Pongal Bird Count 2016 January, 15-18

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Pongal Bird Count Pongal was celebrated by birders of Tamil Nadu through Pongal Bird Count (PBC), an event organized by the Tamilbirds group and Bird Count India. This event was organized for the second time in Tamil Nadu and saw an increase in enthusiasm and participation from last year.

2015 2016

329 lists 1296 lists

285 species 334 species

174.3 hours 790.4 hours

85 participants 170 participants

1296 Checklists in 29 districts

Out of 32 districts in Tamil Nadu, birders from 29 districts and an adjoing Union Territory, Puducherry, participated in PBC 2016.

Map of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry showing the lists submitted during PBC 2016. Each list is shown in the map as a translucent circle: darker areas therefore represent multiple lists from the same or adjacent locations.

Dotted regions represent the districts (Dharmapuri, Karur, Perambalur and Theni) from where no lists were submitted. Out of 1296 lists submitted most lists were from Chennai, Kancheepuram, Pudukkottai, Coimbatore and The Nilgiris (top 5 districts). In camparison, districts from central and southern Tamil Nadu submitted relatively lower number of checklists.

No. of Lists No. of Species 300 200

180

250 160

140 200

120

150 100 No. of ofLists No. 80 ofSpecies No.

100 60

40 50

0 0

During the PBC 2016, more than 200 checklists were submitted daily (Day1-389, Day2- 359, Day3-324, Day4-224) of which 94% were effort based complete checklists (Stationary and Travelling) and rest being casual or incidental observations.

Travelling Staionary Incidental

42% 52%

334 species

Out of nearly 525 species likely to occur in Tamil Nadu region, 334 species were reported within four days of PBC 2016. Complete list of birds reported during this period can be seen in Annexure 1.

House Crow was the most common resident bird appearing in 64% of all the checklists and the Blyth’s Reed Warbler was the most common migrant appearing in 26% of the checklists. Top 5 species reported in individual districts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry during PBC 2016 can be seen in Annexure 2.

Top 10 resident birds reported during PBC 2016

Sl. No. Common Name Scientific Name Percentage occurrence 1 House Crow Corvus splendens 64% 2 Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 58% 3 Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Corvus macrorhynchos 49% Crow) 4 Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 46% 5 Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 44% 6 White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis 37% 7 Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 35% 8 Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica 33% 9 Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 33% 10 Yellow-billed Babbler Turdoides affinis 32%

Top 10 migrant birds reported during PBC 2016

Sl. No. Common name Scientific name Percentage occurrence 1 Blyth's Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus dumetorum 26% 2 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 24% 3 Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus 24% 4 Indian Golden Oriole Oriolus kundoo 10% 5 Pied Cuckoo (Jacobin Clamator jacobinus 8% Cuckoo) 6 Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus 8% 7 Brown Shrike Lanius cristatus 7% 8 Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus 7% 9 Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos 7% 10 Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola 7%

790 hours and 170 participants

During PBC 2016, each participant spent on an average 4.65 hours on birding. This includes individual participants and group accounts. Coimbatore and Kancheepuram districts had highest number of participants (28 each). Nagappattinam and Erode had highest per person effort of 6.0 and 5.9 hours, respectively.

The table shows the top participants (including group accounts) per union territory/ districts, in terms of number of lists recorded (up to 5 participants per districts are shown). For a complete list of participants, see Annexure 3.

Districts No. of Ave. Per Person Participant Names Participants Effort (hrs)

Puducherry 8 2.5 Surendhar Boobalan, Vigneshwaran B, Arulmozhi Senthil, J Nagaraj, Coumarane Kupps Ariyalur 3 3.8 Albert Relton, Raja Simma Pandiyan, Babu santhanakrishnan Chennai 17 4.2 TheNatureTrust(GroupAccount), Vivek Puliyeri, Rama Neelamegam, Susy Varughese, Mahathi Narayanaswamy Coimbatore 28 2.4 Appavu Pavendhan, CinchonaGHS(GroupAccount), Prakash G, Selvaganesh K, Gunasekaran M Cuddalore 1 1.3 Surendhar Boobalan

Dindigul 5 1.7 Mohan Raj K., Amudha Hariharan, Arunsankar N, Dhruv Athreye, Bharathidasan Subbiah Erode 8 5.1 Himanshu Dave, Abu Clicks, Shanmugam Kalidass, Anand Palani, R Selvamani Kancheepuram 28 3.9 TheNatureTrust(GroupAccount), Ganeshwar S V, Vijay Kumar, Devika Rani Kanniyakumari 2 1.7 Jayadev Menon, Nila Subramanian

Krishnagiri 3 3.4 Rupa Maity, Rajesh Balakrishnan, Arvind Adhi Madurai 11 5.1 Badri Narayanan Thiagarajan, Priya Rajendran, Raveendran Natarajan, Patrick David, Priya Darshini Nagappattinam 7 6.0 Nature Society of Tirupur Tirupur (GroupAccount), Amol Mande, Pradeep Kumar V B, Balaji P B The Nilgiris 10 5.9 Indira Srinivasan, Bhoopathy A & Indrajith A, Vijay Krishnaraj, Sivakumar SS, Kavin SG Namakkal 6 3.2 Mohanraj T, Subash Nachimuthu, Elavarasi P, TheNatureTrust (GroupAccount), Sivaranjini K Pudukkottai 10 4.7 Selvaganesh K, GovtArtsCollege4Women Pudukkottai (Group Account), Priyanga A, Priyadarshini K, Panchapakesan Jeganathan Ramanathapuram 6 4.1 Dr. Ravi M, Raveendran Natarajan, Seen Mani, Priyadarshini K, Priyanga A Salem 5 2.1 Carlton Relton, Gokul Vadivel, Subraja Vasudevan, (Maram Palanisami), Dr. Ravi M Sivaganga 4 2.7 Raveendran Natarajan, Dr. Ravi M, Priya Darshini, Karthika MD Tiruchirappalli 4 5.0 Siva T, Palani Andavan Balasubramanian, Sathiaseelan Karthikeyan, Aishwarya D Tirunelveli 2 3.8 Subbu Rajan, Thalavai Pandi

Thanjavur 7 3.8 Raja Simma Pandiyan, Panchapakesan Jeganathan, Sheeba Nanjan, Griffith Michael, Duraiswamy Navaneetham Thoothukkudi 5 3.1 Naveen Joseph, Sakthi Manickam, Rajeesh Kumar MP, Amudha Hariharan, Sundar Lakshmanan Thiruvallur 8 2.5 Amirtharaj Uthirasu, Rajarajan V, TheNatureTrust (GroupAccount), Sundar Palanivelu, Melvin Jaison Tiruppur 14 2.2 Shanmugam Kalidass, Arumugam Mohankumar, AM Amsa, Anand Palani, Nature Society of Tirupur Tirupur (Group Account) Thiruvarur 9 1.5 Raja Simma Pandiyan, Amirtharaj Uthirasu, Oviya Nakkeeran, Sheeba Nanjan, Panchapakesan Jeganathan Tiruvannamalai 3 4.0 Amirtharaj Uthirasu, Kalaimani Ayuthavel, Vijay Kumar Vellore 2 1.0 Harshjeet Bal, Jaganathan Mohan

