If I Could Fly...

Backyard Birding is not a very popular hobby. It is extremely easy, attractive, safe and enjoyable!

Its very easy to start birding, just walk out into a balcony, or open area and observe your surrouonding. There are so many common birds which we all tend to miss out on because we are so pre occupied with our work, school, devices. It's re energising to take a break from our daily routines and enjoy some fresh air.

The male birds are usually more attractive and colourful than the females.

Here are some of the most common birds we can see from our balcony in Mumbai,India.

Asian Koel

This is a crow-sized bird with a long tail. The male is shinig black with a white billl and red eyes. The female has a tinge of brown on black, with white spots all over. At the onset of spring one can hear its friendly neighbourhood call kuoo kuoo at dawn with a consisitently rising pitch.

They are best sighted at groves or gardens on large trees. Friends ask me to close my window if the Koel is around, else they hear the 'kuoo kuoo' more than my voice!

Fun fact- The female koel usually lays her eggs in a crow's nest and the crow tends to raise the chick, becuase the koel chicks and crow chicks look similar.

Common Tailor Bird

The common tailorbird is a brightly coloured bird. It is about 10 to 14 centimeters (smaller than the common house sparrow). They have short rounded wings, a long tail, strong legs and a sharp bill with curved tip to the upper mandible. The male has long central tail feathers in breeding plumage, and female has less rufous on forehead. The juvenile is duller than adults.. It is best sighted in Tropical Asia, forests and woodlands.... Wonder which of these describe Amchi Mumbai!

Fun fact- This bird ‘tailors’ its nest by sewing the edges of a large leaf together with plant fibre or spider webs to make a cradle in which the actual grass nest is made.

Purple Rumped Sunbird

This tiny bird has a medium length thin curved beak, curved at the tip. The male has a maroon face, neck, back and chest band. The throat and rump are bright purple and the crown and shoulder patch are bright green. The female has a brownish olive green upper body. These are also smaller than the common house sparrow.

It is best sighted in forests and woodlands around human habitation.

Fun fact-They live between 16 and 22 years.

White Throated Kingfisher

The White throated kingfisher has a brown head and, red bill and turquoise blue upper body. The throat and chest stripe are both white. It survives on small insects and reptiles instead of a strict fish diet. The call is a small jarring laugh. The males and females are identical but they can be told apart by the female having a lighter brown shade on her head and chest. It is spotted in gardens and near water bodies in Asia from Sinai in the east through the Indian subcontinent to the Philippines.

Fun fact- Kingfishers are called “sacred” for it was said to be a holy bird for Polynesians, who believed it to have control over the waves.

Oriental Magpie Robin

The Oriental magpie-robin is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but now considered an Old World flycatcher. They are distinctive black and white birds with a long tail that is held upright as they forage on the ground or perch conspicuously.The male is a glossy dark blue or sometimes black bird with a white belly and a patch of white on the wings. The female is similar but grey with a tinge of bluff on the flanks. its call is very pleasing and relaxing to hear. It is spotted at human habitation gardens and parks.

Fun fact - We always believed that the Asian Koel is the first bird to call in the morning but actually the oriental magpie robin is up and about by four in the morning and starts calling.

White Spotted Fantail

It has a dark fan-shaped tail, edged in white, and white supercilium and throat. These birds are mainly slate grey above, with a black eye mask, and a white throat and eyebrow. It also has a grey chest band that is spotted white. The male is larger in size and darker, whereas the female is smaller in size, and is lighter coloured than the male. The call is a short nasal shrill "Cherr".

It is spotted in forest, scrub and cultivation in southern and central India. The pandemic has welcomed it to the Urban Jungle in solitude.

Fun fact- The white-spotted fantail lays three eggs in a small cup nest in a tree.

Eurasian Golden Oriole

The Eurasian golden oriole or simply golden oriole, is the only member of the Old World oriole family of passerine birds. The male Eurasian golden oriole has golden-yellow head. The lores are black and extend only up to the eye. The velvet black wings have golden-yellow patch. The male is a bright golden yellow bird with black eye streaks, wings and central tail stripe. The wings have yellow patches. The female is duller and olive coloured with streaks on the lower body. It is a summer migrant in Europe and western Asia and spends the winter season in central and southern Africa.

Fun fact- Golden oriole has a wingspan of 17 to 18.5 inches

Copper- smith Barbet

It is a cute little dark green bird with a brilliant red forehead and a red patch on its chest. They have a bright yellow throat and eye ring. The red in the male is very distinct, whereas the red in the females is very faint and can usually not be seen by the naked eye. Its call "tuk-a-tuk-a-tuk" can be heard from afar. As they sit amidst the thick canopy of leaves, tracing their call is the best way to track and find them. They are usually spotted in gardens, neighbourhood trees and wooded areas. The red forehead spot resembles the 'puja ka ticka" and helps us spot it as it camouflages itself with the green leaves.

Fun fact- The Coppersmith Barbets are fig lovers, and are predominantly frugivorous (fruit-eating), feeding on figs, guavas, mangoes and berries. Their strong beaks help them crush fruits, though they're not averse to insects, with the young birds raised almost exclusively on that high-protein diet.

Black Drongo

The black drongo is mainly glossy blackish blue with slightly dull wings. The tail is long and deeply forked, and there is a white spot in front of the eye and bristles around the bill. Common call that they make is described as drangh gip or gip-gip-drangh. They have short legs and they sit straight while perched on electric poles and wires. They are usually spotted in open woodlands, forests and cultivations.

Fun fact- The black drongo has been introduced to some Pacific islands, where it has thrived and become abundant to the point of threatening and causing the extinction of native and endemic bird species there.

Red-Vented Bulbul

It has a scaly brown upper body with a small black crest on the crown and a white rump.The nape may be black or scaled depending on the race. The chest is scaled or streaked brown and the rest of the lower body are white except fot the red vent. The male is bigger, and its tail is longer compared to the female's. Bulbuls are highly vocal, with the calls of most species being described as nasal or gravelly. One author described the song of the brown-eared bulbul as "the most unattractive noises made by any bird". They are usually found in human habitations and gardens.

Fun fact- Their eggs are pale-pinkish with spots of darker red more dense at the broad end.

Credits-

Photos- The 2 Boys in my life - My little brother & my Pa

Reference- Birds of the Indian Subcontinent by Ananda Banerjee

This blog is a gift to my little brother who loves birding and recently celebrated his 10th Birthday.