A BRITISH BIRDWATCHER IN PUNE

by David Adelson

From 22nd January to 26th February 1998 a birdwatcher (Ornithoscopus binoculus) showing characteristics of the race britannicus was present in and around Pune, Maharashtra.On the basis of the bare parts on the head, it was adjudged to be a male.During the week it was exclusively to be found in the offices of Mahindra British Telecom in Pune, but on weekends and public holidays it was catholic in its choice of habitat, frequenting lakes, rivers, marshes, dry-deciduous and evergreen forest, scrub and scattered woodland, dry grassland, semi-desert and urban areas.On one occasion it even visited a sandy sea-shore.Friends, I was that birdwatcher.

Before the start of my business visit to India, I had found an Internet site about Indian wildlife which is maintained by Yogesh Wadadekar of Pune University.I e-mailed Yogesh asking for information about birdwatching in Pune and about other birdwatchers.Yogesh was most helpful with information and in putting me in touch with Rahul and Swapna Purandare, two keen, knowledgeable and observant birdwatchers who by a brilliant stroke of good fortune also work at MBT.Most of my daylight free time was taken up with birdwatching and on most of these occasions Rahul and Swapna were extremely kind in taking me to good sites and helping me to identify what I saw.Yogesh also came with me to some sites.Without their help it is certain that I would not have seen anything like the 217 species (by which I includewell-marked races) of birds which made up my final tally.Of these a staggering 140 were life "firsts" for me.I also saw several "new" species of mammals, reptiles, butterflies and other groups.

I caught a flight from UK to Mumbai but did not spend long there, departing for Pune the next morning to start my work there as soon as possible.I stayed in MBT's private accomodation in the suburb of Aundh, in a pleasant area where the house gardens and a nearby large compound allowed me to see plenty of typical Indian species.Indeed there were some species that I saw there that I did not see anywhere else on my visit (e.g., Common Bustard-Quail and Yellow-Eyed Babbler) and there were some others that were surprises so close to the city (Black-Naped Hare, Blossom-Headed Parakeet).In all, I saw 55 species of birds in the vicinity of the guest-house, including one day when I saw eight raptor species from the house itself.Most of the common species around the house are not seen in the UK.For instance, we have no parakeets, mynahs, sunbirds, wren-warblers, bee-eaters, koels, and no hornbills nor any close relative.Species we do share include House Sparrows, Town Pigeons, some of the sandpipers and their close relatives, Common Swallow, Kestrel, and many of the ducks.In continental Europe there are more groups shared in common.Some birds common in India occur in only small numbers inthe UK (e.g., Little Egret, Golden Oriole), while Blyth's Reed Warbler, which seems a common winter visitor in forest and suburbs,is a very rare breeder in Europe and has occurred as a vagrant only a few times in the UK.Kamala Nehru Park in Pune holds a nesting colony of maybe 100 pairs of Night Herons and an evening visit allowed me to see and hear this wonderful phenomenon.

My first trip outside Pune took me to a patch of deciduous forest at the base of the Sinhagad hill,where with the help of my expert friends I saw many species, including a close view of Crested Hawk-Eagle, White-Bellied Drongo, Yellow-Throated Sparrow, Paradise Flycatcher, and Tree-Pie.Here was the only snake I saw on my entire trip - a Russell's Viper which had been killed and suspended from a wire fence.(In the UK we have few snakes of only three species, only one venomous and that not really life-threatening for most people, and all well under one metre in length).Bonelli's and Steppe Eagles were seen on the return journey, plus a large roost of Flying Foxes.On the Khadakvasla dam there were a few water-birds including Pheasant-Tailed Jaçana, Spotbill and Cotton Teal with the other species of duck which are also easily seen in Europe.

The following day (Republic day) I went with Yogesh to the Mula-Mutha sanctuary in central Pune, on the river-bank just below the confluence of the two rivers which give it its name.However, uncharacteristically thick morning mist hid almost everything from view.Giving up on this place we journeyed down-river to Kavdi, where the mist eventually lifted in mid-morning.Suddenly I was able to see large flocks of egrets, Painted and White-Necked Storks, Glossy and Black-Necked Ibises, Spoonbills, and a Reef Heron.This last was a great surprise, as the site is more than 100km from the coast, but the bird was seen well and there was no doubt - it was of the slate-purple colour-phase with a single white primary feather.Various waders were seen, plus River and Gull-billed Terns, Bluethroat, and many White and Yellow Wagtails of several races.I saw a Common Indian Mongoose run across the track.In the afternoon,I visited the Sinhagad fort high on a hill, where vultures were seen at close range along with the upland specialists Blue RockThrush and Alpine Swift - both these last being fairly common in the mountains of Southern Europe.It was very nice to see thousands of people at the fort enjoying themselves in such a good-natured way.

