KARNATAKA: RARE BIRDS SIGHTED IN COASTAL KARNATAKA

By Deepthi Sanjiv, Bangalore Mirror Bureau | Updated: Nov 20, 2017, 04.00 AM IST

At least three rare birds have been sighted in the last two months by the birders of undivided Dakshina Kannada district – one from Dakshina Kannada and two from Udupi district.

Shivashankar M from the Coastal Bird Watchers Network said, “On Nov 12, we spotted the lesser coucal – a species of cuckoo – at Kenjar near the Mangaluru International Airport. Two juveniles were sighted hiding in a bush by Roshan Kamath. The lesser coucal (Centropus bengalensis) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is common to spot the greater coucal in the region. This bird is generally found in the north-east region and this is the first sighting for coastal Karnataka.

“Lesser coucal is distinguished by its smaller size, less prominent bill, pale shaft streaks on the feathers of the head and back. It has a much longer claw on its hind toe and a distinct call. It is also among the few coucals that show season plumage differences. But, like in other coucals, the sexes cannot be distinguished in the field,” explained Shivashankar.

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As Bidar sizzles, two youths create oases for birds

RISHIKESH BAHADUR DESAI

They have installed pots of grain and water in house gardens that attract scaly-breasted munias, sparrows and other birds

Scaly-breasted munias and other birds 

flock to a garden feeder in Bidar.

In the withering heat of northeast Karnataka’s Deccan plateau, birds are discovering oases of food and water created by two young members of the Bidar Photographic Society. The two have installed pots full of grain and water in house gardens, attracting scaly-breasted munias, sparrows and other birds.

Vangapalli Vinayak, a post-graduate student of commerce at Karnataka College read media reports that some youths were hanging empty nests and feeders in front of their houses to help birds. He then came up with a simple contraption — with the help of metal workers in the old city, he produced a vertical tripod that can hold three pots in less than one square foot.

They were filled with finger millet, bought in bulk, as it can be stored without refrigeration. This was the grain of choice also because an old shopkeeper told him that birds like it a lot. The three tripods and some boxes were placed in an empty housing plot, where he had planted a flower garden.

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TV9 News: White Crow Found in Koppal, Karnataka

Critically Endangered Great Indian bustards spotted in India

Two Great Indian bustards seen in Karnataka

November 2012. There are thought to be just a few hundred Great Indian bustards left alive in India. They have suffered mostly from hunting and loss of their dry grassland habitat.

According to press reports in India, two Great Indian bustards were seen and photographed near a small village in Karnataka in an area where they haven't been recorded for 10 years.

Click here to see the reports in The Hindu

http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/indian-bustards.html