Kidoor Bird Fest 2019--Visit to Shiriya Estuary.

Kasargod, the coastal town of Kerala is situated in the western ghats of India. It is the northernmost district of Kerala, adjoining Karnataka. It has a mixture of colonial catholic, ancient hindu and muslim cultures. Known for its rich biodiversity and for some of the populous tourisms places like Bekal Fort, Ananthapuram lake temple and others, the place is well connected by rail and by road. People of Kasargod are generally multi linguistic because of the location that falls on the border of Kerala-Karnataka. Kannada, Tulu, Konkani and Malayalam are widely spoken here. 

Awareness towards birds and its habitat is an increasing trend now. Various field workshops and bird festivals have attracted more and more enthusiasts to get into wildlife conservation activities and learning about different species of birds and its habitats. It is indeed a good move..! The flavour of bird watching surely induces interesting aspects of nature in a person and changes the way of his/her living.

Kidoor, a small village roughly 20kms away from Kasaragod; attracts a particular specie of pigeon every winter. Kidoor village hosts a Bird Festival every year to mark the first sighting of the bird in this place. 

Social media is an effective means of communication for any events or workshops. I got to know about the second edition of Kidoor bird festival through a Whatsapp text. Its a new place for me to venture and I decided to attend it. 

Shiriya Estuary:- This is where the river Shiriya ends its journey. This beautiful estuary is just few kms away from Kumbla railway station and is rich with birds. 

Ghost Crab on the beach.

Western Reef Egret.

Like any other beach, this too has small fishermen settlement with many boats. The white sand beach attracted me the moment I stepped out of the auto. The sea water appeared red to me possibly because of the recent rains. My companion was a local young birder who mentioned that the estuary was badly affected because of continuous rains and it created a chaos to the nearby village.

Distant image of an Eurasian Curlew. 

The estuary itself was a great place to spot sand plovers in huge numbers. There were hundreds of lesser and greater sand plover mixed with a few Kentish plovers. I searched a lot for a solitary crab plover but I guess I was not lucky this time.

Greater Sand Plover.

You'd enjoy the sand beneath your feet and clear sky above your head and blue waters next to you when you are walking on the beach. But you would not notice for how long you've traversed the beach. I realised I walked for over 3 kms on the beach in search of birds forgetting the fact that I have come far away from the starting point. Also, the salinity in the weather thirsts you more than your usual consumption of water. All in all, it's a tiring expedition but generally pays off well. 

There were few sandpipers flying here and there. There was a solitary white bellied sea eagle soaring in the bright sunlit sky and then there were Terek sandpipers on the shore.

Terek Sandpipers.

Terek Sandpiper and a Sanderling.

The advantage of estuary birding is that you might get a glimpse of both shore and fresh water birds. That include the birds of prey as well. Another group of birders mentioned that they got a glimpse of an Osprey that was attempting a kill. I did not see it though.

Kentish Plover.

The beach was covered by footwear of many people who would have lost it while fishing. The sea waters gracefully threw them back to the shore.

Flock of Plovers.

A sub adult Kentish Plover.

Initially, it was a bit difficult for me to distinguish between the large plovers and Kentish plovers since they both mix well in a group. But little ahead of the estuary, I could see just the Kentish Plovers.

It was almost 11 in the morning when I glanced my wrist watch and I had to head back to have some solid food. It was indeed a pleasing beach trail full of birds.

But there was an element of surprise waiting for me. A beautiful sighting of a pair of White bellied Sea eagles guarding the nest was simply irresistible.

White Bellied Sea eagle. 

Tall, well built and vigilant, white bellied sea eagles nests on top of bald trees and guards them steadily. It is indeed a treat to watch this bird of prey soaring in high skies with a big wing span; often getting into fights with its mere competent, the Brahminy kites.

So, this whole wonderful experience of estuary birding with an element of surprise would not have been possible without one young individual, and I have to say a few words about him.

His name is Pranav. A 13 year old young boy who lives in Kumbla with his family. Apart from his usual academic activities, his favourite past time is anything to do with Nature. He conducts nature camps for children of his age or even less and inspires them a lot. Known for his good spotting skills, he is very keen on keeping an ideal habitat for birds to breed and thrive. I was amazed by the work he has done at that age while other kids of similar age gets carried away with various manipulative attractions. I heartily wished him to continue his good work and treated him with candies. He shyly accepted them.

From L to R: Me, Pranav, Preetham, Tarachand Wanvari, Rajesh Gopinath.

Much needed ice candies after a tiresome shore birding.

It was time for me to head to Kidoor where the bird fest was set to begin. New place, new birders and a whole new experience; I thought about it as I sat in the bus and awaited my next stop.


Place of Birding: Shiriya Estuary, Kumbla post, Kasargod.
Date of Visit: Nov 9, 2019.
Ebird list: https://ebird.org/india/checklist/S61286010