Hosakote kere, Karnataka, 230213

February 23, 2014

Kamal pinged me past 10pm yesterday…and off we went,early this morning, to Hosakote Kere, with Vasuki, and having picked up Binu on the way, too.

At the MCS (Mandatory Chai Stop).

We stopped at the bund of Hosakote Kere, with the sun still low in the eastern horizon, silhouetting the swallows...

A BLACK-WINGED KITE sub-adult seemed to have wings of black...and silver...

There were already other photographers at the kere:

And we joined them:

The marshy area of the kere was aglow with green algae:

I followed some PLAIN PRINIAS through the bushes:

Several WOOD SANDPIPERS waded around:

It seemed as if this GREATER CORMORANT was lifting its wings in benison:

PHEASANT-TAILED JACANAS strutted their paisley shapes about:

a vee-formation of Cormorants went past:

At full zoom, my camera caught these two SILVERBILLS on a little pot!

A GREY-BELLLIED CUCKOO delighted us very briefly:

A GLOSSY IBIS sat in the reeds

All of a sudden, a huge flock of ducks appeared in the sky, wheeled around, and came to settle in the waters of the kere. We watched, spellbound:

Two SPOT-BILLED PELICANS landed, and floated lightly about:

BLACK-WINGED STILTS were in plenty:

It was a stunning sight when at some mysterious signal they all took off:

There were many LITTLE GREBES:

A great sighting today by Kamal was of the GREAT REED WARBLER in the reeds of the lake. Alas, he could not get a shot. There were many fishermen on the kere, in plastic coracles (though I saw the traditional bamboo ones on the bank, too.)

The trishool of the Gangamma temple was decorated:

The temple is the Om of the Goddess!

You can see Shiva sitting with Parvati, with Ganga on his head:

Everywhere, TENT SPIDERS had spun a mist:

We took a breakfast break, and went to Sri Krishna Upahar on the main highway:

On the bund, a borewell was being dug, and rice and freshly-caught fish were ready for cooking:

Birds: Babbler, Jungle Bee-eater, Small Green Bulbul, Red-vented Bushchat, Pied Bushlark, Jerdon's Coot, Common Cormorant, Great Cormorant,Little Coucal, Greater Crow, House Crow, Jungle Cuckoo, Grey-bellied Dove, Laughing Dove, Spotted Drongo, Black Duck, Spot-billed Egret, Cattle Egret, Great Egret, Intermediate Egret, Little Flowerpecker, Pale-billed Francolin, Grey Garganey Grebe, LIttle Harrier, Eurasian Marsh Heron, Grey Heron, Indian Pond Heron, Purple Ibis, Glossy Jacana, Pheasant-tailed Kite, Black Kite, Black-winged Kite, Bramhiny Koel, Asian Lapwing, Red-wattled Lark, Ashy-crowned Sparrow Moorhen, Common Moorhen, Purple Myna, Common Myna, Jungle Oriole, Eurasian Golden Parakeet, Rose-ringed Pelican, Spot-billed Pigeon, Blue Rock Pintail, Northern Pipit, Paddyfield Prinia, Ashy Prinia, Plain Robin, Indian Roller, Indian Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Wood Silverbill, Indian Sparrow, House Starling,Rosy Stilt, Black-winged Sunbird, Purple Sunbird, Purple-rumped Swallow, Barn Swallow, Red-rumped Swallow, Wire-tailed Swift, Asian Palm Tailorbird, Common Wagtail, White-browed Wagtail, Yellow Warbler, Blyth's Reed Warbler, Booted Warbler, Clamorous Reed Warbler, Great Reed Sorry, didn't keep track of butterfies today. Was somehow tired and a little sleepy, off my form!

I took two short videos; one, of a shimmering black line of Swallows, and a white line of Egrets:

Another of a flight of ducks, swirling over the lake, not landing but wheeling around:

Photos on my FB album,

click here

Let me close with a pic of this bAginA (offering) that someone had made. A baagina usually contains a packet of arshina (turmeric), kumkum, black bangles, black beads (used in the mangalsutra), a comb, a small mirror, baLe bicchoLe, coconut, blouse piece, dhaanya (cereal), rice, toor dal, green dal, wheat or rava and jaggery cut in a cube form. The baagina is offered in a traditional mora (winnow painted with turmeric).