Birding the GHNP and surroundings, 28th April - 2nd of May 2019 - Lieven De Temmerman

Acknowledgments Thanks to Prattap and his friendly team for accompanying me on this adventure, to Shashank Dalvi and Somendra Singh who provided me inspiration and ideas about alternative sites while preparing this trip, to Duncan Wilson for some additional info and to Ankit and Panki Sood for the flawless organisation and welcoming feeling while staying in Gushaini.

Introduction The Greater Himalayan National Park (rightly) got some pages in the ‘A Birdwatcher’s guide to ’ book as it’s an iconic site of ​ ​ Western Himalaya birding. Nevertheless, reading about it for the first time approx. 10 years ago, the park didn’t struck me as particularly alluring or species rich. Indeed, the more one goes West in the , the less of those mouth-watering Himalayan specialties (like Laughingthrushes, Wren-babblers, Yuhinas, Fulvettas) one can find. However, there is a certain in particular that was fascinating me more and more through the years, and the final push was given by the magnificent front cover of Birding Asia 25 some years ago, by Jainy Kuriakose, and excellent photos by e.g. Yann Muzika. I once dreamed to be the first ​ one with good photographs of this , but it was not to be. In any way, my motivation to give this a try got bigger and bigger.

With few holidays on hand, and my other most-wanted (worldwide) target bird (Great Indian Bustard) almost extinct, the destination for 2019 was quickly decided upon: I divided my 2 weeks time in India into 1 week in Rajasthan and 1 week near Kullu, with a quick stopover at Harike, near Amritsar. In this original plan, there was an outgoing flight from Mumbai involved, giving me a chance to see Forest Owlet, but the collapse of Jet Airways and rebooked flights to Delhi decided against the Owlet.

Practicalities How to get there: I arrived and left Kullu with a night bus (Amritsar-Kullu and Kullu-Delhi, both times getting out of the bus before Kullu at Aut tunnel as there is no need to go all the way to Kullu. I booked online through redbus.in. Flights to Kullu are relatively (by Indian standards) expensive, around 250 euro from Delhi. The bus was around 25 euro one way... Another option taken by many is a private car from/to Chandigarh (one way around 7000 INR). In Chandigarh, you can either take a cheap plane to Delhi or Mumbai, or a bus.

Time (and timing): The ideal time frame is 15th of April-15th of May when are most territorial and calling. Ankit Sood of Sunshine Adventure emailed me around the 15th of April to tell me that Tragopans were already calling. So the omens, before leaving Europe for India, were good! I don’t know for how long they would be calling, but I feel the early side of the time frame (April) is probably more optimal as will be even more vocal, and high-altitude species will be more down (and thus gettable). The later in the season, the less Tragopan activity and the more the high-altitude species have moved, and at lower altitudes, some summer guests will probably arrive but most of those are not a target around the GHNP. I had 5 full days near or in the park (but only 4 nights, and thus 4 potential mornings in the park), so I felt I had a good enough chance to see a Tragopan but some extra days would have been more relaxed and assuring. Be aware that most of the people do the trekking to Shilt in two days, while I did it in one day. I was pretty much dead at the end of day 1, walking with all my stuff on my back from 1500m (Gushaini) to 2100m (Rolla) and further on to 3100m (Shilt), not having slept much on a night bus, and coming straight from the lowlands. That is around 15km (9 to Rolla, another 5-6 to Shilt), and on the way there is always some good birding.

Schedule: early morning morning noon afternoon night sleep

Aut tunnel 5AM - Trekking 8AM-17AM Trekking 8AM-17AM Trekking Gushaini 6.30AM Shilt Shilt 8AM-17AM Shilt Shilt Shilt campsite

Shilt Shilt Shilt Shilt Shilt Shilt campsite

Shilt Shilt Trekking Shilt-Rolla Trekking Shilt-Rolla Rolla (rain) Rolla Campsite

Trekking walk to Chhoie Guesthouse Rolla (rain) Rolla Rolla-Gushaini Waterfall Gushaini Gushaini

Nadhar (Cheer Trekking Resting at the BUS Aut Pekhri-Nadhar Pheasant site) Nadhar-Gushaini Guesthouse tunnel-Delhi 7PM night on bus

A note about the weather The day entering the park, the weather was fine (sunny, quite warm). The next day (first day trying to see a tragopan), the weather was similar. The 2nd day however, the morning was OK, but after noon, more clouds were coming in. It was predicted that the 3rd and 4th day would be rainy, but this thus shifted a day and the 2nd day in the park would provide quite some rain. I decided going down from Shilt to Rolla on that day,mainly based on the shift in the weather. This turned out a good idea, as in the night, it rained quite a lot. I wouldn’t want to have woken up with rain in Shilt (and zero degrees), and moreover, I wouldn’t have wanted to walk down from Shilt to Rolla in the rain. Things dried out during the day, and the next day (4th) was dry but a bit overcast. This goes to show that a fairly short time window like mine could be too short to have a decent chance finding your target birds. Generally (as told by the locals), the beginning of May should have pretty stable weather without too much rain, but it seems (also from previous trip reports) it can rain at any time.

The package Everything in between the night busses (stepping out at Aut tunnel and boarding at Aut tunnel in the end) was arranged beforehand with Ankit and paid to Sunshine adventures before arrival. A price was agreed upon for everything, and depends on the comfort you want on the trekking, the number of porters, if you need a porter to carry your own bag, and the number of days and number of participants. I was alone (more expensive per person, but pretty much the ideal situation searching for tragopans, see later in the report), I didn’t want any extra comfort (so no air-inflated mattress, cheaper obviously), and I went for a pretty low number of days (it gets cheaper if you go longer). Just think about 125-175 euro / day all-in, depending on the factors mentioned above. Making an agreement with Ankit is really easy as he totally understands what birders want, so you can fully rely on the ground logistics, they were flawless.

