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The Vaishnodevi Experience 2023

My first trip to Vaishnodevi was unimpressive. Climbing was hard, and it only served to highlight how badly out of shape I was, while my in-laws managed to cope so much better. Further, I hadn’t quite realized that the cave experience wouldn’t be the same as I had imagined, since the original cave was only opened at certain times a year, and that we only entered a newly created tunnel, one far easier to access, and hence more manageable with the crowds that thronged the mountain shrine. The resulting experience at the shrine, for barely a fraction of a second, hardly compared to what I had expected / imagined / heard about. So, for me, Vaishnodevi was like any other temple, nothing to write home about, something that was reflected (though not explicitly mentioned) in the blog post I wrote then.
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Birds of Tadoba - A Photo Post

Criss-crossing the jungle in search of the tiger, it was birds that we most often came across. I have already written about some of the birds we saw, but there were so many more, that I decided that a photo-post was in order, to show you just how many there are! And these are just the few I managed to capture on camera... there were many, many more, that I didn't. 





Our first sightings were water birds, just outside the core zone of the sanctuary....

Spot Billed Duck

Purple Swamphen... a pair. 

Purple Swamphen


Little Cormorant 

Open Billed Storks

Open Billed Stork - a closer look

Purple Heron, with an Open Billed Stork

Black Headed Ibis


Black Headed Ibis, Egret and Black Ibis

Black Ibis
There were other birds too, though we hardly stopped for any.... our driver and guide were always in a rush to show us the tiger! Here are those we did stop for... or saw while we waited for the tiger!! 


Male Asian Paradise Flycatcher. 
There were so many of these around, it was fascinating to see the long white tail as it flew amidst the trees...

Juvenile Male Asian Paradise Flycatcher

Golden Oriole. 
These were also plentiful, teasing us with a golden glimpse every now and then. Their cousins, the Black Hooded Orioles were also around, but I didn't manage to get a capture. 

I know this isnt a sparrow, but I can't identify it. Can you help? 

Some kind of Duck.. Any help with the identification? 

Pied Kingfisher

Indian Roller and Rufous Treepie

Common Kingfisher

Woodpecker


Shikra
Black - Naped Monarch Flycatcher.
This tiny bird (about the size of a sparrow or just slightly bigger, proved remarkably tough to capture. It was only cause we waited for almost an hour at the pond that I managed this blurry photo! 
White Bellied Drongo.
There were so many of these around, I was so surprised I had never seen them before!! 

Among the birds we couldn't identify was this pigeon we saw, at a water hole. It was bigger than the usual ones, as you can see from this pic, where you can see how much bigger it is than a Bulbul....


Here is a better view...

Can you help me identify this bird? 


The Changeable Hawk Eagles we spotted were so impressive that they deserve a post to themselves. Then, there are other birds we saw that I have written about here.  But these were just a few of the many birds we saw. The purpose of this post is twofold. Firstly, for me to remember which birds we saw, and yes, also to show you... and second, to show you just how much life there is, in the jungle, just waiting to be seen!!! I just hope you remember that, the next time you visit a jungle!

This post is part of my series on my #summertrip 2015, and I hope to take you along with me as I recount stories from my month long trip, which took me across the country. To get an idea of all the places I visited, and what you can hope to read about, click here. 

Related Posts:
  • On Tadoba

  • On the Summer Trip


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Location: Tadoba National Park, Chandrapur, Maharashtra 442401, India

Comments

  1. Vivek PrasharJune 14, 2015 at 9:34 PM

    Awesome clicks Anu. Hope to see more of them. I am also planning to go there in a few months would be great if you could share your itinerary. Thank You.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJune 15, 2015 at 8:14 AM

      Thank you Vivek. Details coming up in the next post. As to itinerary, just plan for the number of days and simply go on safari as many times as you can!

      Delete
  2. TusharJune 14, 2015 at 10:44 PM

    Nice. Very nice. Too many birds. Male Asian Paradise Flycatcher and Golden Oriole personal favorite. Thanks for sharing.
    The best about this National Park is with Tiger one will watch birds too and so many birds. Wow.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anuradha ShankarJune 15, 2015 at 8:13 AM

    Thank you Ashu! I will update the post.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anjali SengarJune 15, 2015 at 9:53 AM

    Amazing pictures..

    http://zigzacmania.blogspot.in/

    ReplyDelete
  5. AndyJune 15, 2015 at 10:51 AM

    Nature has put so much Colours and Creativity in them.. they are just so beautiful and adorable.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJune 15, 2015 at 11:35 AM

      Absolutely, Andy! There is so much to enjoy and learn from nature!

      Delete
  6. Anuradha ShankarJune 15, 2015 at 11:35 AM

    Thank you Bhaskar

    ReplyDelete
  7. HaddockJune 15, 2015 at 4:25 PM

    Wonderful birds.
    The last one, is it a Pied Imperial Pigeon ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJune 16, 2015 at 8:12 AM

      Thank you, Haddock! Nice to see you here after so long! I am not sure, but a couple of others have also suggested Imperial Pigeon, so I guess it might be.

      Delete
  8. Shrinidhi HandeJune 16, 2015 at 7:02 AM

    Flycatcher and pied Kingfisher were best ones

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJune 16, 2015 at 8:13 AM

      Actually, the best was one I didnt manage to photograph, Shrinidhi... a shikra and a serpent eagle fighting. It looked so wonderful, but i didnt get a single decent shot... but among those i did, these two certainly stand out.

      Delete
  9. UnknownJuly 29, 2015 at 10:55 AM

    Hello Anuradha Shankar,
    Your passion for capturing these birds is amazing and getting these still images of birds is a tough task that you have totally nailed. The water birds are interesting and thank you for this informative article. Keep going with it and I would be waiting for your next post.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sumeet MukherjeeDecember 27, 2017 at 5:18 PM

    Which is a decent place to stay in tadoba, if i'm only interested in bird watching? Can you help me please?

    ReplyDelete

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