Behind the Lens

a blog every Friday on a specific species of animal or bird and stories of photos

Search for a specific species, genre or even a location or use the directory for a complete list of species I have photographed and written about till date.

Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

Brown-winged Kingfisher

The Brown-winged Kingfisher is a chunky, large, orangish tree kingfisher with an oversized head and a scarlet dagger of a bill. No other large kingfisher in its range has dark brown wings. It has a bright blue-green rump patch clearly visible during flight. It is restricted to coastal habitats such as mangroves and estuaries and gives loud, fluid-sounding whistles as well as harsh grating rattles.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #Bird, #Birdinginthewild, #BirdWatching, #Wildlife, #WildBirds, #naturephotography, #your_best_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #photo_pond, #earthpix, #naturyst, #conservationphotography, #yesbbcearth, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, #langkawi, #Malaysia, #brownwingedkingfisher, #kingfisher,

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Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

White-bellied Sea Eagle

The White-bellied Sea Eagle is an enormous gray and white raptor that soars with wings held in strong V-shape. In flight the black and white underwing pattern & short tail are clearly visible. The juvenile is much browner and can be confused with the Wedge-tailed Eagle apart from the mostly pale and fairly short tail. They are predominantly found along coastlines, as well as estuaries and inland waterways.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #Bird, #Birdinginthewild, #BirdWatching, #Wildlife, #WildBirds, #naturephotography, #your_best_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #photo_pond, #earthpix, #naturyst, #conservationphotography, #yesbbcearth, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #whitebelliedseaeagle, #raptor, #seaeagle, #langkawi, #Malaysia, #eagle

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Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

Red-backed Sea Eagle/ Brahminy Kite

The Brahminy Kites (Haliastur indus), formerly known as the Red-backed Sea Eagle in Australia, are medium-sized raptors that are easily recognized by their white head and chest. They are also known as Red-backed Kites, White-and-red Eagle Kites or White-headed Kites. These birds of prey are widespread throughout tropical Asia.

In Indonesia, they are known as elang bondol and is the official mascot of the capital and largest city of Indonesia - Jakarta. In Hinduism, the bird is considered as the contemporary representation of Garuda, the sacred bird of Lord Vishnu - the preserver in the holy Hindu Trinity. According to a fable from central Bougainville Island, a mother left her baby under a banana tree while gardening, and the baby floated into the sky crying and transformed into Kaa'nang, the Brahminy kite, its necklace becoming the bird's feathers.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #Bird, #Birdinginthewild, #BirdWatching, #Wildlife, #WildBirds, #naturephotography, #your_best_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #photo_pond, #earthpix, #naturyst, #conservationphotography, #yesbbcearth, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #brahminykite, #kite, #redbackedseaeagle, #garuda, #langkawi, #eagle

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Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

The rural countryside

In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. The word rural is defined as encompassing "...all population, housing, and territory not included within an urban area. Whatever is not urban is considered rural."

Typical rural areas have a low population densities and small settlements or villages. Agricultural areas too are commonly categorised as rural, as are other types of area such as forests. Different countries have varying definitions of rural for statistical and administrative purposes.

About a 100 kilometers from the capital city of Hyderabad, Zaheerabad is one such industrial town and Municipal Council in the Sangareddy district of the Indian state of Telangana. It is the base for visitors of ancient sacred religious sites like the Ketaki Sangameshwara Swamy Devasthanam (a temple) at Jharasangam, Siddhhi Vinayaka Temple at Rejinthal and Hazrath Multani Baba Dargah (A dargah is a shrine built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint or dervish) at Metalkunta.

The Zaheerabad area has many diverse areas for birding and in some instances wildlife watching and observation. In close proximity are the Manjira Wildlife Sanctuary, Gottamgutta, Karanja Reservoir and the Chandrampally Dam and Chincholi Wildlife Sanctuary just over the border in Karnataka. I have had the good fortune to spend a fair bit of time at all these locations and have obtained some beautiful photos with the help of the Forest Officers and Rangers.

Some of these locations are home to migrants and seasonal visitors and every experience of seeing a new bird provides a rush that one can only feel by doing something they love. As I mentioned in my last blog, bird and wildlife watching is a great form of recreation for people of all ages and always provides an opportunity to learn something new.

This is an extended video and some photos from a recent visit to the rural countryside surrounding Zaheerabad.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #Bird, #Birdinginthewild, #BirdWatching, #WildBirds, #naturephotography, #your_best_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #photo_pond, #earthpix, #naturyst, #conservationphotography, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, #animalsofinstagram, @globalcapture, #Zaheerabad, #ruralcountryside, #countryside, #manjeerawildlifesanctuary, #manjirawildlifesanctuary, #manjira, #manjeera

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