Birds-ctasy!

A little rain in the night meant that it wasn’t a very bright morning, so it was all very well that our plan got delayed. We were to reach the Ridge near the polo grounds by 7.30 am, but reached only at about 8.45 am.

A little bit of mist was still there in the air, as we turned our car into the first left after the statues of Gandhi Ji and his followers at the end of SP Marg. It was going to be our very first birding jaunt in this part of the Delhi Ridge. Right after the turning there were a few tenements of construction labourers, whom we asked for directions. We were told that the army polo ground was just down the road.

We drove over the rough road, and suddenly came upon a large regal tree, and the polo ground behind it. Oh the joy of discovering a beautiful place which is so near yet so completely hidden from us. The polo ground and the area around it was like a wind-blown hill station, especially on that winter morning. We got out of the car, and were struck by the crispness of the air and the sheer beauty of nature all around.

The tree next to the polo ground

We walked along a motorable road lined by tall trees, with the polo ground on our left and inviting forests to our right. We could hear a variety of birdcalls right away, and there were so many, that we quickened our steps to get into the forested area.

The road leading into the forested ridge

Our cameras were out, and we were just clicking away randomly, entranced by the greenery and the idyllic setting of the area. The amazing part of it all was that we were in the heart of Delhi. We were entering the ridge through the horse-riding trails, when we came upon a fork on the road that led into the forest. We paused, and then we took the road less travelled.

Leading up to the incline

And what a trail it turned out to be, we walked through a lightly forested area, and then the path began to climb upwards. We were actually walking up a forested hill in the heart of Delhi.

A forested hill in the middle of Delhi

The cold morning air was gently warming up, as the sun began to peep through the mists.

The view from the hill

Our first bird was a forest pipit, and it was a first time for both of us. We clicked away suddenly everything else forgotten.

Tree Pippit

Horse-riding trails

A twist in the tale

We walked away still excited with this lovely bird, when we came upon a place where there was a lot of hay on the trail, obviously for the horses, and here there was a sudden burst of bird activity. We saw one new bird here, and another one flitted past there, a flock of silverbills settled to our left when several lesser whitethroats began 'tsk tsking' to our right. We went into a kind of frenzy, rushing from one siude to another to catch a glimpse of a bird we had never seen before, of a warbler that wouldn’t stop for even a second, of a strange gray bird with a dark head. It was birds-cstasy for us.

We just stood there letting it all unfold around us. It was useless to try and capture everything, we just let the birds entice us in their intense dance of life. Our photographs would never be able to capture the thrill and beauty of those moments, nor the immense variety of birds we saw, but I don’t think either of us will forget the enchantment of that time.

The hay that the birds liked

Silverbill

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

In the middle of it all a jackal showed itself, and then a grey francolin ran past calling out loudly. We entered the woods, leaving the path, walking next to an anthill. There were bird calls everywhere, and birds flitting from tree to tree.

The anthill

We were in a trance, often breaking out into loud expostulations about how fantastic a birding place it was.

Rufous Treepie

Not yet identified!

Natural tree art, looking like a tusker!

A shoe in the trees

In all it was a four hour walk through the trails. At one point, we came upon the boundary wall of Buddha Jayanti park, and then suddenly on one tree we spied a lovely grey bird we hadn’t seen before. As we gazed upon it, I saw a flash of red, and a fantastically beautiful flameback woodpecker came into view, just about seven-eight feet away. We clicked photos with bated breath, when a brown headed barbet alighted on the same tree. It was too much, we were experiencing birds-cstasy once again.

Alongside the Buddha Jayanti park

A flash of red of the Black Rumped Flameback

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

Black Rumped Flameback

Black Rumped Flameback

Brown Headed Barbet

A little green bird began to hover around us, and then it went to the park’s boundary wall and started to peck at it. We were amazed, and followed it for a while. The sun was out, the breeze was cool and birds seemed to be everywhere. Almost the entire walk through the ridge was filled with one birding surprise after another.

It was a perfect day of birdwatching, and it was coming to an end. We were not sad that it was ending, we were just glowing in the joy of this awesome tryst with nature. And we were tired, after all we had been walking and quite often rushing around, for over four hours.

Designer Fruits

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

Not yet identified!

 Getting back to the polo ground took us some time, and we were pretty tired by the time we reached the car. Just as we came to the car, I shouted out to my birding partner, “What are those huge things in the middle of the polo ground?”.

Not yet identified!

I whipped out my binocs and was overjoyed to see at least fifteen Egyptian vultures peacefully sitting in the middle of the polo ground. We were a blessed pair of birders that day, and clicked away as the vultures stood their ground even as we approached them.

Egyptian Vultures

Egyptian Vultures

Egyptian Vulture

Egyptian Vulture

Egyptian Vultures

As we drove away, our only wish was that we should be lucky enough to have many more such wonderful birding experiences. Oh what a beautiful world we live in!