Viluppuram 5 4.6 Surendhar Boobalan, Lekshmi R, Rajamanikam Ramamoorthy, Kalaimani Ayuthavel, Vigneshwaran B Virudunagar 3 1.3 Sharan Venkatesh, Junglehome Mudumalai, Viji G

Some participants and groups showed dedicated efforts during PBC 2016 and are mentioned below:

Top 10 individuals by no. of lists Top 10 individuals by no. of hours

Name No. of Lists Name Hours Selvaganesh K 80 Surendhar Boobalan 26.0 Ganeshwar S V 65 Raveendran Natarajan 20.5 Indira Srinivasan 60 Selvaganesh K 20.0 Vivek Puliyeri 51 Ganeshwar S V 19.5 Panchapakesan Jeganathan 49 Shanmugam Kalidass 16.9 Shanmugam Kalidass 41 Raja Simma Pandiyan 15.8 Susy Varughese 38 Indira Srinivasan 15.0 Surendhar Boobalan 37 Vijay Kumar 14.6 Sheeba Nanjan 34 Dr. Ravi M 13.3 Mahathi Narayanaswamy 33 Vivek Puliyeri 12.8

Top Group Accounts by no. of lists Top Group Accounts by no. of hours

Name No. of Lists Name Hours TheNatureTrust 94 TheNatureTrust 47.3 (GroupAccount) (GroupAccount) GovtArtsCollege4Women 27 CNS Nature 9.0 Pudukkottai Nature Society of Tirupur 9.0 Cinchona GHS 18 Cinchona GHS 6.9 (Group account) (Group account) CNS Nature 6 GovtArtsCollege4Women 6.8 Nature Society of Tirupur 5 Pudukkottai Birds Auroville 4 Birds Auroville 0.0 (GroupAccount) (GroupAccount)

Some memorable moments of PBC 2016 from participants

From A. Bhoopathy, The Nilgiris.

In the Nilgiris, a team members (Myself, My grandson A Indrajit and K. Prabu) of Sackatha village, Aravenu, Kotagiri taluk covered the eastern slopes included Sackatha village, Banagudi Shola and the Longwood Shola.

We started the Pongal Bird Count from the elevation of 1600mts to 1025mts. The have been observing in the farm land of Coffee and Tea estates as well as the forest habitations of Shola and evergreen forests. Out team had a good collection of birds in the farmland rather than the forest lands. The winter is the good season for observing the migrants, altitudinal migrants and resident birds.

In this bird count, Mamaram, Kunjapanai, Kolikarai and Chemmanarai were intensively covered by our team. Within this Eastern slopes mountain boundaries, live characteristic, plants, animals, birds, insects and other inhabitants, adapted to the region’s climate, landforms and soil. In the tea and coffee estates eco-system, evergreen forest patches surround the tea fields and the rivulets cut across the tea and coffee estates and run through the hedges and bushes which are unique by itself in the Nilgiris; especially in the Vagapanai slopes, Cliffy slopes, Konavakarai slopes and the Jackanarai slopes . These are the geographical features of Nilgiri Eastern Slopes.

The eastern slope was one of the favorite birding place of late Dr. Salim Ali, as he mentioned in his biography of “The Fall of the Sparrow”.

G. Parameswaran (Shiva), Coimbatore

I could only contribute a morning count of Ukkadam Big Tank in Coimbatore on Sunday the 17th of the month. Since Pongal is a time that many bird watchers have other important family commitments, I had to go it alone. My list has been posted in ebird on Jan 17th. Notable sightings are (1) Watercock and (2) Clamorous Reed Warbler. One should also point out the lack of 'long distance migrant ducks' like Pintails, Garganeys and Shovelers in the Coimbatore area this winter. Only a systematic implementation of this seasonal bird count will answer many of the questions that arise due to changes in the environment and may be even climate change.

I would also suggest one simple change to the duration of the count. Given family obligations, perhaps one could consider extending the count duration to at least ten days or two weeks, by including two successive weekends. All these matters and certainly worthy of discussion in the Tamil Birder's group. Duraiswamy Navaneetham. Thanjavur district

I started my hobby of bird watching a year ago with the Pongal Bird Count 2015. Most of my Counts are from the village of Mannankadu (10º25’26" N, 79º23’18" E) in Thanjavur district. My enjoyable experience of checklist-a-month, mostly in coconut groves and around the house, made me to try out waterbodies around the edge of the village for PBC 2016. Dry for several seasons these ponds and streams are now brimming with water due to copious northeast monsoon rains. Birds that I have not seen there for a while such as Common Sandpiper, Eurasian Coot were a lovely sight. Also PBC gave me the opportunity to learn and differentiate the male Indian Robin from the female. Resourceful experts readily helping out when I was in doubt about any bird species is very encouraging.

Here are some of the birds that I sighted during PBS 2016.

1. Indian Roller, 2. Common Kingfisher, 3. Common Sandpiper, 4. Eurasian Collard Dove, 5. Black-headed Munia, 6. Blue-tailed Bee-eater

From Rajesh Balakrishnan, Karthikeyan S, with Rupa Maity, Jijo

Birding at Melagiris - PBC 2016

Quite unusually, on a visit to Melagiris (near Hosur), we had a wee bit of expectation/wish! A couple of colleagues were joining us and we wanted their first birding session to be memorable. Armed with pocket field guides and binoculars, we set off.

Swallows doing sorties, grebes diving, long-legged stilts, a hornbill, and a black-winged kite made it a decent start. A Spotted Owlet took us by surprise, reiterating that fleeting glimpses are the norm.

Near Jawalagiri, we spotted and stopped - Yellow-wattled Lapwings and later Lesser Whistling Ducks. Some movement at the far end of the lake caught our attention, Northern Pintails - a first for us from this region! Ears turned and we were soon lip-syncing "Brain Fever" with the Common Hawk Cuckoo!

The drier regions were made colourful by the Roller - no wonder it is popular among State Birds. A dry leaf on a tree top turned out to be a Kestrel!

The avian fauna diversity at Melagiris is interesting. A count of over 70 species was quite a Bumper Harvest, appropriate for Pongal; we would've settled for much less at an introductory birding session! The fine Early Bird Pocket Field Guide, from NCF, got tested as well and came through with flying colours, quite literally!

