Rare winter visitor

 Red-breasted Merganser female, pic courtesy Saurabh Sawant

Saurabh, Abhinav and I walked in a hurry in the hot afternoon sun. We were in Vasai, a suburb of Mumbai looking for a very unlikely feathered visitor. This bird is so rare that this is the official first record of its sighting in India. And we couldn’t wait to see her. The visitor we were so eagerly looking forward to was none other than the “Red-breasted Merganser”.

And what a place to see it!

Through the busy Vasai traffic we entered a quiet residential lane. The lane ended only to become a wide well laid out road. On either sides of the road, large faded bill boards advertised upcoming residential projects at bargain prices. The most ominous sign of all was a construction office, behind which excavators carried out half hearted work. The pace of the equipment was quite in contrast to the eager way the billboards claimed when the project  would be completed.

Lovely lily leaves carve a path in the channel

Even though it was mid-afternoon bird activity was still on. We saw a Shikra try to rouse some sleepy doves out of their afternoon stupor. Saurabh heard the unmistakable chweep of a Paddyfield Pipit as we crossed the scrubby grassland leading to the pools. The road carried on further inside, marking out large square marshy pools on either side. The initial pools had dried out and choked with grasses. In these we saw a big flock of Open-billed Storks, who took to wing as soon as we neared. No doubt the binoculars and cameras must have given them a scare even as locals in bright gaudy clothing walked past nonchalantly.

Painted Storks circled overhead as we searched for the Merganser

We continued birding as we searched for the Merganser. A number of Black-winged Stilts, Common Sandpipers, Terns, and Pond Herons were feeding in the shallow pool as Saurabh walked on ahead while Abhinav walked behind carrying a heavy camera and lens. That’s when I saw a dull coloured duck dabbling nonstop in the shallow pool. I called out to Saurabh to confirm if it was the Merganser and so it was.

The male Red-breasted Merganser has a deep rusty chest and hence the name, however the female is uniformly slaty grey, with a pale throat and chest merging with a darker neck. The slender scarlet orange beak is an easy way to distinguish it from other ducks and grebes.

The Merganser kept dabbling in the shallow pool with other birds for company

Though it’s a diving duck, these pools being too shallow for it, the Merganser seemed content just dabbling continuously. She was not very shy and kept on exploring the pool from one end to the other. We had a long and satisfying sighting before the evening approached and she suddenly disappeared after a short flight.

This sighting is at the same time heartening and dismaying. It’s an absolute joy to see such a vagrant in the middle of the city but it’s dismaying because one can see with their own eyes the unstoppable march of the city. Perhaps next year when the bird comes flying this way, instead of green marshy ponds, it may only see square grey buildings and nowhere to land.

And that is why it is imperative that birders continue birding and reporting common and uncommon sightings. We may not always stop the city in its tracks but we may surely try to slow down its march to claim everything in its path. Perhaps even now some hidden and overlooked pool somewhere holds rare feathered beauties waiting to be discovered.

Prey and Predator live side by side, seemingly in harmony

You can see the checklist of all the birds we sighted here: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S33159639

MBC Dombivali bird walk

Black-tailed Godwits - We saw quite a few of these feeding in the mud

Bird watching is an​ educative, healthy and ​fun way to spend time outdoors. It gives a sense of purpose while walking, hones your observational skills and gives a glimpse into nature. Mumbai Birdwatchers Club offers this and the bonhomie of other birders in its weekly bird trails in and around Mumbai. Last Sunday, 18th Dec, 30 birders armed with binoculars and cameras​ gathered at the crack of dawn at Kopar creek in Dombivali. The trail was led by local birders Kiran Kadam and Prathamesh Desai. Both of  whom have extensive experience in this area.

Birders doing what they love best

The area is close to a village and so large tracts are converted into a maidan where people play cricket and other games. Despite this, the area upto and including the creek has a variety of birds, both scrub land and water birds who due to this constant proximity to people are not as shy offering good sightings close.

Plain Prinia and Ashy Prinia were quite gregarious and gave ample photo opportunities

The Ashy Prinia can be easily differentiated from the Plain Prinia by its ash crown and nape

We started the trail in the scrubland where despite the noise and crowd, we saw​ an Oriental Skylark and a Paddyfield Pipit foraging near each other. Larks and Pipits are easily confused due to their similar plumage and colouration hence this was the perfect opportunity to see them side by side and ​

learn how to distinguish between the two. The lark has a slimmer body, longer tail and fine slender beak, whereas the pipi​t has​ a heavier body, very short tail and thicker beak. Also larks sport a crest on their head, unlike a pipit.

Peek-a-boo - An extremely well camouflaged Red-wattled Lapwing is nearly invisible in the grass. 

Painted storks kept circling overhead as we continued our walk near a marsh. Kiran set up a spotting scope to observe the waders feeding in the nutrient rich mud. We had a good look at Common Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Black-tailed Godwit, Little Ringed Plover, Temminck's Stint and Little Stint. Both Kiran and Prathamesh helped the new birders in identifying the different waders.  Apart from waders we also saw Yellow, White and Citrine Wagtails and a lone Purple Swamphen rooting through the mud for worms and crustaceans.

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Scaling new heights - Scaly-breasted Munia

In the grass along the rim of the marshy pool we saw many Scaly-breasted Munias, Common Silverbills, Plain and Ashy Prinias. We also had a glimpse of the normally shy and uncommon Yellow-eyed Babbler​.

​Shortly we observed ​Bluethroat and Long-tailed Shrike,​ two migratory birds and added these ​to our list at the marsh. It was unusual to see the Long-tailed Shrike looking for worms in the mud of the marsh​.

​While we were in the swampy scrub, the tide in the creek had ebbed we anticipated sighting more waders and other water birds.

All of us lined up at the jetty with binoculars and cameras, the muddy bank was barely a few feet away and so we had a good look at Black-tailed Godwits, Marsh Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper from close quarters. While standing at the jetty we also saw a bit of drama on the opposite bank where a pair of handsome Ospreys were being​ mobbed by a flock of crows. As the Ospreys disappeared in the mangroves, we turned our attention to the Meswak bush on the right. These salt tolerant trees are a favourite of Sylvia warblers and we could see a  pair of Lesser Whitethroats foraging in the branches.

Pond Heron looking for a tasty morsel

The trail ended at the jetty as Prathamesh urged the birders to keep visiting the area. Despite the extensive human activity, this area has allowed many uncommon sightings in the past. Frequent visits by birders will help keep a record of these sightings and preserve it’s excellent bird activity.

Fly me to the moon - We intermittently saw Northern Pintail and Indian Spot-billed Ducks fly across the creek

The Dombivali bird walk checklist can be accessed here - http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S33071750