Raina: Striated Heron 43
References Ali, S., & Ripley, S. D., 1987. Compact handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan together with those of Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. 2nd ed. Delhi: Oxford University Press. Pp. i–xlii, 1 l., 1–737, 52 ll. Barua, M., & Sharma, P., 1999. Birds of Kaziranga National Park, India. Forktail 15 (August): 47–60. BirdLife International. 2016a. Important Bird and Biodiversity Area factsheet: Orang National Park. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org. [Accessed on 24 August 2016.] BirdLife International. 2016b. Species factsheet: Clanga hastata. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org. [Accessed on 22 August 2016.] Choudhury, A., 2000. The birds of Assam. 1st ed. Guwahati: Gibbon Books & World Wide Fund for Nature-India. Pp. 1–240. Hazarika, B. C., & Saikia, P. K., 2010. A study on the behaviour of Great Indian One- horned Rhino (Rhinoceros unicornis Linn.) in the Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park, Assam, India. NeBIO 1 (2): 62–74. IUCN 2016. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2016-2. Website URL: www. iucnredlist.org. [Accessed on 15 October 2016.] Naoroji, R., 2006. Birds of prey of the Indian Subcontinent. 1st ed. London: Christopher Helm. Pp. 704. Parry, S. J., Clark, W. S., & Prakash, V., 2002. On the taxonomic status of the Indian Spotted Eagle Aquila hastata. Ibis 144 (4): 665–675. Prakash, V., 1996. Status, distribution and breeding biology of Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina hastata in Keoladeo National Park. In: Eagle Studies. Meyburg, B. U., & Chancellor, R. D., (eds.). Berlin: World Working Group on Birds of Prey: Pp. 357–375.
Biswajit Chakdar Rahmani, A. R., 2012. Threatened birds of India: their conservation requirements. 58. Juvenile Indian Spotted Eagle. Mumbai: Indian Bird Conservation Network; Bombay Natural History Society; Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; BirdLife International; Oxford University Press. Pp. i–xvi, 1–864. There is no previous record of nesting of Indian Spotted Rahmani, A. R., & Choudhury, A., 2012. Threatened birds of Assam. India: Oxford Eagle from north-eastern India. The species might have been University Press; Indian Bird Conservation Network; Bombay Natural History overlooked as it is difficult to identify in the field, and confusion Society; Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; BirdLife International. Pp. i–viii, 1–167. with congeners persists (Ali & Ripley 1987). Specific studies Rasmussen, P. C., & Anderton, J. C., 2005. Birds of South Asia: the Ripley guide. 2nd are required to understand its population status and habitat ed. Washington, D.C. and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions. 2 preferences in RGONP and nearby areas. RGONP is one of the vols. Pp. 1–378; 1–683. well-protected areas in Assam, and therefore nesting of Indian Rasmussen, P. C., & Anderton, J. C., 2012. Birds of South Asia: the Ripley guide. 2nd Spotted Eagle in this park will help in its breeding success, as ed. Washington, D.C. and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions. 2 there is minimum anthropogenic pressure. vols. Pp. 1–378; 1–683.
Striated Heron Butorides striata: An addition to the avifauna of Jammu & Kashmir
Anuj Raina
Raina, A., 2017. Striated Heron Butorides striata: An addition to the avifauna of Jammu & Kashmir. Indian BIRDS 13 (2): 43–44. Anuj Raina, C-18, Manali Apartment, Opp AMA, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad 380015, Gujarat, India. E-mail: [email protected]. Manuscript received on 20 December 2016.
n 10 November 2016, at around 1630 hrs, while birding it had a blue-grey back, and wings, white to grey underparts, a at Surinsar Lake, Surinsar Mansar Wildlife Sanctuary, greenish-black cap, a dark line extending from bill to under the O(32.77°N, 75.03°E, c. 606 m asl), around 30 kms east eye, a reddish brown vertical band extending from chin to upper of Jammu, I spotted a Striated Heron Butorides striata near the chest, and short yellow legs. shores of the lake [59]. It was easily identified as a Striated Heron The bird was observed practicing bait fishing; an insect and I took many pictures. was dropped on the water for catching fish. I watched through The bird was sitting on a low branch of a tree, touching the binoculars, while the bird used insects as bait to catch fish. It lake shore, c.15 m from bank. The bird was clearly an adult, since dropped the insect on the water’s surface, waiting for fish to be 44 Indian BIRDS Vol. 13 No. 2 (Publ. 15 May 2017)
presence in the south-western fringes of Jammu & Kashmir, though no actual reports are mentioned. den Besten (2004) has not mention the species from Kangra District, including from the Maharana Pratap Sagar Pong Dam lake. I could not find any record of the species in online checklists submitted to ebird (www.ebird.org), or in ornithology papers on the avifauna of Jammu &Kashmir, and Himachal Pradesh. However, isolated records in Punjab, and Haryana have been shown in these field guides. A specimen was collected from Ambala, Punjab (Abdulali 1968), while Ali (1941) recorded it in Bhawalpur, Pakistan. But it has not been recorded in Jammu &Kashmir, and this sighting confirms its presence in that state.