Malabar Parakeets from Melagiris

From Kalidass, Tiruppur

(2016) . , , , , , , ,

1. Black-headed Cuckooshrike 2. Ashy Woodswallow 3. Chestnut-winged Cuckoo 4. Barn Owl (Roadkill), 5. Pallid Harrier, 6. Chestnut-tailed Starling Sharang Satish, Coimbatore

I had some wonderful moments during the Pongal Bird Count 2016 that I would like to share. I decided to introduce two of my friends to birding, and we headed off to Longwood Shola in Kotagiri, a wonderful location with its beautiful trails and teeming birdlife. Here I was able to see birds like Black-and-Orange flycatcher and Nilgiri Laughingthrush, among many others that were there on my wish list. The prized catch here was the Brown-Wood Owl. The next day, I was lucky to see the Citrine wagtail in Coimbatore, which could probably be the first record for the city. With a total of 8 lifers, it was a memorable close to the event.

1. Grey-headed Canary-Flycatcher, 2. Citrine Wagtail, 3. Nilgiri Flycatcher, 4. Brown Wood-Owl From Selvaganesh K, Pudukkottai

என鏁 믁தல் ப ொங்கல் றவைகள் கணக்பக翁ப்ꯁ:

பென்ற ஆண்翁 தமிழ்நொ翁 வைளொண் ல்கவைக்கழகத்தில் நடந்த தமிழ் றவையொளர்கள் ெந்திப் ில் கைந்鏁 பகொள்ள தி쏁.பெகநொதன் அைர்கள் அவழத்தொர். நொꟁம் என் தங்வக뿁ம் ங்埁 பகொண்வடொம்,அங்埁 தமிழ்நொட்羿ல் றவை ொர்த்தைின் நிவை ற்றி뿁ம் தமிழகத்தின் றவைகள் ரைல் ற்றிய ைிைரங்கள் மிகퟁம் 埁வறைொக இ쏁ப் தொகퟁம் அவத இந்த ப ொங்கல் றவைகள் கணக்பக翁ப் ில் 믁羿ந்த அளைிற்埁 தமிழகம் 믁폁ை鏁ம் இ鏁ைவர றவை ொர்த்தல் பெய்யப் டொத 埁திகளில் றவைகவளப் ொர்த்鏁 அவத ebird 믂ைம் திퟁ பெய்ய 믁羿ퟁ எ翁க்கப் ட்ட鏁. மொைட்ட ைொரியொக பென்ற ஆண்翁 (2015) ப ொங்கல் றவைகள் ொர்த்த தகைல்கள் கொண் ிக்கப் ட்டன அதில் நொன் ிறந்த மொைட்டமொன ꯁ鏁க்வகொட்வடயில் ஒ쏁ைர் 埂ட றவை ொர்த்தவை பெய்யைில்வை எனவை நொன் ꯁ鏁வகொட்வடயில் றவை ொர்த்தவை நடத்鏁ைதொக 埂றிவனன். ꯁ鏁வகொட்வடயில் ொர்வை ொர்த்தவை ள்ளிகள் மற்쟁ம் கல்쯂ரி மொணைர்கள் 믂ைம் பெய்ய திட்டமிடப் ட்ட鏁. ெிை கொரணங்களொல் நங்கள் நிவனத்த அளைிற்埁 பெய்ய 믁羿யைில்வை என்றொ쯁ம் இரண்翁 ள்ளிகள் மற்쟁ம் இரண்翁 கல்쯂ரி மொணைர்கள்இதில் ங்埁 ப ற்றனர். தொரொꯁரத்வத வெர்ந்த தி쏁. ெண்믁கம் கொளிதொ அைர்கள் ப ொங்கல் றவை ொர்த்தல் தமிழ்நொட்羿ன் 50 ப ொ鏁ப் றவைகள் அடங்கிய 100 鏁ண்翁 ிரதிகவள எனக்埁 அꟁப் ினொர் அவை ꯁதிய றவை ொர் ைர்க쿁க்埁 மிகퟁம் யꟁள்ளவையொக இ쏁ந்த鏁.

ப ொங்க쯁க்埁 믁ந்வதய நொள் என் அண்ணன் மகன் 믁த்鏁, என் ெித்தப் ொ மகன் நொகரொஜ் மற்쟁ம் மணி뿁டன் அமர்ந்鏁 நொவள எங்埁 எங்埁 றவைகவளப் ொர்க்கைொம் என்쟁 ஆவைொெித்鏁க் பகொண்羿쏁ந்வதொம். அப்ப ொ폁鏁 நொன் அந்த 鏁ண்翁 ிரதிகவளக் கொட்羿 இதில் உள்ள றவைகளில் எத்தவன றவைகவள ொர்த்鏁ள்ள ீர்கள் என்쟁 வகட்வடன். அதற்埁 믁த்鏁 வைகமொக “ெித்தப் ொ நொன் இதிை இ쏁க்埁ற 14 றவைகள ெொப்ட்翁 இ쏁க்வகன்“ என்றொன் எனக்埁 ெிரிப் தொ அ폁ைதொ என்쟁 பதரியைில்வை, நீதொன் எனக்埁 றவைகள் இ쏁க்埁ற இடத்வத எல்ைொம் கொட்ட வைண்翁ம் என்쟁 பெொன்வனன். அைꟁம் கொவையில் ெீக்கிரமொ வ ொனொல் தொன் றவைகவள நிவறய ொக்கைொம் என்쟁 பெொன்னொன். ெரி கொவை ஆ쟁 மணிக்埁 ொக்கைொம் என்쟁 பெொல்ைி அꟁப் ிைிட்வடன்.

தினொன்埁 ை쏁டங்க쿁க்க்埁 ிற埁 நொன் ிறந்த ஊரில் ப ொங்கல் பகொண்டொ翁கிவறன். அ鏁ퟁம் எனக்埁 ி羿த்த றவைக쿁டன். கொவை 4.30 மணிக்埁 ꯁள்ளி ஆந்வதவய ொர்த்鏁 என鏁 ப ொங்கல் றவை ொர்த்தவை என் மொமொ மகன் கமைநொதꟁடன் பதொடங்கிவனன். கொவை 5 மணிக்வக எங்கள் ை ீட்翁ப் ப ொங்கல் ப ொங்கிய鏁. ை ை쏁டம் கழித்鏁 அய்யம் ட்羿னத்தில் ப ொங்கல் பகொண்டொ翁ை鏁 மகிழ்வைத் தந்த鏁. ெர்க்கவரப் ப ொங்கல் ெொப் ிட்翁ைிட்翁 றவை ொர்த்தவைத் பதொங்கைொம் என்쟁 இ쏁ந்வதன், ெரியொக 6.20 க்埁 믁த்鏁ퟁம் மணி뿁ம் ைந்தனர் அைர்க쿁க்埁 எவ்ைொ쟁 றவை ொர்ப் 鏁, றவை ொர்த்தவை 埁றிப்வ ட்羿ல் 埁றிக்埁ம்வ ொ鏁 றவை ொர்த்த இடம், நொள், பதொடங்கிய வநரம், நடந்鏁 ொர்த்வதொமொ ஒவர இடத்தில் நின்쟁பகொண்翁 ொர்த்வதொமொ என் வத뿁ம் றவைகளின் எண்ணிக்வகவய뿁ம் 埁றிக்க வைண்翁ம் என்வறன். இ쏁ை쏁ம் மிகퟁம் ெிறப் ொக றவைகவளப் ட்羿யைிட்டனர்.

