Birding in Phawngpui Blue Mountain National Park (Mizoram), INDIA

Over the last decade our journey into the various forests looking for different species of birds has been exhilarating. Our bird count had touched 987 (in India) after our recent trip and typically had the desire to reach the 1000 mark by the end of 2023. Each time, when we set out to find different species, the words of my Spiritual Master echo in my mind. “We are born for desires...fulfill them...the day you are without desires...Its Moksha (Sanskrit: मोक्ष Mokṣa; liberation) - Paramji Alias His Holiness.

With another destination and some birds on our mind, we left early in the morning by road from Dosdewa Forest, towards Aizawl, Mizoram. Mizoram as a state not only shares its land borders with Tripura, Assam, Manipur, Bangladesh and the Chin State of Burma, but also is one of the Seven Sister States in North Eastern part of India.  

In about an hour, we reached the Kanhmun Border Checkpost in Mizoram, by 0630hrs. We stopped here to obtain the Inner Line Permit. We were the only ones at this hour to request for the permits, the officer was very helpful and promptly issued the permits. The houses around the post were typically very different when compared to the ones in Assam, especially around the border.  Soon we set out on the road, that had started to twine and the elevation increased with each turn.  The hills around are steep (avg. height 1000 meters) and separated by rivers which flow either to the north or south creating deep gorges between the hill ranges. Between the gorges, the clouds could be seen floating endlessly. A breathing taking view kept moving along with us and it seemed the air whispered, take a break, make some memories.

Clouds floating endlessly - Mizoram

The road had two lanes only, but as there was no traffic, we were covering the distance as expected. Along the highway, at regular intervals we would see some local shops selling fruits and vegetables, that was managed by the local tribal folks. We stopped at one such location. To our surprise, none of them spoke English here and obviously we did not speak their language, we could only ask for fruits using the sign language. The place was somewhere near Zawlnuam, Mamit. Digi ji glanced and up and saw a very large flock of Amur Falcon, they were in hundreds, flying quite high but all of them in one direction, later they started to circle over a hill. Our equipment was all packed and tucked away as we were not expecting any major birding en route, obviously we were taken by surprise. As the flock was large, we had enough time to set up the equipment and take some record images.

Amur Falcon - Flock (Image by Aseem Kothiala)

Amur Falcon - (Image by Aseem Kothiala)

After being on the road for almost eight hours, we entered Aizawl town, just around lunch hours. The traffic was so civilised here. This is where we met our host cum naturalist for the region, Mr. Joe Thanga. His hospitality began from this very moment, first he drove us to a fine restaurant and later towards Sialsuk, which was another two and half hour drive from Aijwal. Prior to our destination, we transited  along the village of Muallungthuthe, which is famous as the Tropic of Cancer passes through its zone.

Tropic of Cancer

We reached the sunset point, just a few minutes prior to sundown. We witnessed  a serene view from the hillock. Far at the horizon as the sun was setting off the day, the entire mountain range turned into shades of orange and red. Finally as the sun set, we headed towards the Sialsuk village. 

On the dinner table we started to discuss and plan our itinerary, which had to be altered in a big way. Primary, we were to stay here in Sialsuk for two days and then drive into The Blue Mountain (Phawngpui) National Park, which is located in southeastern part of the state. Due to the rains this season the uphill road had turned into a downhill stream, after drying it had become very uneven and not worthy of even a bumpy drive. We were given to understand that instead of an hour’s drive, we will have to trek 5-6 hours to reach the park. Due to which we will need more time to reach and get down to the base. Joe also ensured that most target birds can be seen even at the Phawngpui National Park, commonly called as Far Pak by the locals.

The next day morning, we went around birding in the hills of Sialsuk. The Red-whiskered Bulbul were seen in large number, as we entered the trail, could hear the Spot-breasted Laughingthrush, who typically, would appear very briefly and disappear. From the thick canopy, we sighted a Black Eagle, who flew very close to us and finally, sat on a branch very high from where we were. A large mixed hunting party appeared and the forest was filled with their chirps, we could identify a few as the Grey-hooded Warbler, along with some other warblers that we could not identify due to low light. However we sighted a couple of Scarlet Minivet. White-throated Bulbul, and a few other birds were seen too. (Refer to eBird Check list). As we waited for the hunting party to come closer, sighted a small flock of Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush going down hill, they managed to stay low and disappear into the thickets.

A couple of hours later, we decided to walk back towards the Mizo village. As we interacted with the residents here, discovered that most of them spoke English, unlike the tribals we had met when we entered the state. The area was covered with wild bamboo forests, many of which are largely unexploited. As we gazed into the open skies, sighted a small flock of Striated Swallow. We returned back to the camp, only to pack again and head out towards Sangau, which was a much larger village, situated in the Lawngtlai district.

