Email to the bngbirds egroup:

Hi everyone

Almost on the spur of the moment, Guru Darshan, Kiran Kashyap, Suhas Kashyap and I decided to drive down to Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary and drive down the road from Sangama to Galibore. We little imagined what a “B” (Bird) day it would be!

We started out with an Oriental Honey Buzzard sitting on a tree in the distant morning light, and from then on, it seemed to be birds of prey all the way. As if to speed us on our way (speeding not being something birders can do...there is always something to stop for, and stare at!) a Common Cuckoo (so common that I've only seen it now!) sat on a wire and posed for us. Water bodies on the way both alarmed and delighted us. Alarm was when we came to Harohalli kere and we found it just a mass of weeds and trash, with hardly any water in it. The lotuses blooming in the stagnant water looked beautiful, but apart from a few coots and moorhens we could hardly see anything else. The delight was the lake opposite the arecanut plantation with the little Nandi temple in its centre (I do not know its name) beyond Kanakapura, which, though low on water, still had dozens of Painted Storks and Spot-billed Pelicans in the water, along with Asian Openbills, Great and Little Cormorants,and one each Green Sandpiper and Little Ringed Plover. A little later, we watched as a Crested Serpent Eagle swept the slopes looking for a tasty morsel to eat, and soared up high as the low-level reconnaissance did not seem to work. As we neared the Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) property at Galibore, a sudden flight had us looking in astonishment at a Jungle Owlet that sat on a large branch, but was rather too alert for us and flew a little deeper into the trees. The night hunting must have been successful, because the owlet seemed ready to rest. It's always nice to be able to watch a less-seen bird for longer stretches than the usual quick sightings! As we entered the Sanctuary, the sight of a Crested Hawk Eagle, perched quite close to the road, kept us riveted for a while. Two Shikras decided to give us "darshan", one in a fly-past and one on a tree. A little later, we watched as a Crested Serpent Eagle swept the slopes looking for a tasty morsel to eat, and soared up high as the low-level reconnaissance did not seem to work. At one point, Tri-coloured Munias in reeds on the riverbank flew in and out. As we neared the Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) property at Galibore, a sudden flight had us looking in astonishment at a Jungle Owlet that sat on a large branch, but was rather too alert for us and flew a little deeper into the trees. The night hunting must have been successful, because the owlet seemed ready to rest. It's always nice to be able to watch a less-seen bird for longer stretches than the usual quick sightings! We were also extremely lucky to get a sighting of the Brown Hawk Owl, and we were quite thrilled with this sighting. The bird did not seem disturbed at all, but was still alert and looking down at us from its perch with those incredible eyes. Here we are, looking up at it: Our return journey was, of course, less productive in terms of birds, but there were several things to hold our interest. The near-threatened Grizzled Giant Squirrel, both adult: and baby: Mongoose, a foraging wild boar, several macaques,and these Flying Foxes our mammal sightings were nothing to complain about. Several frogs, one possible rat snake, and a crocodile innocently floating in the Kaveri made sure that our amphibian and reptile sightings were also excellent. What seemed like a beautiful strain of music that extended through the entire day was the butterfly migration. All around us were many common butterflies: Orange-tips, Emigrants, Roses...and the Blue Tigers and Common Crows seemed to pour around us in aerial streams as we made our way along the bank of the Kaveri. There were several places where Blue Tigers, Plain Tigers and Common Crows seemed drawn to small bushes, and the very area flickered with hundreds of wings, fluttering around. Here's a short video: Sugarcane juice as we returned home. Our bird list is at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S25154589 The butterfly list: Blue, Gram Blue, Line Blue, Palm Blue, Zebra Bluebottle Castor, Common Cerulean, Common Crimson-tip, White Crow, Common Emigrant, Common Jewel, Grass Jezebel, Common Leopard, Common Lime, Common Mime, Common Orange-tip, Plain Orange-tip, White Orange-tip, Yellow Pansy, Chocolate Pansy, Lemon Rose, Common Rose, Crimson Tiger, Blue Tiger, Plain Yellow, Common Grass Yellow, Three-spot Grass Wanderer, Common I am sure that if expert "butterers" had been with me, the list would have been far longer. and the photos I took are on my FB album at https://www.facebook.com/deemopahan/media_set?set=a.10153297795723878.1073742480.587058877&type=3

We made our way home, filled with happiness at the wonders the day had unfolded for us. The beauty of the Kaveri as she rushed in her glittering silver wavelets and sudden whirlpools was as captivating as any of the creatures she nourishes and sustains.