ின் நொங்கள் எங்கள் ையக்கொ翁 க்கம் றவை ொர்க்க பென்வறொம் ின் எம் கண்மொய், தண்ண ீர் ந்தல், இவடயொன் 埁ளம் 埁திகளில் றவை ொர்த்வதொம், அப்ப ொ폁鏁 믁த்鏁ைிடம் உனக்埁 ி羿த்த றவை என்ன என்ன வகட்வடன் அைன் கொச்ெில் (Indian Pitta) என்றொன். ஏன் என்வறன், அதன் கறி நல்ைொ இ쏁க்埁ம் அப்ꯁறம் நல்ைொ கைரொ இ쏁க்埁ம் ெித்தப் ொ என்றொன். அைன் உங்க쿁க்埁 ꯁ羿ச்ெ鏁 என்ன றவை என்쟁 வகட்டொன் நொன் ப ரிய இ쏁ைொெி என்வறன். ஏன் என்쟁 வகட்டொன் , நொன் அ鏁埂டவமக்埁ம் ைிதத்வத뿁ம் அ鏁 தன் 埁ஞ்வெப் வ 迁ம் ைிதத்வத뿁ம் அைꟁக்埁க் 埂றிவனன். அவடகொக்埁ம் கொைத்தில் ஆண் றவை வைட்வடயொடப் ட்டொல் அந்த ப ண் றவை மற்쟁ம் 埁ஞ்ெின் நிவை என்ன எனக் வகட்வடன். அைன் ொைம் ெித்தப் ொ அ鏁ퟁம் பெத்鏁 வ ொ埁ம் என்றொன். அ鏁 வ ொைத்தொன் நீ뿁ம் றவைவய அ羿த்鏁 ெொப் ிட்டொல் அைற்றின் 埁ஞ்毁 அைங்க அம்மொ அப் ொ இல்ைொமல் பெத்鏁 வ ொ埁ம் என்வறன். உங்க쿁க்埁 என்ன என்ன றவை ப யர் பதரி뿁ம் என்쟁 அைர்களிடம் வகட்வடன், வதன் ெிட்翁(sunbirds), ெொதொ ெிட்翁(warblers), 埁쟁 믁ளியொன் (Asian Brown Flycatcher), உள்ளொன் (Sandpipers, Plovers) ,மஞ்ெப் ட்翁 (Indian Golden Oriole), பகொண்டைொத்தி, கொக்கொ, மயில், 埁யில், பெம்வ ொத்鏁, மண்ட埁쏁ைி (Brown Shrike), 鏂கனங்埁쏁ைி, னங்கொவட, கொச்ெில் என்쟁 அ翁க்கி பகொண்வட வ ொனொர்கள் ிற埁 ையி쟁 ெிக்க பதொடங்கிய鏁 எனவை ை ீட்翁க்埁 வ ொய் ெொப் ிட்翁 ைிட்翁 ெொயங்கொைம் றவை ொக்கைொம் என்쟁 பெொல்ைி கிளம் ிைிட்வடொம்.

ெொப் ிட்ட鏁ம் 5 கிமி தள்ளி உள்ள வமட்翁க் பகொள்வளயில் என் ெித்தப் ொ ை ீட்羿ற்埁 பென்쟁 என் தங்வக கொர்த்திகொퟁடன் அ쏁கில் இ쏁ந்த 埁ட்வடயில் றவைகவளப் ொர்த்வதொம். ின் மீண்翁ம் மொவை 믁த்鏁, மணி, நொகரொஜ் ஆகிவயொ쏁டன் ஆெொன் கண்மொய் க்கம் றவை ொர்க்க பென்வறொம். அப்ப ொ폁鏁 நீைைொல் ஞ்毁쏁ட்டன் ொர்த்வதொம். இ鏁 ைிைெொய கொைங்களில் ைைவெ ை쏁ம் றவை. இ鏁 யிவரத் தொக்埁ம் ꯂச்ெிகவளக் கட்翁ப் 翁த்த ப ரி鏁ம் உதퟁம் என்வறன். அைர்க쿁ம் நிவறய வகள்ைிகவளச் ெவளக்கொமல் வகட்டனர். 埁쏁믁ழியொன், மண்ட 埁쏁ைி, பகொண்டைொத்தி இ쏁க்埁ம் இடத்鏁ை தொன் கொச்ெில் இ쏁க்埁ம், 鏂க்கணொங்埁쏁ைி தண்ண ீ쏁க்埁 அ쏁கில் தொன் 埂டவமக்埁ம், கரிச்ெொன் 쏁ந்வதவய ெண்வடயிை வதொற்க羿க்埁ம் வ ொன்ற ை தகைல்கவள நொன் அைர்களிடம் இ쏁ந்鏁 கற்쟁க்பகொண்வடன். From Thirunaranan, The Nature Trust, Chennai

We just finished the uploads of our PBC checklists 94 nos.Really its a very great learning experience and very much useful for our monitoring field work especially uncover north Chennai (thickly populated and highly polluted ).

This year also lot of surprises from the unprotected and unnoticed habitats, some of the interesting species documented by our boys from North Chennai such as Pied Myna, White wagtail and Grey Headed Lapwing.

From Pallikaranai Marsh we have recorded Citrine wagtail, White wagtail, Yellow Wagtail. From Kancheepuram we have recorded a pair of Indian Spotted Eagle, White Stork and Red Munia.

Locations covered by our team: North Chennai (K. Deva and Kamala Kannan), Kancheepuram (Gowatham Ganesan), Thirukazhukundram, Namakkal and Mahaballipuram. Other members participated and help us in various ways are S. Ayyanar, J.Abraham, K.Thiyagarajan, S.Madhan and Chandrasekar.