Sangau, is close to India–Myanmar border and was chosen as our base camp by Joe Thanga. We had to drive almost nine hours plus to reach this place. Inspite the distance being a little less than 175 kilometers from Sialsuk, took us this long, due the major repairs that was being carried out. There were times when we could just see the brown dust that was rising due to movement of trucks carrying construction material, making us feel we were driving into an open desert. We crossed  the Kolodyne river that flows along the eastern side of the Park and also forms the international border with Myanmar. We stopped briefly along the road near Darzo to enjoy the sunset and finally reached our destination for the day by half past six in the evening.

Sunset near Darzo - Mizoram

The next morning, we packed just our very basic personal items, equipment and the supplies that would be needing over the next four nights and five days. Most important for us was to carry enough batteries for our equipment, as there would be no electricity at the Forest Rest House, Far Pak. We as decided were to trek towards the highest peak in Mizoram called the Phawngpui Peak (2,157 m), in the Blue Mountain. 

The trek began from the village at the base. The path was surely not worthy of drive, even by a four wheel drive (4x4) vehicle. As we kept climbing could see a large flock of Striated Swallow, perched on a wire, that was over the bed of clouds.

On the way towards Far Pak - Mizoram

The average annual rainfall here is around 350 centimeters, while the winters here are normally rain-free. We could see a lot of activity of birds within the sub-tropical broadleaf and tropical evergreen forest. We did see the Eyebrowed Thrush sitting high on the branch, that dived down and disappeared in no time. A little later we saw a Rufous-bellied Niltava, which did confuse us for a while as during this time of the year,  the Vivid Niltava is also seen. As we kept walking ahead we sighted the Scaly Thrush, though the sun was shining bright, we could hardly feel any heat due to the high and thick canopies that kept us in shade. The Green-tailed Sunbird was very active with its morning activities. Mrs Gould's Sunbird made a brief entry and flew away. At a distance a bird had perched itself, only later identified it as the Slaty-backed Flycatcher.

Slaty-backed Flycatcher - Image by Aseem Kothiala

We reached and waited at the starting point of the Phawngpui National Park, where Joe had arranged for a packed meals for us. We soon began the trek again and as we were reaching saw some amazing cliffs and patches of natural grasslands on the tableland also called as Far Pak.

Tableland, Far Pak, Mizoram

We offloaded all our bags at the Forest Rest House, Far Pak, which had proper three bedrooms (with attached washroom) a large living and dining area, the kitchen was outside.

Forest Rest House, Far Pak, Mizoram

The weather was great, so we quickly assembled our equipment and started to explore the area. We could see a semi-circular series of cliffs on the western side called Thlazuang Kham, which has a sharp edge and a deep gorge. We sighted a Black Eagle that was flying around from one cliff to another. 

Black Eagle - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Joe, suggested we relax after today's long trek and instead watch the sunset from this point. It was one of the finest we had ever seen. The saturation and hues in the sky were unmatched. The breeze was cool and the entire ambience was mesmerising.

Sunset at Phawngpui National Park - Mizoram

Our targets here was to see the endemic Chin Hills Wren-babbler, and a bird that had remained elusive for about 25 years, but was now being sighted since a couple of years, the Mount Victoria Babax. There are two options one has here, rather three options. One is to look for the birds on the tableland adjacent to the Forest Rest House, second take the forest trail that leads to the peak and third obviously the trail that leads one back to the base camp.

This morning we decided to take the trail that leads us back to the base camp, we could hear and see the Chin Hills Wren-babbler, three to four times, but wasn’t providing us the opportunity to make an image. From the edge where we stood, saw a large flock of House Swift and Asian House-martin fly around in an acrobatic flight pattern.

Near the Forest Rest House, we sighted the   Hume’s Treecreeper who would fly on to the bottom of the tree and quickly move up in a pattern that is not very predictable. 

Hume's Treecreeper - Image by Aseem Kothiala

By late morning we also sighted the Rufous-crowned Prinia another lifer for us. Grey Bushchat and the Little bunting was seen on good numbers here apart from Warblers, off which the Brown Bush Warbler was a lifer for us. We did sight the Assam Laughingthrush who were not as bold as the Striped Laughingthrush.

Rufous-crowned Prinia - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Buff-throated Warbler - Image by Aseem Kothiala

That evening we split in two groups, one explored the edge of the cliff and the other kept watching birds that were coming on to the chir-pine trees at Far Pak grasslands.We did trek towards the edge of another cliff far away, we could see a small flock of Flavescent Bulbul's here that would perch on a tree and fly off into the gorge.

