The bird just sat there for almost twenty minutes. It was perched on the topmost branch of a neem tree by my balcony. I expected it to fly off any moment, and had no hopes of identifying it — I am no expert birder. But it showed no signs of leaving. I drew up a stool and sat comfortably. It was a good distance away and I could make out what appeared to be a faint tan colour, and the size was that of a myna’s. Other than that, I had no idea of what it was.
It swivelled its tiny head, turned on its feet and sat facing west, exposing its belly to the setting sun. It glowed orange. What could the beauty be? I quickly got a photo taken on my mobile phone. I squinted into the receding light — I could not make out any more colours or features. Finally, it fluttered away. And all I was left with was a terrible photo and a patchy memory of its features.
Common Tailorbird shot from a balcony | Photo Credit: Munish Palaniappan
I WhatsApp-ed the photo to a couple of birders. They quickly identified the little guy — it was a coppersmith barbet. One birder even told me that its call was a series of ‘tut-tut-tuts’. It was a lifer for me — in birding terms, the first time a person spots a particular bird.
Nothing like birding to get over COVID-19 blues. Chennai birders Munish Palaniappan, and K Gnanaskandan of Madras Naturalists Society, list birds such as myna, babbler, shikra, tailor bird, Asian koel, Rufous treepie, common tailorbird, golden oriole, white-throated kingfisher, black-rumped flameback woodpecker, white-browed wagtail, and red-vented bulbul among birds that can be seen from urban homes.
Rose-ringed parakeet shot from home | Photo Credit: Dharma Chandru
“I’ve been doing balcony birding from my home in Adambakkam and spotted the orange-headed brown thrush, large-billed leaf warbler, and brown-breasted flycatcher. I assume they are on passage migration — they are on their way back home to the Himalayas from Sri Lanka,” adds Gnanaskandan.
City-based Dharma Chandru, a sports and landscape photographer, has also been photographing birds from his balcony. He says that he is encouraging people to do so and stay indoors. “Photographing birds requires plenty of patience. You end up waiting for that one shot for hours,” he says. “And during the time, we tend to forget the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Do you have photos of birds you spotted from your home? Step into your balcony or terrace and tell us what birds you see. Share your lockdown birding story at metro@thehindu.co.in. and we will publish them on our website.