EDITOR’S NOTE
“The new year 2021 kicked off with the bird count events, followed by bird sightings which are the first records for the Salem district. The bird walks conducted during the events are not just about spotting birds but fostering a deeper connection to nature. SOF Sunday Talkies, was in full swing where women nature enthusiasts of Tamil Nadu gathered for lively discussions on a wide range of topics—from species identification to conservation challenges. These sessions are designed to be both informative and interactive, offering a space to learn, debate, and inspire action.’ — Angeline Mano M
ASIAN WATERBIRD CENSUS 2021
Asian Waterbird Census is a citizen science program. Every January, bird watchers visit wetlands and document the waterbirds. This year SOF birders Abilash C, Ananth T, Angeline Mano M, Dharini V, Elavarasan M, Ganeshwar SV, Geetha Ananth, Gowshikha R, Himavat Gouresh, Kalaiselvan V, Kalai Vendhan S, Mithran A, Pradeepa Sudhakar, Rajangam P, Revathi Abilash, Sankar V, Sakthi Chinnakannu, Sathiyamoorthy T, Senthil Kumar S, Srinivasan (Jalakandapuram), Venkatesh S, Vijayasarathy C participated in AWC and documented birds. In total 265 wetlands in Salem were covered during the Asian Waterbird Census. All checklists were shared with the AWC India eBird account. Thanks to Sathyamoorthi T and Sankar V who hosted us at their place. Special thanks to Gowshika R for her guidance at Sankagiri, it was with her help we were able to locate the wetlands. Some of the highlights include Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse, Blyth’s Swift, Greater Spotted Eagle, Tawny Eagle, European Bee-eater, Marshall’s Iora, Rufous-tailed Lark, Streak-throated Swallow and Red Munia. For a detailed report on AWC 2021, click here.
PONGAL BIRD COUNT 2021
Pongal Bird Count is an annual bird monitoring program for Tamil Nadu which takes place during the Pongal festival in Tamil Nadu. This year’s Pongal Bird Count was from 14-17 January. Every year bird watchers from Salem contribute to citizen science platforms by participating in such citizen science events. All preventive measures were taken by the bird watchers during bird count. All observations of this year’s PBC are uploaded to ebird.org/India.
GREAT BACKYARD BIRD COUNT 2021
The ninth edition of Great Backyard Bird Count was held from February 12 to 15. Just like in previous years, continuing GBBC’s trend, despite lockdown in many regions, this year eBirders from Salem submitted the largest number of 9,290 checklists among all the other districts in the world. Bird watchers from Salem were among the top 10 individuals in the world in submitting the maximum number of checklists. To see the checklists and species numbers in Salem County, click here. To see the GBBC 2021 results, click here.
GBBC BIRD WALKS
Salem Ornithological Foundation organized GBBC bird walks at Vattakadu Lake Small Dam, Kottachedu (Yercaud), Danishpet Lake, Vadamaneri Lake, Kottanathan Lake, and Geetha Nagar Annex and Surrounds. Aishwarya R, Ananth T, Angeline Mano M, Ganeshwar S V, Geetha Ananth, Harini Shri L, Jeyamurugan T, Kanika M, Manasa S S, Minnila M P, Mithran A, Nila Shri S, Raj Guhan R, Thirumalai Venkatraman, Sadhana J, Suguna R, and Venkatesh S participated in the bird walks. A few interesting sightings during the walks were Indian Thick-knee, Woolly-necked Stork, Garganey, and Marshall’s Iora from Stanley Reservoir. Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, Orange-headed Thrush, and other resident birds were sighted at Yercaud. All mandatory precautions were strictly followed during bird walks.
FIRST RECORD (1)
On January 06, 2021, the team of Angeline Mano M, Dharini Venkatachalam, and Ganeshwar S V sighted Blyth’s Swift (Fork-tailed Swift) Apus leuconyx for the first time in Salem at Vadamaneri Lake. To see the complete checklist of birds and photographs, please click.