Flavescent Bulbul - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Moments later, we were asked to reach the other cliff,  as they could hear the loud calls of the Mount Victoria Babax. The bird could be seen only at a particular angle along the edge. The bird had placed itself between two branches and well camouflaged. Took me a while to find the bird through my lens. Though it was at a distance, we were happy to get this lifer. 

Being a full moon day, even after the sunset, the natural ambient light enchanced the beauty of the forest, the cool wind, soft moon light and no network, one of the best combination we had been longing for a while. 

Full Moon - Mizoram

Today we took the trail towards the peak, walking through forests and negotiating the tunnels made of overgrown bamboo and high grass. By the end of the day we had sighted a few more lifers, the Crested Finchbill, Stripe-breasted Woodpecker to name a few (Refer to our eBird Checklist).

Crested Finchbill - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Stripe-breasted Woodpecker - Image by Aseem Kothiala

A lone Himalayan Griffons was seen soaring in the cloudy sky. By now we were getting accustomed to the tabletop and its surroundings. Marvelyn and Digi ji had identified a nice spot, the previous evening to photography the skulker - Chin Hill Wren-babbler. We came here in the morning and could see three different individuals. After making a couple of image, I decided to leave them and walk back towards the tabletop again.

Chin Hill Wren-babbler - Image by Aseem Kothiala

The day was even more special as we sighted three individuals of the Mount Victoria Babax, that gave us a nice sighting. We spent a lot of time watching them, as they moved from one tree to another. later like every other evening we returned to the cliff to watch the sun set.

Mount Victoria Babax - Image by Aseem Kothiala

The last Sunset - Phawngpui Blue Mountain National Park (Mizoram)

Being our last morning here at the camp here, we spent some time around the Forest Rest House and saw a lot of commoners which included the Whiskered Yuhia, Rufous-backed Sibia, Streak-breasted Scimitar-Babbler to name a few (Refer to our eBird Checklist). We then trekked back to the camp in Sangau to retire for the night, that took us around three to four hours. 

Finally, the next day morning, we headed back towards Aizwal, this time it took us almost twelve hours to reach Lengpui, a town near the airport. This time we came across many road side shops, the price tag was mentioned on the packet, it was unmanned, on can simply pick the items and leave the cash in money boxes, that were not even locked. An exemplary way to exhibit honesty and culture. 

It would be unfair not to mention Cabin Hotel in Hnahthial, where we had our meals onward and on the way back to Aizwal. The next morning we squeezed in a couple of hours for birding, prior to boarding the flight to Mumbai, India.

Bird watching in the Blue Mountains of Mizoram was truly an enchanting experience for us. The lush greenery and diverse ecosystem of the region provided a perfect habitat for a wide variety of bird species. From colorful songbirds to majestic raptors, the Blue Mountains did offer a rich tapestry of avian life waiting to be discovered. 

By the end of this trip, we had bagged 15 more lifers, taking the bird count in India above the 1000 mark!

Thanking my birding pals Seema Kothiala, Marveyln Diaz, Satish Thayapurath and Digvijay Singh Rathore. We missed our good friends Peter Lobo and Dr Ian D’souza, who were to be a part of this trip as well, but could not make it. Last but not the least we thank Mr. Joe Thanga, whose hospitality was top notch. Even in a place this far and remote, provided us with excellent facilities, clean rooms and good food. His team mates, Isak, Kiddy, Chhanuka were outstanding in their own very way.

Joe Thanga, Kiddy, Satish T, Isak, Marvelyn D, Digvijay R, Seema K, Chhanuka & Myself

 A short video on the habitat and birds, Thank you in advance for your time and comments.

 

Happy Birding!

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    CAPRIMULGIFORMES: Apodidae   
1    Asian Palm Swift    Cypsiurus balasiensis
2    House Swift    Apus nipalensis
       
    CUCULIFORMES: Cuculidae   
3    Green-billed Malkoha    Phaenicophaeus tristis
       
    ACCIPITRIFORMES: Accipitridae   
4    Himalayan Griffon    Gyps himalayensis
5    Black Eagle    Ictinaetus malaiensis
       
    PICIFORMES: Picidae   
6    Stripe-breasted Woodpecker    Dendrocopos atratus
7    Crimson-naped Woodpecker    Dryobates cathpharius
       
    PICIFORMES: Ramphastidae   
8    Great Barbet    Psilopogon virens
9    Blue-throated Barbet    Psilopogon asiaticus
       
    PSITTACIFORMES: Psittaculidae   
10    Vernal Hanging Parrot    Loriculus vernalis
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Campephagidae   
11    Scarlet Minivet    Pericrocotus flammeus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Vireonidae   
12    Himalayan Shrike-babbler    Pteruthius ripleyi
13    White-browed Shrike-Babbler    Pteruthius aeralatus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Dicruridae   
14    Ashy Drongo    Dicrurus leucophaeus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Monarchidae   
15    Black-naped Monarch    Hypothymis azurea
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Dicaeidae   
16    Plain Flowerpecker    Dicaeum concolor
17    Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker    Dicaeum cruentatum
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Nectariniidae   
18    Little Spiderhunter    Arachnothera longirostra
19    Fire-tailed Sunbird    Aethopyga ignicauda
20    Green-tailed Sunbird    Aethopyga nipalensis
21    Mrs. Gould's Sunbird    Aethopyga gouldiae
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Irenidae   
22    Orange-bellied Leafbird    Chloropsis hardwickii
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Motacillidae   
23    Olive-backed Pipit    Anthus hodgsoni
24    White Wagtail    Motacilla alba
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Emberizidae   
25    Little Bunting    Schoeniclus pusillus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Stenostiridae   
26    Yellow-bellied Fairy-fantail    Chelidorhynx hypoxanthus
27    Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher    Culicicapa ceylonensis
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Paridae   
28    Green-backed Tit    Parus monticolus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Cisticolidae   
29    Rufous-crowned Prinia    Prinia khasiana
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Locustellidae   
30    Brown Bush Warbler    Locustella luteoventris
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Hirundinidae   
30    Asian House Martin    Delichon dasypus
31    Striated Swallow    Cecropis striolata
32    Wire-tailed Swallow    Hirundo smithii
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Pycnonotidae   
33    White-throated Bulbul    Alophoixus flaveolus
34    Ashy Bulbul    Hemixos flavala
35    Mountain Bulbul    Ixos mcclellandii
36    Black Bulbul    Hypsipetes leucocephalus
37    Crested Finchbill    Spizixos canifrons
38    Striated Bulbul    Pycnonotus striatus
39    Black-crested Bulbul    Pycnonotus melanicterus
40    Red-whiskered Bulbul    Pycnonotus jocosus
41    Red-vented Bulbul    Pycnonotus cafer
42    Flavescent Bulbul    Pycnonotus flavescens
43    Large Niltava    Niltava grandis
44    Small Niltava    Niltava macgrigoriae
45    Oriental Magpie Robin    Copsychus saularis
46    Rufous-bellied Niltava    Niltava sundara
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Phylloscopidae   
47    Buff-barred Warbler    Abrornis pulcher
48    Buff-throated Warbler    Phylloscopus subaffinis
49    Grey-hooded Warbler    Seicercus xanthoschistos
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Aegithalidae   
50    Black-throated Tit    Aegithalos concinnus
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Zosteropidae   
51    Stripe-throated Yuhina    Yuhina gularis
52    Whiskered Yuhina    Yuhina flavicollis
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Timaliidae   
53    Chin Hills Wren Babbler    Spelaeornis oatesi
54    Streak-breasted Scimitar Babbler    Pomatorhinus ruficollis
       
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Leiothrichidae   
55    Spot-breasted Laughing-thrush    Garrulax merulinus
56    Assam Laughingthrush    Trochalopteron chrysopterum
57    Lesser Necklaced Laughing-thrush    Garrulax monileger
58    Greater Necklaced Laughing-thrush    Garrulax pectoralis
59    Mount Victoria Babax    Pterorhinus woodi
60    Striped Laughing-thrush    Trochalopteron virgatum
61    Grey Sibia    Heterophasia gracilis
62    Rufous-backed Sibia    Leioptila annectens
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Certhiidae   
63    Hume's Treecreeper    Certhia manipurensis
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Sittidae   
64    White-tailed Nuthatch    Sitta himalayensis
65    Velvet-fronted Nuthatch    Sitta frontalis
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Muscicapidae   
66    Hill Blue Flycatcher    Cyornis banyumas
67    Rufous-bellied Niltava    Niltava sundara
68    Verditer Flycatcher    Eumyias thalassinus
69    Slaty-backed Flycatcher    Ficedula sordida
70    Blue Rock Thrush    Monticola solitarius
71    Grey Bushchat    Saxicola ferreus
72    Little Pied Flycatcher    Ficedula westermanni
73    Chestnut-bellied Rock Thrush    Monticola rufiventris
       
    PASSERIFORMES: Turdidae   
74    Scaly Thrush    Zoothera dauma
75    Eyebrowed Thrush    Turdus obscurus
       

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Birding in Dosdewa Forest (near Badsaitila Reserve Forest), Karimganj, South Assam

The Barak Valley is the southernmost region and a administrative division of the India’s north-eastern state of Assam. It is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam namely - Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. Among these three districts, Cachar and Hailakandi belonged to the erstwhile Cachar district in British-India, whereas Karimganj belonged to the Sylhet district. Sylhet was gifted to East Pakistan with Karimganj being divided and handed over to Assam, reason then stated was to let India have a proper connectivity with Tripura. 

These region splits may restrict and control the movement of humans, but the wildlife, especially the birds surely migrates and move around without any restriction. We were aware that over half a dozen birds that are otherwise difficult to sight are seen here. As we had a personal commitment to keep and were visiting Silchar, South Assam anyways during the last week of November 2023, planned to extend our stay and travel to Dosdewa forest in Karimganj.  We landed at Kumbhirgram airport Silchar, that offers a convenient gateway for travellers who plan to travel between Shillong, Mizoram or for that matter Tripura. 

Post our commitment, we travelled by road from Silchar to Dosdewa Forest. After negotiating the typical small town traffic, reached a location close to Dosdewa Catholic Church, our landmark on google maps after about four and half hours. It had rained the previous day, so Rejoice Gassah along with his team was waiting for us a little way from the camp. Using our torches we walked towards the camp, though It was just just about 5PM, was almost pitch dark. Like any other place in North-East, the sun sets much earlier compared to the time zone the region follows (IST)

Dosdewa Forest Trails

This was the first time we were meeting our host and naturalist Rejoice Gassah. We had spoken and chatted a couple of times before coming here and honestly had anticipated him to be an elderly person. To my surprise, he was not only young but also a very soft spoken individual. He mentioned that he belonged to the Khasi tribe and they had been living around these foothills of Khasi Hills for many years now. Apart from being a nature lover, he also worked at the Department of Biodiversity Documentation at Makunda Christian Leprosy and General Hospital. It was from here, his interest matured in wildlife and its conservation. The discussion further got interesting, when we he explained that for almost 5-6 years he had been exploring the forest after working closely with the renowned Dr. Vijay Anand Ismavel, who not only managed Mukunda General Hospital but also had a keen interest in biodiversity documentation and had successfully published about 14 articles. 

Rejoice Gassah

“This is a beautiful evergreen forest with lots of biodiversity” he said. Khasi tribals have been living here for many years with their own tradition of farming and hunting skills. But in the past few years, the young generation of this area has realised that some special and unique birds visit here which are rarely seen and photographed so far. So instead of hunting they can make a better living through bird tourism. This insight and experience led him to make strategy bird hides, almost five of them now (as on Nov 2023), where rare birds whose glimpses are otherwise difficult can be spotted and photographed.

The itinerary he shared was simple, the first session in the morning would be bird watching in and around the forest and the second session post lunch would be going to and sitting in the hides and waiting for birds to come. He confidently said, that though “we do not feed the birds, the birds come to take bath in small water puddles (Late afternoon until sunset) before they plan to end their day and roost in the forest”. “Different hides for different birds” he concluded. 

The next morning as we were getting ready to set out, could see the beauty of the camp, that was built on a small Hill lock using very basic wooden material and which was later plastered with mud. Even though the accommodation was basic, was neat and clean and had an attached washroom (western type) for each set of room. 

Dr Ian D'souza, Satish Thayapurath, Seema Kothiala, Marvelyn Dias and Myself (L-R)

The previous evening all we knew that we were on the outskirts of a forest. We walked along a forest patch and crossed some fields to reach a village. Prior to reaching the village, also crossed a small pond where we saw a Common Kingfisher waiting on a stump that must have been placed for fencing or some other reason. Apart from domesticated Goose and Ducks, sighted a small flock of Little Egret and Cattle Egret. 

Being Sunday, the village was bustling with the kids running around and playing. We were asked to wait in the veranda, that overlooked a fruiting tree. 

With the villagers - as we waited for the bird to arrive

A flock of common myna were feeding and creating a ruckus. They were spoiled for choices and were moving around between the branches. On Intermediate intervals the Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Ruby-Cheeked Sunbird and Yellow-browed warbler would appear and move onwards. (Refer to eBird Checklist)

Ruby-cheeked Sunbird - Image by Aseem Kothiala

A large variety of butterflies kept my fellow birders busy as we waited for the Golden-crested Myna to arrive. To my surprise, Seema also started to take a keen interest in watching and photographing butterflies. Well, she has been with us on many birding trips earlier as well and can definitely identify some species now. 

Butterfly - Image by Seema Kothiala

To our luck a small flock of Golden-crested Myna came and perched on a tree behind the fruiting tree. The distance and the misty weather was not favourable to get the desired image. Hence, had to wait until they came to the nearby fruiting tree. To our delight one obliged and just after feeding on a fruit, moved down in to the clutter of branches and we lost sight of it, probably had flown away. In anticipation of their return kept waiting there without success. 

Golden Crested Myna - Image by Aseem Kothiala

After returning to the camp, we sat on the extended area opposite the rooms, this is where we would spend our evenings, early mornings and also have our meals. Afternoon we walked to the first hide. Before leaving we were asked to wear crocs, as to reach the hide, we had to wade through almost a kilometre and half in ankle deep water. This was the route we took over the next three days as well, every afternoon. The villagers use the same route to go into the forest to collect Betel leaf and Betel nuts, which is one of the their lively hood activity. 

After reaching the hide, we split in two groups, as the hide can accommodate only three, maximum four individuals. We were to start our session in the so called “Cachar Hide”. On settling in the hide, we set up our camera on tripod. The light here was low and to get still images, had to keep the ISO high. Soon the show began, the birds started to come one by one. They were swift, a sip, a dip, flutter flutter and they would get back into the forest. The Cachar Bulbul seemed to be the boldest here and would come often. Watching through the one of the opening was a task on its own, as the lens was occupying the other opening. Seema also tried her skills and managed to get some frames. 

Cachar Bulbul - Image by Seema Kothiala

A lone Black-headed Bulbul did visit, maybe due to our shutter sound was alarmed and flew away in a jiffy, glad it obliged with a few frames. The Black-crested paid us even a more shorter visit.

Black-headed Bulbul - Image by Aseem Kothiala

As we were busy watching and clicking the Puff-throated Babbler who had come in a flock, noticed a small tiny bird that had a long conspicuous supercilium, knew it was different, Johnson who was with us whispered “Asian Stubtail”. It was the first sighting of the season, he said. By about 4.30PM we left the hide, for the primary reason, low light. It will be dark soon, so we waded back to the camp. 

Asian Stubtail - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Pale Blue Flycatcher - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Grey-throated Babbler - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Hill Blue Flycatcher - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Lesser Shortwing - Image by Aseem Kothiala

After returning to the camp, we went through our images and updated our sighting, we had sighted almost fifteen species today of which five were lifers. (Refer eBird Checklist)

Today we took another route, after descending from the camp on to the ground, took the left path and after crossing the church walked along the path. Here we did find some vehicular traffic, only to realise latter that some rigging was being done for exploring the possibilities to finding oil. Well, we detoured into the forest, tall trees and spider webs welcomed us. The dew on the spiderwebs was still very fresh. The wind was just right, it was close to winters, but we were still wearing a half sleeve shirt, coupled with a UV protective arm sleeve. Birding is on both sides of the pathway. We saw a Black-headed Oriole and a Black-crested Bulbul feeding along with Black-winged Cuckooshirke and a Golden-fronted Leafbird, all at the distance, where identifying is easier than photographing. 

Our target for the day was the Van Hasselt's Sunbird, a sunbird that is only found here in India, a region of lowland forest in the southern most part of Assam. We were looking for flowering trees, as this bird usually feeds on nectar and sometime on other smaller insects. We heard its call from far and saw it fly past us. We kept walking further and sighted a pair, the male obviously was an attractive medium-sized and very beautiful. The black with an iridescent pink-red throat, a red belly, and a glistening blue-green crown stands out. With this sighting, we had completed seeing and photographing all the fifteen species in the Nectariniidae family that are found in India, which includes two varieties of Spiderhunter and thirteen variety of Sunbirds.

Van Hasselt's Sunbird - Image by Aseem Kothiala

This afternoon, again we all waded through the trail, but today we walked even further. The bed of the trail is soft mud, many villagers we crossed were walking barefoot. Our hide for the afternoon was different and called “Siberian Blue Robin Hide”. As the name suggests, we were going to see a very rare bird for the region. In fact Rejoice was the first to observe this species here in Dosdewa. This species had been recorded in several locations in India but not from northeastern region of India. Today we all were together as the hide was slightly bigger and could accommodate four of us. The sitting here was a little awkward for me, had to either squat or sit with my legs folded. The light here and today was even lower, as the forest was denser and hardly any sunlight could pass directly. Personally, I like to keep the ISO as low as possible, but today I had to pump it up to as high as possible as it was not possible to otherwise get good still images. The Snowy-browed Flycatcher was the most common and frequent visitor here as well. 

The Siberian Blue Robin did come and was too close to us, the lens would not focus, had to literally lift the camera with the tripod and angle it in a way to get the bird away from me and in focus. Seeing the rarity itself was a joyous moment. 

Siberian Blue Robin - Image by Aseem Kothiala

The Asian Stubtail did show up here as well today, it came a couple of times. Not sure of they were different or the same specie, nevertheless enjoyed watching the fidgety bird. Today we decided to leave even earlier as the light was really getting low and distance we had to cover was also more. 

