I've lately taken to bird watching, and I find it a thoroughly beautiful and engaging pastime. It's amazing how many different birds you see if you are actually looking for them. Before I developed this interest, the surroundings of my urban nest were occupied by only pigeons, crows, sparrows and mynas. Latest reports double the count of species observed from my window!
My reference is
Salim Ali's
Book of Indian Birds, a superb book that is comprehensive, easy to use, and has excellent illustrations. If you get a good look at your subject, it's highly unlikely that you will not be able to identify it using this book.
Last week I noticed a bulbul, and was going crazy trying to ID it because I did not get a good enough look. Fortunately for me, the bird in question was back soon - with company - and they seemed to love the
Sitaphal tree right outside my bedroom window! The result is a positive ID - a
red vented bulbul (That's the specific English name for the very common bird called simply "bulbul" in Hindi. Good pictures
here).
Apparently, this species is not just common, it's horrendously invasive! Having learnt this though, does not in any way diminish my joy at having identified it. On the contrary, having spotted and identified the bird makes it look all the more beautiful to me. I have also begun to enjoy the calls it makes sitting out on the Sitaphal tree. They are loud and gregarious, but quite melodious in my opinion!
I haven't seen them for the last couple of days though ... Wonder whether they just went off to invade another country!?
