Trip Report to Banhavgarh -
Sue Bryan
Paul Jeffery
Steve Elliot
Bunty (guide)
Plus 6 other non-birding participants
Introduction
This bird and tiger watching holiday was organised by Naturetrek ([email protected] www.naturetrek.co.uk). It was one of their 990 packages using a local guide. All flights, train and jeep travel was organised by Naturetrek at a cost of £1295 for A Bargain Mammal Tour of Bandhavgarh, although I was holding a voucher which lowered the cost a little for me.
10th April - Bandhavgarh.
11th April - Bandhavgarh.
12th April Gharpuri Reservoir and Bandhavgarh. Boarded train to
13th April
14th April Fly
Flights
The flight to
Climate
Extremely hot (38 degrees) and sunny. At
Money
It is illegal to import/export Indian Rupees. At
Habitat
Bandhavgarh is made up of Sal forest, patches of bamboo, areas of Elephant Grass with a few water-holes and plateau lands affording high cliffs.The surrounding countryside was either sandy scrub or agricultural fields with a couple of reservoirs close by.
Daily Log
6th April
Flew from Gatwick to
7th April
Left
Common Myna building a nest in the lamp Five-striped Squirrel
On the lawn House Crows, Jungle Babblers, Common Mynas and White Wagtails were all keeping us entertained as a Five-striped Squirrel ran along a wall.
House Crow Jungle Babbler
Sitting on our bunk with other bunk above
8th April
By
Scenery from the train as it sped through the countryside Waiting at the barrier
Tiger Trails Bandhavgarh
Before and after lunch we wandered the gardens and were delighted with a Tickells Blue Flycatcher that frequented the area by the restaurant.
Tickells Blue Flycatcher
At
Bandhavgarh Steve and Paul in our jeep
Animals were fairly
abundant in the form of Chittal and Sambar. Sambar are the preferred
prey species for tiger as they are much slower and easier prey than
Chittal.
Chittal Sambar
However birds were
also fairly widespread and we were soon picking up the easier to see
species as the jeep driver was not used to slowing up for small species
as he was intent on getting us to the spot where a tiger had been
spotted.
Changeable Hawk Eagle
We stopped en-route
and took a few photographs of Indian Roller, Changeable, Hawk Eagle and
Lesser Adjutant Stork, before stopping along the track where over 20
jeeps had stopped. This was not how I had envisaged seeing my first
tiger in the wild.
Indian Roller Lesser Adjutant Stork
9th April
Leaving again at
Tiger Trails Camp has an extremely hospitable staff that did their best to please their guests. The food was excellent and for someone who is not keen on curries, I enjoyed every one! The staff also prepared special diets for those who would not eat curries upon request.
We
drove to some caves where we were delighted to find bats flying around
our heads as the caves had a low ceiling. Bunty managed to grab one and
showed it to us. There were hundreds hanging in a dark corner. The
morning was spent adding new birds to the list. Malabar Pied Hornbill
was seen distantly through the trees as a Red Jungle Fowl scratched for
its food on the forest floor. Yellow- footed Green Pigeon flew from the
trees as we spotted a Black-hooded Oriole perched on a branch. We returned to camp
and spent a few more hours searching the scrub surrounding us. A Common
Woodshrike was flitting amongst the bushes and a Large Cuckooshrike
called from the trees overhead. A little bird made its presence felt as
it kept disappearing into the same hole. A Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch
was feeding young as they popped their heads out every time the adults
approached.
At
On
the way back to camp through the park we saw a Brown Fish Owl sat up
among some over-hanging branches above our heads. A Rufous Treepie also
flew by. We were a little late back to camp but we were all happy to
have seen a tiger as we shared our experiences at the evening meal.
10th April
We stopped and watched a Spotted Owlet in the trees outside the park but as soon as we were in the park we
Spotted Owlet
Steve and Paul waiting by our elephant
Bunty
had arranged for us to be last on the elephant ride that morning and
luckily for us a female Tiger had been located not too far from the
track-way. Paul, Steve and I mounted the elephant in a precarious
manner with our cameras and set off into the Elephant Grass.
Paul and I had had
experience of an Elephant safari before but with all the bamboo being
forced apart and wearing only shorts, a few scratches were had. However
we were all excited as we thought we stood a chance of a good
sighting. We were not to be disappointed.
There under the bushes lay a stunning female Tiger!
Female Tiger
She eventually got up. We thought we had disturbed her as she slouched off around the back of the bush. What we didnt realise was that her brother was approaching from behind and went and sat in her place.
Male Tiger
I nearly cried at the
beauty of what I was seeing and how lucky and privileged I was to see a
tiger in the wild. I was quite overcome with the moment. We returned to
camp enthralled. In the camp Large-billed Crows were lingering around
the dump behind the cabins.