In concreto, what was included? 1. Transport from-to Aut Tunnel (where the bus drops you: 31.744341, 77.208506) to Gushaini. The bus dropped me just ​ ​ passed Aut tunnel (Kullu side). Actually this is not necessary (you could go out just before the tunnel, Gushaini side: 31.716787, 77.209064), but anyway, this is where most buses are used to do a stop. ​ 2. A team of trekkers with at least one guy having experience with Tragopan habitat and some of the better birds, one cook, 2 porters / aid cooks. So my team was a team of 4. I didn’t specifically ask for any particular guide. A guide named Dhaniram is known from previous reports, and you can specifically ask for him. Prattap was my site guide. He is around 30 years old, and fully recommended. Prattap knew more about birds than I had anticipated (I was already OK with a trekking guide that knew more-or-less where the Tragopan hangs out): he knew stake-outs of some good species, knew some calls and was genuinely interested in birds and wildlife. He likes to camp and be in the woods, his English is more than reasonable, he has seen tragopans many times, so all in all, the ideal companion. 3. 1 tent with a good down sleeping bag (it gets around zero degrees at night in Shilt), one neoprene mattress. 4. 3 very good meals per day: tea in your tent, full breakfast (but only around 9AM in my case, after hunting tragopans), lunch (which I skipped twice because I was simply not hungry!) and dinner. Dinner includes soup, a full meal with chapatis as much as you want and very tasty Indian food, and dessert. There are also bananas, fruit juices, kitkats or snickers-type chocolate bars etcetera. There is a water filter for drinking water, and a toilet tent, completely with toilet seat (yes, they dragged all of this to Shilt!). All campsites have running water, but at Shilt, there is only like a water tap, so no river and therefore not comfortable for washing. At Rolla, you have the ice cold river. 5. Any night down in Gushaini and meals in the guesthouse (31.641670, 77.411173). In my case, Ankit’s guest house was ​ ​ fully booked, so they booked me into one on the way to Pekhri (as I was going there to do a walk in search for the next morning), located here: 31.644155, 77.437405. ​ ​

My rating of the package would be a full 10/10. I cannot find any shortcoming in the package, for the price. Ofcourse, this doesn’t mean that this trekking is anything easy: you will sweat, you will suffer, you will have to wash yourself in the ice cold river,... But the effort by the trekking team, Prattap as a laid-back, silent, patient and thus very nice companion searching for the Tragopan, the food, the warm welcome down in Gushaini by Ankit and Panki Sood, the meals in the guesthouse, the setting and comfort of the guesthouse,... was all very much recommended!

I asked Prattap at the end of my stay what they can use during the trekkings. It’s easy to give money as a tip (and I would still offer this first), but some things are hard to buy when they are not available in or near Gushaini or even Kullu. Prattap explicitly asked for binoculars. He already has been given a pair by Ankit, but they could share more pairs between guides. Also, when they just do trekkings, they could benefit massively from having binoculars in order to observe more and become better birding guides. I would therefore advice any given group of e.g. 4 people to buy or give some (good!) binoculars instead of a tip. These days, a very decent Nikon binocular will cost in the range of 100-250 euros. Other things they would like are good flashlights, powerbanks (maybe solar powerbanks as they would work well - don’t forget to take them as well if your smartphone or camera battery does not work for 3 or more days without charging), and if this would be the end of your India trip, consider offering your hiking shoes as well. If someone would ever compile his own bird guide (e.g. with the HBW plates) of the birds found in the park, that would also be a nice gift to leave behind for the guides. There is, in general, a lack of useful bird books and binoculars, while most if not all of the trekkers / porters are genuinely interested in seeing wildlife and birds (and in the end, show it to their customers). The whole trekking business in the GHNP - Tirthan valley section is very much community-supported. This means that what you pay is used to employ those people (most have jobs in working on the fields), they get well-paid for that, and thus they fully support eco-tourism. Any help in supporting (logistically or financially) this eco-tourism will make the community stronger and even more willing to protect the park and create awareness.

Some thoughts about finding tragopans.

First of all, yes, I saw a Western tragopan (or even two but I focused on the one I saw well)! As I found it already on the second morning in the area, and I left soon after my observation (because of the weather), my tragopan experience is very, very limited. Maybe I was lucky, maybe my tactics were right. Hard to tell.

Near the Shilt Campsite, there are two locations with broadleaf / mixed forest and undergrowth of ringal bamboo, which hold tragopans, and where the trail passes by (not unimportant as going off-trail is hard work). Those are called Shilt and Chowdwary. Shilt is approx. 20-25 minutes walk from the campsite going up-and-down (not gaining or losing too much altitude, but some parts are quite steep so early morning it is a bit hard and even sweaty): 31.688319, 77.484095. At Shilt, the ringal bamboo is not too ​ ​ dense, so one could try to see a tragopan walking in between. However, they have enough space to hide. The other site, Chowdwary, is another 15-20 minutes further: 31.692521, 77.490387. In between, you’ll notice pine woods, which ​ ​ are not optimal for tragopans. In Chowdwary, the bamboo is denser, but the valley is more of a gully and so the area where the tragopan can hide is more confined. So Tragopans can stay all day at Shilt and you could not find them (but you would not scare them either), while Chowdwary is hit-or-miss: if a Tragopan is there, there is a bigger chance you’ll see it or you’ll scare it (preferably after you see it). Note that Khorli Poi, a very good site at the other (South) side of the Tirthan Valley, is closed indefinitely (no access permitted), in order to not disturb tragopans in that area. So every report talking about Khorli Poi, describing tragopans calling while in the tent… forget about that. At Shilt, you won’t hear Tragopans (only , Koklass and Woodcocks), because the Tragopan sites are some distance walking.

