Behind the lens

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

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

Jungle Bush Quail

A small, plump terrestrial bird, roughly spherical in shape identified by its rusty throat & rusty-and-white eyebrow. The males have barred underparts while females have uniform pinkish cinnamon underparts. They’re found in dry stony scrub jungles and dry grasslands & are generally secretive until flushed when it suddenly bursts into flight, flying with weak whirring wingbeats low over the ground before quickly dropping into cover.

#wildartworks, #tadoba, #TadobaTigerReserve, #jungle, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #wildlifephotography, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, #junglebushquail, #bushquail, #quail, #penchnationalpark, #pench, #khursapar,

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

Changeable Hawk-Eagle/ Crested Hawk-Eagle

A medium-sized eagle with massive rounded wings. It appears very small-headed in flight. Their name is misleading, as there are only really two color morphs, pale and black. The pale-morph adult is dark brown above with a white breast overlaid with dark streaks. While the dark morph is dark all over with paler outer wing feathers, and can be mistaken for dark Honey-Buzzards. They inhabit forests, forest edges, and expansive parks and plantations.

#wildartworks, #kabini, #tadoba, #TadobaTigerReserve, #jungle, #raptors, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #wildlifephotography, #nilgiribiosphere, #nagarholetigerreserve, #kabinibackwaters, #tipeshwar, #tipeshwarwildlifesanctuary, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, #changeablehawkeagle, #crestedhawkeagle, #eagle, #hawk, #tropicalraptor,

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

Crested Serpent Eagle

The crested serpent eagle (Spilornis cheela melanotis) is a medium-sized bird of prey that is found in forested habitats across tropical Asia. It is a rather large, heavily built eagle with a dark, white-tipped bushy crest that gives it a distinctive large-headed look. When raised in alarm, the crest frames the whole face, highlighting the bare yellow lores and eyes, making the head look larger and fiercer. Commonly seen perched upright in well-wooded areas, with wingtips nearly covering the broad white sub-terminal band on the tail. Its 1-3 note scream is often heard in the forest.

#wildartworks, #kabini, #jungle, #raptors, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #wildlifephotography, #nilgiribiosphere, #nagarholetigerreserve, #kabinibackwaters, #tipeshwar, #tipeshwarwildlifesanctuary, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, #crestedserpenteagle, #serpenteagle, #eagle, #hawk, #tropicalraptor,

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

Indian Scops Owl

The Indian Scops Owl is a nocturnal bird that is rarely seen during the daytime. It has prominent ear tufts and dark eyes. The coloration is variable, ranging from gray to brown, but dark eyes, thin black border around the facial disc, and lightly streaked underparts remain constant. It inhabits forests, forest edges, parks, and gardens from lowlands up into foothill and montane regions.

#wildartworks, #wildlifephotography, #penchnationalpark, #pench, #Turia, #canon, #seoni, #jungle, #forest, #wildlife, #tadoba, #tipeshwar, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #madhyapradesh, #trackingwildlife, #owl, #indianscopsowl, #scopsowl, #raptor

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

The Jackal

The Indian Jackal (Canis aureus indicus), also known as the Himalayan Jackal, is a subspecies of golden jackal native to Pakistan, India, Bhutan, Burma and Nepal. This is the only species of Jackal on the Indian subcontinent and it is found in almost every habitat in the country, inspiring numerous folk stories and songs, but also a few questionable practices that have led to poaching of the wild canid.

#wildartworks, #wildlifephotography, #penchnationalpark, #pench, #Turia, #canon, #seoni, #jungle, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #madhyapradesh, #trackingwildlife, #indianjackal, #goldenjackal, #jackal

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

The Khursapar Leopard

Today is about a few intimate moments spent with the Vulnerable Indian leopard - Panthera pardus fusca - in the beautiful Khursapar range of the Pench National Park which is set in a flourishing teak jungle, home to various wildlife species, including tigers and dhole. Pench National Park is a spectacular natural reserve, with typical teak jungles common to central India, offering a quiet and secluded game viewing experience.

We first spotted this magnificent male as he quietly crossed the track well in front of us. His nose was pointed towards us and to our right. Our guide and driver both said he will come sit amongst the rocks on our right and a few minutes later there he was.

Read the full story on the blog.

#wildartworks, #wildlifephotography, #penchnationalpark, #pench, #khursapar, #canon, #seoni, #tiger, #jungle, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #madhyapradesh, #trackingwildlife, #pantherapardusfusca, #IndianLeopard, #Leopard

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

Two Tigers

Pench National Park, nestled in the heart of India in the lower southern reaches of the Satpura hills, sprawls a massive 758 sq. kms across the states of Madhya Pradesh & Maharashtra. Named after the pristine River Pench it was immortalised by Rudyard Kipling in his Jungle Book. Every year millions make their way here to spot Akela, Baloo, Bagheera and Shere Khan.

Our story revolves around two young male tigers who have made their home in the small hills and well-stocked teak mixed forest of Rukhad. Let’s track and watch the two tigers - from first light to last light - living, patrolling and marking the same territory.

Tigers, like many large mammals, are believed to have a mental map of their territories and they are also extremely territorial so to have two young males patrolling and marking the same territory is not observed very often. The presence of two males in their prime invariably leads to drama and multiple fights till one emerges supreme.

#wildartworks, #wildlifephotography, #penchnationalpark, #pench, #rukhad, #masoonalagate, #canon, #rukhadgate, #kurai, #seoni, #tiger, #jungle, #wild, #forest, #wildlife, #conservationphotography, #indian_wildlifes, #indianwildlifeofficial, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, @globalcapture, #madhyapradesh, #trackingwildlife, #tracking, #kingfishermale, #kuraigadmale, #kuraigarhmale, #safari, #nightsafari, #monsoon, #filmingintherain, #pantheratigris, #scentmarking, #bengaltiger, #royalbengaltiger

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

Gaur

The Gaur is the largest species among the wild cattle and attains a shoulder height of 1.8 m (6 feet) or more. It is heavy-bodied and typically blue-eyed and has curving horns, a high ridge on the forepart of the back, and white “stockings” on the legs. Bulls are dark brown or blackish, cows and young reddish brown. Greatly reduced in numbers, gaurs survive only in scattered herds in India, Myanmar, West Malaysia, and Thailand. In Malaysia, it is called seladang, and pyaung in Myanmar. The domesticated form of the gaur is called gayal (Bos frontalis) or mithun.

#wildartworks #kabini #tadobatigerreserve #tadoba #jungle #wild #forest #wildlife #nagarholetigerreserve #birdinginthewild #wildlifephotography #nilgiribiosphere #kabinibackwaters #birdphotography #nagarhole #indian_wildlifes #indianwildlifeofficial #wildlifeonearth #conservationphotography #gaur #indianbison

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