The following weekend there was again a public holiday (Id) and I was taken by Rahul and Swapna to Mahabaleshwar, a hill-station in the Ghats.Here there was both moist evergreen forest and more open upland habitat.On the way there we saw a bird in roadside scrub which we later identified beyond doubt as a Thick-Billed Warbler with the help of a field-guide I had brought from the UK.We saw a wide selection of raptors including a few Black Eagles, a Long-Legged Buzzard perched at very close range, and a small flock of Steppe Eagles over a rubbish tip.It was amazing to see vultures soaring at eye-level at the famous viewpoints!From our hotel we had a lovely view and saw some wonderful birds - highlights were Nilgiri Woodpigeon,Grey Jungle-Fowl,Malabar Whistling-Thrush, Scimitar Babbler, Ashy Drongo and several bulbuls - not to mention the Langur Monkeys.We had a number of walks in the forest and saw more Langurs, but no other mammals of note - though we heard Giant Squirrel a few times and saw the inevitable Bonnet Monkeys at Kate's Point.In the forest we saw, among others, Black-Naped Blue and White-Bellied Blue Flycatchers, Blue-Headed Rock Thrush, White-Throated Ground Thrush, Paradise Flycatcher, and Small Sunbird at the nest feeding chicks.On the return journey we saw many Indian Rollers - one of the most strikingly coloured birds I have ever seen (though I hope to see the European equivalent one day).

I visited the Campus of Pune University a few times.Other birdwatchers have stayed on the campus and given excellent accounts of its bird-life.It contains some good wooded areas and open grassland, though its pond seems to be declining in interest compared with earlier accounts.I had really stunning views of a pair of Common Grey Hornbills feeding each other fruit and inspecting holes in tree-trunks.There were little groups of Small Minivet, plus Common Iora, Spotted Owlet, Ashy-Crowned Finch-Lark, Palm Swifts.This was the only place where I saw Jungle Mynahs.I was pleased to see a small flock of Indian Tree Pipit, which as Olive-Backed Pipit is a highly sought-after vagrant in the UK.

Rahul took me to an area East of Pune which he had researched and about which he has published a paper.This has hill country at Diveghat, lakes at Patas, dry country at Bhuleshwar, and dry country, irrigations and a dam at Varvand.At Diveghat, we saw Striolated Bunting which was a puzzling "mystery bird"to local birdwatchers a few years ago until Rahul discovered its true identity.Viewing conditions were not ideal as we watched from the road while noisy trucks toiled up the Ghat.We also saw Crested Bunting and Olivaceous Leaf Warbler.In and around Bhuleshwar there were White-Eyed Buzzard, Grey-Necked Bunting, Pied Bush-Chat, Blue Rock-Thrush, Ashy-Crowned and Rufous-Tailed Finch Lark.We were hoping to see Chinkara taking advantage of the security of the temple there, but we were unlucky.We started to see Ring Dove rather than the urban Little Brown Dove in the dry country.(In the UK the Ring Dove is the urban species and has become incredibly common in the short time since its colonisation in 1955.)At Patas we saw a wide selection of wetland birds, including large numbers of Purple Moorhens and Pheasant-tailed Jaçanas, Brahminy Kite, Indian Great Reed Warbler, lots of Cotton Teal, about a hundred Little Cormorants, Open-Bill Stork, 6 heron/egret species and hundreds of ducks.At Varvand the dam had similar species, plus waders which were generally the same as I am used to seeing in the UK.Here I saw my first Yellow-Headed Wagtail, a vagrant from the East in the UK.In the dry country I had frustratingly brief glimpses of Indian Sandgrouse in flight,otherwise the birds seen were rather similar to those around Pune itself.A sighting of Black-Winged Kites with talons locked in courtship display was really stunning.Our wanderings were cut short by a new, wide, deep and fast-flowing irrigation channel, by means of which much dry country had been turned into irrigated land, so sadly we had to give up our attempts to find dry-country specialist species - in any case, it appeared that Coursers were not present at this time of year.On the way home we stopped at a nice place "The Farmers Inn" at Uruli-Kanchan, where the proprietor is interested in bird-watching and had kept a log-book for visitors to record sightings.Sadly, an incredibly selfish person had recently stolen it, so we had to write the first records in his new book as night fell, and as we did so we realised we had seen 100 species in the day - yet another first for me.