We spent the first morning at Shilt and arrived around 5.30AM at the Tragopan site when it got light. We started walking around 5AM from the campsite, and according to Prattap, this was a bit too late (4.30 should be OK). Even if we were a bit late, we heard (2 different) tragopans calling around 5.45, until around 6.30. I used a bit of playback from time to time but the tragopans didn’t seem to react. At one moment, a calling tragopan was somewhere approx. 50m down the slope from us but not straight below us (maybe 50m further on the trail) while we were waiting for it to climb up, but some minutes later we heard it around 50m up from us (and around 75-100m further on the trail), so it must have crossed / circled us. The ringal bamboo and curves in the trail prevented views on the bird when it should have been crossing bird on the trail. All became quiet around 6.30-7.00. After this first missed chance at Shilt, things went quiet. After breakfast, I returned to Shilt and walked further on to Chowdwary, but no trace of a Tragopan there either. We prepared for the evening by waiting at the edge of pines / broadleafed forest at Shilt (we didn’t wait in the middle of the tragopan habitat as not to disturb the birds). We waited and waited, and around 5PM, birds started calling again but only from time to time (let’s say 3 times with approx. 15-20 minutes in between). Not enough to warrant any successful stalking or repositioning. Around dark (7AM), Tragopans didn’t call anymore, so there was no chance to find one roosting.

The next morning, we arrived around 5AM at Shilt. We heard only one faint call around 5.30AM from deep in the valley. Prattap was aiming for a bird coming up from the valley and thought it was a good idea to sit down, keep quiet and look down the valley. (At Shilt, there is a burned part of the valley (right next to the part with ringal bamboo), so you can look down quite some distance, and an Indian birder had excellent looks at a tragopan a week before, together with a pair of Koklass , from that spot (he even got a Tragopan, Koklass male and female on one photo!). So we did that between 5.30 and 6.30 (sitting down), but there wasn’t any sign nor sound of a Tragopan. The only distraction was a sitting (and calling) beautiful male . Many people don’t see a Koklass on the ground (they are very wary and flush almost always before you are even aware of their presence), so this was a good start. Around 6.45AM, fully knowing that the golden Tragopan hour was almost finished, I suggested to walk to Chowdwary and see if we would get something there. Around 7AM, walking quickly but silently, flushing some Monals on the way, we arrived at the gully at Chowdwary. We started walking super slowly, and before getting in the gully, Prattap saw a movement in the gully. He thought it was a Kalij, but the first thing I saw after it got out of the vegetation a bit was a black bird with white dots… A male Tragopan! It was still dark and very hard to focus, but after good binocular views of the back of the bird, I handed over my bins to Prattap and fully focused on getting a decent photo… While focusing I noticed the bird walked away (it had noticed us from the beginning, but wasn’t panicking and just walked away slowly), I saw in the viewfinder a flash of red, which meant the bird was turning around to look at us… The rest is history! Prattap told me later he saw a second (male) bird moving. Within a minute after our initial contact, the birds were invisible up a 70-80 degree slope, behind some rocks and out of sight forever. Hugs and high fives followed…

After communicating with another birder that was trying to see the tragopan shortly after I left, he told me he had multiple sightings, some up to 10 minutes, of male tragopans at Shilt, so I would consider Shilt is still the best site. I don’t know his tactics but he stayed longer at Shilt campsite. It is probably a wise idea to reserve more time than I did, in case the weather is bad, the tragopans have an off-day, or you or members of your group are still practising the fine art of tragopan chasing (that is: walking without making noise, perfectioning your positioning, or praying to get lucky!) Other good birds / site descriptions

Shilt campsite: 31.682703, 77.480253 ​ The water tap attracts lots of birds drinking: Variegated Laughingthrush, many smaller birds like Slaty-backed Flycatcher, Himalayan White-browed Rosefinch, Golden Bush-robin, White-throated and Black-throated Bushtit (the White-throated probably moves up higher later in the season, so you can easily miss it if showing up some weeks later), Spot-winged Tit (sadly relumped with Coal tit by IOC), Grey-crested Tit, White-collared Blackbird, even a Great Barbet, Oriental Turtle Dove and the campsite was the only place where I saw Speckled Wood pigeons fly by. Very early morning, a Woodcock was roding, and a bit later in the day, both Koklass and Himalayan could be found not too far away. On the way up the first day, I saw a Musk deer just before reaching the campsite. No Himalayan Owls were calling close to the campsite but they should be there.

