Shetland Misfit: White-bellied Drongo

Showing posts with label White-bellied Drongo. Show all posts

Friday, 30 December 2016

Tuesday, 2 December 2014

Another day in Bharatpur, though this time doing the scrub and semi-desert areas, I quite like birding in these sort of areas – but I hate Acacias !! Plenty of typical scrubland birds around – Plain Prinias, Ashy-crowned Sparrow Larks, Chestnut-shouldered Petronias, White-eared Bulbuls everywhere and loads of Bluthroats, plus a rather nice fly-over Egyptian Vulture. In the more wooded areas I picked up a pair of White-bellied Drongos, and then a bit of a strange incedent occurred. Speaking to a visiting birder, who said that there was a Blue Rock Thrush at the nursery – why the hell would a Blue Rock Thrush be in a forest !? So I followed him down there and then he pointed it out – a Black-winged Cuckoo Shrike ! Erm...OK !

So it was back out to the scrubland for the last few hours, nothing new until the last half hour of light, when a smallish Falcon zipped through, I was fully expecting it to be a Hobby, until I got my bins on it – Red-necked Falcon – cracker !

Asian Pied Starling

Bluethroat

Black-winged Cuckoo Shrike

Ashy-crowned Sparrow Lark

Chestnut-shouldered Petronia

Egyptian Vulture

Red-necked Falcon

Indian Peafowl

Plain Prinia

White-bellied Drongo

Friday, 24 February 2012

Back on the Grid

Just spent the last 4 days at Masinagudi, without t'internet, so here's a rather big summary of the past 4 days.
20/2/12
Left Bangalore early morning and stopped off at a town called Ramanagara, not on any published birding trip reports, but the site of a silk processing area, and so thick with Black and Brahiminy Kites (about 200 of each !).

Black Kite

Brahiminy Kite

A quick walk around to the river at Masinagudi in the evening, and quite a selection of stuff - 1 Greater Spotted Eagle, 1 Buzzard, 9 Woolly-necked Storks, 2 Pied Kingfisher, 1 White-browed Bulbul, 4 Crested Tree-swifts, 6 Palm Swift, 1 Wood Sandpiper, 3 Pintail Snipe and 20 Chittal.

Chittal

Purple Sunbird

Greater Spotted Eagle

White-browed Bulbul.

21/2/12 Masinagudi
Another walk along the river and this time - 1 Thick-billed Warbler, several Malabar Parakeets, 3 Yellow-eyed Babbler, 2 Indian Scimitar Babbler, 2 Rufous-bellied Nuthatch, 1 Tickell's Blue Flycatcher, several White-bellied Drongo and a Grey Mongoose.

White-bellied Drongo

22/2/12 Masinagudi
All day in the forest today, and at last a fruiting fig tree, birds everywhere. Summary of the day - 1 Oriental Honey Buzzard, 2 Chestnut-shouldered Petronia, 24 Malabar Parakeet, 20 Crested Tree-swifts, 30 Indian Swiftlets, 1 Rufous-bellied Nuthatch, 2 Indian Scimitar Babbler, 2 Blue-faced Malkoha, 1 Taiga Flycatcher, 6 Malabar Grey Hornbill, 1 Great Hornbill, 1 Grey Junglefowl, 1 Red Spurfowl, 1 Orange-headed Thrush, 1 Lesser Yellownape, 1 Orange-breasted Green Pigeon. Mammals seen were 1 Indian Grey Mongoose, 4 Malabar Giant Squirrel and 20+ Guar.

Blue-faced Malkoha

Malabar Grey Hornbill

Malabar Giant Squirrel

Orange-headed Thrush

22/2/12 Masinagudi
Just the morning in the forest today - but scored the mega ! 2 White-bellied Woodpeckers. Other stuff included - 3 Black-rumped Flameback, 3 Oriental Honey Buzzard, 1 Lesser Yellownape, 1 Streak-throated Woodpecker, 1 Blue-face Malkoha, 1 Orange-headed Thrush, 2 Malabar Grey Hornbill and a Black-naped Monach.

White-bellied Woodpecker

Streak-throated Woodpecker

White-browed Fantail

Malabar Whistling Thrush

Bonnet Macaque

Malabar Grey Hornbill

Hanuman Langur

About Me

Sometimes I try to do things but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to, and I get real frustrated and then like I try hard to do it, and I like, take my time but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to. It's like, I concentrate on it real hard, but it just doesn't work out. And everything I do and everything I try, it never turns out. It's like, I need time to figure these things out, but there's always someone there going “hey Steve, you know we've been noticing you've been having a lot of problems lately, you know? You need to maybe get away. And like, maybe you should talk about it, you'll feel a lot better.” And I'm all like “oh, nah, it's ok, you know. I'll figure it out. Just leave me alone, I'll figure it out, you know? I'm just working on it by myself.” And they go “well, you know, if you wanna talk about it, I'll be here, you know? And you'll probably feel a lot better if you talk about it. So why don't you talk about it?” I go “no, I don't want to! I'm ok. I'll figure it out myself!” But they just keep bugging me, they just keep bugging me, and it builds up inside.I was in my house and I was just like staring at the walls thinking about everything, but then again I was thinking about nothing. And then my wife came in, and I didn't even know she was there. She called my name and I didn't hear her and then she started screaming “Steve, Steve !” And I go “what ? What's the matter ?” She goes “what's the matter with you?” I go “there's nothing wrong” She’s all “don't tell me that ! You're on drugs !” I go “FFS, I'm not on drugs. I'm ok, I'm just thinking, you know? Why don't you get me a Pepsi?” She goes “No! You're on drugs!” I go “I'm ok. I'm just thinking.” She goes “No! You're not thinking, you're on drugs! Normal people don't be acting that way!” I go “just get me a Pepsi ! Please, all I want is a Pepsi !” And she wouldn't give it to me! All I wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi, and she wouldn't give it to me! Just a Pepsi !I'm sitting in my house, when a couple of my mates came in. they pulled up a chair and they sat down. They go “Steve, we need to talk to you.” And I go “ok, what's the matter?” They go “we've noticed that lately you've been having a lot of problems, and you've been going off on one for no reason, and we're afraid you're going to hurt somebody, and we're afraid you're going to hurt yourself. So we decided that it would be in your best interest if we put you somewhere where you could get the help that you need.” And I go “wait, what are you talking about, WE decided ? MY best interests ? How do you know what MY best interest is ? How can you say what MY best interest is ? What are you trying to say? I'm crazy ? They say they're gonna fix my brain. Alleviate my suffering and my pain. But by the time they fix my head, Mentally I'll be dead. They stuck me in an institution, said it was the only solution, to give me the needed professional help, to protect me from the enemy, myself !
Doesn't matter, I'll probably get hit by a car anyways !!!!

Friday, 30 December 2016

Goa, Nov 2007 Part 2

Tuesday, 2 December 2014

Scrub

Friday, 24 February 2012

Back on the Grid