We had just crossed a few meters away from the hide, our camera and tripod was on our shoulder. The path was through the forest was zig-zag and base was a little slippery, do the to the clay. We had to send a few steps and climb up a couple of steps, I was the last in the row, Dr Ian was ahead of me, in a snap, saw him trip and fall, he yelled in pain and whispered “I have fractured my leg”. For a moment we did not know how to react. Dr Ian lay still with his ankle exposed, we could see it had swollen, the pain surely was unbearable for him. We lifted him up and tried giving him support and asked him to use our shoulders as crutches and hop, but in vain. Rejoice, suggested that he will stay back with Dr Ian and we head back to the camp. Obviously, within the forest there is no network, so the only way to communicate was to reach the camp and get help from the village. We started walking back quickly, did have a fall, but not a serious one. 

The help from the village rushed with two long bamboo and a basket in which they were to carry Dr Ian. They use the same method when any villager falls from a tree during his activity of collecting betel leaf and nuts. After about two hours, they managed to bring him to the ground, near the camp. In the car we rushed him to nearest hospital (20 kms away), the Mukunda General Hospital. The entire staff was known to Rejoice, which made it easy for us to get his treatment done. He was provided a plaster cast and was suggested to get operated. Must say, he is a strong man and decided to fly back alone to Mumbai the next day. He did not want any one of us to accompany him. 

The next morning, he left for the airport, on his crutches. We were going to miss him on the balance part of the trip. That morning we went for birding on the same route, to see the Golden-crested Myna again. Today being a working day, the children were not there, it was quiet. The butterflies were there, but we all were missing Dr Ian. We did see the Myna but it was even further away today. We returned to the camp early and were in touch with our friend, who kept us posted on his journey. That afternoon we sat in another hide, where inspite the activity being the lowest, sighted the White-tailed Robin apart from the commoners of the region.

White-tailed Robin - Image by Aseem Kothiala

We had seen most of the forest species found in this season around the forest, so requested Rejoice to take us to the location where we could possibly see the Phayre’s leaf monkey. Though it was not a part of our itinerary, he obliged. After driving for almost an hour, we reached a tea garden estate. The birding here was good and we heard and sighted the Buff-breasted Babbler, there were two of them, who kept calling from the canopy apart from the  Dark-necked Tailorbird, Rufescent Prinia and some commoners of the region (Refer eBird Checklist). 

Dark-necked Tailorbird - Image by Aseem Kothiala

We decided to get into the forest through a narrow pathway that later travelled through the edge of a small hill. After about an hour or so, Rejoice heard some calls and climbed a small hillock, on his return he confirmed a group of Phayre’s Leaf monkey was being seen, but they were descending and moving fast, we quickly reached and our movement only aggravated their speed, they started to move even faster. There was the alpha male who was keeping a watch on us, while all the other kept jumping and crossing. A young one stopped and maybe gave us this stare to warn us. They had this lovely white patches around its eyes that stood out, the reason why they are also called as “Spectacled Monkey”. Mostly dwelling in the trees, their geographic distribution in India is limited (seen in the northeastern states of Tripura, Mizoram, and Assam)

Spectacled Monkey - Image by Aseem Kothiala

Today was our last afternoon here and we were to visit the hide named “Tesia”. This hide was just opposite the Cachar hide, the highlight today was the sighting of the White-tailed Robin and the obvious Grey-bellied Tesia apart from the Snowy-browed Flycatcher and the Puff-throated Babbler. The Siberian Blue Robin also had come for a quick dip. 

Grey-bellied Tesia - Image by Aseem Kothiala

That afternoon, Digvijay Singh Rathore, had flown in just to catch a glimpse of the Asian Stubtail. A bird that was important to him as he was doing a “Big Year”. We met him enroute on the trail and returned to the camp. That evening we had a good oppurtunity listening to the adventurous stories of this birder, who had been watching birds across the country and already crossed the 1100 mark!

Rejoice and his team with our group

We packed early today and bid goodbye to the entire team here Myself, Rejoice Gassah, Digvijaysingh Rathore, Jerome, Marvelyn Diaz, Seema Kothiala, Satish Thayapurath, Mayulut and Johnson (L-R)

We saw 61 species, of which eight were lifers for us. Refer our checklist: https://ebird.org/tripreport/175669

A short video of the region and birds is uploaded on the YouTube channel, thank you for reading, should you wish to leave a comment, do mention your name as well. 

Happy Birding!