Shilt (3100m - broadleaf forest with some pines in the mix - tragopan site) (note that Chowdwary has more-or-less the same avifauna) Besides the calling tragopans, Koklass and Monal are pleasantly common. Koklass called most of the day, Monal only called sporadically and when flushed or flying.There were many many Greenish, Buff-barred, Ashy-throated, Lemon-rumped and Western Crowned Warblers, and the sound of Black-and-yellow (most common of the two Grosbeaks) and Collared Grosbeak was echoing through the woods the whole day. While walking in the ringal bamboo (part with more pines), I noticed the sound of White-cheeked Nuthatch (only once). It was tape-responsive. In the same area I had Bar-tailed Treecreeper (but no Hodgson’s). I heard and saw Slaty-blue Flycatcher, Blue-fronted Redstart, Himalayan Bluetail and Scaly-breasted Wren-babbler in the bamboo, and a Whistler’s Warbler (not very common it seems). I also observed 2 Dark-breasted Rosefinches, plenty of Spotted Nutcrackers, Long-tailed Minivet, some Rufous Sibias (calling loudly), Chestnut-bellied Rock-thrush, Ultramarine Flycatcher (more common down at Rolla), Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher, Bar-throated Minla, a territorial pair of Himalayan Woodpeckers, Brown-fronted Woodpecker (once). At dawn, we heard Grey Nightjar and Himalayan Wood-owl (a bit too far down, and within the golden Tragopan hour, thus no chasing!). Throughout the day, Hill were calling (and once flushed after stalking). I didn’t see any other Rosefinches or Spectacled Finch, but this one should occur around Shilt. At night, some Giant red flying squirrels totally stole the show, flying from tree to tree.

Shilt-Rolla (3100-2100m) (Rolla: 31.673492, 77.485680) ​ ​ On the way down from Shilt, the avifauna clearly changes: around 2300-2400m, there were some Brown Bullfinches and the first Slaty-headed Parakeets were flying by. Down in the valley, Black Drongo,Yellow-billed Blue-magpie, Great Barbet and Verditer Flycatcher become more common. The best bird here was probably a (small) pit-viper on the trail, around 2500 MASL. The highest snake I ever encountered (and one of the few on any trip).

Rolla to Gushaini (2100-1500m) Rolla campsite held a confiding pair of preparing to roost. The river (the whole section to Gushaini) holds lots of Plumbeous and White-capped Redstarts, Blue Whistling-thrushes and Brown Dippers, with young (and Crested Kingfisher, lower down from Gushaini). Other species of note were Scaly-bellied Woodpecker, Ultramarine flycatcher, Fire-breasted Flowerpecker (at the mobile phone viewpoint: 31.665637, 77.468286), Mrs. Gould Sunbird (one at the park entrance in a flowering tree: 31.668625, ​ ​ ​ 77.473044), Grey-sided Bush-warbler (plenty and often giving good views!), Green-crowned Warbler, Grey-hooded Warbler, ​ Streaked Laughingthrush (all altitudes but more common lower down), Chestnut-crowned and Striated Laughingthrush, many Dark-sided Flycatchers (not noted on the way in, they maybe just arrived?), Rufous-bellied Niltava and, just before Gushaini, a Chestnut-headed Tesia (without playback!). The Cheer pheasant site (the one we didn’t try) should be the grassy slope North of the bridge crossing the Tirthan river. That site obviously holds Striated Prinia, e.g. 31.670929, 77.476701, Upland pipit and should hold ​ ​ the same birds (roughly) as Nadhar (but I didn’t bird this Cheer Pheasant site). Between Gushaini and the Cheer pheasant site near Rolla, you’ll walk on the South side of the river. That side has very lush vegetation and big trees. There are many birds on this first part of the trail, and because you generally walk high above the river, there isn’t too much noise so birding is very good. Once you cross the bridge, up to Rolla, you walk next to the river which hinders birding a bit.

Nadhar (classic Cheer Pheasant site and walk down to Gushaini)

This site can be reached either by walking up from Gushaini (2-3 hours very hard walk up - not recommended!) or taking a taxi to Pekhri: 31.648888, 77.431693 from Gushaini (9kms, 300 INR) and walking a bit up for 30 minutes. The avifauna here is quite ​ different from the forested slopes in the park. [Note there is another Cheer Pheasant stake-out only 30 minutes walking from Rolla campsite (see above), in the park. That site is probably more efficient for those having little time (you see the grassy slopes, around the bridge where you cross the Tirthan river), but there is no trail there, and the morning we were going to try after sleeping in Rolla, it rained hard. So it was too dangerous, and the chances for Cheer Pheasant were pretty low with the adverse weather. Pekhri-Nadhar has a good, relatively level trail, views on the grassy slopes are very good, and Cheer Pheasant seems reasonably common.] Some people recommend doing this site (Nadhar) first. I wouldn’t if you have good weather: I would rather first try the Tragopan and spend as much time as needed in Shilt. Cheer Pheasant is not that range restricted, so I wouldn’t invest my first day in the GHNP chasing a widely distributed bird, with a chance on missing the Tragopan...You could do Cheer Pheasant first if you try the Rolla site and are camping in Rolla on the way up: in this way, your early morning in Rolla is well spend and you are not losing any tragopan time as you would only arrive around noon at Shilt anyway, coming from Rolla. Notable birds around Nadhar: Cheer Pheasant (2 heard, and 2 other seen after some scanning, first seen from this point on the opposite slope to the West: 31.652916, 77.419192, allowing very close views after stalking (this is: walking up 70-80 degree slopes ​ ​ without a trail and with drops of 30-50 meters if slipping!), Chukar, Black , plenty of Striated Prinias and Upland Pipits, Himalayan Bulbul and Blue-capped Rock-thrush.

Little Forktail Waterfall As Little Forktail was my very last new Forktail, I invested some time and effort to visit a very reliable stake-out, namely the Chhoie Waterfall. Little Forktail nests there. The waterfall is approx. 20 minutes walking from the road, some kms down from Gushaini. Start is here: 31.639358, 77.397718. If you walk on your own (Prattap joined me), make sure to go up slightly left in the village (there is an ​ ​ arrow, around here: 31.637367, 77.398578), and further on the trail, keep right (there is a fork in the trail, left goes probably to some ​ ​ fields). Most people see some Little Forktails on the way up trekking in the park, and Ankit said that the little waterfall just across his homestay often has this species, but I probably overlooked or was unlucky with timing.

