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India: Birding North Bengal & Sikkim (6 - 24 November 2003)
The next stop was Kechepuri Lake which had one Mallard and nine Goosander on it, plus Bay Woodpecker, Golden-fronted Leafbird, Slaty-backed Flycatcher, Hodgson's Redstart, Chestnut-headed Tesia and Little Bunting in and around the nearby forest. We then stayed near Rabangla (seeing Barred Cuckoo Dove there) and visited Maenam Wildlife Sanctuary. The weather was windy and cold, but we still saw a few good birds here including Kalij Pheasant, Ashy Wood Pigeon, four Broad-billed Warblers, Pygmy Wren Babbler, Hoary-throated Barwing, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Rufous-breasted and Maroon-backed Accentors and Dark-breasted and Pink-browed Rosefinches. After Maenam we stayed one night in Gangtok and visited the outskirts of Fambong Lho Wildlife Sanctuary the next morning. This was an excellent site with Golden Bush Robin, Striated and Mountain Bulbuls, Brownish-flanked and Grey-sided Bush Warblers, Yellow-browed Warbler, several Laughingthrushes including Blue-winged, Black-faced and, best of all, five Red-faced Liocichlas. From Rumtek we saw several Whistler's Warblers, five migrating Oriental Honey Buzzards, Himalayan Griffon, Common Buzzard, Sapphire Flycatcher, Buff-barred and White-spectacled Warblers, Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush and Striped Tit Babbler. Then we headed back into North Bengal and spent a couple of days in Lava and the Neora Valley National Park. Eurasian Woodcock was an excellent sighting here, flushed from the roadside where it was feeding. Orange-flanked and White-browed Bush Robins, Plain-backed Thrush, White-collared Blackbird, Winter Wren, Rufous-vented Tit, Goldcrest, Yellowish-bellied Bush Warbler, Grey-cheeked Warbler, Grey-sided Laughingthrush, Slender- billed Scimitar Babbler, Golden Babbler, Golden-breasted Fulvetta, Black-throated Parrotbill, Mrs Gould's Sunbird, lots of Maroon-backed Accentors and Spot- winged Rosefinch were among the good birds here. Overall though bird densities were low (certainly compared to our trip at the same time last year) - probably a combination of the late rains and disturbance due to logging plus an army camp set up in the National Park for a couple of months. Back to the lowlands we then visited Gorumara National Park. Here a long list of good birds included Red Junglefowl, Oriental Pied Hornbill, Lesser Coucal, Green-billed Malkoha, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Red-breasted Parakeet, Himalayan Swiftlet, Pin-tailed Green Pigeon, Green Imperial Pigeon, River Lapwing, Greater Painted Snipe, Lesser Fish Eagle, Common Buzzard, Peregrine, Asian Fairy Bluebird, Long-tailed Broadbill, Ashy Woodswallow, Large and Black-winged Cuckooshrike, Lesser and Greater Racket-tailed Drongos, Large Woodshrike, Grey-bellied Tesia, Thick-billed Warbler, Yellow-vented Warbler, Pygmy Wren Babbler and Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker. Our last main site visited was the Teesta Barrage at Gazoldoba and this proved excellent. Sixteen species of ducks were seen including Common Shelduck, a fantastic pair of Falcated Duck, Garganey, Red-crested Pochard and Ferruginous Pochard. A few waders included a Lesser Sand Plover and a remarkable count of 200 Northern Lapwing. Raptors included Osprey, both Western and Eastern Marsh Harriers (the latter, Circus (aeruginosus) spilonotus, a female bird, clearly showing pale patches on the primaries below like a buteo, plus whitish upper-tail coverts), a male Hen Harrier and Peregrine. Eight Great Crested and three Black-necked Grebes were seen as well as a number of passerines otherwise not recorded on our trip. The final birds of note were a flock of 24 White-rumped and five Slender-billed Vultures at Bagdogra. All in all a superb trip to some underwatched areas. The 294 species was excellent considering we did only one afternoon visit to a wetland. Two trips were made in two consecutive years during the same period to actually fathom the birding treasure of this Kanchenjunga region and a few “important bird villages” have been earmarked. These destinations have basic tourism facilities developed by the local communities and can match any international birding destination in terms of the number of bird species seen. <<Previous || Index || Next>>
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