Kerala

• Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary

  Satellite View
  Kumarakom is a large backwater lagoon. While moving around the lagoon, you are likely to see White-breasted Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher, Small Blue Kingfisher, Little Cormorant, White-breasted Waterhen, Black Bittern, Chestnut Bitten, Little Egret, Cattle Egret and Median Egrets. You may also see Great Cormorants, Open-billed Storks, Grey Herons, Yellow Bitterns, White Ibis, Cotton Teal, Pheasant-tailed Jacanas, Koras, Black-caped Kingfishers, Ruddy Crakes, Gull-billed Terns and Shikras.

• Periyar Tiger Reserve

  InformationSatellite View
  Parambikulam - Periyar is well located as a centre for seeing most of these ornithological specialties of the Western Ghats, as well as large numbers of other resident hill species and migrants. It is also one of the best-managed Tiger Reserves in the country and is home to large herds of elephants, bison, bears, leopards and tigers. Its attraction for birdwatchers is enhanced by the proximity of low-lying plains on three sides. There is considerable local migration of lowland species, often in the drier weather, up into the foothills, and several interesting examples of ecological counterparts in pairs of wet zone and dry zone species can be found, e.g. the Barbets. This is particularly noticeable at Thekkady, conveniently sited near the top of a steep 450m/1500ft ghat above the dry Tamil Nadu plain. In deciduous forest around Thekkady the commonest species in mixed foraging flocks are, in descending order Racket-tailed Drongo, Scarlet Minivet, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Bronzed Drongo, Grey Tit, Golden-backed Woodpeckers, White-bellied Treepie, Jungle Babbler, Indian Rufus Treepie, Yellow-browed Bulbul, Large Wood Shrike, Ashy Drongo, Small Minivet, Gold-fronted Leafbird, Small Green Barbet and a variety of Flowerpeckers. Other common birds include Orioles, Fairy Bluebird, Leaf Warbler, Flycatchers and Quaker Babbler. Almost all species recorded in the sanctuary can be seen at one time or another in the Tourist Zone, although it is necessary to climb to the grassy hilltops find some, such as Brown Pipit and Pied Bush Chat.

• Silent Valley National Park

  WebsiteSatellite View
  The Silent Valley National Park is a unique preserve of natural rainforests. Within an area of 237. 52 Sq.km, it houses a rich mosaic of varied habitats. Out of these springs the amazing variety of life forms some of them endemic to the Western Ghats.

• Thattekkad

  InformationSatellite View
  If one makes a birding trip to Kerala try not to miss out on Thattekkad - the only tropical bird sanctuary in India. Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, also known as Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, is 12 km NE of Kothamangalam in Ernakulam District, Kerala state, about 50 km east of Kochi. This is the prime birding destination in South India. Specialties here include Spot-bellied Eagle-Owl, Ceylon Frogmouth, Red Spurfowl, Bay Owl, Rufous Babbler, Blue-faced Malkoha, Brown-breasted, White-bellied Blue-tailed and Rusty-tailed Flycatchers, Grey-headed Bulbul and Wynad Laughing Thrush. Moreover, Thattekkad is ideal for seeing a good number of the 16 endemics of the Western Ghats. The more difficult birds are Wynad Laughing Thrush and Grey-headed Bulbul. Proceed to Orullathany, at one end of the reserve, for the Bulbul and Laughing Thrush. Also visit Edamalayar Power Plant land and the South side of the river for the owls, Streak-throated Woodpecker and Yellow-billed Babbler. Other notable species likely to be seen within the Reserve are Red Spurfowl, Ceylon Frogmouth, Blue-faced Malkoha, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Malabar Grey Hornbill, White-bellied and Heart-spotted Woodpeckers, Rufous Babbler, White-bellied Blue Flycatcher, White-bellied Treepie and Black-throated Munia.

• Thrissur Kole Wetlands

  InformationSatellite View
  Kole Wetlands are a winter wildfowl area of international importance. The Kol lands (marshlands & open paddy fields) surrounding the town of Thrissur and are famed for birding. The traditional farming lands of Central Kerala grow rice, coconuts and other spices. Here Red Avadavat, Streaked Weaver, Clamorous Reed Warbler, Malabar Lark, abound as do many water birds.

• Wayanad Wildlife Santuary

  WebsiteSatellite View
  Established in 1973, the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is contiguous to the protected area network of Nagarhole and Bandipur of Karnataka on the northeast and Mudumalai of Tamil Nadu on the southeast. Rich in bio diversity, the sanctuary is an integral part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve , which has been established with the specific objective of conserving the biological heritage of the region. The sanctuary is rich in flora and fauna. The management lays emphasis on scientific conservation with due consideration for the general lifestyle of the tribals and others who live in and around the forest. Elephant, spotted deer. Bison, tiger, cheetah, wild bear etc. can be spotted here. Elephant rides are arranged by the Forest department.