A note about target species seen / not seen Before this trip, the absolute number one target species was Western Tragopan, and it did not disappoint. Other key target species seen were Koklass pheasant (many flushed, one on the ground), (only flushed, but they flush from very short distance thus excellent flight views), White-cheeked Nuthatch, White-cheeked Bushtit and some more widespread Himalayan lifers like Ultramarine flycatcher (note that the Western birds have a white brow), Rufous-naped tit, Variegated and Streaked Laughingthrush, Brown-fronted and Scaly-bellied Woodpecker, Little Forktail, Grey-sided Bush-warbler, Grey-hooded Warbler, Brown Bullfinch, White-collared Blackbird, Striated Prinia, Whistler’s Warbler, Western Crowned Warbler, Speckled Wood Pigeon, Rufous Sibia,....

I didn’t connect with some target birds like Large-billed Thrush (always hard, staked out the gully just before the village of Ropa for an hour but no movement and bad time of day probably), Wren-babbler (no stake-outs and not many good gullies, but it should be in (or near?) the park next to Scaly-breasted Wren-babbler), Red-headed Bullfinch (hit-or-miss but sightings near Rolla), Long-tailed Thrush (hit-or-miss), Himalayan Owl (Sometimes heard around Shilt campsite; I heard one in the Tragopan area early morning but because of Himalayan Black bears in the area I didn’t walk too far from the campsite at night in the dark), Black-headed Jay (supposed to be rare in the Tirthan valley), Hodgson’s treecreeper (little time in right habitat, Bar-tailed was seen, both occur around Shilt), Pink-browed Rosefinch (sightings at Shilt), Himalayan Cuckoo (too early), Spectacled Finch (hit-or-miss, but should be there), Fire-capped Tit (scarce, around Rolla) and White-browed Fulvetta (scarce, sightings at Shilt)

Trip list My trip list of all sightings in the GHNP and around is here online. I also included all sightings, per day, in appendix at the end of this ​ report. Note that throughout the day, especially on the last couple of days, I didn’t put every single bird or species in the database, only the ones that were new or of note. In total, I saw exactly 100 species (if counting Spot-winged tit). A stay of some days longer, or a different altitude (around Kullu / Manali) could yield another 10-20 species. The total list of the GHNP is somewhere between 180-200, depending on the definition of the park. Notable are 8 species of ground birds (pheasants and partridges), 8 species of phylloscopus, 4 out of 5 species of Laughingthrush (White-throated should be there as well) and 17 species of muscicapidae, indicating that spring truly started in the GHNP at the beginning of May.

Miscellaneous species (non-birds). Of note are traces (fur, digging traces) of Himalayan Black Bear, Giant Red Flying Squirrel (common at night in the mixed forest, flying from tree to tree), Musk deer (one on the way up to Shilt), Himalayan Langur (big groups), Red Fox (one at the classic Cheer Pheasant site, probably the cause of the Cheer Pheasants alarming before dawn), Himalayan Pit-Viper (one small snake on the trail between Shilt and Rolla). Note that both Leopard and Snow Leopard occur in the park, both hunting on Thar, Ghoral and Musk deer but obivously at different altitudes (Leopards in the valleys, Snow Leopards at higher altitudes). Prattap has seen Snow Leopard only twice in about 20 years, both times in winter, both times around his village, when they come down from higher altitudes and sometimes try to kill livestock.

Lieven De Temmerman - 17th of May 2019 - contact: yoemy at hotmail dot com

Appendix - all sightings with GPS, time and precision of GPS in meters (depending on e.g. forest cover). name Date Time # Lat Lon precision

Gold billed Magpie 28/04/2019 5:36 1 31.7097507231233 77.2564350441818 5

Black Kite 28/04/2019 5:42 1 31.6926188255024 77.2780768667136 5

Common Myna 28/04/2019 5:43 1 31.6873408668038 77.2799520660911 5

Rock Dove 28/04/2019 5:43 1 31.6867919359651 77.2809226904784 5

House Sparrow 28/04/2019 5:46 1 31.6769450856668 77.2911264841233 5

Large billed Crow 28/04/2019 5:53 2 31.6585020488423 77.3189218808686 5

Crested Kingfisher 28/04/2019 5:59 2 31.6475189896595 77.3478335794782 5

Gold billed Magpie 28/04/2019 6:07 1 31.6449863557067 77.3707023449963 5

Plumbeous Water Redstart 28/04/2019 6:08 1 31.6450304445174 77.3756269645666 10

Kalij Pheasant 28/04/2019 6:09 2 31.645414042316 77.3769131676083 30

Oriental Turtle Dove 28/04/2019 6:12 1 31.6415489372161 77.3874888662969 10

Russet Sparrow 28/04/2019 6:17 1 31.6409349208992 77.4058455695188 10

Blue Whistling Thrush 28/04/2019 6:47 1 31.6416053474244 77.4109110888815 30

Grey Wagtail 28/04/2019 7:25 1 31.6417230293449 77.4110792298591 30

Grey-hooded Warbler 28/04/2019 7:27 1 31.6417870670852 77.4108349812007 30

Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush 28/04/2019 7:32 2 31.6413039760959 77.4108184688514 10

