Goa 2016 (1 Viewer)

[Barred Wobbler]

Oh dear, not the best start to a holiday! Fingers crossed you pick up pretty soon.

I'll be interested to know how Baga fields is at the moment, and what effect the building of the new sewage works had. Arpora Pools has been tidal last few years - they never repaired the breached bund seperating them from the river. Therefore the pools are usually pretty full. The smaller mangrove surrounded pool to the west of the big pools is often more interesting than the main pool - Yellow Bittern, Slaty-breasted Rail etc last time I was there.

Looking forward to any further updates (health permitting..!)

Mark

Thanks Mark. I'm still feeling like death warmed up, but there are signs of improvement. By this time (11pm) last night I'd been asleep for three hours. They were building the sewage works at Baga fields when I was here last year and the fields seemed ok, but that being my first visit I had no way of knowing if it was good or bad.

I was out with Lloyd Fernandes on Saturday and Sunday and my being laid out has coincided with three days when he had other bookings. I'm out with him again on Thursday so I want to be fit by then. I had been planning to use these three days to storm Candolim, Baga and Arpora. They will have to wait a week if I don't get out tomorrow.

I'm here til 5th feb so all isn't lost.

 

[Stuart Ling]

Here's hoping you perk up soon, there's nothing worse than flu when you're on holiday.
If you're looking for waders locally it might be worth checking the damp paddies just south of Arpora village just after the narrow bridge on the road to Calangute. When I was last there, in Nov 14, there was a decent selection - nothing outstanding though. The large pond on the opposite side of the road, by the temple, can also be good if the water level is low enough. If you then take the right hand turn which takes you to the Baga Road there's a nice roadside ditch and paddy fields which often harbour some decent birds. I've seen Cinnamon Bittern, Painted Snipe and Pitta along there in the past couple of years.
All the best
Stuart

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Back to cloudless skies again today after the mainly overcast of yesterday and the afternoons of the two days preceding. I took it easy and walked out to the pool in front of Candolim church and then on down the nearby track leading beneath the river bridge. Three hours was plenty for this morning and the camera and lens didn't get any lighter as the morning went on.

Not a lot of activity at the pool, but not bad. A purple heron fished in the reeds and a couple of intermediate egrets were roosting in the palms. A dark western reef heron flew in and gave some nice photo ops. On the bund alongside the pool were a group of red-wattled lapwings and I flushed an interesting combination of kingfishers. A common kingfisher and a white throated kingfisher popped up simultaneously from either side of the concrete channel. They flew low along the channel almost wingtip to wingtip. A Rhapsody in kingfisher blue.

Another bird that flew across a small pool on the other side of the channel, landing partly obscured on the edge of some reeds caused me a good bit of puzzlement until it came out into the open and revealed itself as a juvenile bronze winged jacana. Not a bird I was expecting to see.

The small fields before the pool held a good head of birds, including a wire-tailed swallow feeding amongst barn and red rumped swallows. Others there were Indian roller, Siberian stonechat, rosy starling, jungle mynah, white throated kingfisher and of course green bee eater. I expected pipits but I never spotted any.

The tide was in at the river bridge and there wasn't a lot to be seen. Striated heron and jungle crow probably the most interesting birds.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

A white-eyed buzzard that was spotted at Verna Plateau a couple of days ago was still present, roosting in a tree this morning.

We also heard, but sadly did not see an Indian scimitar babbler in the scrub.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Baga Fields were quiet this morning, but we had a good bird for the area on the way out along the new sewage works track. A chunky grey-brown bird flew across the track just next to me and perched on a bush next to the track in the open for long enough to get an ID. Unfortunately it was a second too early moving down into the bush, so I couldn't get a pic. We watched it for a couple of minutes as it fed in deep cover in the bottom of the bush before it moved out of sight.

Wryneck.

This and a bluethroat a few yards further on made a quiet morning a bit more interesting.

 

[darren s]

Hello Alan & Maureen
Hope you had a good trip to Backwoods, good bird with Wryneck.
You must be feeling a lot better now, enjoyed my birding with you both and please send some images.
Please give my regards to Lloyd.
Take care
Darren.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Cheers Darren. We had our last trip with Lloyd yesterday when we did the Zuari river trip. The lack of greater crested terns was a disappointment, but we got all the kingfishers although in lower numbers than last year.

