| Click on the links for images | names (common, scientific), brief description |
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Green Bee-eaters |
Green Bee-eaters, Merops orientalis. This species is a richly coloured, slender bird and is about 16–18 cm long with about 6 cm made up by the elongated central tail-feathers. They feed on flying insects. In monsoon IOP is home for hunderds of these Green Bee-eaters. During the evenings they get back and spend nights on vrious trees in the campus, particularly the trees that are located at the rear end. |
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Orange-headed Thrush |
Orange-headed Thrush, Zoothera citrina. This exquisitely beautiful bird has a size of about 15 - 20 cm. Males have uniform grey upper parts, and an orange head and under parts. The females and young birds have browner upper parts. We have seen these birds, though rarely, around the ant hills of the campus. Maximum of four birds were seen together in October, 2015. |
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Yellow-wattled Lapwing |
Yellow-wattled Lapwing, Vanellus malabaricus. The size of the bird is 20 - 25 cm. It is found mainly on the dry plains of peninsular India and has a sharp call and is capable of fast flight. These lapwings breed in the dry season with peak breeding in March to May ahead of the monsoons. They lay four eggs in a ground scrape. In summer, we see a pair regularly visiting the campus. Most likely place to see them is the ground infront of the institute canteen. |
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Brown-headed Barbet |
Brown-headed Barbet, Megalaima zeylanica. The barbets get their name from the bristles which fringe their heavy bills. Size can go upto 25cm. The bird generally eats berries, papaya, banana, figs etc. During summar, in the campus, one hears repetitive kutroo… kutroo…kutroo and that is the call of Brown-headed Barbet. |
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Barn Owl |
Barn Owl, Tyto alba. The Barn Owl is the most widely distributed species of owl, and one of the most widespread of all birds. It measures about 25–50 cm and feeds primarily on small vertebrates, particularly rodents. In IOP, you can find them on th top of the old INET room of the main building. It is easy to locate these birds hearing their shril scream. |
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Indian Scops Owl |
Indian Scops Owl, Otus bakkamoena. Indian scops owl is a common resident bird in forests and well wooded areas. It measures about 23-25 cm. It has small head tufts or ears. These noctrunal birds are very difficult to spot during daytime. At IOP, we have seen several during night hours. The pair shown here was photographed in the residential area of the institute on 28/05/15. |
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Magpie-Robin |
Magpie-Robin, Copsychus saularis. This species is around 15 20 cm long. Occurring across most of the Indian Subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia, they are quite common in IOP. Magpie-Robin whistles at dawn, repeated on short phrases. I pictured this one on a weekend afternoon in March, 2013. The bird was sitting on a tree close to the road leading to the bank. |
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Brainfever bird |
Brainfever bird, Hierococcyx varius. These are about the size of a common pigeon. Their call (male) is a loud screaming three-note call, repeated 5 or 6 times. In IOP, this sound is fairly common particularly during summer. However, it is difficult to spot the birds. We saw this one in the bush next to the IBL lab during the last week of March, 2013. |
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Blue faced Malkoha |
Blue faced Malkoha, Phaenicophaeus viridirostris. This is a largish species of around 35 cm. The back and head are dark green, and the uppertail is green edged with white. The throat and belly are lighter green. There is a large blue patch around the eye and the bill is green. In IOP, this is a very rare bird. We have seen one so far in a bush next to the water tank. The bird stayed inside the bush for quite some time (consequently, taking a good picture without clutter became difficult) and then flew off. |
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Red-whiskered Bulbul |
Red-whiskered Bulbul, Pycnonotus jocosus. The Red-whiskered Bulbul is about 15-20 cm in length. It has a tall pointed black crest, red face patch and thin black moustachial line. The tail is long and brown with white terminal feather tips, but the vent area is red. They are known for their calls. These birds are seen in large numbers at IOP. Particularly, one finds them during summer around fruit-bearing Wodier trees of the Campus. |
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Red-vented Bulbul |
Red-vented Bulbul, Pycnonotus cafer. The Red-vented Bulbul is about 15-20 cm in length. The body is dark brown with a scaly pattern while the head is darker or black. The rump is white while the vent is red. The black tail is tipped in white. The vegetation is the single most important factor that determines the distribution of the species. At IOP, they are seen in large numbers, and in summer, around the Wodier trees. |
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White-browed bulbul |
White-browed bulbul, Pycnonotus luteolus. White-browed bulbul is about 20 cm long. This species can be identified by the white supercilium, white crescent below the eye, and dark eyestripe and moustachial stripe. We get a few in our campus, particularly during summer. As they rarely come out of bush, it is difficult to see them. The one photographed here was found in the open in April, 2019, enjoying the fruits of a Premna species. |
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Black-hooded Oriole |
Black-hooded Oriole, Oriolus xanthornus. This bird is a member of the oriole family of passerine birds and is a resident breeder in tropical southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka east to Indonesia. They are quite common in IOP. Locating them is also quite easy by following their beautiful calls. |