• Praveen Jayadevan

  | painted_stork@yahoo.com

• Number of bird species: 516

  (As at October 2018)

  State Bird: Great Hornbill Buceros bicornis

• Number of endemics: 16 - 33Western Ghats Endemics

  Authorities agree that there are at least 16 species of bird endemic to the Western Ghats, they are:

  Nilgiri Woodpigeon Columba elphinstonii , Malabar Parakeet Psittacula columboides , Malabar Grey Hornbill Ocyceros griseus, White-bellied Treepie Dendrocitta leucogastra , Grey-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus priocephalus ,Broad-tailed Grassbird Schoenicola platyurus, Rufous Babbler Turdoides subrufa, Wayanad Laughing thrush Garrulax delesserti, Nilgiri Laughing thrush- black chinned Garrulax cachinnans, Kerala laughing thrushGarrulax fairbanki, Black-and-rufous Flycatcher Ficedula nigrorufa, Nilgiri Flycatcher Eumyias albicaudatus, White-bellied Blue-flycatcher Cyornis pallipes , Crimson-backed Sunbird Nectarinia minima, Nilgiri Pipit Anthus nilghiriensis, Nilgiri thrush Zoothera neilgherriensis.

  There are a further seventeen species, some recent 'splits' that some authorities also believe to be endemic to the Western Ghats, these are:

  Orange minivet Pericrocotus flammeus, Squire tailed Bulbul Hypsipetes ganeesa, Malabar Barbet Megalaima malabarica, White cheeked barbet Megalaima virids , Malabar wood shrike Tephrodornis sylvicola, Hill Swallow Hirundo domicola, Malabar lark Galerida malabarica, Flame throated Bulbul Pycnonotus gularis, Yellow throated Bulbul Pycnonotus xantholaemus, Yellow Browed Bulbul Acrytillas indica, Dark fronted Babbler Rhopocichla atriceps, Lesser Hill Mynah Gracula indica, Malabar Whistling Thrush Myophonus horsfieldii, Nilgiri Blue Robin White bellied short wing Myiomela major, White Bellied Blue Robin Myiomela albiventris, Nilgiri flower pecker Dicaeum concolor

  The majority of the above can be found in Kerala State.

• Backyard Birds of South India

  | By FXJ Pereira | Other India Press | 2006 | Paperback | 84 pages, colour photos | ISBN: 9788185569710 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Birds of Kerala

  | By KK Neelakantan & Uma Sathesan| Kerala Sahitya Akademi | 2021 | Hardback | 592 pages | ISBN: 9788195527861 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Cochin Natural History Society

  Website
  The Cochin Natural History Society is a non-profit making, non-political charitable institution registered under the Travancore-Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies Registration Act, 1955. This is a society of amateur naturalists who live in harmony with nature and seek to protect and to preserve the biodiversity and healthy natural environment. The mandate of the society is to undertake studies and documentation of biodiversity around us and to draw attention to the aesthetic, economic, scientific and conservation aspects.The society also intends to provide a platform to those who are concerned to come together and share, enlarge and correct our knowledge about Nature and its magnificence. Any person, who has a love, interest and commitment towards conservation of our biodiversity and natural history may become a member of the society.

Abbreviations Key

• BS Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary

  InformationSatellite View
  Kumarakom is a large backwater lagoon. While moving around the lagoon, you are likely to see White-breasted Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher, Small Blue Kingfisher, Little Cormorant, White-breasted Waterhen, Black Bittern, Chestnut Bitten, Little Egret, Cattle Egret and Median Egrets. You may also see Great Cormorants, Open-billed Storks, Grey Herons, Yellow Bitterns, White Ibis, Cotton Teal, Pheasant-tailed Jacanas, Koras, Black-caped Kingfishers, Ruddy Crakes, Gull-billed Terns and Shikras.

• BS Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary - Thattekad

  WebsiteSatellite View
  On the western side of the Indian subcontinent is the rainward side of the western ghats, a lush green part of the country watered by every passing cloud. Here lies the quiet but beautiful Kerala, haven for a wide variety of exotic flora and fauna. Thattekad, on the banks of the river Periyar, is a dense monsoon forest, not very far from the port town of Cochin. Salim Ali described it as the birder`s paradise. A plantation forest with teak, mahogany and fruit-bearing trees along with the natural wild tropical deciduous vegetation, it is home to nearly 350 species of birds, most notably the Malabar grey hornbill. Other exotic birds are the Ceylon frogmouth, Malabar trogon, White-bellied treepie and Heart-spotted woodpecker. Elephants also live here, happy with the easily accessible ponds on the side of the river. It is now protected as the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary.