Backwoods was good. We got all three hornbills, the second pitta of the trip and a good bird for the camp in white-bellied blue flycatcher. Three swift ticks in one day with white rumped spine-tail and Indian swiftlet as we came up the road into backwoods for breakfast, followed by brown backed needle tail after breakfast at Tambdi Surla.

Arpora tomorrow.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Cinnamon bittern came scurrying out right into the open at the Beira Mar at about 18.20, just as the sun set. It soon moved back into cover, where it lurked under the fronds of the low palm on the right of the pool, still in view, but in deep shade. It got too dark to see it by about 19.00.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

We're just back in from a morning out at Baga fields and the Marinha Dourada area. As was the case a few days ago the fields themselves were disappointing, a few pin-tailed snipe, pipits, pied bushchats etc. On the track to the sewage works construction I stopped to look for bluethroat. A flutter on the ground at the other side of some scrubby growth caught my attention so I checked it out.

It wasn't the anticipated bluethroat.

I'd relocated my wryneck from the last time I was there. This time was different. Instead of vanishing into the scrub it flew up from where it was feeding on ants and landed on the wires. Then it dropped down onto a small bare tree and sat long enough for me to get past to the other side for the sunlight and grab a few photos. Nice one.

Taking the left path at the sewage works we stopped where there is a plastic table tucked under a tree and a bluethroat, different from the 1W we saw the other day, flew out of nowhere and landed less than 10m away. It stayed in the area for a while feeding, but mostly out of sight.

Wire-tailed swallows posed on the wires at Baga bridge as we crossed it. There was a darter on the pools opposite Marinha Dourada, but not much else.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Fort Aguada this morning for my final foray of the trip. Excellent birding.

Peacocks, Shikra, common woodshrike, Indian golden oriole, black hooded oriole, rufous treepie, lesser goldenback, coucal, green bee eater, white spotted fantail, jungle babbler, white cheeked barbet, coppersmith barbet, grey breasted prinia, common tailorbird, small minivet, magpie robin, Indian robin, baya weaver, little swift, ashy and black drongo, red vented, red whiskered and white browed bulbul, black eared, black and brahminy kites, purple, purple rumped and crimson backed sunbird, pale billed flowerpecker, orange headed thrush, brown breasted flycatcher, tickell's blue flycatcher, ashy prinia, plum headed parakeet, rose ringed parakeet, white throated kingfisher, green warbler, blyth's reed warbler, white rumped munia, and to cap it all off, just as I was heading back to the fort for a taxi a white-bellied sea eagle arrived, doing lazy turns at low level over the treetops.

Oh, and house crow and barn swallow.

Not a bad three hours.

 

[Barred Wobbler]

Well we got back home absolutely knackered at about 11.00 this morning after a three and a half hour drive from Manchester.

I've just had a couple of glasses of relaxant and I'm off for an early night, but before I go, here's one of the photos of the wryneck at Baga.

 

[Mark Newsome]

Now back in the UK after a great relaxing break in Goa, a slight shock to the system coming back to the cold and wind after a cloudless 35°c every day. Highlights over the last two weeks included:
Greater Flamingo - juv still around Morjim after being on the R.Zuari for a while
Painted Stork - 10+ at Taligao/Santa Cruz (with 20-30 reported there on occasion). Another reported at Siolim paddies.
Yellow Bittern - one at Shirgao
Cinammon Bittern - one regular at the back of the Beira Mar from 6pm onwards (but this area is generally poor with high vegetation and little water)
Masked Booby - adult feeding off Vagator eventually heading north
White-eyed Buzzard - seen at Pilerne Plateau and Assagao (but reported as fairly common this year with birds at numerous locations)
Bonelli's Eagle - three seen, including 2 near Backwoods (unusual, only ever seen one previously)
Ruddy-breasted Crake - 2-3 at Shirgao
Pallas's Gull - up to 40 at Morjim, with plenty with full black heads
River Tern - 2-3 at Siolim paddies
Nilgiri Woodpigeon - one at Arpora hill (unusual for near the coast)
Orange-breasted Green Pigeon - 4 at Shirgao (a long overdue lifer for me)
Indian Scop's Owl - up to 2 roosting next to the restaurant at the Marina Dourada (though not in same spot every day)
Indian Nightjar - one found roosting in daylight near the new sewage works in Baga fields
Wryneck - one by Ganjem bridge on Bondla approach road
Indian Pitta - two by Ganjem bridge on Bondla approach road
Thick-billed Warbler - one near Sat Pal arboretum (nr Molem)
Booted Warbler - 2 in Baga fields
Sykes's Warbler - seen at Morjim and Aguada
Indian Blue Robin - a very confiding female near the bridge at Tamdi Surla
Blue-throated Flycatcher - a male on Bondla approach road
Streaked Weaver - one at Shirgao (there has been more seen here, a nesting site)
Red Avadavat - 25+ at Shirgao
Forest Wagtail - common in Molem area (including up to 8 around Dudhsagar Spa Resort hotel), but one at Marinha Dourada was more unusual
Blyth's Pipit - 10+ seen at both Assagao fields and Pilerne plateau (but none seen in Baga fields where the grass was still very long, only 2-3 Richard's seen here)

