Birds in Our Backyards

[slingshot]

Two more.
Every morning I put some bajra for "my" birds. By evening it is over. The parrots , treepie , spotted dove and squirrels love it.

Prashant, the Bronzed Drongo is really very good looking

[slingshot]

A wonderful thread for the time we live in!

Thank you slingshot. I also keep taking pictures. Will try to locate and upload over the weekend. Thanks Brihaji. Thanks Prashant.

Cheers

TC

Awesome TC....looking forward to your pictures

[slingshot]

Fantumfan, these are the pictures of the White Breasted Kingfisher that stays close to my apartment.
WHITE BREASTED KINGFISHER

From Wikipedia " the White-breasted Kingfisher or Smyrna Kingfisher, is a tree kingfisher,widely distributed in Eurasia from Bulgaria,Turkey, West Asia east through the Indian Subcontinent to the Philippines. This kingfisher is a resident over much of its range, although some populations may make short distance movements. It can often be found well away from water where it feeds on a wide range of prey that includes small reptiles, amphibians, crabs, small rodents and even birds. During the breeding season they call loudly in the mornings from prominent perches including the tops of buildings in urban areas or on wires. The adult has a bright blue back, wings and tail. Its head, shoulders, flanks and lower belly are chestnut, and the throat and breast are white. The large bill and legs are bright red. The flight of the White-throated Kingfisher is rapid and direct, the short rounded wings whirring. In flight, large white patches are visible on the blue and black wings.

The call of this kingfisher is a chuckling chake-ake-ake-ake-ake. They are particularly noisy in the breeding season"

This chap is very conscious that he is very handsome and is always willing to strike a pose A pucca Mumbaikar, he is always short of time and very industrious

[prashantsingh]

Spotted Dove and Oriental White Eye

[fantumfan2003]

WBKF a pucca Mumbaikar......



Yes but seriously this is a one more bird species full of grit and determination.....

Kingfishers are fish eaters but these WBKF overcame loss of habitat in Mumbai by adapting. They eat household lizards, small garden lizards and other small creatures to survive when they don't get fish. The one I clicked was after his lunch, a small lizard which he swooped on, caught and fled seconds later.

These KFs have also modified their habitat, there is one I know who lives in the small sewer lines opening up into the Dahisar river.

I feel sorry for these chaps and admire their determination to hold on, in fact I have a great deal of respect for the KFs, they are avians, but their food lives below water, they have colourful attire but still manage to catch their prey with stealth and surprise and obviously are my favourite species. Its a great experience to watch them in action.

They are very shy and timid and will fly away if approached, but somehow they are not scared of cars, so if you approach them in a car and click, those can be some remarkable pics.....

M.

This chap is very conscious that he is very handsome and is always willing to strike a pose A pucca Mumbaikar, he is always short of time and very industrious

[slingshot]

THE COPPERSMITH BARBET

The Coppersmith Barbet is now the official 'Bird of Mumbai'. It has a characteristic 'Tuk Tuk Tuk' call. And they are most often heard than seen. Very mysterious fellows. I also love their bright colours. So I was glad that I could frame it in my lens when it visited the fig tree behind my apartment

[fantumfan2003]

Nice.....

[Mark]

Great thread!

Here is one from me:


This is a Barred Owl. The are most always nocturnal and so I was concerned that this one might be ill. However, I think he had just found a good hunting spot, as a few days later he was perched on a fence post about 30 feet from this spot, and then a week or two later he was at the same spot again, perched on the telephone lines.

[Mark]

Bald Eagle:


He was fishing through that hole in the ice, grabbing dead fish and making them into a small pile. I think he had a mate who was feeding young, and was stockpiling them for her. You can see the fish at his feet.

[Mark]

Male Cardinal:


And female:

[Mark]

Male Wood Duck:

[timmy]

I have been enjoying this thread so much! I wish I had access to our old photos, so I could scan and post them. I am surely enjoying the ones posted here! Thanks to all for posting and I look forward to any more you have to post.

[prashantsingh]

What beautiful snaps Mark. Never knew you were such a good photographer. The Bald Eagle snap steals the show. As a child I read an article on how the Bald Eagle almost went extinct because of the use of DDT. Is that a sea gull in the background?

[Mark]

Yes it is a seagull. I believe the seagulls follow river barges all the way up the Mississippi River from the Gulf of Mexico. You do not see them away from the river. It is quite fascinating as how the fish-eating birds have really come back in the last few years.

I find thr Kingfisher pictures interesting, we have a kingfisher here but it looks quite different. I will try to get a picture of one this summer so you can see the differences.

[Moin.]

Awesome Chief; Never know there were so many species of birds right here in Mumbai. BTW where have the sparrows disappeared. Don't see them anymore.

You must photograph the Bahamani Kite as well. It comes to Mumbai in the monsoons and looks like a Blad Eagle but only smaller.

Great pics everyone. Thanks for posting.

Regards
Moin.