On Sunday, ,,Geeta, Prasanna decided that we would make it a JLRNTP trip...Adarsh and I had thought of going to Bandipur or to Nagarhole, but then since there was a logistics problem, we decided on a closer destination instead. Devarayanadurga, about which I posted here , here , here , and here is still a fairly unspoilt and beautiful place, and that's where we went.

Let me start with one of the last images I photographed on the trip…it’s that very beautiful bird, the BLACK-SHOULDERED KITE, in flight from the wire on which s/he was perched….

Large mammals: Here are the others...look at the two shutterbugs! Anush and Adarsh with one camera seem OK: But Geeta and Prasanna with one pair of binoculars were a little more funny! Landscape: Here's what the Devarayanadurga area looks like: And this is the scenery on the way to the Yoga Narasimhaswamy temple: People and scenes: We stopped at Dobbespet (must have been named for some Englishman named Dobbes, I guess, I am too lazy to google it up right now), and they have a cute little police station: Almost in front of the police station, there was this "tinshack restaurant" where we had breakfast: Not having eaten in this area before, I didn't know that they made idlis differently here. Instead of making small idlis, they pour the batter in a raised plate, and it makes a kind of thick pancake which is served with chatni, a little potato, and if liked, two masala vadas: Update...apparently, this restaurant is pretty famous...and those are called "plate" idlis, what a lovely name! These stainless steel tumblers made a pretty picture on the granite slab that served as the seat: And opposite us was this cute little girl who didn't want to share her father's tea and wanted a little tumblerful all by herself: Mammals: The only mammals we saw were the BONNET MACAQUES, but they were endlessly entertaining as usual...here's a sweet-looking baby, feeding on the leaves: I posted this photo on INW with the title, "Oh,God,he's started singing again!" Insects: We saw a real variety of insects, though.... Here's a SPIDER WASP (POMPILINID) (Karthik, thanks for the id!) Here's one of the typical circular (do these ants use a compass or what?) ants' nests that I see so often in these areas; I have seen them in Bheemeshwari, too: We started our walk from Namada Chilume, and here's another procession of ants that crossed our path: Here are two ladybird-like bugs mating..had to take the shot against the sky: And a Pierrot butterfly on a plant: Sometimes the wildlife comes to us, instead of the other way around; here's a beautiful cat on Anush's jeans! We saw what Geeta, Prasanna and I thought were two POTTER WASPS mating, but Adarsh insisted there was only one. I took a photograph (perhaps not of the exact same wasp?) and it appears to be only one...but I still don't know.... Here's a COMMON CROW: Some of the plants were covered by the nests of the SOCIAL SPIDERS: This BALL MILLIPEDE I did not know about until I came back and asked Karthik for the id...click on its name to see how it rolls up into a ball on being disturbed! And, as usual the Chilume (spring) area had a lot of RED-TAILED DRAGONFLIES sitting on the sheet rock: There were also these un-id dragonflies which were completely Communist: Reptiles and amphibians: We spotted a few of these FROGS in the Namade Chilume ponds: And then we also saw its predator, the GREEN KEELBACK: On seeing us, it quickly disappeared into the grass: We also saw a few ROCK AGAMAS: Flora: As we left, we snapped this beautiful water lily in the Namada Chilume pond: This un id plant had leaves that were as beautiful as flowers! This bamboo tree had started flowering , which means that it will soon die... Birds: We did manage to see a few birds and raptors; here's a TAWNY EAGLE: Then, later, we saw this bird soaring overhead. The shape and the tail size made me feel it might be a BLACK EAGLE, but both Karthik and AMS feel that it is much more likely to be an ORIENTAL HONEY BUZZARD: The SMALL MINIVETS didn't appear in large numbers, and it was possible only to get a bad shot of one: As we were returning, we saw a couple of EGYPTIAN VULTURES, here's a fuzzy shot of one: We all enjoyed watching this CRESTED SERPENT EAGLE watching us through the leaves: Two of them soared high above us and kept up their mewling call: As we returned, we saw the black-shouldred kite in hes habitat., I must tell you that on the way back, I suddenly said, "Why have we not seen any black-shouldered kites so far? I want to see one!" and wham, within minutes, Prasanna spotted this bird! I think I am finding out how to do the "Sainath-wish"! The lovely bird: and perched so elegantly on the wire: </lj-cut> Let me close with this shot of two GREEN MARSH HAWKS (thanks for the id, Seshadri!) mating: