Monday, April 13, 2015

India Wildlife

Out of all the wonders we saw in India, this has to be to exotic. Elephants is something you see in a zoo. You are not supposed to come across a family of them, just munching on leaves near the side of the road. But this was India, so here they were!

This mother had two more calves, but one stayed next to her almost the entire time:
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Two more elephants were a little ways off, across the river:
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This is one of the calves. We were able to come so close to it that with my lens, I just couldn't take a wider shot.
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This is another common inhabitant of the natural park. Do you have a banana?
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Well, if you don't have a banana, I am not talking to you...
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This is one of my most favorite birds in the world. Just the name of it: Hoopoe (or in Russian, "Udod"). On one hand, it is very common in all of Europe, Middle East, and Asia. On the other hand, there is no other bird like it!
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Eurasian Hoopoe

Can you see it? You can? Something must be wrong then. After all, it's a chameleon.
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This handsome hawk is a Brahminy Kite. We saw a number of them in the air all over the places we visited, sometimes in pairs. Like bald eagles, they are fish-eaters. But this one was good enough to pose for us, as we circled him on a boat:
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Native Americans call their version "snake bird". This Indian one is called simply Darter. It's a relative or cormorant, and it's so heavy that its entire body sinks in water when it swims. (BTW, the beak is so sharp for a reason - it catches fish not by trapping it between its jaws, but by spearing it. Don't believe me? Check out this post from Texas!)
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The Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo is the most graceful bird we captured on camera:
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Great Egret is a world traveler. There is a version (all belonging to the same species!) in every part of the world.
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Little Cormorant before dinner:
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Little Cormorant after dinner:
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Indian Pond Heron:
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Purple Heron:
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Oriental Magpie Robin:
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