BIRDOGRAPH.com

Amateur bird photography with a simple camera

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THE SECRETARYBIRD

The secretarybird (Sagittarius serpentarius) is a very large terrestrial bird of prey. I was fortunate to spot it in East Africa, where it is usually found in the open grasslands and Savannah. Africans call it the Devil's Horse and it is the national emblem of Sudan as well as a prominent feature on the Coat of arms of South Africa. Thanks to lightning-quick aerial kicks and stomps forceful enough to shatter bone, the secretarybird is a master at immobilizing dangerous prey. A much more formidable hunter than its crane-like appearance would suggest, it is even capable of vanquishing the deadly black mamba, the fastest terrestrial snake in the world. But this skill makes the bird a  popular pet for humans, who rob nests and raise young as Protection from snakes. Meanwhile, prey is becoming harder and harder to find due to habitat degradation. So, only a 100,000 of these bird now survive in the wild.

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Stellar’s Blue Jay

In Yosemite, the Steller’s Jay (Cyanocitta stelleri ) is a common bird and the most beautiful of them.

One curious fact about these birds is that its brilliant blue feathers have no blue pigment in them.

Birds with yellow or red feathers usually get their color from pigments in the foods they eat, but the digestive process destroys blue pigments. So how do feathers on Steller’s jays get their blue color?

Feathers are made of keratin, the same stuff your fingernails are made of. As sunlight strikes one of these feathers, the keratin pattern causes red and yellow wavelengths to cancel each other out. The blue wavelengths reflect back, giving the feather its color. Different shapes and sizes of air pockets and keratin make different shades of blue. This is what scientists call a structural color (as opposed to pigmented color.

Next time you see a Steller’s jay or a bluebird consider the amazing way nature has colored its feathers. (Source: National Park Service: nps.gov)

When patrolling the woods, Steller’s Jays stick to the high canopy, but you’ll hear their harsh, scolding calls if they’re nearby. Graceful and almost lazy in flight, they fly with long swoops on their broad, rounded wings. (Source: The Cornell Lab of Ornithology)

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Lesser Goldenback Woodpecker

The black-rumped flameback (Dinopium benghalense) aka lesser golden-back is a woodpecker that is widespread across South Asia.

They are often seen feeding on insects mainly beetle larvae from under the bark - foraging from the ground to the canopy of trees. I caught this during the breeding season (summer in Karnataka, India) when they usually excavate nests in tree cavities.

This one is an adult male as its red crown and crest shows with a stiff tail to provide support against the tree trunk. It is the only golden-backed woodpecker with a black throat and black rump. This bird appears in a 4.50 rupee Sri Lankan postal stamp and a 3.75 Taka postal stamp from Bangladesh.

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Small Green Barbet

This little green bird, called the white-cheeked barbet or small green barbet (Megalaima viridis) endemic to southern India. The call, a monotonous Kot-roo ... Kotroo... starting with an explosive trrr is a common bird call you may have heard. These birds are mostly frugivorous though they may eat insects at times. They are arboreal and will rarely visit the ground.

The main range is along the Western Ghats and along the associated hills of southern India into parts of the southern Eastern Ghats. In some areas such as in the city of Bangalore, it has been suggested that this species may have displaced the brown-headed barbet which was once said to occur there. White-cheeked barbets have a beneficial effect on coffee plantations across the Western Ghats... I clicked this barbet in Bangalore in 2015.

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Steppe Eagle

The steppe eagle (Aquila nipalensis) breeds from Romania through the Russian and Central Asian steppes to Mongolia. The European and Central Asian birds winter in Africa, and the eastern ones come to India during this time. Bangalore, India | January 2015

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Variable or Yellowbellied Sunbird

The variable sunbird (or yellow-bellied sunbird), Cinnyris venustus (formerly Nectarinia venusta), is an African sunbird. It has a wide range extending from Zimbabwe and Mozambique to Senegal. 

Often confused with the Collared Sunbird, the adult male has a glossy bluish green head, throat and nape with maroon breast band and a yellowish belly. 

They have medium-length thin down-curved bills and brush-tipped tubular tongues, both adaptations to their nectar feeding. The call is a clear tew-tew-tew-tew-tew.

I saw this little bird early one morning atop a giant cactus tree near Nakuru in Kenya.

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Hartlaub’s Turaco

I was drawn towards this bird by its bright red wings which is only visible when it flies as it moved swiftly but clumsily from one treetop to another in a wooded place near Nakuru in Kenya.

Hartlaub’s Turaco (Tauraco hartlaubi) named after the German ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub is notable for its dark bill and deep blue upper parts with only a narrow white line below its eyes which is encircled in a red outer border.

The vivid plumage of Hartlaub’s Turaco, is a product of two unique copper pigments, unknown in any other bird family, or indeed in any other animal group, says the Oxford Encyclopedia of Birds.

