Birding North-East India
March 2016
Our experience
We immersed ourselves in North-East India. It was an excellent
opportunity to learn about Indian people, lifestyles, food,
history and nature ... Our Indian guides and drivers patiently
answered questions about their families, their work, their
interests and, of course, birds.
The People
Every day we saw examples of
• Happy families
• Homes
Potted plants with colourful blooms are popular.
• Hard physical labour
• Practical inventions
A good example of clever use of materials in India is bamboo -
people used bamboo for a multitude of practical items. Each day
we saw original things made of this tough and readily available
resource. Have a look... (red pandas like it too).
• Services
1. Schools
2. Shops
3. Environment
4. Hydro
Power was provided by tall towers for cities and wires on the
ground in remote rural areas. Service in the NE was unreliable so
flashlights and hot water bottles helped. Not all homes had
electricity. Cooking for the most part was on gas burners using
woks and a pressure cooker.
5. Water
People carried water from rivers, used wells and had
"running" water from hoses on the ground and in the
air...
• Recreation
• History and Religion
We admired fine examples of Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu
shrines/monasteries/celebrations. India is a multicultural
country.
Indian Cuisine
Freshly prepared Indian
food every day every meal, mostly vegetarian....
Driving
Do not rent a car in India; it could be the death of you. Indian
drivers are the experts.
Scenery
• Breathtaking mountains
• Powerful rivers
Birds
Bill's TOP 30 Indian
birds...
 |
 |
White-winged Duck |
Lesser Adjutant |
 |
 |
Red-naped Ibis |
Eurasian Griffon |
 |
 |
Mountain Hawk-Eagle |
Shikra |
 |
 |
Steppe Eagle |
Gray-headed Fish Eagle |
 |
 |
Large Hawk-Cuckoo |
Green-billed Malkoha |
 |
 |
Asian Barred Owlet |
Eurasian Hoopoe |
 |
 |
Great Hornbill |
Indian Gray Hornbill |
 |
 |
White-throated Kingfisher |
Chestnut-headed Bee-eater |
 |
 |
Green Bee-eater |
Indian Roller |
 |
 |
Dollarbird |
Blue-throated Barbet |
 |
 |
Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker |
Gray-headed Woodpecker |
 |
 |
Peregrine Falcon |
Red-breasted Parakeet |
 |
 |
Short-billed Minivet |
Scarlet Minivet |
 |
 |
Large Niltava |
Blue Whistling-Thrush |
 |
 |
Asian Pied Starling |
Fire-tailed Sunbird |
Photography
Sitting in the middle of the back seat of a van and taking photos
results in a large photo collection of "body parts" in
front of windows... Barbara
.jpg)
Conclusion
India is an intriguing country. Birding gave us the opportunity
to immerse ourselves in Indian culture, landscape and nature.
Every day brought many new birds, new perspectives and good times
with friends.
