Probably the most difficult thing to handle when traveling with non-birders is the fact that you can’t stop the car for every species…this is particularly difficult when all of the species are new so you know you are not only missing birds that could be added to the list but birds that you might not find elsewhere. For example, bird-wise, no day was more difficult than on the trip to the Gandhi Ahram, Sewagram and the medical college in Sewangi. I know…you’re wondering how can I even think of birds when heading to see where Ghandi lived…but for those who know me, you also know I have a one track mind. In my defense, it was the first time we had been out of the city and so as we drove for an hour, zooming past the countryside, a combination of grassland and trees, it was hard not to yell “stop” at everything that kept cropping up on the wires. All that said, I did manage to hone in on a few new, and some already-seen but still enjoyed species including: a Common Hoopoe (its crest is pretty distinct), White-throated Kingfisher, Black Drongo and a Rollerbird. My biggest near miss was a species of snipe, with its distinctive body shape and long-bill.
However, on the flipside, one of the most exciting things is that my team members are starting to share my birding enthusiasm. Jean is getting very good at spotting birds, Alain has brought me picture of rapotrs to i.d. (it was a Black Kite), Kelly has taken numerous bird shots with her Nikon and Sarah is ever patient.