Large-billed Crow
After lunch Bunty
took us for another birding drive in the park. On our way out a dust
storm blew through. It was fascinating to watch. In the park a
Golden-fronted Leafbird hid in the trees and an
Dust Storm
We once again made our way to a water hole where we arrived just in time to watch a Tiger come down to drink in the late afternoon. At dusk, back at camp we had a Large-tailed Nightjar fly over our heads but were disappointed that we did not see any others.
Tiger at the waterhole
11th April
A
rather uneventful morning game drive for birding but Paul and I were
treated to another Elephant ride just in time to see another male Tiger
disappear over a ridge. At lunch we watched a Common Hawk Cuckoo
perched in a tree. We also watched as a local man washed his domestic
Water Buffalo in the stream.
Common Hawk Cuckoo
Domestic Water Buffalo
Long-billed
Vultures wheeled high in the sky as I took a photo of a Crested Serpent
Eagle. Later we found a vulture perched in a bare tree.
Plain Tiger Butterfly
Crested Serpent Eagle
12th April
Paul, Steve and I
managed to persuade Bunty to take us to a different habitat to bird. He
suggested Gharpuri Reservoir but we had to pay extra to hire the jeep
for the whole day as well as the obligatory park guide (who did nothing
at all except occupy space in the jeep). We set off at the usual time
and watched a Golden Oriole en-route. At the reservoir a White-browed
Wagtail greeted us as an Intermediate Egret waded in the water.
Steve and Paul waiting for the park guide
Small Minivets sat in
a bare tree as we wandered around the reservoir in the heat of the day.
Grey Francolins scurried away over the rocks as we baked in the sun.
Although we enjoyed the birding and it was good to be on our own and
out of the vehicle we did not add very many species to our list. A
White-browed Fantail put on a good display for us as we checked out the
surrounding scrub.
Gharpuri Reservoir
All too soon our
adventure at Bandhavgarh was over and we were driven to the train
station at Umaria, half an hour away to catch the overnight train back
to
Little Green Bee-eater
13th April
Upon waking we all knew that we still had many hours of travel ahead on the train. I considered doing some birding from the door, as we had done on the journey out, but all too soon it was too hot to do so and I considered there was little to be gained. I made the most of sitting on my bunk with my feet up reading about Bandhavgarh and sipping the frequent cups of Chi and Tea that I bought from the lads carrying hot flasks from the galley.
We arrived in
14th April
My luggage finally arrived at my home two days later.
I had enjoyed the trip and considered myself very privileged to have seen a tiger in the wild.
1. Little Grebe Bandhavgarh
2. Little Cormorant Bandhavgarh
3. Little Egret Katni
4. Grey Heron
5. Purple Heron Katni
6. Great White Egret Katni
7. Intermediate Egret Gharpuri Reservoir
8. Cattle Egret
9. Indian Pond-heron
10. Black-crowned Night-heron
11. Painted Stork
12. Asian Openbill Bandhavgarh
13. Woolly-necked Stork Delhi
14. Lesser Adjutant Bandhavgarh
15. Red-naped Ibis Delhi
16. Eurasian Spoonbill
17. Lesser Whistling-duck Katni
18. Cotton Pygmy-goose Katni
19. Eurasian Wigeon
20. Spot-billed Duck Delhi
21. Northern Pintail
22. Garganey
23. Northern Shoveler
24. Common Pochard
25. Crested Honey-buzzard Bandhavgarh
26. Black-shouldered Kite Delhi
27. Black Kite
28. Egyptian Vulture
29. Long-billed Vulture Bandhavgarh
30. Red-headed Vulture Delhi
31. Crested Serpent-eagle Bandhavgarh
32. Western Marsh-harrier
33. Shikra
Bandhavgarh
34. White-eyed Buzzard Bandhavgarh
35. Changeable Hawk-eagle Bandhavgarh
36. Oriental Hobby
37. Peregrine Falcon Bandhavgarh
38. Grey Francolin Gharpuri Reservoir
39. Jungle Bush-quail Bandhavgarh
40. Red Junglefowl Bandhavgarh
41. Common Peafowl
42. White-breasted Waterhen Delhi
43. Purple Swamphen
44. Common Moorhen Bandhavgarh
45. Pheasant-tailed Jacana Delhi
46. Bronze-winged Jacana Delhi
