Ranganathittu - A Birder's Paradise

On the banks of river Cauvery lies a gem of a bird sanctuary.  Though less than a square kilometer in area, Ranganathittu has a very high bird count, both in species and in numbers.  In spring and summer, aquatic birds like spoonbills, river terns, open bill storks, pelicans, painted storks nest in small islands in the river, while terrestrial birds like Tickell's blue fly catcher, fan-tail flycatchers, peafowls, tailor birds flitter about on the river bank.



Easily accessible from both Bengaluru and Mysore, Ranganathittu is a haven for both bird watchers and photographers.  While a boat ride will get you close to aquatic birds, spending some time in the garden near the boat boarding area will yield assured sightings of flycatchers.  All birds are adjusted to human presence and will allow close approach.

Enough of description, I will let the pictures do the talking.

River tern chicks - little celebrities of Ranganathittu

A river tern feeding its chick

An alarmed chick lies flat as a kite passes over head

Stone plover

Spoonbill

An open bill stork searching for food

A pelican landing

A group of spot-billed pelicans taking off with
bamboo sticks for building their nest

Muggers keeping us company during the boat ride

A hover fly living upto its name.  The ability of these little insects
to hover at nearly the same spot is astounding.

Tickell's Blue Flycatcher

One of my Ranganathittu pictures even got selected to National Geographic's daily dozen:

If watching so many birds makes you hungry, there is an excellent restaurant near the parking area.  The rest rooms are also clean and well maintained.  Appropriately placed sign boards make sure that you don't get lost.

One tip from my side is that if you are serious about bird watching/photography, make sure you reach the sanctuary atleast by 7 am.  Access into the sanctuary will not be a problem as the ticket counter at the gate will be open by this time.  If boat men are not available, you may not be able to take a boat ride immediately.  But, you will still have a good time observing the terrestrial birds.

I will wind up this post qouting Dr. Salim Ali, who was instrumental in creating this sanctuary:

"People say that you can't make a living from bird watching.  That is probably true, but it is also true that man does not live by bread alone.  Just look at the people who have no such hobbies and spend all their time solely on earning a living.  After 60, when they retire from official chair, they don't know what to do with all the time in their hands and just spend it watching the clock! If they had cultivated a hobby like bird watching, perhaps they would have lived longer to enjoy their pension. "

Related Post:

http://escapetothewild.blogspot.com/2012/03/dodging-and-burning-overview.html