Christmas Sanctuary

It’s been an unusual December for my family, but this morning’s visit to the Ranganathitu [Run-gun-tee-tu] Bird Sanctuary in Mysuru, India, brought some relaxation and reflection. It proved a nice surprise here near the end of the holiday season.

We saw a dozen species of bird, reviving my interest in tracking these winged creatures in my eBird account with the Cornell University Ornithology Lab. I even figured out how to generate a new list and share it. My birding mentor and podcast partner Rob Batchelder ought to be proud!

In addition to a snakebird (Oriental Darter), stork-billed kingfisher, and two brahminy kites, we saw seven marsh crocodiles stirring the waters of the Kaveri River, including this beast, who appears to be well into his seventies.

In the skies and trees above we saw hundreds of pelicans, including dozens of spot billed pelicans and numerous nests with scores of great white pelicans. Among them were open bill storks and spoon bill storks, their numbers difficult to parse for all the white feathers high up in the green foliage.

Hundreds of greater Indian fruit bats, also known as the Indian flying fox, opened their wings to sun themselves. They’re one of the world’s largest kind of bat.

Our guide pointed out something he called a storm flower, which fails to appear in online searches, and a handful of red breasted bulbuls. He pointed out a pond heron, a little egret, and a little cormorant. This last in addition to the seventy-something Indian cormorants we saw.

My favorite sightings of the day included four peacocks in flight, something I failed to capture in video. The last to sail overhead was a juvenile, leaving a peahen behind in the trees.

Other favorites were the fifty or so black crowned night herons, a lone cattle egret, and the brahminy kites.

I’m sure we missed quite a few other species, but not to worry. We may make another visit next week, just to see how the old crocodile is doing.

What unexpected and special thing happened to you this holiday season? Please share in the comments. Here’s hoping that whatever it was, it brought you much joy.

I leave you with this image of a cormorant in flight with nesting material, an apt image as we look ahead to preparing for a new year.

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