Indian Peafowl (female) - Pavo cristatus

Monsoon is a lean time for bird photography. All the avian creatures seem to vanish God knows where. But luck favored me the other day when the torrential rains stopped for a welcome breather. Not that I do not enjoy monsoon, in fact rains here are an awesome sight fit for Gods....and for ordinary mortals like me! Besides, I also heard that Arabs love coming to coastal Karnataka just to watch the cascading rain drops. Not surprising at all ..with 4000 mm annual rainfall, coastal Karnataka is a nature lover's paradise. I do hope it stays that way and does not get polluted. You never know what will happen with the mining mafia and the builder mafia marauding this lovely part of the earth.

Anyways back to my focus. Looking out of the window is a common trait we all have, but more often than not we look more and see less. But here is what I saw out of my bedroom window the other day. A female peafowl, our own national bird perched on a tree. It is quite common to watch  peacocks foraging on the ground but rarely do we get to see them perched on a tree top.

Monsoon special!

You see butterflies all the time, ordinary ones and exotic ones. Frankly, and in my opinion all butterflies are exotic. But getting one of them in your camera frame is a different story altogether. I am amazed how people click these lovely little creatures that never stay still. Nevertheless I was lucky I could get one in my frame this monsoon. This one is called Yellow Orange Tip ,  or Ixias pyrene by scientific name. To be more precise this butterfly of the Family Pieridae is the wet-season form. Dry season ones look more colorful. Hope I will be lucky enough to catch one soon!!

Rice Field - From my archives

Monsoon is vigorous these days. Udupi district has logged in more than 1500mm of rain since 01 June 2010, though this is quite normal in this part of coastal Karnataka. Birds simply seem to have vanished from sight, so it is a lean season for birding. It just struck me that I liked one pic I had clicked  in October last year in Kodagu district during our visit to that wonderful place. Sunset was just about approaching and kissing the lush green rice field and the sight was awesome. By a random inspiration I took this photo by stopping my car somewhere on our way to Polibetta.

Bird of the week - White Browed Wagtail

White Browed Wagtail (Motacilla maderaspatensis) - Near National Defence Academy lake - Khadakvasala - Pune. Pic taken on 07 Feb 2010

Getting a new subject to capture in my camera is certainly celebration time! A couple of days ago I spotted this giant lizard in my neighborhood. Approximately 4 feet long, this creature is called Indian Monitor or Bengal Monitor. They say sighting of Indian Monitor is rare these days on account dwindling numbers. As a result the species is now declared protected under Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act. The IUCN has also considered the species endangered and listed it in Appendix I. So I can consider myself lucky to capture this awesome creature!

Many of you must be familiar with a folklore popular in Maharashtra. People believe that Shivaji's general Tanaji Malusare used Indian Monitor with ropes attached for climbing the walls of the Sinhagad fort during the famous Battle of Sinhagad. No wonder....just have a look at the powerful claws of this creature.


Olympus E-620 + SWD 50-200 + ec 20.

Welcome!....am still constructing this blog....thanks for your patience!!