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Black-naped Oriole |
Black-naped Oriole, Oriolus chinensis. This bird of the oriole family and is found in many parts of Asia. They feed on berries and insects in the canopy. In the campus, these birds are common but not as common as Black-hooded Oriole. |
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Jungle Babbler |
Jungle Babbler, Turdoides striata. They are found in the Indian Subcontinent. The Jungle Babbler lives in flocks of seven to ten or more. They are noisy birds, and the presence of a flock may generally be known at some distance by the harsh mewing calls, continual chattering, squeaking and chirping produced by its members. Along with Rock Piegeons, these are perhaps the most common birds in the campus. |
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Shikra |
Shikra, Accipiter badius. This is a small bird of prey found widely distributed in Asia and Africa. The length is around 30 cm. This species has short rounded wings and a narrow and somewhat long tail. Males have a red iris while the females have a less red (yellowish orange) iris and brownish upperparts apart from heavier barring on the underparts. Once in a while I see Shikra in IOP campus. The one here was found sitting on a casuarina tree next to the main building on a very hot summer afternoon. |
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Rock Pigeon |
Rock Pigeon, Columba livia. Rock Pigeons are about 40 cm long. The bird has a dark bluish-gray head, neck, and chest with glossy yellowish, greenish, and reddish-purple iridescence along neck and wing feathers. The adult female is almost identical to the male. In IOP, the species is abundant. |
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Cattle Egret |
Cattle Egret, Bubulcus ibis. Cattle Egret is 46–56 cm long. The non-breeding adult has mainly white plumage, a yellow bill and greyish-yellow legs. During the breeding season, adults normally develop orange-buff plumes on the back, breast and crown, and the bill, legs and irises become bright red for a brief period prior to pairing. Cattle Egret feeds on a wide range of prey, particularly insects, especially grasshoppers, crickets, and flies. IOP hosts many of these birds (though the number is perhaps decrasing). They are mainly seen during the monsoon season. The image here was taken near the playground during June, 2013. |
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Coppersmith Barbet |
Coppersmith Barbet, Megalaima haemacephala. Like other barbets, these birds make nests in tree holes. They eat nearly 1.5 to nearly 3 times their body weight in berries each day. The breeding season is mainly February to April in India. In IOP, they are not as common as brown headed barbets. Recently, We saw a pair sitting on a branch of a dead tree near the back side of the TT room. That was late in the afternoon and the light was fast-fading. One of those is seen in the image. |
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Spotted Munia |
Spotted Munia, Lonchura punctulata. These small birds are of 10 cm in size. Since their breasts and bellies have distinct scale-like feather markings, these birds are also known as Scaly-breasted Munias. They feed mainly on seeds, grass seeds in particular. We have seen flocks of Spotted Munias in our campus during rainy seasons. They perhaps find our campus safe for nesting! The image was taken in August. They really came close to me while I was watching their activities near the back side of the tennis ground. |
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Blue-tailed Bee-eater |
Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Merops philippinus. This species, like other bee-eaters, is a richly coloured, slender bird and can reach a length of 23–26 cm, including the two elongated central tail feathers. It breeds in southeastern Asia. It is strongly migratory, seen seasonally in much of peninsular India. I have noticed a group of blue bee eaters in IOP during monsoon, 2013. These brids were on the trees near the back side of the campus, happily catching and earting insects! |
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Chestnut-winged Cuckoo |
Chestnut-winged Cuckoo, Clamator coromandus. This cuckoos are found in Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia. It has dark glossy upperparts, a black head with long crest chestnut wings, a long graduated glossy black tail, rufous throat dusky underside and a narrow white nuchal half collar. They breed along the Himalayas and migrate south in winter to Sri Lanka, southern India and tropical Southeast Asia including parts of Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. It is about 47 cm long. At IOP, We have seen only one so far for two consecutive days in August, 2013. It was flying out of a bush, enjoying the sun on a quite road. With a little bit of surrounding noise, it would fly back. After a long careful observation, it came again and satt at the same location of that road. The process went on for about 15 minutes or so each day. |
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Rose-ringed Parakeet |
Rose-ringed Parakeet,Psittacula krameri. This is a gregarious tropical Afro-Asian parakeet species that have successfully adapted to living in 'disturbed habitats', and in that way withstood the onslaught of urbanisation and deforestation. In the wild, this is a noisy species with an unmistakable squawking call.In size, they measure on average 40 cm. In IOP, they are norally seen in groups during September-October. In the morning, they will come for the fruits of Swarna Champa tree. One would see them particularly on the trees located in front of the institute library. |
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Rufous Treepie |
Rufous Treepie, Dendrocitta vagabunda. Native to the Indian Subcontinent and member of the crow family. Both sexes look alike. The main colour of the body is cinnamon with a black head and the long graduated tail is bluish grey and is tipped in black. It is an omnivore feeding almost completely in trees on fruits, seeds, invertebrates, small reptiles and the eggs and young of birds.This species has a wide repertoire of calls including very rough ones. Rufus Treepie is seen everywhere in IOP campus (normally in pairs). |
