162 Indian Birds Vol. 16 No. 5 (Publ. 26 November 2020)

The status of the Common Kingfisher in Sariska Tiger Reserve before moving away. At times the birds were in a fairly open area is recorded as ‘Common’, where it resides near the vicinity of affording good views, and allowing photographic documentation. waterbodies and riparian habitats (Sultana 2013). It is commonly Their identification was straightforward on the basis of the seen among inland water birds that greater the population size, following main features: greyish brown upperparts, white throat, greater the competition for resources (Brown 1964). In this bold dark brown streaks on breast and flanks, rufous brown head, recorded observation there was only one natural spring which and buffy supercilium. supports the faunal community in the entire area, up to a 1.2 km radius, where, this kind of behaviour between the two individuals could probably represent territoriality aspects, primarily, due to the lack of resources present in that particular habitat which leads to such conflict (Hagemeijer & Blair 1997). The territory of the Common Kingfisher tends to cover a minimum of 1 km to a maximum of 3–5 km, and any nearby waterbody providing Udaipur sufficient resources would fall under their territory (RSPB 2020). Banas Kantha Kingfishers are known to be highly territorial and solitary by RAJASTHAN nature, which is why they aggressively defend their feeding GUJARAT grounds, even from mates and juvenile birds (Rush 2014). The observation reported herein was made under the National LEGENDS Site of PTB Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) funded project, ‘Monitoring Panarwa FRH Sabar Kantha of Reintroduced Tigers in Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan- Phase Phulwari Ki Nal WLS State Boundary II’ to Wildlife Institute of India (WII). We thank Rajasthan Forest Districts Department and NTCA for granting permission to conduct studies in Sariska Tiger Reserve; Parag Nigam (Scientist- F) for supervising Fig. 1. Phulwari ki Nal Wildlife Sanctuary with location of Puff-throated Babbler the project; Balaji Kari, IFS (Deputy Conservator of Forest, STR) sighting. Map. Dharmendra Khandal for accompanying in the field observation; and our field assistants, Ratan Gurjar and Rajesh Meena, for help in field study. There is considerable racial variation in the species, with much variation in colour of crown, ear-coverts, mantle, and darkness References and size of brown streaking (Grimmett et al. 1998). Collar & BirdLife International. 2020. Species factsheet: Alcedo atthis. Downloaded from http:// Robson (2020) recognize twenty-eight subspecies. On the basis www.birdlife.org. [Accessed on 22 August 2020.] of photographs [162, 163] of the birds in Phulwari ki Nal, the Brown, J. L., 1964. The evolution of diversity in avian territorial systems. The Wilson location of the sighting being contiguous with Gujarat, and the Bulletin 76 (2): 160–169. field characters of subspecies, including overall paler plumage, Fry, C. H., & Fry, K., 2010. Kingfishers, Bee-eaters & Rollers. 2nd ed. A & C Black. Pp. i–xi, 1–324. lighter streaking, and spotting below, as described in the literature Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C., & Inskipp, T., 2011. Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. 2nd ed. (Ali & Ripley 1996; Grimmett et al. 2011; Rasmussen & Anderton London: Oxford University Press & Christopher Helm. Pp. 1–528. 2012), we ascribe the Phulwari ki Nal Wildlife Sanctuary birds to Hagemeijer, W. J., & Blair, M. J., 1997. The EBCC atlas of European breeding the nominate P. r. ruficeps. birds. Poyser, London, Pp. 1–479. RSPB. 2020. Kingfisher: Breeding, feeding and territory. Website URL: https://www. rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/kingfisher/breeding- feeding-territory. [Accessed on 30 July 2020.] Rush, J., 2014. Get off my throne! Kingfisher swoops in and confronts its rival in battle for prime fishing spot near Kashmiri lake. Website URL: https://www.dailymail. co.uk/news/article-2735836/Get-throne-Kingfisher-swoops-confronts-rival-battle- prime-fishing-spot-near-Kashmiri-lake.html. [Accessed on 26 July 2020.] Sultana, A., 2013. An updated checklist of birds of Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 5 (13): 4791–4804. doi: http://dx.doi. org/10.11609/JoTT.o3215.4791-804. – Debaprasad Sengupta, Puja Deb & Prayas Auddy Debaprasad Sengupta, Bansbari Pathar, Dibrugarh 786001, Assam, India. E-mail: [email protected] Puja Deb & Prayas Auddy: Department of Zoology & Wildlife Biology, A.V.C. College (Autonomous), Mannampandal 609305, Tamil Nadu, India.