Members of The Nature Trust birding during the PBC 2016. Photo: Thirunaranan K Annexure 1. Complete list of birds reported during PBC 2016.

S.No. Common name Scientific name 1 Alpine Swift Apus melba 2 Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus 3 Ashy Prinia Prinia socialis 4 Ashy Woodswallow Artamus fuscus 5 Ashy-crowned Sparrow-Lark (Ashy-crowned Finch-Lark) Eremopterix griseus 6 Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa latirostris 7 Asian Fairy-bluebird Irena puella 8 Asian Koel Eudynamys scolopaceus 9 Asian Openbill Anastomus oscitans 10 Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 11 Asian Pied Starling (Pied Myna) Gracupica contra 12 Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus 13 Barn Owl Tyto alba 14 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 15 Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike Hemipus picatus 16 Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus 17 Bay-backed Shrike Lanius vittatus 18 Besra Accipiter virgatus 19 Black Bittern Ixobrychus flavicollis 20 Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 21 Black Eagle Ictinaetus malaiensis 22 Black Kite Milvus migrans 23 Black-and-rufous Flycatcher (Black-and-orange Flycatcher) Ficedula nigrorufa 24 Black-bellied Plover (Grey Plover) Pluvialis squatarola 25 Black-chinned Laughingthrush (Nilgiri Laughingthrush) Trochalopteron cachinnans 26 Black-crowned Night-Heron Nycticorax nycticorax 27 Black-headed Cuckooshrike Lalage melanoptera 28 Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus 29 Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus 30 Black-hooded Oriole Oriolus xanthornus 31 Black-naped Monarch Hypothymis azurea 32 Black-naped Oriole Oriolus chinensis 33 Black-rumped Flameback (Lesser Goldenbacked Woodpecker) Dinopium benghalense 34 Black-shouldered Kite (Black-winged Kite) Elanus caeruleus 35 Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa 36 Black-throated Munia Lonchura kelaarti 37 Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus 38 Blue Rock-Thrush Monticola solitarius 39 Blue-bearded Bee-eater Nyctyornis athertoni 40 Blue-capped Rock-Thrush Monticola cinclorhynchus 41 Blue-faced Malkoha Phaenicophaeus viridirostris 42 Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus 43 Blue-throated Flycatcher (Blue-throated Blue-Flycatcher) Cyornis rubeculoides 44 Blyth's Pipit Anthus godlewskii 45 Blyth's Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus dumetorum 46 Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata 47 Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus 48 Booted Warbler Iduna caligata 49 Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus 50 Brahminy Starling Sturnia pagodarum 51 Broad-billed Sandpiper Calidris falcinellus 52 Bronzed Drongo Dicrurus aeneus 53 Bronze-winged Jacana Metopidius indicus 54 Brown Fish-Owl Ketupa zeylonensis 55 Brown Shrike Lanius cristatus 56 Brown Wood-Owl Strix leptogrammica 57 Brown-backed Needletail Hirundapus giganteus 58 Brown-breasted Flycatcher Muscicapa muttui 59 Brown-capped Pygmy Woodpecker (Indian Pygmy Woodpecker) Dendrocopos nanus 60 Brown-cheeked Fulvetta Alcippe poioicephala 61 Brown-headed Barbet (Large Green Barbet) Psilopogon zeylanicus Chroicocephalus 62 Brown-headed Gull brunnicephalus 63 Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia 64 Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles exustus 65 Chestnut-headed Bee-eater Merops leschenaulti 66 Chestnut-shouldered Petronia (Yellow-throated Sparrow) Petronia xanthocollis 67 Chestnut-tailed Starling Sturnia malabarica 68 Chestnut-winged Cuckoo Clamator coromandus 69 Cinereous Tit (Great Tit) Parus cinereus 70 Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnamomeus 71 Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola 72 Clamorous Reed-Warbler (Indian Great Reed-Warbler) Acrocephalus stentoreus 73 Comb Duck (Knob-billed Duck) Sarkidiornis melanotos 74 Common Babbler Turdoides caudata 75 Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 76 Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus 77 Common Emerald Dove (Emerald Dove) Chalcophaps indica 78 Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia 79 Common Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx varius 80 Common Iora Aegithina tiphia 81 Common Kingfisher (Small Blue Kingfisher) Alcedo atthis 82 Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 83 Common Pochard Aythya ferina 84 Common Redshank Tringa totanus 85 Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula 86 Common Rosefinch Carpodacus erythrinus 87 Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos 88 Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago 89 Common Tailorbird Orthotomus sutorius 90 Common Tern Sterna hirundo 91 Common Woodshrike Tephrodornis pondicerianus 92 Coppersmith Barbet Psilopogon haemacephalus 93 Cotton Pygmy-Goose (Cotton Teal) Nettapus coromandelianus 94 Crested Hawk-Eagle Nisaetus cirrhatus 95 Crested Honey Buzzard (Oriental Honey-buzzard) Pernis ptilorhynchus 96 Crested Serpent-Eagle Spilornis cheela 97 Crested Treeswift Hemiprocne coronata 98 Crimson-backed Sunbird (Small Sunbird) Leptocoma minima 99 Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea 100 Dark-fronted Babbler Rhopocichla atriceps 101 Dusky Crag-Martin Ptyonoprogne concolor 102 Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 103 Eurasian Collared-Dove Streptopelia decaocto 104 Eurasian Coot Fulica atra 105 Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata 106 Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops 107 Eurasian Kestrel (Common Kestrel) Falco tinnunculus 108 Eurasian Marsh-Harrier Circus aeruginosus 109 Eurasian Moorhen Gallinula chloropus 110 Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia 111 Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope 112 European Bee-eater Merops apiaster 113 Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus indicus 114 Fulvous Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna bicolor 115 Garganey Anas querquedula 116 Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus 117 Golden-fronted Leafbird (Golden-fronted Chloropsis) Chloropsis aurifrons 118 Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo 119 Great Crested Tern Thalasseus bergii 120 Great Egret Ardea alba 121 Great Hornbill (Great Pied Hornbill) Buceros bicornis 122 Great Thick-knee (Great Stone-curlew) Esacus recurvirostris 123 Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis 124 Greater Flameback Chrysocolaptes guttacristatus 125 Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus 126 Greater Painted-Snipe Rostratula benghalensis 127 Greater Racket-tailed Drongo Dicrurus paradiseus 128 Greater Sand-Plover Charadrius leschenaultii 129 Greater Spotted Eagle Clanga clanga 130 Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis 131 Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus 132 Green Warbler Phylloscopus nitidus 133 Greenish Warbler Phylloscopus trochiloides 134 Green-winged Teal (Common Teal) Anas crecca 135 Grey Francolin Francolinus pondicerianus 136 Grey Heron Ardea cinerea 137 Grey Junglefowl Gallus sonneratii 138 Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea 139 Grey-bellied Cuckoo Cacomantis passerinus 140 Grey-breasted Prinia Prinia hodgsonii 141 Grey-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus priocephalus 142 Grey-headed Canary-Flycatcher Culicicapa ceylonensis 143 Grey-headed Lapwing Vanellus cinereus 144 Grey-headed Swamphen (Purple Swamphen) Porphyrio poliocephalus 145 Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica 146 Hill Swallow (House Swallow) Hirundo domicola 147 House Crow Corvus splendens 148 House Sparrow Passer domesticus 149 Hume's Whitethroat Sylvia althaea 150 Indian Blackbird Turdus simillimus 151 Indian Blue Robin Larvivora brunnea 152 Indian Bushlark (Red-winged Bushlark) Mirafra erythroptera 153 Indian Cormorant (Indian Shag) Phalacrocorax fuscicollis 154 Indian Courser Cursorius coromandelicus 155 Indian Cuckoo Cuculus micropterus 156 Indian Golden Oriole Oriolus kundoo 157 Indian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros birostris 158 Indian Nightjar Caprimulgus asiaticus 159 Indian Nuthatch Sitta castanea 160 Indian Paradise-Flycatcher Terpsiphone paradisi 161 Indian Peafowl Pavo cristatus 162 Indian Pitta Pitta brachyura 163 Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 164 Indian Robin Copsychus fulicatus 165 Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis 166 Indian Scimitar-Babbler Pomatorhinus horsfieldii 167 Indian Scops-Owl Otus bakkamoena 168 Indian Silverbill (White-throated Munia) Euodice malabarica 169 Indian Spot-billed Duck Anas poecilorhyncha 170 Indian Spotted Eagle Clanga hastata 171 Indian Swiftlet Aerodramus unicolor 172 Indian Thick-knee (Indian Stone-curlew) Burhinus indicus 173 Indian Tit (Indian Black-lored Tit) Machlolophus aplonotus 174 Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 175 Intermediate Egret Mesophoyx intermedia 176 Jerdon's Bushlark Mirafra affinis 177 Jerdon's Leafbird (Jerdon's Chloropsis) Chloropsis jerdoni 178 Jungle Babbler Turdoides striata 179 Jungle Bush-Quail Perdicula asiatica 180 Jungle Myna Acridotheres fuscus 181 Jungle Prinia Prinia sylvatica 182 Kashmir Flycatcher Ficedula subrubra 183 Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus 184 Laggar Falcon Falco jugger 185 Large Cuckooshrike Coracina macei 186 Large Grey Babbler Turdoides malcolmi 187 Large-billed Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus magnirostris 188 Laughing Dove (Little Brown Dove) Streptopelia senegalensis 189 Legge's Hawk-Eagle Nisaetus kelaarti 190 Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus 191 Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis 192 Lesser Fish-Eagle Ichthyophaga humilis 193 Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni 194 Lesser Sand-Plover Charadrius mongolus 195 Lesser Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna javanica 196 Lesser Yellownape Picus chlorolophus 197 Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger 198 Little Egret Egretta garzetta 199 Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis 200 Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius 201 Little Spiderhunter Arachnothera longirostra 202 Little Stint Calidris minuta 203 Little Swift (Indian House Swift) Apus affinis 204 Little Tern Sternula albifrons 205 Long-billed Sunbird (Loten's Sunbird) Cinnyris lotenius 206 Long-tailed Shrike Lanius schach 207 Malabar Barbet (Crimson-throated Barbet) Psilopogon malabaricus 208 Malabar Parakeet (Blue-winged Parakeet) Psittacula columboides 209 Malabar Trogon Harpactes fasciatus 210 Malabar Whistling-Thrush Myophonus horsfieldii 211 Malabar Woodshrike Tephrodornis sylvicola 212 Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis 213 Montagu's Harrier Circus pygargus 214 Nilgiri Flowerpecker Dicaeum concolor 215 Nilgiri Flycatcher Eumyias albicaudatus 216 Nilgiri Pipit Anthus nilghiriensis 217 Nilgiri Thrush Zoothera neilgherriensis 218 Nilgiri Wood-Pigeon Columba elphinstonii 219 Northern Pintail Anas acuta 220 Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata 221 Orange Minivet Pericrocotus flammeus 222 Orange-headed Thrush Geokichla citrina 223 Oriental Darter Anhinga melanogaster 224 Oriental Magpie-Robin Copsychus saularis 225 Oriental Skylark Alauda gulgula 226 Oriental White-eye Zosterops palpebrosus 227 Osprey Pandion haliaetus 228 Pacific Golden-Plover Pluvialis fulva 229 Paddyfield Pipit Anthus rufulus 230 Painted Bush-Quail Perdicula erythrorhyncha 231 Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala 232 Pale-billed Flowerpecker Dicaeum erythrorhynchos 233 Pallas's Gull Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus 234 Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus 235 Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus 236 Pheasant-tailed Jacana Hydrophasianus chirurgus 237 Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta 238 Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata 239 Pied Cuckoo (Jacobin Cuckoo) Clamator jacobinus 240 Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis 241 Pin-tailed Snipe Gallinago stenura 242 Plain Prinia Prinia inornata 243 Plum-headed Parakeet Psittacula cyanocephala 244 Puff-throated Babbler Pellorneum ruficeps 245 Purple Heron Ardea purpurea 246 Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus 247 Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica 248 Red Avadavat Amandava amandava 249 Red Collared-Dove (Red Turtle-Dove) Streptopelia tranquebarica 250 Red Spurfowl Galloperdix spadicea 251 Red-naped Ibis (Indian Black Ibis) Pseudibis papillosa 252 Red-necked Falcon Falco chicquera 253 Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica 254 Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer 255 Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus 256 Red-whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus 257 Richard's Pipit Anthus richardi 258 River Tern Sterna aurantia 259 Rock Eagle-Owl (Indian Eagle-Owl) Bubo bengalensis 260 Rock Pigeon (Blue Rock Pigeon) Columba livia 261 Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 262 Rosy Starling Pastor roseus 263 Ruff Calidris pugnax 264 Rufous Babbler Turdoides subrufa 265 Rufous Treepie Dendrocitta vagabunda 266 Rufous Woodpecker Micropternus brachyurus 267 Rufous-bellied Shortwing (Nilgiri Blue Robin) Brachypteryx major 268 Rufous-tailed Lark Ammomanes phoenicura 269 Rusty-tailed Flycatcher Muscicapa ruficauda 270 Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis 271 Scaly-breasted Munia (Spotted Munia) Lonchura punctulata 272 Shikra Accipiter badius 273 Short-toed Snake-Eagle Circaetus gallicus 274 Sirkeer Malkoha Phaenicophaeus leschenaultii 275 Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei 276 Small Minivet Pericrocotus cinnamomeus 277 Southern Hill Myna Gracula indica 278 Speckled Piculet Picumnus innominatus 279 Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis 280 Spot-breasted Fantail (White-spotted Fantail) Rhipidura albogularis 281 Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis 282 Spotted Owlet Athene brama 283 Square-tailed Bulbul (Black Bulbul) Hypsipetes ganeesa 284 Stork-billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis 285 Streaked Weaver Ploceus manyar 286 Streak-throated Woodpecker Picus xanthopygaeus 287 Striated Heron (Little Heron) Butorides striata 288 Sykes's Warbler Iduna rama 289 Taiga Flycatcher (Red-throated Flycatcher) Ficedula albicilla 290 Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax 291 Tawny-bellied Babbler Dumetia hyperythra 292 Temminck's Stint Calidris temminckii 293 Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus 294 Thick-billed Flowerpecker Dicaeum agile 295 Thick-billed Warbler Iduna aedon 296 Tickell's Blue-Flycatcher Cyornis tickelliae 297 Tickell's Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis 298 Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis 299 Tricolored Munia (Black-headed Munia) Lonchura malacca 300 Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula 301 Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis 302 Verditer Flycatcher Eumyias thalassinus 303 Vernal Hanging-Parrot (Indian Lorikeet) Loriculus vernalis 304 Watercock Gallicrex cinerea 305 Western Crowned Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus occipitalis 306 Western Reef-Heron (Western Reef-Egret) Egretta gularis 307 Western Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava 308 Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus 309 Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida 310 White Stork Ciconia ciconia 311 White Wagtail Motacilla alba 312 White-bellied Blue-Flycatcher Cyornis pallipes 313 White-bellied Drongo Dicrurus caerulescens 314 White-bellied Sea-Eagle Haliaeetus leucogaster 315 White-bellied Shortwing (White-bellied Blue Robin) Brachypteryx albiventris 316 White-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus 317 White-browed Bulbul Pycnonotus luteolus 318 White-browed Fantail Rhipidura aureola 319 White-browed Wagtail (Large Pied Wagtail) Motacilla maderaspatensis 320 White-cheeked Barbet (Small Green Barbet) Psilopogon viridis 321 White-eyed Buzzard Butastur teesa 322 White-rumped Munia Lonchura striata 323 White-rumped Shama Copsychus malabaricus 324 White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis 325 White-winged Tern Chlidonias leucopterus 326 Wire-tailed Swallow Hirundo smithii 327 Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola 328 Woolly-necked Stork Ciconia episcopus 329 Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis 330 Yellow-billed Babbler Turdoides affinis 331 Yellow-browed Bulbul Iole indica 332 Yellow-eyed Babbler Chrysomma sinense 333 Yellow-wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus 334 Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis

Fulvous Whistling-duck recorded during PBC 2016. Photo: Surender Boobalan Annexure 2. Top 5 species reported in districts of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry during PBC 2016

Ariyalur 132 species, 5 lists Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus 80% Asian Koel Eudynamys scolopaceus 80% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 80% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 80% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 80% Chennai 103 species, 240 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 95% Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 87% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 86% Coppersmith Barbet Psilopogon haemacephalus 69% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 67% Coimbatore 179 species, 128 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 43% Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 41% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 35% Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis 31% Red-whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus 31% Cuddalore 47 species, 3 lists Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 100% Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus 100% White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis 100% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 66% Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola 66% Dindigul 69 species, 7 lists Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 100% Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 85% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 85% Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer 85% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 85% Erode 105 species, 60 lists Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 63% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 50% House Crow Corvus splendens 50% Yellow-billed Babbler Turdoides affinis 40% Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus 40% Kancheepuram 146 species, 165 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 76% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 67% Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 55% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 43% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 43% Kanniyakumari 66 species, 5 lists Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 100% Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 80% Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger 80% Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus 80% Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus 80% Krishnagiri 76 species, 11 lists Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis 100% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 100% Jungle Babbler Turdoides striata 90% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 90% Jungle Myna Acridotheres fuscus 90% Madurai 125 species, 31 lists Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 74% Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus 67% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 61% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 61% Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis 61% Nagappattinam 106 species, 26 lists Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus 96% Little Egret Egretta garzetta 88% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 84% Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius 84% Great Egret Ardea alba 80% Namakkal 72 species, 33 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 69% Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 57% Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 48% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 45% Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis 42% Pudukkottai 91 species, 159 lists Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 64% Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 52% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 48% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 48% Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus 46% Ramanathapuram 125 species, 31 lists Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger 80% Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 74% Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 74% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 70% House Crow Corvus splendens 70%

Salem 71 species, 10 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 100% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 90% House Sparrow Passer domesticus 90% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 80% Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica 70% Sivaganga 67 species, 13 lists Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 92% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 84% Little Egret Egretta garzetta 76% Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger 61% Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis 61% Thanjavur 115 species, 65 lists Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 63% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 53% White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis 52% Common Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx varius 52% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 50% The Nilgiris 166 species, 70 lists Indian/Eastern Jungle Crow (Large-billed Crow) Corvus macrorhynchos 88% Red-whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus 75% House Crow Corvus splendens 64% Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis 58% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 57% Thiruvallur 96 species, 25 lists House Crow Corvus splendens 64% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 60% Rock Pigeon (Blue Rock Pigeon) Columba livia 40% Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 24% Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 24% Thiruvarur 107 species, 18 lists Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 100% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 83% Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus 83% Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis 77% Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 72% Thoothukkudi 96 species, 21 lists Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer 52% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 47% Little Egret Egretta garzetta 42% House Crow Corvus splendens 38% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 38%

Tiruchirappalli 119 species, 37 lists Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 83% House Crow Corvus splendens 83% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 59% Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 56% Yellow-billed Babbler Turdoides affinis 54% Tirunelveli 90 species, 5 lists House Sparrow Passer domesticus 100% House Crow Corvus splendens 100% Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus 80% Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger 80% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 80% Tiruppur 118 species, 43 lists Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 83% Eastern/Western Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis 74% House Crow Corvus splendens 65% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 60% Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus 53% Tiruvannamalai 68 species, 12 lists Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 75% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 66% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 50% Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica 50% Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 50% Vellore 18 species, 3 lists Coppersmith Barbet Psilopogon haemacephalus 66% Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri 66% House Crow Corvus splendens 66% Indian Golden Oriole Oriolus kundoo 33% White-browed Bulbul Pycnonotus luteolus 33% Viluppuram 128 species, 33 lists Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 72% Indian Pond-Heron Ardeola grayii 69% Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus 60% Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer 57% Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 57% Virudunagar 82 species, 4 lists Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis 75% House Crow Corvus splendens 75% White-throated Kingfisher Halcyon smyrnensis 75% Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus 75% Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis 75%