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Yellow-eyed Babbler |
Yellow-eyed Babbler, Chrysomma sinense. The Yellow-eyed Babbler is about 18 centimetres long with a short bill and a long graduated tail. The body above is brown and the wings are cinnamon coloured. The lores and supercilium are white and the rim of the eye is orange-yellow in adult birds. The beak is black. The underside is whitish buff. The central tail feathers are about twice as long as the outermost. The sexes are indistinguishable in the field.They feed mainly on insects. In IOP, they are seen in the grasslands, mainly in small groups. |
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Rosy starling |
Rosy starling, Pastor roseus. Rosy Starling is about 23 centimeter long. The adult of this species is highly distinctive, with its pink body, pale orange legs and bill, and glossy black head, wings and tail. Males in the breeding season have elongated head feathers. Around fifty of these birds together were seen visiting our campus during afternoon hours. Region behind the new hostel seemed like their favourite area (the photograph was taken on 10/02/15). |
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Pied cuckoo |
Pied cuckoo, Clamator jacobinus. This medium sized (about 31cm), slim black and white cuckoo with a crest is distinctive. The white wing patch on the black wing and the pattern make it unmistakable even in flight. Couple of these cuckoos visit IOP during rainy season. They are normally seen around the forest area near the rear boundary wall of the institute (the photograph was taken on 26/04/14). |
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Pied starling |
Pied starling, Gracupica contra. This myna is marked in black and white and has a yellowish bill with a reddish bill base. The bare skin around the eye is reddish. They are usually found in small groups, foraging mainly on the ground but perching on trees and buildings. Birds in a group call frequently with a wide repertoire that includes whistles, trills, buzzes, clicks, and warbling calls. In IOP campus, these mynas are seen frequently (the photograph was taken on 26/02/15). |
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Hoopoe |
Hoopoe, Upupa epops. The hoopoe is a medium sized bird, 25–32 cm long.The species is highly distinctive, with a long, thin tapering bill that is black with a fawn base. The strengthened musculature of the head allows the bill to be opened when probing inside the soil. Hoopoe is not very common at IOP. During spring time a solitary bird is seen near the play ground during the morning hours (the photograph was taken on 08/03/15). |
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Alexandrine parakeet |
Alexandrine parakeet, Psittacula eupatria. The species is named after Alexander the Great, who is credited with the exporting of numerous specimens of this bird from Punjab into various European and Mediterranean countries and regions. This species measures 58 cm, little bigger than the Rose- ringed parakeet--the one more commonly seen at IOP. According to IUCN classification, Alexandrine parakeet is near threatened. This particular bird was seen on a Ziziphus mauritiana (ber, kul) tree close to the guest house (The picture was taken in February, 2015). |
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Brahminy starling |
Brahminy starling, Sturnia pagodarum. Brahminy Starlings are very gregarious birds of size about 20cm. They are found in dry open country and lowlands, open deciduous forest, scrub and cultivated areas. At IOP, these brids are not very common. Sometime they are seen in pairs roosting on dry tree branches behind the new hostel. The pair linked here was photographed on 24/05/15 when they came down to have water from a water pot kept specially for the thirsty birds. |
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Indian roller |
Indian roller, Coracias benghalensis. The size of this very colourful bird is 30-35cm. Often seen on electic wire, Indian roller prefers open ground and cultivated fields. They descend to the ground to capture their prey which may include insects, arachnids, small reptiles. This is the state bird of Odisha. A solitary bird is seen during monsoon time visiting IOP campus. The potograph here was captured on 21/07/14 behind the new hostel. |
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Common myna |
Common myna, Acridotheres tristis. An omnivorous open woodland bird with a strong territorial instinct, the myna adapts well to urban environments. Often seen in pairs, has a length of about 23cm.At IOP, these birds are seen through out the year. The image here was captured on 23/03/14. |
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Indian thick-knee |
Indian thick-knee, Burhinus indicus. This is a bird having larg eye and length about 40cm.The legs are stout and the knees are thick, giving them the group of name of "thick-knee". The call is a series of sharp whistling notes. At IOP, a couple can be seen occasionally. This image was taken while a pair was found standing near in the sheady area of our tennis ground on 28/09/13. |
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Indian nightjar |
Indian nightjar, Caprimulgus asiaticus. This bird of about 25 cm long. Found in open woodland, scrub, and cultivation. It usually sits on the ground or low trees during day time and is most active during dawn and dusk. Feeds on insects. The one linked here entered somehow inside the institute building and could not find an excape root. We photographed just before leaving it in the wild on 16/08/13. |
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Orange-breasted green pigeon |
Orange-breasted green pigeon, Treron bicinctus. Typically of length 30cm,
like other green pigeons, they feed on small fruits. A small flock of these pegions were found moving on small fruit bearing trees near the tennis court. They were seen throught the months of November, December (2016) and early January (2017). |