Birds!

I've always been pleased to spot a non-usual bird around Chennai; and that I have actually seen most of the birds listed in 'Some Indian Birds' (http://www.childrensbooktrust.com/books/wild/birds.htm) since first reading it some 30-odd years ago makes me feel rather kicked about life in general.

Having a good bit of greenery next door helps; Roshan & I have been able to identify most of the birds that we see without having to go back to reference material. Apart from the hens, quails, turkeys and partridges that we have seen in the coops, and the omnipresent common / jungle crows we have spotted:

Indian Rock Pigeon - with our apartment blocks, they now have many nooks and crannies to fashion their nests in....
Parakeets - see them very often, but need help to figure out if they are the rose-ringed ones or the alexandrines....
Common Babbler - the seven sisters, though have never spotted a covey of seven. Four, five and sometimes even six, but the seventh has been elusive....
Indian Pond Heron - on a branch or on the ground, it is difficult to spot, being brown flecked, but when it takes off, its wings magically change to white....
Kingfisher - didn't know there were so many kinds of this bird! And why is it so common in the city, where there is very little to fish for....
Common Myna - lovely little birds, they've probably been the easiest to spot on any given day....
Woodpecker - again, don't know enough of the distinctions to be able to narrow it down. One of them seems to be building a nest within a 100 metres of our balcony, so hope to give it a more specific name soon....
Little Egret - seasonal, but have seen them in the last two seasons and hope to see more of them again....
Golden Oriole - a flash of yellow should make it easy to spot; so I thought until I had to spend quite a bit of time trying to find Point B, after the bird flew to it....
And finally, the one bird that we had to go back to reference material to identify; a bluish-grey upper body, changing to brownish-yellow, with white-edged, brown wings. Its long tail made me think of a drongo when I first saw it last week, but a quick check of bird-books told me that it is more likely a Rufous Treepie. And I'm waiting for it to appear again, to make sure I've got it right.

Now, to get on a bit more organized birding activity.