Through Rahul's contacts, we got in touch with Dr Ninad Shah at Solapur, who was able to take us round the Great Indian Bustard sanctuary at Nannaj.On our way from Pune to Solapur, we saw both Indian Fox and Indian Jackal crossing the road by the light of our headlights.Early next morning we saw just one GIB defending his breeding ground,but the sight of this huge bird was totally unforgettable.We saw at least one thousand Blackbuckaround the sanctuary - (Europe again has no Antelope species),with wonderful views of Sandgrouse, a beautiful male Montagu's Harrier, large flocks of Red-Headed and Black-Headed Buntings and Rosy Starlings.Otherwise we saw similar dry-country species that we had seen before.However, Solapur also has an excellent dam at Hipparga, where the typical water and water-side birds were enhanced by sightings of Pale Brown Shrike,a big flock of Short-Toed Larks mixed with Small Skylarks,a Peregrine Falcon perched on the ground and a couple more Montagu's Harriers.One of the Solapur birdwatchers who kindly accompanied us had difficulty in starting his two-wheeler as night fell - however this was a blessing in disguise for me as when we eventually set off we put up a Common Indian Nightjar from the track..The next day we returned to Nannaj as we wanted to see Wolf, but were unlucky.We stopped at Bhigvan dam on our return journey to Pune.By the main highway we saw a large flock of Flamingoes and other water-birds.The sunshine coming low over our shoulders gave our views an incredible clarity,however we decided it was prudent to move to another viewpoint because of the danger from traffic - but not before I had added Cliff Swallow to my list.We moved to the Forest Department Nursery where we encountered some new species associated with open woodland, including the only Woodpecker (a Mahratta) that I saw in all my time in India.One Forest Department Officer was extremely helpful, even after realising that we were not the people he was expecting to visit!

I knew that my return to the UK would take me to the coastal part of India (at Mumbai) and wondered if I could see coastal species there,but Rahul advised me of Akshi beach near Alibag, which would be more productive.I was able to take some time on my way back to Mumbai to detour via Alibag and I was not disappointed,with Terek Sandpiper, Greater and Lesser Sandplovers, and Kentish Plover in their hundreds, plus several other wader species including Curlew Sandpiper.I was also fortunate to see a magnificent White-Bellied Sea-Eagle which flew overhead, then showed each side in turn before disappearing behind the coastal plantation.In the plantation itself I saw White-Browed Bulbul among other species.

Pune is not one of the main areas for UK wildlife tourists to visit, as they tend to concentrate on a "Northern" circuit around Delhi or a "Southern" one for humid forest specialities.Yet clearly this area has much to offer the visitor on a business or academic trip.There are still plenty of birds in the fields, unlike much of the UK where intensive agriculture, relying on machines and chemicals, has largely eliminated birds and other wildlife from much of the countryside.In Europe,publicity campaigns and the gradually-rising popularity of organic farming will hopefully arrest the declines of once-common farmland species;let us hope that in India better policies and good sense will prevail and prevent these tragic losses from happening in the first place.The warning signs seem to be there, with changing land use affecting some bird populations, and both local and global extinctions already taking place.

I was keen to get home to my family but I was also sad to leave India, where I had been treated with such friendliness and hospitality by so many kind and knowledgeable people, and where I had seen such beautiful countryside and so many birds, of such variety and in many cases very beautiful.My first experience of tropical birdwatching had been really wonderful, thanks especially to the help of my new friends.I really hope that one season I will be able to make a return migration to such a wonderful area.

David Adelson
37 Bridgewood Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 4HA, UK.

URL: http://www-int.stsci.edu/~yogesh/wildlife/davidsreport.shtml

Last modified on: Tue Apr 5 15:36:19 2005