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SOUTHERN
INDIA & THE ANDAMANS Deposits Due By 30Jun Itinerary Day
1 (6th November) We will take a flight to Bangalore. From
Bangalore we will head southwestwards to Mysore for an overnight stay. Along the
way we should see such typical Indian species as Indian Pond Heron, Cattle and
Little Egrets, Black Kite, Egyptian Vulture, Red-wattled Lapwing, Little and
Asian Palm Swifts, White-throated Kingfisher, Green Bee-eater, Indian Roller,
Long-tailed Shrike, Black Drongo, Common Myna, House Crow, Red-whiskered and
Red-vented Bulbuls, and Pied Bushchat, and we may also encounter Short-toed
Eagle, Jerdon’s Bush Lark and Jungle Prinia. Day
2 We visit the small Ranganthitoo Bird Sanctuary near Mysore. The
sanctuary harbours numbers of Oriental Darters, Purple Herons, Little Egrets,
Black-crowned Night Herons, Asian Openbills and Eurasian Spoonbills. Wire-tailed
and Streak-throated Swallows, Dusky Crag Martin, White-throated Fantail and
White-browed Wagtail, Little Cormorant and Painted Stork are also here. This is
a reliable location for Great Thick-knees. There is a huge roost of Indian
Flying Foxes. From Ranganthitoo we proceed to Nagarhole National Park where we
will stay for the next three nights. On the way we may see such species as
Cotton Pygmy-goose, Purple Swamp-hen and Pheasant-tailed Jacana and we should
arrive at our lodge on the banks of the Kabini River in time for some initial
exploration. Day
3-4 Nagarhole comprises a varied selection of habitats, dominated by
extensive dry deciduous forests. Brown Fish Owls are sometimes found close to
the lodge. Raptors include Black-winged Kite, Shikra, Changeable Hawk-Eagle,
Grey-headed Fish Eagle, White-rumped Vulture, Crested Serpent Eagle and Osprey.
The area is home to the endemic Grey Junglefowl, Common Peafowl, Asian Koel,
Plum-headed Parakeet, the endemic Malabar Parakeet, Spotted Owlet, Blue-tailed
Bee-eater, Eurasian Hoopoe, Indian Swiftlet, White-cheeked Barbet, Coppersmith
Barbet, Malabar Lark, Bay-backed and Brown Shrikes, White-bellied, Ashy, Bronzed
and Greater Racket-tailed Drongos, Chestnut-tailed and Brahminy Starlings,
Southern Hill Myna, Rufous Treepie, Large and Black-headed Cuckoo-Shrikes, Small
Minivet, Common Iora, Yellow-billed Babbler, Common Tailorbird, Blyth’s Reed,
Green and Greenish Warblers, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Indian Robin, Paddyfield
Pipit, Pale-billed Flowerpecker, Purple-rumped and Purple Sunbirds, and
Chestnut-shouldered (or Yellow-throated) Sparrow. Not far from the lodge the
Kabini River has been dammed and the resulting lake, together with its
well-vegetated margins and stark, dead, partly submerged trees, provides a
welcome habitat for Great and Intermediate Egrets, Spot-billed Duck,
White-breasted Waterhen, Black-bellied Tern, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Ashy
Woodswallow and perhaps the endemic Malabar Pied Hornbill. We may see Jerdon’s
Nightjars sitting on the trails at dusk and later in the evening we may well
find Collared Scops Owl or Brown Hawk Owl close to the lodge. Day
6 After some final birding at Nagarhole we drive to Mudumalai
National Park, situated at the foot of the towering escarpment of the Nilgiris,
for an overnight stay close by. We will arrive in time for some initial
exploration. Day
8-9 Ooty is situated at about 2250m in the Nilgiri Hills. Most of the
natural forest has been replaced with tea plantations and also by eucalyptus and
conifer plantations. We shall search some ravines with remaining natural forest
for Nilgiri specialities such as Nilgiri Laughingthrush, Black-and-orange
Flycatcher and the elusive Rufous-bellied Shortwing. Other species we may find
include Bar-winged Flycatcher-Shrike, Nilgiri and Grey-headed Flycatchers, Ashy
Prinia, Tickell’s Leaf Warbler, Indian Blue Robin, Blue-capped Rock Thrush,
White’s (or Scaly) Thrush, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Forest Wagtail, Common
Rosefinch. With luck we will also see the uncommon Nilgiri Wood Pigeon,
Tytler’s Warbler and Kashmir Flycatcher, a species recently discovered to
winter here in small numbers. Day
10 After some final birding at Ooty we travel to the Anaimalai Hills
further south. We will spend the next two nights at Top Slip in the heart of
Anaimalai Wildlife Sanctuary. Day
11 The extensive forests of Anaimalai are famous for their wildlife,
in particular the numbers of large mammals including the magnificent Gaur. The
endemic Nilgiri Langur is also particularly common here. During our stay we
shall concentrate on the mixed and evergreen forest close to Top Slip itself and
some of the species we hope to see are Malabar Grey Hornbill, Crimson-fronted
Barbet, Yellow-browed Bulbul, Dark-fronted Babbler, White-bellied Blue
Flycatcher, Black-throated Munia and Wynaad Laughingthrush. Other species might
include Emerald Dove, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, White-bellied and Heart-spotted
Woodpeckers, Asian Paradise-Flycatcher and Grey-breasted Prinia, Indian Pitta,
Puff-throated Babbler or Orange-headed Thrush. Sri Lanka Frogmouth occurs in
these forests and we hope to locate one at a daytime roost. Day
12 After some final birding around Top Slip we will continue our
journey southwards to Munnar. Day
13 Munnar is situated at 1450m and is the centre of a major tea
producing region. We will visit the scenically
spectacular area at Rajamalai, comprising a series of high, rounded, grassy
ridges with dense patches of natural evergreen forest (known as ‘sholas’).