• BS Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary

  InformationSatellite View
  The Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary, one of the most important bird santuaries in South Idia, was established by Dr. Salim Ali, the famous ornithologist, in 1998. Thattekkad Sanctuary is situated in Kerala in the Devikulam Taluk of Idukki District…

• NP Eravikulam

  InformationSatellite View
  Eravikulam National Park is a 97 km2 national park located along the Western Ghats in the Idukki and Ernakulam districts of Kerala in India.

• NP Pampadum Shola

  InformationSatellite View
  Pampadum Shola National Park is the smallest national park in Kerala state, South India…

• NP Silent Valley

  WebsiteSatellite View
  Silent Valley was declared as National Park in 1984 and formally inaugurated in the year 1985. Initially there was only 89.52 sq.km. area under the Division which forms the core zone of the National Park. In 2007, an area of 148 sq.km. was added to this Division as buffer zone.

• NP WS TR Periyar

  InformationSatellite View
  Set high in the ranges of the Western Ghats, in God’s Own Country, Kerala, is the Periyar National Park and Tiger Reserve. Periyar wildlife sanctuary has a picturesque lake at the heart of the sanctuary. Formed with the building of a dam in 1895, this reservoir meanders around the contours of the wooded hills, providing a permanent source of water for the local wildlife. Though its a Tiger Reserve, tourists come here to view the Indian elephants in the act of ablution and playfulness by the Periyar lake.

• WII Thrissur Kole Wetlands

  InformationSatellite View
  The Kole Wetlands is one of largest, highly productive and threatened wetlands in Kerala and has been declared in Ramsar Convention for protection and it comes in Central Asian Flyway of migratory birds. According to studies, there are 241 species of birds like spot-billed pelican, darter, Oriental darter, black-headed ibis, painted stork, black-bellied tern, cinereous vulture and greater spotted eagle.

• WS Wayanad

  InformationSatellite View
  Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is an animal sanctuary in Wayanad, Kerala, India. It has an extent of 344.44 km2 with four ranges namely Sulthan Bathery, Muthanga, Kurichiat and Tholpetty. A variety of large wild animals such as Indian bison, elephant, deer and tiger are found there. There are also quite a few unusual birds in the sanctuary. In particular, peafowl tend to be very common in the area.

• Anytime Tours

  Tour Operator
  This tour focuses on the endemic birds of the Western Ghats and South India. There is a good chance of picking up most of the endemic bird species associated with the Western Ghats. Species include White-bellied Treepie, Crimson-backed Sunbird, Malabar Grey Hornbill, Malabar Parakeet, Nilgiri Woodpigeon and Nilgiri Flycatcher, Ceylon Frogmouth, Malabar Trogon and Indian Pitta…

• Asian Adventures

  Tour Operator
  Birding tours throughout the sub-continent...

• Eldho Bird Tours

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  Eldho Bird Tours arranges Birding Expeditons to Kerala and other bird-rich areas of South India- Tamilnadu & Karnataka. We want all of our clients to share in the excitement and fun of a top-notch birding adventure, and we want to provide the best service possible to both our tour participants and our independent travel clients…

• Nature & Wild Life Team

  Tour Operator - Facebook Page
  We are passionate about birding, conservation and sharing India's natural history with others by organising outstanding, affordable and responsible wildlife experiences. Our tours are thoroughly researched, meticulously planned, and continually refined using our own inputs from the field, while the fact that we are a small company contributes to the affordability of the prices we pass on to our clients.

• 2013 [01 January] - David Bridges

  Report
  …We arrived at Olivebrook Resort around midday. After lunch, we walked through the forest behind Olivebrook to Grassvena, an area of grassland then on to the hilltop (Pothamedu), birds seen included Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, Yellow-browed Bulbul, Nilgiri Flycatcher, Nilgiri Flowerpecker, Kerala Laughingthrush, Common Rosefinch, Dusky Crag Martin, Pallid Harrier and Tickell’s Leaf Warbler….

• 2017 [03 March] - Dev - TamilNadu and Kerala

  Report
  Even though i have birded the endemic rich parts of Western Ghats (Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Kartnataka), it was not intense and i was in my baby steps during those days. So, with little bit of homework and a list, it’s time to get some intense birding. Munnar became a clear undisputed winner among several others given the different elevations and lots of potential targets. The trip was divided into several legs as this was mainly a trip back home to visit family.

• 2017 [03 March] - Peregrine Rowse - Western Ghats

  PDF Report
  ... No fewer than a quarter of the species I saw were endemic to the Western Ghats or Peninsula India. Vigors’s Sunbird is also endemic to the northern Western Ghats outside the scope of this report. A list of 203 species recorded in the week follows as well as notes on a dozen species not seen that occur in the Western Ghats....