FIRST RECORD (2)
On January 15, 2021, Angeline Mano M and Ganeshwar S V photographed Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles exustus for the first time in Salem at Govindampalayam Lake. To see the complete checklist of birds, please click.
FIRST RECORD (3)
On January 20, 2021, Angeline Mano M and Ganeshwar S V sighted Blyth’s Pipit Anthus godlewskii for the first time in Salem at Paavayi Kuttai or Paarai Kuttai, Olakkachinnanur. To see the complete checklist of birds, please click here. Photographs are uploaded to eBird.
FIRST PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORD
On January 14, 2021, Angeline Mano M and Ganeshwar S V photographed Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax for the first time in Salem at Sarvoy Big Tank. To see the complete checklist of birds, please click here.
REFRESHING BIRD WALKS
On March 29, 2021, Angeline Mano M, Kishore R, and Kishore M P took a bird walk at the 40 & 60 feet bridge, Yercaud, and at Kannankurichi (Mookaneri) Lake. The highlights of the walk at Yercaud were Gray-bellied Cuckoo Cacomantis passerinus, Blue-bearded Bee-eater Nyctyornis athertoni, Yellow-throated Bulbul Pycnonotus xantholaemus, winter visitors such as Blue-capped Rock-Thrush Monticola cinclorhyncha and Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus were sighted.
BIRD MONITORING AT MANIVILUNDHAN OLD TANK
From January to March, SOF bird watchers Angeline Mano M, Ganeshwar S V, B E Rajendran, and Vijaysarathy Chinnaiah documented birds at Manivilundhan Old Tank. Winter visitors such as the Northern Shoveler, Garganey, Booted Warbler, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Common Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Brown Shrike, Bay-backed Shrike, and other resident birds were sighted. All observations are uploaded to eBird India.
OUTREACH
On February 02, 2021, our bird educator Angeline Mano M was invited to give a lecture on Students and Youth: The Hope to Conserve Birds for Future organized by BI-PLAN Care and Conservation Club of Ayya Nadar Janaki Ammal College, (Autonomous) – Sivakasi. Salem Ornithological Foundation sincerely thanks the college management for the wonderful opportunity. To watch Angeline’s presentation, please click here.
SOF SUNDAY TALKIES – SEASON 1
In the first quarter of this year, between January and March, thirteen sessions were hosted by the coordinators of SOF’s Sunday Talkies. Rama Neelamegam gave an introduction to Ebird and its uses. Sahithya Selvaraj gave a book introduction, Birds of Coimbatore (second edition). Abarna R, Bobby M, Dharini V, Divya Vikraman R, Narmatha K, Pavithra K, Sowbhashini S, Tharini E, Yogeswarie Sreedharan shared their experiences and their journey into bird watching. Sankaradevi D gave a talk on the impact of bird watching on school children. Merlynna Esther Maxmellion P gave an introduction to the Sparrow species and presented her research compilation on House Sparrow. A brief introduction to Citizen Science programs such as Great Backyard Bird Count and Asian Waterbird Census was also a part of the session. For more details about the upcoming webinars and recorded live sessions, do check out Salem Ornithological Foundation’s Facebook and YouTube page. Click here for the playlist link. In the first quarter of this year, between January and March, thirteen sessions were hosted by the coordinators of SOF’s Sunday Talkies. Rama Neelamegam gave an introduction to Ebird and its uses. Sahithya Selvaraj gave a book introduction, Birds of Coimbatore (second edition). Abarna R, Bobby M, Dharini V, Divya Vikraman R, Narmatha K, Pavithra K, Sowbhashini S, Tharini E, Yogeswarie Sreedharan shared their experiences and their journey into bird watching. Sankaradevi D gave a talk on the impact of bird watching on school children. Merlynna Esther Maxmellion P gave an introduction to the Sparrow species and presented her research compilation on House Sparrow. A brief introduction to Citizen Science programs such as Great Backyard Bird Count and Asian Waterbird Census was also a part of the session. For more details about the upcoming webinars and recorded live sessions, do check out Salem Ornithological Foundation’s Facebook and YouTube page. Click here for the playlist link.