Black Bulbul 28/04/2019 7:34 1 31.6413031379056 77.410732721982 10

Plumbeous Water Redstart 28/04/2019 7:36 1 31.6416584048715 77.4106371682858 10

Gold billed Magpie 28/04/2019 7:47 1 31.6416679602411 77.4107877072668 30

Oriental Turtle Dove 28/04/2019 8:17 1 31.6415979294401 77.4108561035967 30

Streaked Laughingthrush 28/04/2019 8:33 1 31.6415550560054 77.4106861186003 5

Himalayan Vulture 28/04/2019 8:40 1 31.6416526213583 77.4109188002324 5

Brown Dipper 28/04/2019 8:47 1 31.6414362006184 77.4110276811546 10 Streaked Laughingthrush 28/04/2019 9:29 1 31.6389300953891 77.4302508217072 10

Chestnut headed Tesia 28/04/2019 9:31 1 31.6391480667811 77.4311164208478 10

Blue Whistling Thrush 28/04/2019 9:33 1 31.6399435093921 77.4320586305833 30

Himalayan Bulbul 28/04/2019 9:35 1 31.6397275077474 77.4331118167168 10

Black Francolin 28/04/2019 9:36 1 31.6398135479834 77.4334694725251 5

Great Barbet 28/04/2019 9:36 1 31.6399104008746 77.4335817900276 10

Green backed Tit 28/04/2019 9:37 1 31.6405341821086 77.4341544416523 5

Gold billed Magpie 28/04/2019 9:38 1 31.640563057765 77.4342572876042 5

Verditer Flycatcher 28/04/2019 9:38 1 31.6405484732535 77.4343698565638 10

Mountain Tailorbird 28/04/2019 9:44 1 31.6426475113552 77.4374005012935 10

Grey sided Bush Warbler 28/04/2019 9:51 1 31.644536457054 77.4402704649395 10

Blue Whistling Thrush 28/04/2019 10:00 1 31.6461309045848 77.4446877279109 50

Long tailed Minivet 28/04/2019 10:03 1 31.6467656242025 77.4445883185393 10

Grey headed Canary Flycatcher 28/04/2019 10:25 1 31.6497648367953 77.4488963653123 5

Western Crowned Warbler 28/04/2019 10:25 1 31.64955927062 77.4489289709157 10

Grey sided Bush Warbler 28/04/2019 10:33 1 31.6514715599191 77.4508045055694 50

Whiskered Yuhina 28/04/2019 10:37 1 31.6532191867304 77.4509054236835 10

Grey Bush Chat 28/04/2019 10:47 1 31.6551393969279 77.4522458576387 10

Scaly bellied Woodpecker 28/04/2019 11:04 1 31.6575786564794 77.4548652861989 10

Greenish Warbler 28/04/2019 11:04 1 31.6575786564794 77.4548652861989 10

Rufous bellied Niltava 28/04/2019 11:24 1 31.6602280503434 77.460323162449 10

Slaty headed Parakeet 28/04/2019 11:26 1 31.6605000011918 77.4604159501171 10

Fire breasted Flowerpecker 28/04/2019 12:14 1 31.6656368086409 77.468285970462 30

Ultramarine Flycatcher 28/04/2019 12:24 1 31.6647474468049 77.4689358194149 30

White capped Redstart 28/04/2019 13:43 1 31.6721596475986 77.4843618740118 10 Brown Bullfinch 28/04/2019 14:33 1 31.6782658221495 77.4884781428403 10

Himalayan Woodpecker 28/04/2019 14:39 1 31.6782811191228 77.4886008539027 50

Black crested Tit 28/04/2019 14:55 1 31.6780526284423 77.4881528411782 50

Coal Tit ssp. melanolophus 28/04/2019 15:58 1 31.6810899786946 77.4868446775502 10

Koklass Pheasant 28/04/2019 16:36 1 31.6820080904585 77.4842032884038 10

Himalayan Monal 28/04/2019 16:50 1 31.6822614334819 77.4824083876586 10

Koklass Pheasant 28/04/2019 17:04 1 31.6821649996859 77.4813957699365 30

White collared Blackbird 28/04/2019 17:25 1 31.6827030340505 77.4802533165342 10

Slaty blue Flycatcher 28/04/2019 17:25 1 31.6827811952975 77.4802280870057 30

Blue fronted Redstart 28/04/2019 17:25 1 31.6828171117526 77.4801844172901 10

Western Tragopan 29/04/2019 6:03 1 31.6892036190552 77.4838687666482 30

Common Cuckoo 29/04/2019 6:09 1 31.6895766137463 77.4834576342977 30

Collared Grosbeak 29/04/2019 6:10 1 31.6892096121159 77.483580010084 10

Hill 29/04/2019 6:12 2 31.6889093304348 77.4840260111517 30

Bar tailed Treecreeper 29/04/2019 7:07 1 31.6883270396215 77.481619147656 30

Yellow breasted Greenfinch 29/04/2019 7:13 1 31.6881644726095 77.4811376073188 10

Blue throated Flycatcher 29/04/2019 7:14 1 31.6880520293784 77.4813068379438 10

Black and yellow Grosbeak 29/04/2019 7:21 1 31.6880893707571 77.4815125298477 30

Black throated Bushtit 29/04/2019 7:21 1 31.6880382830572 77.4815018010116 30

White cheeked Nuthatch 29/04/2019 7:30 1 31.6886724578512 77.4815023877448 10

Spotted Nutcracker 29/04/2019 7:07 1 31.6883270396215 77.481619147656 30

Himalayan Monal 29/04/2019 8:26 3 31.6877551004586 77.4834881444252 50

White throated Bushtit 29/04/2019 9:41 1 31.6826762957793 77.480104705391 30

Whiskered Yuhina 29/04/2019 9:43 1 31.6826068517116 77.4802341219759 5

Oriental Turtle Dove 29/04/2019 11:19 2 31.6827798122835 77.480215765608 5 Golden Bush Robin 29/04/2019 11:22 1 31.6827829135877 77.4802135024941 30

