Madras Moments: Birding in Kumizhi Lake

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When: June 2025 Weather: Hot 28C

Nikon P900

After the work had been done, I had wanted to do my usual 6am walk to a local park like the Theosophical Society or Guindy Park but my hosts kindly arranged for me to go birding with a local guide, Kumaran Chandrabose at Kumizhi Lake, 40km from Chennai(Madras as it used to be known as). Kumaran said that as it was summer, only places like Kumizhi would have any significant birdlife….Departing the Accord Metropolitan Hotel at 5am sharp, it took us exactly an hour to get to Kumizhi…

Kumizhi Lake at 6am
Sunrise over Kumizhi Lake
a red wattled lapwing greeted us
as did a common kingfisher
Little grebes were swimming actively
Cotton pygmy geese male and female
cotton pygmy goose
coot
moorhen
little cormorant sunning
we then drove further in…
and walked the trails
first bird to show was the tawny bellied babbler….very twitchy diffcult to shoot
another equally terrible shot of the tawny bellied babbler
the white browed bulbuls were easily seen and heard
white browed bulbul
Male Indian Robin
Female Indian robin
red vented bulbul
red whiskered bulbul
spotted dove
coomon iora through the leaves
star bird of the morning..from afar, the blue faced malkoha ..although should really be called the blue eyed malkoha!
blue faced malkoha…here the light green beak is well seen
red vented bulbul
yellow billed babblers sang lustily
yellow billed babbler
flame backed woodpecker
the common myna here looks more like a hill myna
a large bird then showed up…a Jacobin or pied cuckoo
very smart Jacobin cuckoo

We then saw a family of Grey Francolins scurrying across the ground and disappearing before I could get my camera up…sigh

A Jerdon’s bushlark flitted about
another yellow billed babbler
common prinia
common prinia
and at our last stop before we left….
a white throated kingfisher bade us farewell

We departed about 915am and I was back in the hotel by 1030am for the rest of the day’s meetings… I would say ti was a good morning’s birding with a few lifers!

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