Basics of birdwatching, with special reference to India (but applicable elsewhere in the world)

1. Birdwatching (and Ornithology)
An introduction
Ashish Kothari, Kalpavriksh

2. • Fascinating creatures,
colourful, musical, active
• Easy to watch, all around
us (even cities!)
• Hardly any specialised
equipment needed
– Binoculars (or just bare eyes!)
– Field guide
– Notebook and Pen/pencil

3. • Learn a few basics
(physical features,
behaviour…)
• Go birding with an
experienced
birdwatcher….or alone
with a field guide

4. • Visually
– Using bare eyes or
binoculars
• Vocally
– Listening to
distinct calls

5. Observe the bird closely, & take notes:
1. Physical features (size, shape, colours, etc)
2. Behaviour (call, flight/gait, feeding, etc)
3. Habitat: Macro (forest, wetland, etc) & Macro
(tree hole, river bank, etc)
4. Season (winter, summer, monsoon)
HOW TO IDENTIFY A BIRD?

7. 1. Physical features
i. Size (relative to common bird)
Sparrow+/-
Bulbul+/-
Myna+/-
Pigeon+/-
Crow+/-
Kite+/-
Vulture+/-

8. 1. Physical features (contd)
ii. Shape
Tall and slender (e.g. crane, egret)
Round and dumpy (e.g. partridge)
Awkward (e.g. babbler)
Neat/smooth (e.g. drongo)

9. 1. Physical features (contd)
iii. Colour(s)
Mainly one colour (white, black,
green, red, blue, etc)
Black and white
2-3 main colours
Lots of colours (like rainbow!)
Note:
Different colours may show in flight
Male and female may be v.
different!

10. 1. Physical features (contd)
iv. Distinct marks and patches
Spots
Streaks
Bars
Rings
Eyebrows
Dark/bright patches
Note: Different marks may show in flight

11. 1. Physical features (contd)
v. Peculiar/strange features
Crest
Wattle
Hair bristles on beak
Beard!

12. 1. Physical features (contd)
vi. Beak (size, shape, colour)

13. 1. Physical features (contd)
vii. Eyes
Small/large (relative to bird)
Colour
Eye-ring

14. 1. Physical features
viii. Legs/feet (length,
shape, colour)

15. 1. Physical features (contd)
viii. Tail (length, shape, colour)

16. 1. Physical features (contd)
viii. Wings (length, shape, colour)

17. 2. Behaviour
Activity period
 Purely day (most species)
 Purely night (most owls,
nightjars)
 Overlapping (lapwing, magpie-
robin, spotted owlet)

18. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Flight
 Constant/erratic
 Fast/slow
 Straight/up-&-down
 Circling/soaring
 Diving
 Hovering
 Wings flapping/gliding

19. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Food
 Insects
 Grain
 Nectar
 Fruits
 Meat

20. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Communication
 Vocal
 Contact calls
 Songs / Breeding calls
 Alarm calls
 Non-vocal
 Drumming

21. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Social behaviour
 Mostly single
 Mostly in group (gregarious)
 Mostly/often in mixed flocks

22. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Breeding
 Territoriality
 Nesting
 Eggs & incubation
 Care of young
 Brood parasites

23. 2. Behaviour (contd)
Other aspects
 Silent/noisy?
 Constantly active/occasionally moving?
 Tail active (fanning/bobbing up-&-down)?
 Shy/bold in front of humans?
 Camouflaged/conspicuous?
 Any other peculiar behaviour…

25. 3. Habitat
Macro-habitat
 Forest (evergreen, deciduous, scrub…)
 Grassland
 Wetland (lake, river, pond …)
 Marine/coast (sea, beach, mangrove …)
 Mountain (snowpeak, hill …)
 Desert (cold, hot, salt)
 Human settlement (village, town, city)

26. Terrestrial ecosystems…. deserts

27. Terrestrial ecosystems….
grasslands

28. Terrestrial ecosystems…forests

29. Terrestrial ecosystems…forests

30. Terrestrial ecosystems…mountains

32. Aquatic ecosystems….freshwater

33. Aquatic ecosystems….freshwater

34. Aquatic ecosystems….marine

35. Human-dominated
ecosystems

36. Urban wildlife….

37. 3. Habitat (contd)
Micro-habitat
 (in forest) tree hole, forest floor, ant’s nest…
 (at wetland) on water, edge, boulder …
 (in grassland) grass, rock …
 (in desert) dune, grassy patch …
 (in marine/coast) open sea, tide line …
 (in settlement) roof, wall, garbage dump …

38. 4. Season & resident status
Season
 Through the year
 Winter
 Summer
 Monsoon

39. 4. Season & resident status (contd)
Resident status
 Resident
 Migrant (from outside country)
 Local migrant
 Passage migrant

40. Group exercise…
Describe:
•Physical features
•Behaviour
•Habitat

41. • Use field guide (or
ask an experienced
birdwatcher)
• Refer to local
checklist if available
(e.g. Dehradun, Rajaji NP,
New Forest, Asan Barrage)
• Consult other books
later
ONCE YOU’VE OBSERVED THE BIRD, TO
IDENTIFY IT…

42. • Pocket guide to the birds
of Indian Subcontinent:
Grimmett, Inskipp &
Inskipp
• Field Guide to the birds of
India: Krys Kazmeirkzac
• Pictorial Guide to the birds
of Indian Subcontinent:
Salim Ali and Dillon Ripley
• Collin’s guide to birds of
Indian Subcontinent
• Book of Indian Birds: Salim
Ali

43.  Hand book of Birds of
India and Pakistan :
Salim Ali and S. Dillon
Ripley
 Birds of South Asia: A
Ripley’s Guide: Pamela
Rasmussen and John
Anderton
 Birds of Indian
Subcontinent: Grimett,
Inskipp and Inskipp
 Birdwatchers guide to
India: Krys
Kazmeirkzac

44.  Hornbill / Buceros (BNHS)
 Indian Birds
 Newsletter for Birdwatchers
 Sanctuary Asia
 Forktail
Magazines / journals
Films/CDs
•Audio CDs/DVDs

45. Bird-watching is a field hobby. There
can be no better place to get initiated
in it than the beautiful locales of
Uttarakhand, in the lap of the mighty
Himalayas. So go out and enjoy the
beauty of these winged wonders…

46. Thanks to….
Pix: Ramana Athreya, Pallava Bagla, Rajat Bhargava,
Bharat Bhushan, Ashok Captain, Raghu Chundawat, Ajay
Desai, Clement Francis, R.K. Gaur, Joanna van Gruisen,
Jean Howman-WPA, Girish Jathar, Ashish Kothari,
Sujatha Padmanabhan, Vibhu Prakash, Asad Rahmani,
Nitin Rai, Vijay Mohan Raj, Sunita Rao, Ravi Sankaran,
Pankaj Sekhsaria, Krupakar Senani, Rajpal Singh, Farhad
Vania, Mahendra Vyas, Shimpei Watanabe
Illustrations: Aranya Pathak Broome (courtesy
Kalpavriksh’s ‘What’s That Bird?’)