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	COLUMBIFORMES: Columbidae
1	Spotted Dove	Spilopelia chinensis
	CAPRIMULGIFORMES: Apodidae
2	Asian Palm Swift	Cypsiurus balasiensis
	CHARADRIIFORMES: Jacanidae
3	Bronze-winged Jacana	Metopidius indicus
	SULIFORMES: Phalacrocoracidae
4	Little Cormorant	Microcarbo niger
	PELECANIFORMES: Ardeidae
5	Indian Pond-Heron	Ardeola grayii
6	Eastern Cattle Egret	Bubulcus coromandus
	ACCIPITRIFORMES: Accipitridae
7	Crested Serpent-Eagle	Spilornis Cheela
8	Shikra	Accipiter badius
	CORACIIFORMES: Alcedinidae
9	Common Kingfisher	Alcedo atthis
	CORACIIFORMES: Coraciidae
10	Indochinese Roller	Coracias affinis
	PICIFORMES: Megalaimidae
11	Coppersmith Barbet	Psilopogon haemacephalus
	PASSERIFORMES: Campephagidae
12	Black-winged Cuckooshrike	Lalage melaschistos
	PASSERIFORMES: Oriolidae
13	Black-hooded Oriole	Oriolus xanthornus
	PASSERIFORMES: Aegithinidae
14	Common Iora	Aegithina tiphia
	PASSERIFORMES: Dicruridae
15	Black Drongo	Dicrurus macrocercus
16	Greater Racket-tailed Drongo	Dicrurus paradiseus
	PASSERIFORMES: Corvidae
17	Common Green-Magpie	Cissa chinensis
	PASSERIFORMES: Stenostiridae
18	Gray-headed Canary-Flycatcher	Culicicapa ceylonensis
	PASSERIFORMES: Alaudidae
19	Bengal Bushlark	Mirafra assamica
	PASSERIFORMES: Cisticolidae
20	Dark-necked Tailorbird	Orthotomus atrogularis
21	Rufescent Prinia	Prinia rufescens
	PASSERIFORMES: Locustellidae
22	Striated Grassbird	Megalurus palustris
	PASSERIFORMES: Pycnonotidae
23	Cachar Bulbul	Iole cacharensis	Endemic (country/region)
24	Black-headed Bulbul	Microtarsus melanocephalos
25	Black-crested Bulbul	Rubigula flaviventris
26	Red-vented Bulbul	Pycnonotus cafer
	PASSERIFORMES: Phylloscopidae
27	Yellow-browed Warbler	Phylloscopus inornatus
	PASSERIFORMES: Scotocercidae
28	Asian Stubtail	Urosphena squameiceps	Rare/Accidental
29	Gray-bellied Tesia	Tesia cyaniventer
	PASSERIFORMES: Timaliidae
30	Pin-striped Tit-Babbler	Mixornis gularis
31	White-browed Scimitar-Babbler	Pomatorhinus schisticeps
	PASSERIFORMES: Pellorneidae
32	Puff-throated Babbler	Pellorneum ruficeps
33	Buff-breasted Babbler	Pellorneum tickelli
	PASSERIFORMES: Leiothrichidae
34	Nepal Fulvetta	Alcippe nipalensis
35	Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush	Garrulax monileger
	PASSERIFORMES: Sturnidae
36	Golden-crested Myna	Ampeliceps coronatus
37	Common Hill Myna	Gracula religiosa
38	Indian Pied Starling	Gracupica contra
39	Chestnut-tailed Starling	Sturnia malabarica
40	Common Myna	Acridotheres tristis
41	Jungle Myna	Acridotheres fuscus
	PASSERIFORMES: Turdidae
42	Orange-headed Thrush	Geokichla citrina
	PASSERIFORMES: Muscicapidae
43	Oriental Magpie-Robin	Copsychus saularis
44	White-rumped Shama	Copsychus malabaricus
45	Rufous-bellied Niltava	Niltava sundara
46	Pale-chinned Flycatcher	Cyornis poliogenys
47	Pale Blue Flycatcher	Cyornis unicolor
48	Blue-throated Flycatcher	Cyornis rubeculoides
49	Hill Blue Flycatcher	Cyornis whitei
50	Lesser Shortwing	Brachypteryx leucophris
51	Siberian Blue Robin	Larvivora cyane
52	White-tailed Robin	Myiomela leucura
53	Snowy-browed Flycatcher	Ficedula hyperythra
54	Taiga Flycatcher	Ficedula albicilla
	PASSERIFORMES: Dicaeidae
55	Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker	Dicaeum cruentatum
	PASSERIFORMES: Nectariniidae
56	Ruby-cheeked Sunbird	Chalcoparia singalensis
57	Van Hasselt's Sunbird	Leptocoma brasiliana
58	Little Spiderhunter	Arachnothera longirostra
	PASSERIFORMES: Chloropseidae
59	Golden-fronted Leafbird	Chloropsis aurifrons
	PASSERIFORMES: Estrildidae
60	Scaly-breasted Munia	Lonchura punctulata
61	White-rumped Munia	Lonchura striata

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