BIRDING IN CORBETT
Jim Corbett National Park is a well-known destination all across the globe due to it’s wildlife. Located deep into the forests of Uttarakhand, Corbett is a heaven for wildlife lovers and photographers. What makes Corbett different from other places is, it’s diverse flora and fauna. Corbett has around 550 birds, which is a really impressive number! From eagles,fantails, hornbills, woodpeckers to owls and kingfishers, all can be seen here! Corbett is just 244 kms away from New Delhi, which is just a 5-6 hour drive. The closest airport is Indira Gandhi International airport, which is located in Delhi. One of the well-known species of animals inhabiting Jim Corbett is the Royal Bengal Tiger.Leopards can be easily located in the hilly areas but can be also seen around the lowland jungles.Smaller size feline population comprises of the Jungle Cat, Fishing Cat and the Leopard Cat. Other mammals inhabiting Jim Corbett includes deer species [Barking, Sambhar and Chital], Sloth bears, Himalayan BlackBears, Elephants, Yellow Throated Martens, Ghoral, Langurs, Rhesus monkeys and many more. Local crocodiles [along the banks of Ramgangariver], Indian Python, King Cobra and Common Cobra can also be seen in Corbett. The trees in Corbett include Sal, Khair and Sisoo. This blog mainly focuses on the birding hotspots in Corbett Tiger Reserve.
KOSI RIVER
Kosi river is extremely rich in it’s bird life. There are a few spots which are considered really good for bird watching and wildlife photography, the first being Garjiya temple. This temple is very close to Ramnagar [a small town close to Corbett Tiger Reserve]. It is just 13 kms away. Once you reach the temple, you will see a couple of trails going down to the river bed. The river bed beside the temple is really good for photographing species of kingfishers, including White Throated Kingfisher and Pied Kingfisher. Look out for these Kingfishers on the metal wires running above the river. If you are lucky, you may even see the Crested Kingfisher! I was lucky enough to get a sighting but unfortunately, it was quite a distance away so only managed to get an ID shot of it.
Trail near garjiya temple
Near the forest on the right side, you may get to see the common birds like Common Mynas, Green bee eaters and White browed wagtails.
Pied kingfisher
Then moving on to the Suspension Bridge. This is also really close to Ramnagar, only 11 kms away. This place is also really good for photographing kingfishers, and in my opinion, it is better than Garjiya temple as I have had few of my best sightings here. I was able to spot the Stork Billed Kingfisher, which is relatively hard to find and I also spotted the mighty Lesser Fish Eagle, which is also not easily seen! Try to look across the river, on the large trees, you may get to see the eagle there.
Common myna
Then you will get to see a lot of River lapwings flying around and White browed wagtails resting on the large stones. If you walk on the bridge and to the other side of the river bed, you will see a trail going to the left, if you walk on that trail, you will see yourself surrounded by the forest and the birds chirping and flying around everywhere! This trail is also really good to spot woodpeckers!
Near suspension bridge
SITABANI FOREST
Sitabani forest is a popular birding hotspot in Corbett Tiger Reserve.It is also really well known because of it mention in Ramayan. It is believed that goddess Sita spent some days of her exile in Sitabani. My experience there was great but mostly I saw only the common species here. As I entered, I saw a lot of Green bee eaters and one Chestnut headed bee eater. Near the dried stream stretch, we got to see a family of Indian peafowl, which was an amazing sight to see!
Indian peafowl female
Pied bush chat
Then finally I got to see the Golden fronted leafbird, which was spectacular! I have not seen any bird with such good camouflage! It was extremely difficult finding the bird in my camera’s viewfinder.While clicking the leafbird, we got a surprise in the bush next to us, it was a Crimson sunbird [female]! These two amazing sightings made our day. Later we saw a few Spotted Deer’s and a White Throated Kingfisher perched on a rock.
Sitabani forest
GUIDES IN CORBETT
Corbett National Park is a well-known destination for bird watching and wildlife photography, but it is really hard to understand the areas so usually a birding guide is required. The best guide in Corbett is Mr. Prashant Kumar. He has a lot of experience and knows Corbett the most. I would really recommend going with him as he is an expert in birding in Corbett. He is an amazing wildlife photographer and a great friend of mine. I am leaving his number below if you want to contact him. Mr. Prashant Kumar (+91) 9690049033
MOHAAN TO BHAUNKHAL
The Mohaan to Bhaunkhal stretch is filled with bird life and in my opinion, is the best place in Corbett for birding! Mohaan is 22 kms away from Ramnagar and the stretch ends at Bhaunkhal which is 19 kms further ahead from Mohaan. This area is hard to navigate, so I would recommend taking a guide. Birding can be done while moving on the road as there is greenery on both sides of the road. The road later goes uphill and that’s when the main photography starts!
Himalayan bulbul
Black Throated Bushtit
We saw and photographed a lot of species, including the Speckled Piculet, Large Cuckooshrike, Black throated bushtit, White throated fantail, Blue throated barbet, Pale billed flowerpecker and the uncommon Little pied flycatcher!
Mohan area