47. Black-winged Stilt Delhi
48. Indian Courser Katni
49. Little Ringed Plover Katni
50. Kentish Plover Katni
51. Yellow-wattled Lapwing Bandhavgarh
52. River Lapwing
53. Red-wattled Lapwing Delhi
54. Common Snipe Gharpuri Reservoir
55. Black-tailed Godwit Delhi
56. Common Redshank
57. Marsh Sandpiper
58. Common Greenshank
59. Green Sandpiper
60. Wood Sandpiper Katni
61. Common Sandpiper Katni
62. Little Stint Katni
63. Temminck's Stint Katni
64. Ruff
65. Caspian Yellow-legged Gull Delhi
66. Gull-billed Tern Delhi
67. Black-bellied Tern Katni
68. Whiskered Tern
69. Oriental Turtle-dove Bandhavgarh
70. Laughing Dove Bandhavgarh
71. Spotted Dove Bandhavgarh
72. Red Collared-dove Gharpuri Reservoir
73. Eurasian Collared-dove
74. Yellow-footed Green-pigeon Bandhavgarh
75. Alexandrine Parakeet Bandhavgarh
76. Rose-ringed Parakeet Delhi
77. Plum-headed Parakeet Katni
78. Common Hawk-cuckoo Bandhavgarh
79. Asian Koel Bandhavgarh
80. Greater Coucal Bandhavgarh
81. Brown Fish-owl Bandhavgarh
82. Jungle Owlet Bandhavgarh
83. Spotted Owlet Bandhavgarh
84. Large-tailed Nightjar Bandhavgarh
85. Crested Treeswift Bandhavgarh
86. House Swift
87. Common Kingfisher Bandhavgarh
88. White-breasted Kingfisher Bandhavgarh
89. Pied Kingfisher
90. Blue-bearded Bee-eater Bandhavgarh
91. Little Green Bee-eater
92. Indian Roller Katni
93. Eurasian Hoopoe Bandhavgarh
94. Indian Grey Hornbill Bandhavgarh
95. Malabar Pied-hornbill Bandhavgarh
96. Brown-headed Barbet Delhi
97. Coppersmith Barbet
98. Brown-capped Woodpecker Bandhavgarh
99. Yellow-crowned Woodpecker Bandhavgarh
100. Streak-throated Woodpecker Bandhavgarh
101. Black-rumped Flameback Bandhavgarh
102. White-naped Woodpecker Bandhavgarh
103. Indian Bushlark Katni
104. Ashy-crowned Sparrow-lark Gharpuri Reservoir
105. Plain Martin
106. Dusky Crag-martin Bandhavgarh
107. Barn Swallow
108. Wire-tailed Swallow Katni
109. Red-rumped Swallow Bandhavgarh
110. Oriental Pipit
111. Tree Pipit Bandhavgarh
112. White Wagtail
113. White-browed Wagtail Gharpuri Reservoir
114. Citrine Wagtail
115. Yellow Wagtail [sp]
116. Grey Wagtail Bandhavgarh
117. Large Cuckooshrike Bandhavgarh
118. Black-headed Cuckooshrike Bandhavgarh
119. Small Minivet Gharpuri Reservoir
120. Red-vented Bulbul [benghalensis]
121. Common Iora Bandhavgarh
122. Golden-fronted Leafbird Bandhavgarh
123. Oriental Magpie-robin Bandhavgarh
124. White-rumped Shama Bandhavgarh
125. Black Redstart Bandhavgarh
126. Brown Chat
127. Pied Stonechat Bandhavgarh
128. Indian Robin
129. Orange-headed Thrush Bandhavgarh
130. Grey-breasted Prinia Bandhavgarh
131. Jungle Prinia Bandhavgarh
132. Ashy Prinia
133. Plain Prinia Bandhavgarh
134. Clamorous Reed-warbler Bandhavgarh
135. Lesser Whitethroat Bandhavgarh
136. Common Tailorbird Bandhavgarh
137. Sulphur-bellied Warbler Bandhavgarh
138. Greenish Warbler Bandhavgarh
139. Tickell's Blue-flycatcher Bandhavgarh
140. White-browed Fantail Gharpuri Reservoir
141. Black-naped Monarch Bandhavgarh
142. Asian Paradise-flycatcher Bandhavgarh
143. Puff-throated Babbler Bandhavgarh
144. Tawny-bellied Babbler Bandhavgarh
145. Large Grey Babbler
146. Jungle Babbler
147. Great Tit Bandhavgarh
148. Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch Bandhavgarh
149. Purple Sunbird
150. Thick-billed Flowerpecker Bandhavgarh
151. Oriental White-eye
152. Golden Oriole Gharpuri Reservoir
153. Black-hooded Oriole Bandhavgarh
154. Common Woodshrike Bandhavgarh
155. Brown Shrike Bandhavgarh
156. Bay-backed Shrike Katni
157. Long-tailed Shrike Bandhavgarh
158. Black Drongo
159. White-bellied Drongo Bandhavgarh
160. Greater Racket-tailed Drongo Bandhavgarh
161. Rufous Treepie Bandhavgarh
162. House Crow
163. Large-billed Crow Katni
164. Chestnut-tailed Starling Gharpuri Reservoir
165. Brahminy Starling Bandhavgarh
166. Rose-coloured Starling Delhi
167. Asian Pied Starling
168. Common Myna
169. Bank Myna
170. House Sparrow
171. Yellow-throated Sparrow Bandhavgarh
172. White-rumped Munia Bandhavgarh
173. Common Rosefinch