K. Selvaganesh

English Teacher at the Cinchona Government High School, Valparai

Call of the barbet: One cannot miss the repetitive kutrook....kutrook...kutrook... in Valparai, during the monsoons. That is the nesting call of the White-cheeked Barbet. The green bird is endemic to South East Asia (seen only in the Indian Peninsula and Sri Lanka), and is spotted in the Western Ghats. It feeds on athipalam (fruits of the ficus tree), builds nest after carving out a hollow in the tree trunk with its thick beak. You can easily spot 20 or 30 of them. We watch birds during breaks at our school campus and while we wait for our bus at the bus stand.

Renuka Vijayaraghavan

Trekker and photographer

The rain birds: Studies reveal that the peak season for egg laying in most birds happens just before the monsoons. This could be due to availability of abundant food like insects,vegetation, and weather condition. Lore believes that the Pied Cuckoo is the rain bird that heralds the beginning of the monsoon. When the first Pied Cuckoo of the season is spotted, the rains cannot be far behind. Also known as the Jacobin cuckoo, the Pied crested cuckoo is a resident in Southern India, and is seen all year round. Baya weaver birds also announce the rains. The small bird weaves its nest made up of long strips of paddy leaves, rough grasses, and strips of palm fronds. A male bird is believed to make up to 500 trips to complete a nest! During the rainy season, the colour of male birds, head and neck turns to dark yellow.

Ravindran Kamatchi

Conservationist and Founder of Nature Society, Tiruppur. He also rescues injured birds

Wetland birds: Pelicans, painted storks, open-billed storks, grey herons, and egrets are spotted in good numbers during the monsoons. Spot-billed ducks, Little grebes and Common coots seen in their 100s are also a common sight. It is fascinating to watch 300 to 350 baby pelicans, hopping from one lake to another. Most of them are just two-month old and it is their first flight. It is during winter that the native birds undertake an inland migration to places like Kudankulam and Vedanthaangal. This frees up the space for migratory birds that arrive from Western Europe.

Recently in Kudankulam, 50 to 60 chicks of painted storks were orphaned because of the rains. The ‘bird man’ Palpaandi looked after and nurtured them. Now, they are all ready to fly off. Watching their maiden flight is always special. of the off spring. The congregation has distinct colours, not so bright like the adults...it’s a fascinating sight.

Aggal Sivalingam

He has recorded over 70 species of birds in Sim’s Park alone

Sholakili flutter: It sings beautifully, the Sholaikili of The Nilgiris, especially when it rains. Endemic to the Western Ghats, it is blue in colour, has red eyes and a rufous-coloured underbelly. It is also known as the Nilgiri shortwing, white-bellied shortwing, Nilgiri sholakili or Rufous-bellied shortwing. They are easily spotted at Doddabetta or Cairn Hills Shola. They prefer colder climes and prefer to be near a stream. they often hide under bushes and can be seen in pairs.

Prakash Ramakrishnan

Award-winning wildlife photographer

Frog march: For any wildlife photographer, monsoons are a great time to click amphibians, snakes, and of course resident birds. I have photographed uncommon amphibian species like the ornate toad, the blue-eyed bush frog and the newly discovered Boulengers tree frog at Coorg. I waited for four days to capture it. While I was lucky to spot the ornate toad in day time, for the other two I had to spend nights put waiting to see them. The great Indian Hornbill can be seen in its glory in the Anaimalai Forest Range, especially in the Valparai belt. Monsoons are a great time for macro photography of insects and moths. It is only in this season that you can see them flocking towards the light source.