Acknowledgement I thank Prasad Ganpule for helping me write this note. Anuj Raina 59. Striated Heron Butorides striata with insect bait. References Abdulali, H., 1968. A catalogue of the birds in the collection of the Bombay Natural History Society-1. Gaviiformes to Ciconiiformes. Journal of the Bombay attracted by the insect; if the attempt failed, the bird re-caught the Natural History Society 65 (1): 182–199. insect, and changed the location of the bait. No fish was caught Ali, S., 1941. The birds of Bahawalpur (Punjab). Journal of the Bombay Natural during the time I observed it. The heron continuously caught and History Society 42 (4): 704–747. shifted the insect on moving water. The bird was not shy, and denBesten, J. W., 2004. Birds of Kangra. 1st ed. Dharamsala& New Delhi: Moonpeak I took photos and observed its bait fishing activity for half an Publishers & Mosaic Books. Pp. 1–176. Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C., & Inskipp, T., 2011. Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. 2nd hour. Only one Striated Heron was seen during an hour’s birding ed. London: Oxford University Press & Christopher Helm. Pp. 1–528. session at Surinsar Lake. The weather was cool, but light was Kazmierczak, K., 2000. A field guide to the birds of India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, poor as the lake is surrounded by hills and the sun had gone Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. 1st ed. London: Pica Press / behind them. Christopher Helm. Pp. 1–352. As per the recent field guides, Kazmierczak (2000), and Rasmussen, P. C., & Anderton, J. C., 2012. Birds of South Asia: the Ripley guide. Grimmett et al. (2011), there is no record of the species from 2nd ed. Washington, D.C. and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Jammu & Kashmir. Rasmussen & Anderton (2012) maps its Edicions. 2 vols. Pp. 1–378; 1–683.
Northern Long-eared Owl Asio otus in East Sikkim
Dibyendu Ash, Anupam Khanna & Hrishikesh Bagchi
Ash, D., Khanna, A., & Bagchi, H., 2017. Northern Long-eared Owl Asio otus in East Sikkim. Indian BIRDS 13 (2): 44–45. Dibyendu Ash, 6/1/A, Banku Behari Paul Lane, Baranagar, Kolkata 700036, West Bengal, India. E-mail: [email protected] [DA] Anupam Khanna, 507 Block 2, Kirti Apartments, Mayur Vihar, Phase-1 Extension, Delhi 110091, India. E-mail: [email protected] [AK] Hrishikesh Bagchi, Sadhu Mukherjee Road, Barrackpore 700122, West Bengal, India. E-mail: [email protected] [HB] Manuscript received on 09 February 2017.
he Northern Long-eared Owl Asio otus is a rare, and Parrotbill Suthora nipalensis, Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush apparently erratic winter visitor to north-western India. Trochalopteron erythrocephalum, and White-browed Fulvetta TIt prefers semi-desert, groves, plantations, thickets, and Fulvetta vinipectus from a bamboo Arundinaria suberecta thicket coniferous forests. It has rarely reached Gujarat, western amidst mixed conifer forests. At that spot (27.24°N, 88.77°E; c. Uttaranchal, the Delhi area, Nepal, or Bhutan (Ali & Ripley 1987; 2400 m asl), we dispersed in various directions for more birding. Rasmussen & Anderton 2012). AK spotted the owl perched on a pine tree at 0705 hrs, and Here we wish to report a sight record of the Northern Long- summoned the others. All of us photographed it [60]: a pale eared Owl from Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary (27.24° N, 88.77° facial disk; long, erect ear tufts; and orange eyes are features that E), an Important Bird Area (IBA) in East Sikkim District, Sikkim, separate it from any other owl found in the region (Grimmett et India. al. 2011). We observed the bird for a few minutes, and then left On 05 February 2017, while we were driving in the sanctuary, the place without disturbing it. Later that afternoon we checked we stopped the car on hearing the calls of a mixed flock of birds this roosting site of the bird, but couldn’t find it. It was not present consisting of Brown Parrotbill Cholornis unicolor, Black-throated there the next day as well.