Jungle buddies hosted a special trail for shore birding at Arnala last Sunday. It turned out to be a fabulous bird walk with very good sightings of migratory birds.

We gathered at the meeting point at 7.30 AM sharp. The morning was a little cloudy and the bird activity had just started. The Long tailed shrikes, Prinia and Munias were flying for attention and suddenly there was excitement as one dull blue looking bird chased away the house crow. It was a European Roller! It may not winter in India but is one of India’s most charismatic passage migrants.

The walk from the Mamachi wadi was rewarding with sightings of many bird species around the grasslands and mangroves.

Spotted a few long tailed Shrikes, Spotted Doves, Cormorants, Egrets, White-throated Kingfisher, Green Bee-eater, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Black Drongo, Red-vented Bulbul, Prinias and Sunbirds..

After exploring Mamachi wadi area we headed towards coast to watch waders.

Our seasonal guests have landed, in millions, after marathon flights across continents. Birds from 29 countries fly to India every year at this time, an annual ritual signifying the beginning of migration. During the winters, the waders that frequent the coast include Plovers, Oystercatchers, Curlews, Whimbrels, Bar-tailed Godwits, Sanderlings, stints , gulls, terns and various kinds of Sandpipers.

After walking about 15 minutes we reached the shore . The coast line was full of waders and gulls. We observed Western Reef Heron, Broad-billed / Curlew Sandpiper, Sanderling, Black-bellied / Pacific Golden / Lesser Sand / Greater Sand / Kentish / Litle Ringed Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, Terek Sandpiper, Eurasian Curlew, Dunlin, Little Stint, Gull-billed / Caspian Tern.

By the end of trail we managed a bird list of 80 species.

The walk was a very enjoyable and satisfying experience where nothing went amiss.