• 2018 [03 March] - Jason Boyse

  PDF Report
  The western Ghats in the state of Kerala is one of those well-known birding destinations in India that has a lot to offer and is well worth a visit, having a warm tropical climate that is home to many endemic species. The state is a popular tourist destination and has many attractions. One of the main attractions are the beautiful hillsides of Munnar, covered with tea plantations; this area has over 2000 hotels, many overlooking the picturesque scenery.

• 2018 [12 December] - Aseem Kothiala - Thattekad Bird Sanctuary

  Report
  Typical for any birder, the first desire is getting a lifer and the second a decent image. After being to the region a couple of times earlier discovered that getting good images was surely a challenge. However, now can suggest that the easiest way to see and photograph the species in Thattekad Bird Sanctuary at least , is by visiting it with Eldhose K.V

• Blue Wings Homestay - Thattekkad

  Accommodation
  Blue wings, amidst a forest plantation on the bank of BhoothathanKettu reservoir in Periyar river, embracing Dr. Salim Ali Birds sanctuary has a few acres of land vitalized by tropical medicinal and fruit plants. The flora consists of around 150 larval host and nector plants for butterflies. The plantation forest around, inhabitates wild boars, sambars, deers, Languirs, porcupines etc. and none of the ferocious ones, provides a safe and peaceful stay with lot of recreational facilities such as mud house stay, fishing, country and pedestal boats events in shallow waters, cycling inside and outside the premises, machine assisted tree climbing, shuttle court, swimming, cooking classes, agricultural works, pets caring etc. provision for Ayurvedic treatments also will be arranged on prior demand.

• Kerala Tourism Development Corporation

  Accommodation
  Sprawling mansions set in lovely locales-exotic islands, luxuriant game reserves…on hill sides, by beaches, backwaters. That this description fits most of our hotels is not the only thing that makes one an ideal pick for a tourist. The largest hotel chain in Kerala has much much more to offer.

• Lotus - Kochi Airport

  Accommodation
  Lotus8 A

• Olive Brook Resort - Munnar

  Accommodation
  Olive Brook, a unique, rustic Elettaria Cardamom Plantation Theme Resort, is one of the most desirable places to stay for tourists in Munnar. Embodying the veritable essence of the acclaimed traditional Kerala hospitality, Olive Brook pays meticulous attention to the minutest details to ensure your stay is a perfectly indelible one… Fatbirder Recommended

• Our Land Resort

  Accommodation
  OurLand is an island resort situated on the backwaters of Kerala just 14 kilometres south of Alappuzha in Kuttanad area known as the 'rice bowl of Kerala' due to its wealth of paddy crops.,,

• Periyar House

  Accommodation
  A perfect base to get close to the wild - Located on the banks of the Periyar Lake, Periyar House is a budget jungle lodge, which offers a vantage point for visitors to get close to the wildlife in Thekkady. It is inside the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. For a budget traveller who wish to stay in a wildlife sanctuary this is the best option here.

• Periyar River Lodge

  Accommodation
  The Periyar River Lodge adjoins the Thattekad Bird Sanctuary in Kerala, which currently attracts lot of ardent birders. We also have an accomplished bird guide who takes the guests for birding trips from the Lodge…

• Royal Retreat

  Accommodation
  Quiet, restful. A cozy little place, tucked away in the hills of Munnar. A hideout, if you like, from everyday life. For restful weeks or relaxed weekends

• Soma Birds Lagoon Resort

  Accommodation
  Soma Birds Lagoon Resort presents you a perfect harmony of Ayurveda, Yoga and Nature. Doing Yoga in the serene environs under expert guidance by the backwaters helps elevate the mind to a different realm

• Tharavadu Heritage Home

  Facebook Page
  Ours is a 120 year old Christian Banglow at Kumarakom, the backwater tourist village in Kerala in India. Ours is an Eco Friendly property located by the side of a River and close to the lake. We provide homely stay, boat cruise, ayurveda body massaging etc. etc. for Tourists

• Birds in Thattekkadu

  Website
  Not updated since 2012! Thattekkadu is located in Cochin district at Kerala and is the one of the best Birdwatching hot spots in Kerala…

• Amitava Nath - Birds of India

  BLOG
  Welcome to my Birds of India blog. For centuries, birds have held a fascination for human world and have been a subject of study. Winged wonder inspire great awe, especially for their ability to fly, their ability to build extraordinarily intricate nests and not least, the brilliant colours of their plumage-features that no human being can replicate. India is the home of more than 1250 species of birds. Peacock is our National bird and every state has its own State bird. One may call India a paradise for birding.

• Birds of Kerala

  BLOG
  This blog is dedicated to all the photography enthusiasts and wildlife lovers. This is an archive for the birds of Kerala. Most of the photos are only at a quality of reference. I am trying my best to capture the beauty of the birds. At the end I like to publish the contents to a book…

• Photographer - Sudeesh Thattekkadu

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  Photographer and bird guide