Chestnut bellied Rock Thrush 29/04/2019 11:45 1 31.6845030477566 77.4809884094423 5

Rufous gorgeted Flycatcher 29/04/2019 11:55 1 31.684704967804 77.4802886043466 30

Grey crested Tit 29/04/2019 11:59 2 31.6844637785402 77.4806037639058 10

Long tailed Minivet 29/04/2019 12:01 1 31.6845636489165 77.4810042512393 10

Fork tailed Swift 29/04/2019 12:23 1 31.6857394622934 77.4820451159752 30

Himalayan Bluetail 29/04/2019 14:06 1 31.6882168595043 77.4837354105688 10

Buff barred Warbler 29/04/2019 14:38 1 31.6921493970153 77.4838105124212 50

Pale rumped Warbler 29/04/2019 14:38 1 31.6921493970153 77.4838105124212 50

Ashy throated Warbler 29/04/2019 14:38 1 31.6921493970153 77.4838105124212 50

Himalayan Vulture 29/04/2019 15:48 1 31.6910120984835 77.4889006745792 30

Himalayan Monal 29/04/2019 15:51 1 31.6913900384975 77.4895917624957 10

Streaked Laughingthrush 29/04/2019 15:53 1 31.6917808447328 77.4895690475381 30

Blue Whistling Thrush 29/04/2019 15:53 1 31.6919120215175 77.4895640183962 30

Koklass Pheasant 29/04/2019 15:57 1 31.6922203917351 77.4898207560903 30

Whistler's Warbler 29/04/2019 16:00 1 31.6925205057782 77.4903871212876 50

Scaly breasted Cupwing 29/04/2019 16:23 1 31.6915848758367 77.4887586013204 50

Variegated Laughingthrush 29/04/2019 16:44 2 31.6899291985032 77.4858783279336 30

Spotted Nutcracker 29/04/2019 16:47 1 31.6900045099032 77.4860625621653 30

Western Tragopan 29/04/2019 17:10 1 31.6899473872331 77.4858294614381 30

Ultramarine Flycatcher 29/04/2019 17:17 1 31.6901584854645 77.4857344944752 10

Rufous Sibia 29/04/2019 17:37 2 31.6899906378535 77.4856092688418 10

Eurasian Woodcock 30/04/2019 4:59 1 31.6883558733684 77.4839973450429 10

Large Hawk-Cuckoo 30/04/2019 4:59 1 31.6883558733684 77.4839973450429 10

Grey Nightjar 30/04/2019 5:00 1 31.6882651392666 77.484198594538 10 Himalayan Owl 30/04/2019 5:06 1 31.6882503452075 77.4842759595043 30

Western Tragopan 30/04/2019 5:06 1 31.6884171031711 77.4840137735731 10

Himalayan Monal 30/04/2019 5:37 1 31.6892783437219 77.4844451063103 30

Koklass Pheasant 30/04/2019 5:37 1 31.6891128430438 77.4842713494575 10

Hill Partridge 30/04/2019 5:38 1 31.6891216859517 77.4842492212332 30

Scaly breasted Cupwing 30/04/2019 6:08 1 31.6883185738993 77.4840952456719 10

Western Tragopan 30/04/2019 6:54 2 31.6907847812694 77.4893794488883 10

Brown fronted Woodpecker 30/04/2019 6:54 1 31.6910410579589 77.4891242199368 10

Dark breasted Rosefinch 30/04/2019 7:29 2 31.6880809888539 77.4836218357808 10

Rufous Sibia 30/04/2019 7:31 1 31.6881311126348 77.483307933507 10

Bar throated Minla 30/04/2019 8:05 5 31.6849517310333 77.481045657841 10

Himalayan White-browed Rosefinch 30/04/2019 8:32 1 31.6826338414398 77.4801271688915 5

Variegated Laughingthrush 30/04/2019 8:32 3 31.6826338414398 77.4801271688915 5

Speckled Wood Pigeon 30/04/2019 8:33 1 31.6825836338398 77.4802037794865 5

Great Barbet 30/04/2019 8:33 1 31.68239403519 77.4799266737676 10

Long tailed Minivet 30/04/2019 9:14 1 31.6831323970404 77.4801359698898 10

Green backed Tit 30/04/2019 11:08 1 31.6792655317408 77.4875460752076 30

Verditer Flycatcher 30/04/2019 11:18 1 31.678996472649 77.4875142239756 50

Brown Bullfinch 30/04/2019 11:39 3 31.6773384902921 77.4884819985158 10

Striated Laughingthrush 30/04/2019 11:49 1 31.6764764115509 77.4893043470359 10

Black Kite 30/04/2019 13:04 1 31.67499537117 77.4879192375368 50

Green crowned Warbler 30/04/2019 15:07 1 31.6747147869614 77.4878888950473 30

Golden Eagle 30/04/2019 17:20 2 31.6723820194897 77.48408761814 30

Kalij Pheasant 30/04/2019 18:40 2 31.674955640949 77.4871119764424 30 Grey headed Canary Flycatcher 1/05/2019 8:19 1 31.6734921187457 77.4856795091904 10

