White-breasted waterhen: Amaurornis phoenicurus

White-breasted waterhen
Amaurornis phoenicurus
Display with loud calls.

 

White-breasted waterhen
Amaurornis phoenicurus

 

White-breasted waterhen: Amaurornis phoenicurus

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 29.7.2015

T o commoners again! They deserve to be looked at and photographed also.

 

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Gruiformes
Family	-	Rallidae
Genus	-	Amaurornis
Species	-	phoenicurus

 

 

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 29^th July, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

 

© Prashant V Tenjarla

 



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Nene (Hawaiian goose): Branta sandvicensis

Nene (Hawaiian goose)
Branta sandvicensis

Nene (Hawaiian goose)
Branta sandvicensis

Nene: Branta sandvicensis

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Vulnerable

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

Nene or Nene goose or Hawaiian goose is the state bird of Hawaii. It is has been declared Vulnerable and conservation efforts are being made successfully to increase its numbers. It is endemic to the Hawaiian islands.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Anseriformes
Family	-	Anatidae
Genus	-	Branta
Species	-	sandvicencis

 

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

 

© Sharang  Tenjarla



Zebra dove: Geopelia striata

Zebra dove
Geopelia striata

Zebra dove: Geopelia striata

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

An introduced bird.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Columbiformes
Family	-	Columbidae
Genus	-	Geopelia
Species	-	striata

 

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

 

© Sharang  Tenjarla



Red-crested cardinal: Paroaria coronata

Red-crested cardinal
Paroaria coronata

Red-crested cardinal
Paroaria coronata

Red-crested cardinal: Paroaria coronata

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Kauai, Hawaii, U.S.A.

Date: 1.5.2015

Genders are alike unlike mainland variety in which the female of the species sports a more brownish crest. These are introduced birds on the island.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Passeriformes
Family	-	Thraupidae
Genus	-	Paroaria
Species	-	coronata

 

Photographed at Kauai Island, Hawaii, U.S.A., on 1^st May, 2015, using a Nikon D5100 camera and Nikkor 55-300 mm lens.

 

 

© Sharang  Tenjarla

 



Indian scops owl: Otus bakkamoena

Indian scops owl (with two juveniles)
Otus bakkamoena

Indian scops owl: Otus bakkamoena

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Adult with two juveniles

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India.

Date: 6.6.2015

This is a first for me from a photography point of view. I have seen Indian scops owl before. I knew t then as Collared scops owl but now the two are classified distinctly. The Collared scops is called Otus lettia.

 

The parent (both genders look alike) has two juveniles behind and beneath it (poking out from the tree hollow) and they were catching the early morning sunrays for warmth.

 

 

I was at a safe distance and took care not to disturb the family. I was well-concealed about 10-15 meters from the hollow on the roof of a structure in the forest crowuching behind a drum and the overhanging branches of the banyan tree.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Strigiformes
Family	-	Strigidae
Genus	-	Otus
Species	-	bakkamoena

 

Photographed at Keoladeo Ghaṅā, Bharatpur, Rajasthan, India, on 6^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

 

© Prashant V Tenjarla

 

 



Blue-cheeked bee-eater: Merops persicus

Blue-cheeked bee-eater
Merops persicus

Blue-cheeked bee-eater: Merops persicus

Age: Adult

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

A peculiarity I noticed while observing this representative – probably a female given its shorter tail compared to the other bird - with a Golden dragonfly catch is she exhibited the prize to at least two bee-eaters who didn’t show much interest and ultimately she flew into one of the holes carved out in the sand dune. This region appeared to be a nesting region and these birds flew in and out of holes carved out of these mud-sand dunes.

 

Key features  are:

 

1)     Summer visitor

2)   Passage migrant

3)   Bronze-green tail

4)   Whitish forehead

5)    Turquoise and white supercilium

6)   Black eye stripe

7)    Turquoise and green ear coverts

8)   Yellow chin

9)   Chestnut throat

10)           Upperparts and underparts are rich green with turquoise wash

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Coraciformes
Family	-	Meropidae
Genus	-	Merops
Species	-	persicus

 

Photographed at Desert beyond Sultanpur, Distt.Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

© Prashant V Tenjarla

 



Yellow-wattled lapwing (Juvenile): Vanellus malabaricus

 

 

Yellow-wattled lapwing (Juvenile)
Vanellus malabaricus

 

Yellow-wattled lapwing: Vanellus malabaricus

Gender: Indeterminate

Age: Juvenile

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Sighted at: Village Sultanpur, Distt. Gurgaon, Haryana, India.

Date: 27.6.2015

Traditionally on-line forums do not permit independent photos of juveniles and nesting. It's not uniform all over the web and important birding websites regularly post independent photos. Photos with Adult and chick in same frame are however permitted. In this case, since there wasn’t much disturbance, this chick/juvenile was exploring the world at a distance from its parent engrossed at its own end. To bring them in same frame, I would have needed a fish-eye lens or a wide-angle lens which I didn’t have at that moment. I was stuck with a telephoto lens. By the time the adult noticed me and hurried towards the young one, the youngster had wandered off into the far thorny bush base and it was not possible to score a clear shot with my lens-camera system from that distance. My apologies therefore, but this is for educational purposes.

 

They may be found in Nepal.

 

Key identifying features of this male representative are:

 

1)     Brown cap.

2)   Small, dull-yellow wattles; pale yellow legs.

3)   White chin.

4)   Buff fringes and dark subterminal bars to upperpart feathers.

 

Taxonomy:

Kingdom	-	Animalia
Phylum	-	Chordata
Class	-	Aves
Order	-	Charadriiformes
Family	-	Charadriidae
Genus	-	Vanellus
Species	-	malabaricus

 

Photographed at Village Sultanpur, Diss.Gurgaon, Haryana, India, on 27^th June, 2015, using a Nikon D7200 camera and Tamron 150-600 mm lens.

 

© Prashant V Tenjarla