Celebrating my Big Year 2022

Celebrating my Big Year 2022 with all of you… 906 species of birds recorded in India in the year 2022.

 

Pictorial representation of my travel destinations (Map is only for representation)
Map source: Places Been

A small note and some stats followed by a few favourite pictures from the amazing year that was. This note is part of a series (six to twelve) that I hope to share with you all.

Birding is a celebration of Life for me. I’ve been a bird watcher since childhood. It began with my Mom often showing to me the common birds that came to our garden. The songs of the Indian Golden Oriole still reverberate from lore. I held my first camera very early too, with my dad capturing pictures and portraits of family members and picnics. His collection of more than a thousand pictures is magical.

I bought my first camera, a Canon S3IS in the year 2006 and moved into the digital age. Then in the year 2017 my better half suggested that I do the Ornithology course being offered by INHER, Pune. I followed it up with the Basic Course in Ornithology being offered by BNHS headed by Dr. Raju Kasambe which really got me going, especially excited to see and experience the work being done at BNHS. Also, in this period I got introduced to the formal world of birding, amazing birding buddies and also eBird. In the following years, I tried unsuccessfully to find avenues (still am) to work in the field of wildlife and conservation. On a personal & professional front things were a bit damp by now and then the COVID waves followed. By end of 2021, my mind was made up having decided to follow my passion and do a Big Year in 2022.

My Mission was set: Visit various regions and habitats of India, explore the wilderness of forests and grasslands, brace the sea, scan the skies and wetlands, walk where no one dares, climb, scale, tread every terrain, meet the wonderful people of the regions, gobble some amazing local cuisines, catch glimpses of the local life, but most importantly in doing so, see a 1000 birds in the year and capture as many through my two cameras, the Sony-RX10MIV and Canon-R5. I was neither sure nor prepared to be on the road for most of 2022. Positivity prevailed, and I was able to spend as many as 300+ days in the field away from my home turf in Pune, all the while ensuring that I birded every day of 2022, recording 1,336 eBird checklists and 906 species. There were health scares and other personal challenges but I/ we as a family managed to sail through 2022.

Collage1: Species name - Left to Right

R1: Chestnut-crowned Warbler (Darjeeling), Spotted Flycatcher (Pune), Fire-tailed Myzornis (Zuluk, Sikkim), Palani Laughingthrush (Munnar, Kerala);

R2: Velvet-fronted Nuthatch (Coonoor, TN), Sulphur-bellied Warbler (Pune), Blue-tailed Bee-eater (UP), Marbled Duck (Nal Sarovar, Gujarat);

R3: Dalmatian Pelican (Nal Sarovar), Eurasian Hobby (Sambar Lake, Rajasthan), Painted Bush-Quail (Mahabaleshwar), Bonelli's Eagle with Amur Falcon kill (Lonavala).

Some of my stats are as follows:

Collage 2: Species name - Left to Right

R1: Crab Plovers (Jamnagar), White Stork (Kutch), Sarus Crane (Nal Sarovar), Greater Painted Snipe (Pune);

R2: Black Francolin (Chhapar), Eurasian Griffon (Bikaner), Great Indian Bustard (Jaisalmer), Black-crowned Sparrow-Lark (Jaisalmer);

R3: Tibetan Snowcock (Ladakh), Peregrine Falcon (Kutch), Indian Roller (Kanha, MP), Koklass Pheasant meyeri subspecies (Walong, Arunachal Pradesh);

Collage 3: Species name - Left to Right

R1: Mangrove Pitta (Bhitarkanika NP, Odisha), Collared Owlet (Mishimi Hills, Arunachal Pradesh), Black Bittern (Bharatpur), Bar-tailed Treecreeper (Sattal, UK);

R2: Masked Booby (Off Mangalore Coast), Flame-throated Bulbul (Goa), Hume's Hawk Owl (South Andaman), Rufous-throated Wren-Babbler (Sikkim);

R3: Indian Thick-knee (Rajaji NP, UK), Slaty-headed Parakeets (UK), Olive-backed Sunbird (South Andaman), Wedge-tailed Green-Pigeon (Uttarakhand);

This is just the beginning. I hope that this inspires many to pursue birding and conservation. Conservation starts through conversation.

Besides family, I have many to thank. Two good friends helped a lot, Francis D'Souza & Tehzoon Karmalawala. 

There are many to thank here. All the wonderful local guides, the circuit drivers, tour operators, wonderful birding friends during these trips, the homestay people, safari operators, the forest staff and officials who are doing their best in their limited capacity. Thank you all.

My FB post will tag as many as possible.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/indianbirds/permalink/10159662754572411/?mibextid=Nif5oz

Collage 4: Species name - Left to Right

R1: Black-capped Kingfisher (Odisha), Yellow-throated Bulbul (Karnataka), Rufous-necked Hornbill (WB), Himalayan Monal (UK);

R2: Nilgiri Flycatcher (Coonoor), Streaked Weaver (Kutch), Andaman Coucal (South Andaman), Tawny Fish-Owl (Jim Corbett NP, UK);

R3: Grey Peacock-Pheasant (Dihing Patkai NP, Assam), Sri Lanka Frogmouth (Goa), Black-and-orange Flycatcher (Munnar, Kerala), Streak-throated Woodpecker (Jim Corbett NP, UK);