Reported by others:
Himalayan Griffon Vulture - a juv photographed at Cacora (east of Margao) on 7th - a first for Goa. Photo on GBCN Facebook page.
Grey-headed Lapwing - one had been at Taligao for a couple of weeks before I got there
Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher - one by the hairpins on the Bondla approach road
White-naped Woodpecker - up to 3 around Assagao village (even in resident birder, David Stanton's back garden!)
Grey-bellied Cuckoo - one at Morjim
Hair-crested Drongo - 15+ seen in a flowering tree by Ganjem bridge on Bondla approach road (a high count, I only saw 2 near Tamdi Surla)
Bay-backed Shrike - the returning bird at Morjim hasn't stayed this winter but one was seemingly wintering on Pilerne plateau.

Generally, some birds were in much fewer numbers than previous visits (I never saw Small Pratincole this year!), but some are more obvious (eg lots of Black-shouldered Kites along the coastal strip); the usual fluctuations.
I had a pretty laid back time and never got to visit other good sites such as Carambolim Lake or Divar Island. A bit more dedicated birding time would have turned up plenty more good birds.
Good sources of info from the local birders/photographers include:
Ebird - http://ebird.org/ebird/subnational1/IN-GA?yr=all
Facebook groups for "Goa Bird Conservation Network" and "Birds of Goa"

Can't wait to go back!

Mark

 

[Mark Newsome]

A drake Falcated Duck was at Verna Lake yesterday. Not surprisingly, the first record for Goa and probably the most southerly record in the sub-continent. This is on the back of a Himalayan Vulture at Cacora on 7 Feb. Photos of both are on the GBCN Facebook page. The increasing number of active Goa birders is resulting in some amazing finds!

Mark

 

[Mark Newsome]

A Fulvous Whistling-duck was photographed and filmed at Batim Lake on 26 April by resident birder, David Stanton. There have been historical reports of this species, but some have been undoubtedly mis-identifications. This is perhaps the first record with firm evidence (that I know of); surprising for a fairly widespread bird in southern Asia, but maybe the Western Ghats form a barrier.

Mark

 

[MK90]

I've just booked a 10 day trip to Goa over New Year. Cant wait!

Does anybody have a good field-guide they'd recommend? I'm struggling to find one that looks decent.

Thanks.

 

[Kite]

I've just booked a 10 day trip to Goa over New Year. Cant wait!

Does anybody have a good field-guide they'd recommend? I'm struggling to find one that looks decent.

Thanks.

Hi MK90

The Helm guides are good options in my experience, either the Southern India one https://www.amazon.co.uk/Birds-Southern-India-Field-Guides/dp/0713651644

... or if you're planning more Subcontinent adventures (or would like to be tempted to do so!) you could go for the larger one https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1408127...rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=569136327&pf_rd_i=0713651644

I might be out there in December. Enjoy your trip!

 

[Brian Stretch]

Finally finished a report for the trip Andy Warr and I made to Goa back in January of this year: http://www.birders-store.co.uk/blog/birdwatching_goa_india.html

We enjoyed Goa so much we are heading back out there this coming January.

Brian
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Worcester Birding