Winter had arrived and it was the December holiday season. It was time for my visit to my native place – Orissa. In this trip I was going to explore the unseen wildlife paradise of the country.
We reached Bhubaneshwar early in the morning. So I checked some ebird hotspots and I decided to go to the Botanical garden. This was the beginning of my adventures. It was quite cold as it was the last week of the year. I was welcomed by a Bronzed winged Jacana and a White Browed Wagtail. Spotted a Stork Billed Kingfisher but it was quite far away. As I moved on, I saw a running tap, which was the haven for Babblers and Treepies to quench their thirst. I sat there and after waiting for some time I was prized with this shot :
There was a large water body where Kingfishers were fishing and Little Grebes wading. When we entered the dense forest of the garden , we saw some birds like the Black Hooded Oriole , Red Breasted Flycatcher which was a lifer for me; Black Rumped Flameback pecking around and a Brown Headed Barbet playing its calls. So this was a short birding trip. Now my next spot was the Mangalajodi wetlands.
Mangalajodi – paradise for birds
The next morning we left by 5am to see the sunrise. It is an hour’s drive from Bhubaneswar. The Mangalajodi wetlands is located on the northern edge of the Chilika lake and is a Ramsar site and lots of efforts are being taken to conserve these wetlands. Every year many migratory species of waders and raptors arrive at this destination.
The boat costs around 1000 bucks for 2 hours but you can extend it. We were welcomed by some angelic little Egrets and a group of Swamphens enjoying the soft glow of the sun. We came across a spot where Black headed Ibis , Glossy Ibis and a few Pond Herons were fishing. A Brahminy Kite was also sitting near the spot. Then we saw some Pintails fluttering and playing around and a Purple Heron in its attacking still position.
As we moved further, there were wooden poles in the water which was the perching spot for Whiskered Terns. Now I tried clicking pictures of common subjects. So while shooting a little Cormorant , I found two lifers at the same place – The Baillon’s Crake and the Rudy breasted Crake. They flew inside the bushes , where I saw a Cinnamon Bittern hunting – another lifer. Our boatride was coming to an end, but we extended it for an hour, and tried to see Pratincoles. On the way, we saw Mr. Godwit grooming himself and a little Egret with a catch along with many Black Winged Stilts.
The spot where Pratincoles are generally seen was at a distance. So it took us time to reach there. On our way, we rescued a Pond Heron whose leg was tangled in a fishing net. We reached the site and wow! So many Oriental Pratincoles flying and having their own gala time. There were few taking a sun bath. I did an Army Crawl which helped me reach near my subjects without disturbing them and avoiding the heat waves. I was partially successful and I got a few images.
It was time for us to leave. But I decided I would be coming again 2 days later for my lifers like Snipe, Grey Headed Lapwing, Water Rail and Yellow Bittern.
During my second visit , in the beginning itself, I was greeted by a common snipe. This was the start of yet another beautiful day. Then we saw some commoners hunting like the Swamphen , Egret, Heron and gosh! There was a pair of Grey Headed Lapwing in between them. Thereafter my good luck continued as I spotted birds like Ruff and Garganey. A few Rudy shelduck were also there.
Oh! And I went crazy when I saw a Yellow Bittern in the open – hunting . Wow! I shot a video of its classic hunting moves, handheld, which was quite a challenge. Their necks are like snakes and their moves too. Having an extravaganza with birds, I waited patiently for a Water Rail to show up. And after more than an hour our man decided to show up but not completely; although I got a record shot. It was getting hot and so we decided to leave. The trip to Mangalajodi was mesmerising . It is a must visit for every birder around in Bhubaneswar.
Bhitarkanika – The Crocodile Den
Bhitarkanika National Park is located 150kms away from Bhubaneswar and is famous for its reptile life and the coastal mangrove forest. We were going for two boat rides – one in the evening and the other one next day morning. We checked into our resort ‘Sand pebbles’ by lunch and after a power nap , we left for the boat ride. Apart from crocodiles, the park has monitor lizards, deer, jackals , wild boar , fishing cat , 7 types of kingfisher and more than 100 species of birds.
I was aiming to shoot all the seven types of kingfisher. We started off with the Collared Kingfisher and it was sheer bliss. But it flew away before I could say click! Moving on , we saw many Marsh Crocodiles and Saltwater Crocodiles. We then stopped at the centre point where there is a hatchery.
I had my eyes wide open all the time hoping to see some birds. It was getting dark but I managed to see many Spotted Doves , a pair of White Naped Woodpecker making their home and many deer , boars and monkeys feeding around. It was time to go back to our resort. The first ride was pretty satisfying; but my heart longed for more.
The next morning started at 6:30am with the endemic Brown Winged Kingfisher followed by the Black Capped Kingfisher which were lifers for me. They look wow! This was not all. We were welcomed by two more Kingfishers – The Collared Kingfisher and the Common Kingfisher. I was already feeling lucky.
Coming to the crocodiles – oh! so many of them – swimming in the water, basking on land. We also saw the largest Saltwater Crocodile – a huge fella – 21 feet in length. We then headed towards the largest roosting grounds of Openbill Storks where we had to go on foot. There were many ponds on our way where crocodiles rest at times. We saw many Openbill Storks with their nests and other waders like the Black Winged Stilt, Common Redshank , Ruddy Shelduck and raptors like White Bellied Sea Eagle, Short toed Snake Eagle , Black Eagle.
It was almost the end of our boat ride and I was hoping for a Pied Kingfisher. I was lucky; I spotted a pair very close to us in a good lighting conditions. I was extremely happy with the sightings.
With this my most memorable trip to Orissa came to an end. It was time to head home to Mumbai and celebrate the end of the year and ring in the New.
Orissa is quite an unexplored land with its varied flora and fauna, culture , tradition etc. And soon I will experience them all…
One thought on “Orissa- The Unseen Jewel”
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