Puff-throated Babbler Pellorneum ruficeps in Phulwari

ki Nal Wildlife Sanctuary: A new species for Rajasthan D Both: On 10 March 2019, in the Gamdi ki Nal area (Fig. 1) of Phulwari ki Nal Wildlife Sanctuary (24.00º–24.50ºN, 73.11º–73.33ºE), harmendra Khandal Udaipur District, Rajasthan, a flock of five or six Puff-throated Babblers Pellorneum ruficeps were observed foraging on the ground; rummaging amongst, and turning over dead leaves. They were noticed, as they were quite vocal with their distinct calls. After the sighting the flock was present for about 12–13 min 162, 163. Two view of the Puff-throated Babbler foraging on the ground. Correspondence 163

Abdulali (1983) stated that ruficeps becomes paler Ganpule, P., 2016. The birds of Gujarat: Status and distribution. Flamingo 8 (3)–12 (4): northwards of Mumbai, and birds from Gujarat are paler than 2–40. those from further southwards in the Western Ghats. The birds Gohil, P., 2017. Website URL: http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ Image_ID=149689&Bird_ID=1421. [Accessed on 15 October 2020.] observed in Phulwari ki Nal were definitely paler compared to Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C., & Inskipp, T., 1998. Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. 1st ed. the birds from the Western Ghats, and generally resembled birds London: Christopher Helm, A & C Black. Pp. 1–888. from Gujarat. Moreover, these birds were not only streaked dark Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C., & Inskipp, T., 2011. Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. 2nd ed. brown (vs. black) below, but also showed a rather indistinct London: Oxford University Press & Christopher Helm. Pp. 1–528. supercilium (vs. broad and pale). Kazmierczak, K., 2000. A field guide to the birds of India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, A scrutiny of images on Oriental Bird Images (www. Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. 1st ed. New Delhi: Om Book Service. Pp. 1–352. orientalbirdimages.org) revealed that the birds photographed in Patel, V., & Maheria, P., 2016. Website URL: http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search. Gujarat from Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary on 08 April 2016 php?Bird_ID=1421&Bird_Image_ID=124016. [Accessed on 15 October 2020.] (Patel & Maheria 2016); Vansada National Park, 14 April 2017 Patel, V., & Maheria, P., 2017. Website URL: http://www.orientalbirdimages.org/search. (Patel & Maheria 2017)), and Madhya Pradesh at Pachmarhi, 08 php?Bird_ID=1421&Bird_Image_ID=139827. Accessed on 15 October 2020.] May 2010 (Gohil 2017) are comparatively paler than the birds Rasmussen, P. C., & Anderton, J. C., 2005. Birds of South Asia: the Ripley guide. 1st photographed in Goa, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. ed. Washington, D.C. and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions. 2 vols. Pp. 1–378, 1–683. In Phulwari ki Nal the birds were observed in Gamdi ki Nal Rasmussen, P. C., & Anderton, J. C., 2012. Birds of South Asia: the Ripley guide. 2nd bordering the northern bank of the Wakal River. Gamdi Ki Nal ed. Washington, D.C. and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions. 2 is a c.12 km long very narrow valley and looks like a gorge vols. Pp. 1–378; 1–683. between two parallel hills. Being a part of the Aravalli Hill Range, Ripley, S. D., 1982. A synopsis of the birds of India and Pakistan together with those the sanctuary has many narrow valleys that are known as nal in of Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. 2nd ed. Bombay; Oxford: Bombay Natural History Society; Oxford University Press. Pp. i–xxvi, 1–653. the local dialect. As the water regime in a nal is usually higher Sangha, H. S., & Devarshi, D., 2006. Birds of Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary, Rajasthan, than the adjacent areas, many riparian strips along the banks of India. Indian Birds 2 (2): 26–32. streams comprise semi-evergreen and evergreen flora. Theba, I., 2019. Website URL: https://ebird.org/checklist/S61968656. [Accessed on 10 In Kazmierczak (2000) and Grimmett et al. (2011) its August 2020.] occurrence in Rajasthan is not shown in the distribution maps, – Dharmendra Khandal, Satish Sharma, although a ‘?’ is marked in southern Rajasthan. Very obviously it and Harkirat Singh Sangha is based on Ali (1949) who also indicated its status from Mt Abu Dharmendra Khandal, Conservation Biologist, Tiger Watch, Maa Farm, Ranthambhore Road, with a ‘?’. But surprisingly, in his much later co-authored work, he Sawai Madhopur 322001, Rajasthan, India. E-mail: [email protected] did not give its distribution in Rajasthan and Gujarat (Ali & Ripley Satish Sharma, Assistant Conservator of Forests (Retd.), 14-15, Chakariya Amba, Rampura 1996). Ripley (1982) also did not record it from Rajasthan. More Choraha, Jhadol Road, Udaipur 313004, Rajasthan, India. recently, Sangha & Devarshi (2006) did not record the species E-mail: [email protected] Harkirat Singh Sangha, B-27, Gautam Marg, Hanuman Nagar, Jaipur 302021, Rajasthan, India. at Mt. Abu during an ornithological survey covering all seasons. E-mail: [email protected] Rasmussen & Anderton (2005, 2012) recorded it only from Gujarat, and mentioned that it is ‘widespread resident in wooded The Lemon-rumped Warbler Phylloscopus parts of Peninsular India, south from Gujarat to south-west from W Bengal, and disjunctly in Himalayan foothills and adjacent chloronotus: An addition to the avifauna of Gujarat plains from west Himachal to Arunachal, Assam valley, south The Lemon-rumped Warbler Phylloscopus chloronotus is largely Assam hills, and east Bangladesh.’ resident in the Himalayas from northern Pakistan to Arunachal Although the sighting of the species in the Phulwari ki Pradesh in India. It breeds between c.2,200–4,200 m asl and Nal area of southern Rajasthan constitutes the first record for winters from foothills to an altitude of 2,100 m on hillside the state, it is not difficult to explain its presence there. It is an woodland (Rasmussen & Anderton 2012). It has two recognized uncommon resident in the forest belt of Gujarat (Ganpule 2016). subspecies—simlaensis of the western Himalayas, breeding till Two birds were recently recorded in Polo forest near Abhapur about central Nepal, and the nominate that occurs further east village, Sabarkantha District on 04 Dec 2019 (Theba 2019) a (Alström & Christie 2020). mere 40 km, as the crow flies, from Phulwari ki Nal. The species On 03 February 2011, around at 0830 h, while taking is probably resident in Phulwari ki Nal but has been overlooked photographs of butterflies at Shahwadi, a sewage treatment area in the past. with grass and shrubby growth around it (22.96°N, 72.57°E), near Pirana village on the southern fringe of Ahmedabad city, RT spotted a tiny, fluffy leaf-warbler with a short black bill, moving References towards him through some bushes. The bird disappeared in a Abdulali, H., 1983. A catalogue of the birds in the collection of the Bombay Natural thick bush but soon reappeared much closer, eventually perching History Society-25. Muscicapidae. Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 79 (2): 336–360 (1982). within 0.5–1.0 m from him. After a couple of minutes, the bird Ali, S., & Ripley, S. D., 1996. Handbook of the birds of India and Pakistan together with moved away and perched on a Lantana bush Lantana camara, those of Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Larks to Grey Hypocolius. but it soon flew away and disappeared among the bushes. The 2nd (Hardback) ed. Delhi: (Sponsored by Bombay Natural History Society.) peculiarly fearless behaviour of the bird astonished usRT went Oxford University Press. Vol. 6 of 10 vols. Pp. i–xiii, 1–247+3, 8 ll. closer and took some record shots from point-and shoot camera. Ali, S., 1949. Indian hill birds. 1st ed. Delhi: Oxford University Press. Pp. i–lii, 1–188. We could not identify it, as this warbler appeared a bit different Collar, N., & Robson, C., 2020. Puff-throated Babbler (Pellorneum ruficeps), version 1.0. In: Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and from the other Phylloscopus species recorded in Gujarat. After E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi. returning home, RT sent the photographs to a few senior org/10.2173/bow.putbab1.01. [Accessed on 10 August 2020.] birdwatchers for an opinion on the identification but could not