Green backed Tit 1/05/2019 8:19 1 31.6735183121931 77.4857090973086 30

Whiskered Yuhina 1/05/2019 8:30 1 31.6713623609689 77.4838933256245 30

Greenish Warbler 1/05/2019 8:34 1 31.67139388 77.4837013 30

Slaty headed Parakeet 1/05/2019 8:37 1 31.6711647995111 77.4820762128359 30

Striated Laughingthrush 1/05/2019 8:42 1 31.6702606017065 77.4786160793877 50

Brown Dipper 1/05/2019 8:57 1 31.6707900865298 77.4766962044663 30

Blue Whistling Thrush 1/05/2019 8:57 1 31.6708554234651 77.4767319113738 10

White capped Redstart 1/05/2019 8:57 1 31.6708434373435 77.4767736532516 10

Variegated Laughingthrush 1/05/2019 8:57 2 31.6708755400327 77.4768698775 30

Plumbeous Water Redstart 1/05/2019 8:57 1 31.6708755400327 77.4768698775 30

Striated Prinia 1/05/2019 9:04 1 31.670929268032 77.4767014850652 10

Whiskered Yuhina 1/05/2019 9:09 1 31.6700671054718 77.4755358976102 50

Mrs. Gould's Sunbird 1/05/2019 9:36 1 31.6686249152121 77.4730442092544 10

Gold billed Magpie 1/05/2019 9:38 1 31.6687531164211 77.4724900816357 10

Dark sided Flycatcher 1/05/2019 9:50 1 31.6667950200212 77.4720139057166 10

Greenish Warbler 1/05/2019 9:53 1 31.66683014 77.47196043 5

Grey sided Bush Warbler 1/05/2019 10:22 1 31.6647867998403 77.4691736140079 10

Ultramarine Flycatcher 1/05/2019 10:23 1 31.6649279091802 77.4691561796493 10

Great Barbet 1/05/2019 10:31 1 31.6653313720894 77.4682260398543 5

Black Bulbul 1/05/2019 10:32 1 31.6653526202139 77.4682164006657 5

Striated Laughingthrush 1/05/2019 10:32 1 31.6653713537675 77.4681822863198 5

Long tailed Minivet 1/05/2019 10:33 1 31.6654100781602 77.4682027381635 5

Black Drongo 1/05/2019 10:35 1 31.6650640312877 77.4679663684941 5

Grey-hooded Warbler 1/05/2019 10:40 1 31.6642383719158 77.4673856702423 30 Bearded Vulture 1/05/2019 10:50 1 31.6640916467008 77.4662808515853 30

Ultramarine Flycatcher 1/05/2019 13:26 1 31.6411186941263 77.4349427596456 10

Grey-hooded Warbler 1/05/2019 15:12 1 31.6337421164211 77.3963494599586 10

Little Forktail 1/05/2019 15:47 1 31.6324535664466 77.3969869875139 30

Cheer Pheasant 2/05/2019 5:10 2 31.6487366287332 77.4226776045537 5

Upland Pipit 2/05/2019 5:18 1 31.6489625210237 77.4220431783026 5

Cheer Pheasant 2/05/2019 5:53 2 31.6529157618355 77.4191919901198 50

Striated Prinia 2/05/2019 5:53 1 31.6524895839688 77.4186974578327 30

Grey sided Bush Warbler 2/05/2019 6:37 1 31.6530611459461 77.4190141261345 10

Chukar Partridge 2/05/2019 6:37 1 31.6530611459461 77.4190141261345 10

Blue capped Rock Thrush 2/05/2019 6:43 1 31.6517416248393 77.4193374999589 10

Grey Bush Chat 2/05/2019 6:43 1 31.6516570514363 77.4193621427542 10

Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush 2/05/2019 6:43 2 31.6516570514363 77.4193621427542 10

Verditer Flycatcher 2/05/2019 6:43 1 31.6516570514363 77.4193621427542 10

Siberian Stonechat ssp indicus 2/05/2019 7:00 1 31.6499473946464 77.4212455563968 10

Himalayan White-browed Rosefinch 2/05/2019 7:00 2 31.6499473946464 77.4212455563968 10

Striated Prinia 2/05/2019 7:41 1 31.6483596945476 77.4207418878352 10

Siberian Stonechat ssp indicus 2/05/2019 7:42 1 31.6483609518331 77.4208129663741 10

Chukar Partridge 2/05/2019 7:42 2 31.6483503068161 77.4208212644583 5

Whiskered Yuhina 2/05/2019 8:34 1 31.6456679720726 77.4183688872283 30

Black Francolin 2/05/2019 8:55 1 31.6422317689579 77.4210115336603 10

Black Bulbul 2/05/2019 8:56 1 31.6420857142952 77.4209693726873 10

Large billed Crow 2/05/2019 8:56 1 31.6421785019633 77.4209018145478 10

Himalayan Bulbul 2/05/2019 9:00 2 31.6419975366738 77.4207717274105 30 Rock Dove 2/05/2019 9:04 1 31.6413348634091 77.4214683473831 30

Grey-hooded Warbler 2/05/2019 9:11 1 31.6405451204922 77.4209016469097 50

Common Rosefinch 2/05/2019 9:25 1 31.6403822182041 77.420746414063 50

Grey Wagtail 2/05/2019 9:27 1 31.6397011047524 77.4206641875928 10

Black Drongo 2/05/2019 9:28 1 31.6396511486095 77.4206510280049 5

Russet Sparrow 2/05/2019 9:29 1 31.6394336382222 77.4206390418833 10

Black Kite 2/05/2019 9:31 1 31.6385507304516 77.420117436049 10

Grey Treepie 2/05/2019 9:38 2 31.6402526758906 77.4161261413967 10

Common Myna 2/05/2019 9:44 1 31.6410170635503 77.4117673841095 10

Bank Myna 2/05/2019 9:44 1 31.64101706 77.41176738 10

Barn Swallow 2/05/2019 18:17 2 31.644360814273 77.3446580954616 10