly and back. Pretty similar behaviour to the other shrikes except that this prefers a much thicker bushy area unlike the Bay Backed Shrikes which prefer open grasslands or the Long Tailed Shrikes which have a more flexible habitat. They prefer insects and often are sighted with caterpillars. The background is a woody area almost 2-300 meters away and hence got a nice sweet bokeh.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
Qutb Shahi Tombs, Golkunda, Telangana - India
Newly renovated (in 2020) tomb of Hayat Bakshi Begum, daughter of Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth sultan, wife of Sultan Muhammed Qutb Shah, the sixth sultan, and mother of Abdullah Qutb Shah, the seventh sultan. She was affectionately known as "Ma Saheba" (Revered Mother).
See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qutb_Shahi_tombs and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayat_Bakshi_Begum
for more details.
Many thanks to Manfred Sommer (www.flickr.com/photos/asienman) and his spectacular Flickr account, which enabled me to ascertain the identification of the mausoleum.
A beautiful small flycatcher that I had long wanted to see and shoot. Around 10-12 cms long, agile and restless, it is easily identified by the red color on the breast area that extends down till the belly (There is another flycatcher - the Taiga Flycatcher - that looks exactly the same, but the red color stops at the neck).
This is a migrant from Western and Central Europe to South Asia during winters, the bird stays till March before moving back to its breeding range. Its an active flycatcher - restless with sudden movements and flight. The call too is quite easy to id. It tends to hunt on the edge of canopy and tends to sit in the open briefly.
The bird is now sighted on the edge of city lake that is teeming with illegal constructions - apparently half a dozen of these birds along with several other flycatchers are hunting in the clump of trees. We think they are passage migrants to the place and will fly away very soon. I managed to get some good shots of the bird and delighted with the outcome.
Thanks in advance for your views and feedback. Much appreciated.
A highly agile bird with an even more erratic flying path than the river tern, we found a few of them chasing each other. Very hard to photograph and incredibly challenging to predict flight path. Managed to get a few shots, not to the sharpness I wanted though.
Thanks in advance for your views / comments / feedback. Much appreciated.
Rufous Treepie
The rufous treepie (Dendrocitta vagabunda) is a treepie, native to the Indian Subcontinent and adjoining parts of Southeast Asia. It is a member of the crow family, Corvidae. It is long tailed and has loud musical calls making it very conspicuous. It is found commonly in open scrub, agricultural areas, forests as well as urban gardens. Like other corvids it is very adaptable, omnivorous and opportunistic in feeding.
The sexes are alike and the main colour of the body is cinnamon with a black head and the long graduated tail is bluish grey and is tipped in black. The wing has a white patch. The only confusable species is the grey treepie which however lacks the bright rufous mantle. The bill is stout with a hooked tip. The underparts and lower back are a warm tawny-brown to orange-brown in colour with white wing coverts and black primaries. The bill, legs and feet are black.
The widespread populations show variations and several subspecies are recognized. The nominate subspecies is found in the northeastern part of peninsular India south to Hyderabad. The desert form is paler and called pallida, vernayi of the Eastern Ghats is brighter while parvula of the Western Ghats is smaller in size. The form in Afghanistan and Pakistan is bristoli while the form in southern Thailand is saturatior. E C Stuart Baker describes sclateri from the upper Chindwin to the Chin Hills and kinneari from souther Myanmar and northwest Thailand. The population in eastern Thailand an Indochina is sakeratensis.
The range of this species is quite large, covering all of mainland India up to the Himalayas, Pakistan and southeasterly in a broad band into Bangladesh, Burma (Myanmar), Laos, and Thailand in open forest consisting of scrub, plantations and gardens.
The Qutub Shahi Tombs are the tombs and mosques built by the various kings of the Qutub Shahi dynasty in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the centre of each tomb is a sarcophagus which overlies the actual burial vault in a crypt below. The domes were originally overlaid with blue and green tiles, of which only a few pieces now remain.
The Qutub Shahi Tombs are the tombs and mosques built by the various kings of the Qutub Shahi dynasty in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the centre of each tomb is a sarcophagus which overlies the actual burial vault in a crypt below. The domes were originally overlaid with blue and green tiles, of which only a few pieces now remain.
The Qutub Shahi Tombs are the tombs and mosques built by the various kings of the Qutub Shahi dynasty in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the centre of each tomb is a sarcophagus which overlies the actual burial vault in a crypt below. The domes were originally overlaid with blue and green tiles, of which only a few pieces now remain.
The Qutub Shahi Tombs are the tombs and mosques built by the various kings of the Qutub Shahi dynasty in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the centre of each tomb is a sarcophagus which overlies the actual burial vault in a crypt below. The domes were originally overlaid with blue and green tiles, of which only a few pieces now remain.