This is a rather specialized habitat but the limited variety of species includes
several endemics – Grey-breasted Laughingthrush, Nilgiri Flycatcher, the
white-bellied race of the Rufous-bellied Shortwing and Nilgiri Pipit. We have
another chance here for Nilgiri Wood Pigeon and if we are very lucky we will
find Broad-tailed Grassbird. Other species we may find in the area are
Bonelli’s and Black Eagles, Alpine Swift, Pacific Swallow, Black Bulbul and
Blue Rock Thrush. The grassy plateau is also one of the last haunts of the rare
Nilgiri Tahr, a kind of wild goat. Day
14 We will descend from the hills before once more climbing up the
steep forested, eastern escarpment of the Western Ghats, this time to Periyar
Sanctuary for a two nights stay. Day
15 Periyar is situated in the Cardamom Hills at the southern end of the
Western Ghats, it comprises a lake formed by the damming of the Periyar River
surrounded by high hills rising to 2000m. Extensive areas of forest remain. As a
result of its wide range of habitats Periyar boasts an impressive list of
resident species including about half the peninsular endemics and near-endemics.
New species we may see include Malabar Trogon, White-bellied Treepie, Rufous
Babbler, Indian Scimitar Babbler, Malabar Whistling Thrush, and Crimson-backed
and Loten’s Sunbirds. Amongst the many other species we may encounter are
Woolly-necked Stork, Black Baza, Besra, Red Spurfowl, Pompadour Green Pigeon,
Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Banded Bay Cuckoo, Jungle
Owlet, White-rumped Spinetail, Rufous and Brown-capped Woodpeckers,
Black-crested Bulbul, Black-naped Monarch, Black-lored Tit, Little Spiderhunter
and wintering Pintail Snipe, Asian Brown, Brown-breasted and Rusty-tailed
Flycatchers, and Large-billed Leaf and Western Crowned Warblers. At night the
forest around the lodge resounds to the calls of Indian Scops Owls. Day
16 After some final birding in Periyar we will finally leave the western
Ghats and descend to the plains and eventually reach the city of Madurai from
where we take a late afternoon flight to Chennai for an overnight stay. Days
18-21The Andamans consist of several hundred islands and a range of hills. Much
of the land surface of the Andamans is still covered in pristine forest and we
will be concentrating on this rich habitat during our stay. The birdlife is, a
mixture of Indian and South-East Asian, but the long period of isolation has
also resulted in a high degree of endemism. A number of the endemics are fairly
straightforward to find, and these include Andaman Serpent-Eagle, Andaman
Cuckoo-Dove, Andaman Coucal, Andaman Woodpecker, Andaman Drongo, White-headed
Starling and Andaman Treepie. Amongst the many other species we will be looking
for on South Andaman are Yellow and Cinnamon Bitterns, Striated Heron, Pacific
Reef Egret, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Watercock, Pacific Golden Plover, Greater
and Lesser Sand Plovers, Black-naped Tern, Green Imperial Pigeon, Red Turtle
Dove, Red-breasted and Long-tailed Parakeets, Edible-nest and White-bellied
Swiftlets, Brown Needletail, Collared Kingfisher, Black-naped Oriole,
Black-headed Bulbul, Thick-billed, Clamorous Reed, Black-browed Reed, Dusky
Warblers, the distinctive local form of White-rumped Shama and Olive-backed
Sunbird. We hope to find several of the islands’ more elusive inhabitants,
which include the endemic Andaman Crake, Slaty-breasted Rail, Pied Imperial
Pigeon, the endemic Andaman Wood Pigeon, the endemic Andaman Scops Owl, the
endemic Andaman Hawk-Owl and Mangrove Whistler. Day
22 Today we will catch a morning flight back to Chennai for an
overnight stay. There will be the opportunity for final birding, or for those
who would like to undertake any cultural activities in the city, these can be
accommodated. Day
23 Those wishing to spend some time birding around Chennai may do so.
Anyone wishing to undertake cultural excursions may do so under their own steam.
Others may wish to leave the tour at this point. Day
24 International Departures. Accommodation:
The lodge at Top Slip at Anaimalai is fairly basic and bathroom facilities are
shared. Walking
Effort: Mostly easy, but a few harder walks. Minimum
group size will be 4 plus the leader. Pricing: $4650
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