House Crow (Manipuri Name - Kwak)

Ghaziabad - Mar 2012

The House Crow (Corvus splendens), also known as the Colombo Crow is a common bird of the Crow family that is of Asian origin but now found in many parts of the world, where they arrived assisted by shipping. It is between the Jackdaw and the Carrion Crow in size (40 cm in length) but is relatively slimmer than either. The forehead, crown, throat and upper breast are a richly glossed black, whilst the neck and breast are a lighter grey-brown in colour. The wings, tail and legs are black. There are regional variations in the thickness of the bill and the depth of colour in areas of the plumage

Paddyfield Pipit

Ghaziabad - 17-Mar-2012

The Long-billed Pipit or Brown Rock Pipit (Anthus similis) is a passerine bird which has a wide distribution.

This is a medium-large pipit, 16-17.5 cm long, but is an undistinguished looking species on the ground, mainly sandy grey above and whitish or pale buff below. It is very similar to the Tawny Pipit, but is slightly larger, has a longer tail and a longer dark bill.

The Long-billed Pipit’s flight is strong and direct, and it gives a characteristic chupp call, similar to Desert Lark. Its song is like that of the Tawny Pipit, but slower and more varied, sri...churr...sri...churr…sri..churr. Like its relatives, Long-billed Pipit eats seeds and insects.

The Long-billed Pipit’s breeding habitat is dry open slopes with rocks and low vegetation. The nest is on the ground, with 2-4 eggs being laid.

Yellow-wattled Lapwing

Ghaziabad - 18 March -2012

The Yellow-wattled Lapwing, Vanellus malabaricus, is a lapwing, a group of medium sized waders in the family Charadriidae. It is a non-migratory breeder restricted to the Indian Subcontinent and is found on the dry plains. Although they do not migrate, they are known to make seasonal movements in response to rains. Like other lapwings and plovers, they are ground birds and their nest is a mere collection of tiny pebbles within which their well camouflaged eggs are laid. The chicks are nidifugous, leaving the nest shortly after hatching and following their parents to forage for food.

Common Redshank (Manipuri Name - Ngahoibi )

Dadri -24 Dec 2011

The Common Redshank or simply Redshank (Tringa totanus) is an Eurasian wader in the large family Scolopacidae.

t is a widespread breeding bird across temperate Eurasia. It is a migratory species, wintering on coasts around the Mediterranean, on the Atlantic coast of Europe from Great Britain southwards, and in South Asia.

They are wary and noisy birds which will alert everything else with their loud piping call. Like most waders, they feed on small invertebrates. Redshanks will nest in any wetland, from damp meadows to saltmarsh, often at high densities. They lay 3-5 eggs

Common Chiffchaff

The Common Chiffchaff, or simply the Chiffchaff, (Phylloscopus collybita) is a common and widespread leaf-warbler which breeds in open woodlands throughout northern and temperate Europe and Asia.

It is a migratory passerine which winters in southern and western Europe, southern Asia and north Africa. Greenish-brown above and off-white below, it is named onomatopoeically for its simple chiff-chaff song. It has a number of subspecies, some of which are now treated as full species. The female builds a domed nest on or near the ground, and assumes most of the responsibility for brooding and feeding the chicks, whilst the male has little involvement in nesting, but defends his territory against rivals, and attacks potential predators.

Red Munia or Red Avadavat

The Red Munia, Red Avadavat or Strawberry Finch (Amandava amandava) is a sparrow-sized bird of the Munia family. It is found in the open fields and grasslands of tropical Asia and is popular as a cage bird due to the colourful plumage of the males in their breeding season. It breeds in South Asia during theMonsoon season. The species name of amandava and the common name of avadavat are derived from the city of Ahmedabad in Gujarat from where these birds were exported into the pet trade in former times

This small finch is easily identified by the rounded black tail and the bill that is red in all seasons. The rump is red and the breeding male is red on most of the upper parts except for a black eye-stripe, lower belly and wings. There are white spots on the red body and wing feathers. The non-breeding male is duller but has the red-rump while the female is duller with less of the white spotting on the feathers

Black Shouldered Kite (Manipuri Name - Uchi-thembi )

Basai - Feb 2012

The Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus axillaris) or Australian Black-shouldered Kite is a small raptor found in open habitat throughout Australia and resembles similar species found in Eurasia and North America, which have in the past also been named as Black-shouldered Kites. Measuring 35–38 cm (13.8–15 in) in length with a wingspan of 80–95 cm (31.5–37.4 in), the adult Black-shouldered Kite is a small and graceful, predominantly pale grey and white, raptor with black shoulders and red eyes. Their primary call is a clear whistle, uttered in flight and while hovering.

Though reported across Australia, they are most common in the south-east and south-west corners of the mainland. Their preferred habitat is open grasslands with scattered trees and they are often seen hunting along roadsides. Like all the elanid kites, it is a specialist predator of rodents, which it hunts singly or in pairs by hovering in mid-air above open land.

Black-shouldered Kites form monogamous pairs, breeding between August and January. The birds engage in aerial courtship displays which involve high circling flight and ritualised feeding mid-air. Three or four eggs are laid and incubated for around thirty days. Chicks are fully fledged within five weeks of hatching and can hunt for mice within a week of leaving the nest. Juveniles disperse widely from the home territory.