Ranganthittu, Mysore

In June/July of 2013, we visited Mysore for Amshula to write her entrance exam at JSS University. We took the opportunity to visit the famous bird sanctuary "Ranganthittu" at the outskirts of the city. It was such a great experience that I will recommend anyone visit Mysore or nearby places to make a visit.

A panoramic view of Ranganthittu.

This is the "Open Bill Stork" which is largest group of birds at this sanctuary.It has a distinctive gap within the beak. Incidentally, the gap develops only after the birds becomes an adult.

This bird with the distinctive pink color near the tail is called the "Painted Stork". It is also found in large numbers in Ranganthittu and when they spread their wings, it is a beautiful sight. Interestingly, it develops the pink color after reaching adulthood.

This is a juvenile painted stork - note the absence of the ping shading at the tail.

This is a nest of "Spot Billed Pelicans" which are easily identified by their large beaks and the pouches under them. Though they appear bulky, they can fly quite gracefully.

This is the "Little Egret" similar to the cattle, but larger and longer neck. It also has an all-white plumage all the time with a black beak and a tinge of yellow or bluish coloring around the eyes.

This magnificent bird is the "Brahminy Kite" and is easy to identify due to the dark reddish body and completely white head and chest. It is part of the raptor family and catches rats, lizards and other small prey. They are usually found near rubbish dumps looking for their prey.

This is the Brahminy Kite in flight with it's wide wing-span and distinctive head and beak.

This compact little bird is called the "Common Kingfisher" and the large lotus leaf created a great background for this shot. It found this perch very convenient to look for fish, and then after each attempt, would come back to it's "throne".

This is the "White throated Kingfisher" that is found all over India. The bright blue feathers with a dark red beak makes it one of the most colorful little birds around.

This is the "Little Cormorant" which is found near lakes and ponds. This bird loves to spread its wings as often as it can.

This relatively large bird is called the "Black Ibis" and has a dark colored wings with a distinctive patch of red on crown. 

This is the "Red whiskered Bulbul" a close relative of the more common red-vented bulbul.

This is the "Baya Weaver"

There are many other birds in and around Ranganthittu which I will update in the coming days. Hope you have enjoyed these photographs.