Annexure 3: Full list of participants of PBC 2016

A ABINAYAH RM, ABU CLICKS, AISHWARYA D, AKASH KRISHNA, AL AMEEN AMEEN, ALBERT RELTON, AM AMSA, AMIRTHARAJ UTHIRASU, AMOL MANDE, AMUDHA HARIHARAN, ANAND PALANI, ANAND SUNDARAM, APPAVU PAVENDHAN, ARAVIND RAM, ARULMOZHI SENTHIL, ARUMUGAM MOHANKUMAR, ARUNSANKAR N, ARVIND ADHI, ARVIND KARTHIK, ASHWIN HP,

. (INBO. AMBIKA)

B BABU SANTHANAKRISHNAN, BADRI NARAYANAN THIAGARAJAN, BALAJI P B, BHARATHIDASAN SUBBIAH, BHOOPATHY. A & INDRAJITH.A, BIRDS AUROVILLE (GROUPACCOUNT), BIRUNTHA S

C CARLTON RELTON, CINCHONA GHS (GROUP ACCOUNT), CNS NATURE, COUMARANE KUPPS

D DEVIKA RANI, DHAMODARAN S, DHANAPAL DHANDAPANI, DHRUV ATHREYE, DIVYA MUDAPPA, DIVYAPRIYA CHANDRASEKARAN, DR. RAVI M, DURAISWAMY NAVANEETHAM

E ELAVARASI P, ENAKSHI BHATTACHARYA, ESWARAN ARUMUGAM

G GANAPATHY SIVAPIRAGASAM, GANESH NAMASIVAYAM, GANESHWAR S V, GAUTAM KRISHNAN, GNANASKANDAN KESAVABHARATHI, GOKUL VADIVEL, GOVTARTSCOLLEGE4WOMEN PUDUKKOTTAI (GROUP ACCOUNT), GOWRISHANKAR M, GRIFFITH MICHAEL, GUNASEKARAN M

H HARSHJEET BAL, HIMANSHU DAVE

I INDIRA SRINIVASAN, IRENE DANIEL

J JAGANATHAN MOHAN, JAI PRAKASH SRINIVASAN, JAYA KUMAR K, JAYADEV MENON, JUNGLEHOME MUDUMALAI

K KALAIMANI AYUTHAVEL, KALYAN RAMAKRISHNA CHOWDARY VUNDAVALLI, KARTHIKA MD, KAVIN SG, KRISHNAMOORTHY CAA, KRISHNAMOORTHY MUTHIRULAN, KN SIVAKUMAR, M KARTHIKEYAN

L LEKSHMI R, LIMA ROSALIND M MADHUMITA PANIGRAHI, MAHATHI NARAYANASWAMY, MANGESH PRABHULKAR, MANIKANDAN S, MANOJ K, MANOJ RAM, MELVIN JAISON, MOHAN RAJ K., MOHANRAJ T, MUTHU PANDI, MYMOON MOGHUL

N NAGAPPAN R, NAGARAJ M, NATURE SOCIETY OF TIRUPUR TIRUPUR (GROUP ACCOUNT), NAVEEN JOSEPH, NILA SUBRAMANIAN, J NAGARAJ

O OVIYA NAKKEERAN

P PALANI ANDAVAN BALASUBRAMANIAN, PANCHAPAKESAN JEGANATHAN, PARVEZ AHMED, PATRICK DAVID, POOJA PAWAR, PRADEEP KUMAR V B, PRAKASH G, PRIYA DARSHINI, PRIYA

RAJENDRAN, PRIYADARSHINI K, PRIYANGA A, S. PRITHIVI RAJ, (MARAM PALANISAMY), G PARAMESWARAN

R K RATNAM, RAGHU BHEEMARAYAN, RAJA SIMMA PANDIYAN, RAJAGOPAL S, RAJAH JAYAPAL, RAJAMANIKAM RAMAMOORTHY, RAJARAJAN V, RAJEESH KUMAR MP, RAJESH BALAKRISHNAN RAJKUMAR VENKATAPATHY,RAJKUMAR S, RAMA NEELAMEGAM, RAMESH SANNACI, RAMRAJ

S RAVEENDRAN NATARAJAN, RENUKA VIJAYARAGHAVAN, RUPA MAITY

S K.SRAVAN KUMAR, R SELVAMANI, SAKTHI MANICKAM, SANKARANARAYANAN N, SARAYU RAMAKRISHNAN, SASHI KUMAR, SATCHIT SIVAKUMAR, SATHEESH KUMAR, SATHIASEELAN KARTHIKEYAN, SEEN MANI, SELVAGANESH K, SELVI KALAI, SHANMUGAM KALIDASS, SHANTI RAJESH, SHARAN VENKATESH, SHARANG SATISH, SHEEBA NANJAN, SIBIN THOMAS, SIVA T, SIVAKUMAR HARIHARAN, SIVAKUMAR SS, SIVARANJINI K, SMITHA JAYAKANTHAN, SUBASH NACHIMUTHU, SUBBU RAJAN, SUBHADRA KONDREDDY, SUBHASHINI SIVASUBRAMANIAN, SUBRABHARATHI MANIAN, SUBRAJA VASUDEVAN, SUBRAMANIAN SANKAR, SUDHARSHAN R, SUNDAR LAKSHMANAN, SUNDAR PALANIVELU, SURENDHAR BOOBALAN, SUSY VARUGHESE, T R SHANKAR RAMAN

T TANMAY JAIN, THALAVAI PANDI, THEIVAPRAKASHAM HARI, THENATURETRUST (GROUPACCOUNT)

U UMADEVI KUMAR

V VIGNESHWARAN B, VIJAY KRISHNARAJ, VIJAY KUMAR, VIJAY YERRA, VIJAYGANAPATHY PARTHASARATHY, VIJI G, VIKAS MADHAV NAGARAJAN, VIVEK PULIYERI Press coverage

Here are a few of the articles published on PBC 2016 in local newspapers.

Pongal Bird Count 2016 was coordinated by TamilBirds and Bird Count India and its various partners. For more information, see the following links:

Tamilbirds - in.groups.yahoo.com/group/Tamilbirds/

Bird Count India - http://www.birdcount.in/

Join the Facebook group -(https://www.facebook.com/groups/birdcountindia/)

Pongal Bird Count http://www.birdcount.in/events/pongal-bird-count/

Contact Bird Count India at [email protected] eBird - eBird India (http://ebird.org/ebird/country/IN/)

Pongal Bird Count 2016 Report prepared and compiled by P. Jeganathan and Swati Sidhu.

Young participants from Cinchona Government High School. Cinchona, Valparai, Coimbatore District. Photo: Selvaganesh K.