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The Golden-fronted Leafbird

This golden-fronted leafbird (Chloropsis aurifrons) flew in from nowhere into a crevasse in an old tree trunk on the hillside. This is an adult bird and, as you can see, it is notable for its leafy green-body with a black face and throat. It's called golden-fronted as it has an orange forehead. It also has blue moustachial line, and fluorescent blue flight feathers on the shoulders.

I clicked this in the southern Indian hills of Yercaud, Tamil Nadu. May 2014

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The Hoopoe as a Symbol

Known as 'Hud hud' in India, the hoopoe was behind the name of the deadly cyclone that hit the East Coast of India near Visakhapatnam in October 2014.

Hoopoes were seen as a symbol of virtue in Persia. They were thought of as thieves across much of Europe, and harbingers of war in Scandinavia. In Estonian tradition, hoopoes are strongly connected with death and the underworld.

The hoopoe is the king of the birds in the Ancient Greek comedy 'The Birds' by Aristophanes and also occurs in Ovid's Metamorphoses. The bird's crest indicates his royal status, and his long, sharp beak is a symbol of his violent nature. 

The hoopoe was chosen as the national bird of Israel. It appears on the Logo of the University of Johannesburg and the municipality of Armstedt, Germany, has a hoopoe in its coat of arms.

I spotted this bird in Pondicherry India | August 2014

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Ring Billed Gull

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The Brahminy Kite

The brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) also known as the red-backed sea-eagle in Australia, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family of diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards and harriers. 

They are found in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia and Australia mainly on the coast and in inland wetlands. Adults have a reddish brown plumage and a contrasting white head and breast which makes them easy to distinguish from other birds of prey.

Known as Elang Bondol in Indonesia, the brahminy kite is the official mascot of Jakarta. In India it is considered as the contemporary representation of Garuda, the sacred bird of Vishnu. In Malaysia, the island of Langkawi is named after the bird ('kawi' denoting an ochre-like stone used to decorate pottery, and a reference to the bird's primary plumage colour).

A fable from central Bougainville Island relates how a mother left her baby under a banana tree while gardening, and the baby floated into the sky crying and transformed into Kaa'nang, the brahminy kite, its necklace becoming the birds feathers. (Wikipedia)

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Black-hooded Oriole

Spotted the Black-hooded Oriole (Oriolus xanthornus) in Kolkata at IIM-C Campus. It has a melodious single whistling call wIth a little roll in the sound, which attracted me to this bird. It is a passerine bird of tropical southern Asia with seasonal migratory movements. They live in open forests and woodlands, and are opportunistic omnivores, their diet being fruit, berries, arthropods, and nectar. In Bengal and Bangladesh, this bird is known as ‘Bene Bou’ or ‘Krishno Kotha Pakhi’ in Bangla.

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The Yellow-footed Green Pigeon

The Yellow-footed Green Pigeon (Treron phoenicoptera) also known as ‘Hariyal’ forage in flocks on forest canopies remaining well-hidden in foliage. Although brightly colored, they are not easy to spot high up on a leafy tree. I was lucky to find a few of them while looking up one tall and well-spread kadam tree full of ripe fruits - perhaps a favorite feeding place as you can see. A stout and heavy bird, it is a voracious fruit-eater, and rarely visits the ground. It has ashy olive-green above with olivish yellow collar, band in dark slaty tail, lilac shoulder patch, and yellow legs and underbody. It moves briskly with a clatter of wings and fast direct flight. Catch them if you can! Photographed at IIMC, Joka, Kolkata, India.

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The Oriental Magpie-Robin

The Oriental Magpie-Robin (Copsychus saularis) is a fine songster with a long tail that is held upright. A popular cagebird for their singing abilities, they continue to be in the pet trade in parts of Southeast Asia. The Magpie Robin is the National Bird of Bangladesh, where it is common and known as the Doyel / Doel (Bengali: দোয়েল) widely seen as a symbol appearing on currency notes. A popular city square in Dhaka is named after this bird - Doyel Chatwar. I saw this Doel couple in Joka, Kolkata, India.

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American Robin Turdus migratorius 

The quintessential early bird, American Robins are common sights on lawns across North America, where you often see them tugging earthworms out of the ground. Robins are popular birds for their warm orange breast, cheery song, and early appearance at the end of winter. (Text courtesy: Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Photo Copyright Subhamoy Das | Location: Indianapolis | Year 2010 | Camera: Canon PowerShot SX200 IS)

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This Jungle Babbler was sitting on the lightning arrest-or. Could manage one or two clear pics.

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Indian Robin

The Indian Robin (Saxicoloides fulicatus) has a glossy blue-black upper body and a long tail that is held erect revealing its chestnut undertail. It is found in open scrub areas and often seen perching on low thorny shrubs and rocks. Human activities such as felling and firewood removal in forests appear to benefit them. The species was introduced into the New York region but did not establish. I caught this handsome male on camera this evening — at Hyderabad Central University.