Have you my friends observed a Kingfisher flying around, diving to catch his meal and flying back to sit on a branch/perch to enjoy his catch? There are a few distinct phases in which he goes around doing his job. Phase I - This is the ‘ fly in’ phase when he approaches his favourite vantage point. Having brushed his teeth or should I say cleaned and sharpened his beak on the branch where he spent the night, he gets into ‘ shikari ’ mode to go on a ‘ recce mission’ . His earmarked places are checked during his fly past. He approaches one flying haphazardly. The flight is not a straight line but is full of ‘dips’, He ‘darts’ doing ‘hop, skip and jump’. A fast flap of his wings, then a pause with his wings pressed close to his body making it aerodynamic. In between his shrill and boisterous call announces his arrival. He checks if a perch is clear. Phase II - This is the ‘ observation phase’ . He sits ‘still’ with his neck and head fixated at a t...
TikToks are back again. That is the nickname given to the Chameleons who visit our garden. They are in mating season. Thus, there is a lot of activity happening on most of the trees. They go looking for insects and Kingfishers and Shikras have an eye on TikToks. The cycle of life gets completed and the balance of nature is maintained. Last evening I had a little conversation with this rustic fellow. As I was feeding the fish on the roof, I heard a ‘rustle’ and then saw something moving from the corner of my eye. The sun being in my eyes I could not make out what it was. I took it for a lizard but its tail was a definite giveaway. This guy was very shy. As I must have approached a pot where he was sitting, he would have sensed danger and scooted behind one of the wooden army boxes. With the body well covered, two inches of his tail was still jutting out beyond the box. I was quite surprised to find a TikTok on the roof. This got me thinking, why was this gentl...