Visit to the Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary, Nannaj

It was a couple of weeks ago (16^th September 2012) that I visited Nannaj for the first time and had my encounter with the truly great Great Indian Bustard (GIB), on the day of the annual GIB census conducted by the Maharashtra forest dept. The magic of Nannaj pulled me back into its grasslands from the hot dusty city of Gulbarga, just 3 weeks later, but this time with 2 more birder-friends – Krishnajith & Jyothish who joined me from Mumbai & Hyderabad.

Solapur greeted us with dark, overcast skies that bode ill for an early morning bird-spotting stroll the next day.  Having missed the bus to Nannaj, we boarded a sinister-looking tum-tum (the local jeep) only to get ourselves squeezed, sitting in the front seat with 3 other travellers and two heavy backpacks. It was a tough time - taking care not to crush my camera & bino, while at the same trying not to move my already contorted legs lest I hit the gear handle and send the vehicle out of control! Finally Nannaj came into view, to our great relief, after 30 minutes of terrible travel. Another 15 minutes of walk through the countryside & we were at the forest guest house awaited upon by a delectable feast of local Marathi cuisine - chapattis, jowar rotis, dal, pulses & some excellent groundnut-green chilly chutney. Our bellies were filled to bursting point and maybe the clouds felt the same way too, for they broke into a heavy downpour as if unable to hold the moisture any longer. An uneasy sleep took over me as I sat praying for clear skies the next day.

           Morning, 7^th of October – a gray dawn with little promise of the sun rising. Large grey babblers & red-vented bulbuls went about squeaking & squawking in the light drizzle. We reached the small circular hut

Small minivet (male)

within the 100-hectare plot by around 0745 hrs. The landscape had changed a lot in the last 3 weeks – the grass was greener & taller, small waterholes had formed and more wetland birds were in sight this time – the delightful effect of rains on a parched land. All along the way we met more feathered friends - small green bee-eaters, red & yellow wattled lapwings, plum-headed parakeets, cattle egrets & a variety of larks. Once at the hut, we were rewarded straight away – the male GIB was in attendance! We settled down with our cameras & binoculars observing the bird. A few blackbucks grazed contently in the grassland. I could spot a pair of Montagu’s harriers actively scouring the open ground for rodents & insects. We could also see larks, baya weavers, collared & laughing doves, silverbills & barn swallows. The male bayas were busy collecting nesting material from the tall grass while the swallows sliced through the air after insects.

As we were observing the bustard from the hut, two dogs entered the plot from the farther end by approximately 0800 hrs. They had their eyes on a pair of female blackbuck and started to move closer but the blackbuck fled. The dogs were no match for the speedy antelopes. However their interest turned to the lone GIB foraging about 100 metres away and the dogs approached the bird. The startled GIB took to flight and re-settled in another spot within the plot. Hardly half-an-hour had passed when the dogs re-appeared and the bustard was forced to shift position again. It circled the plot for a couple of minutes before retiring to longer grass where it remained resting till noon. The dogs lost interest in the GIB and again went after a young blackbuck which also escaped. A large flock of black ibis flew overhead as we left the hut for breakfast.

Great Indian Bustard (male)

GIB in monochrome

By the time we were back after a light breakfast & a sudden heavy rain, the bustard had moved little from its last position. A male blackbuck was courting a couple of females that roamed about the area. His patient & persistent efforts paid off once but the second female rebutted his advances leaving the poor guy strutting about in vain. 7^th October was the last day of the Wildlife week about which I had forgotten and a batch of students from a college in Solapur and a party of school children had come to see the famed GIB in its natural habitat. When their numbers became too many to allow us to peacefully observe the GIB, we left the hut to roam about in the privately-owned pasture lands outside the 100-hectare plot.

The surrounding grasslands abound in an amazing variety of bird life apart from the butterflies & dragonflies. A southern grey shrike had positioned itself on a babool tree and was throwing itself at any insect unfortunate enough to show itself at the wrong place at the wrong time. Bay-backed shrikes were

Bay-backed shrike

plentiful but seemed to be detested, interestingly, by the slightly larger southern grey shrike which chased away any of the former species that came too close. Tawny pipits ran along the ground on the muddy cart tracks in search of worms & insects. A couple of Montagu’s harriers & a black shouldered kite hovered about in the sky that was now turning blue after a pause in the rains. The harriers occasionally came down to the ground to catch some prey and then return to the air. Ashy-crowned sparrow larks, Indian bushlark, rufous tailed larks & rufous-winged larks were active in the short grass, running behind grasshoppers. We startled a pair of chestnut-bellied sandgrouse which flew away before I could even focus my lens on them. A lone male Iora whistled from the babool trees.

Montagu's harrier - male

After a late lunch, we arrived at the sanctuary entrance only to find the crowd turned out in full strength at the gate. The watch-tower was packed and the hut was overflowing with excited (read ‘loud’!) college-goers. Not a good time to view the bustard, with all the disturbance, I thought. The GIB had moved hardly 200 metres in the 4-5 hrs that had elapsed. But the Montagu’s harriers were out in good numbers and I could spot 5 of them in a small patch combing the grass & feeding continuously. It was interesting sight to see them fly low over the ground, dive suddenly into the grass & then come up with the prey.

Indian bushlark

Tawny pipit

Soon the sun started sinking & it was time to leave – i.e. till we come back next time. We bid farewell & parted at the station. As the train chugged along, dragging me closer to Gulbarga, I could only hope that the bustards would breed & thrive forever in the grasslands of Solapur.

How to reach: Solapur is the nearest town (~ 26 km) with good road & rail connectivity. Catch a bus, take a taxi/auto or travel by the tum-tum (a local jeep which is to be avoided if possible) to reach Nannaj village. From there it’s a 10 minute walk to the guest house.

Where to stay: Accommodation is available at the forest guest house at Nannaj. Contact the CCF, Pune territorial division for permission & room reservation. Simple, tasty & superb local cuisine is served in the guest house itself. But remember to carry lots of drinking water, as it can get pretty hot in the open grassland by mid-day.

Contact:Office of Chief Conservator of Forest ( T),   Old PMT Building,   Shankarsheth Road,   Near PMT Depot, Pune   Phone: 020 24445864, 020 26814638, 020 24442685

Checklist of birds

Date: 07-10-2012

Weather: Cloudy with occasional rains (0630 hrs to 1300 hrs); Sunny (1300 hrs to 1700 hrs)

Total no. of species: 52

1.       Indian peafowl
2.       Painted francolin
3.       Grey francolin
4.       Barn swallow
5.       House swift
6.       Asian Koel
7.       Crow pheasant
8.       House crow
9.       Jungle crow
10.   Black drongo
11.   Small minivet
12.   Iora
13.   Common woodshrike
14.   Common myna
15.   Southern grey shrike
16.   Bay-backed shrike
17.   Brown shrike
18.   Ashy crowned sparrow lark
19.   Rufous-winged bushlark
20.   Indian bushlark
21.   Malabar lark
22.   Rufous tailed lark
23.   Montagu’s harrier
24.   Black-winged kite
25.   Shikra
26.   Common kestrel
27.   Eurasian collared dove
28.   Laughing dove
29.   Great Indian bustard
30.   Chestnut-bellied sandgrouse
31.   Purple sunbird
32.   Tailor bird
33.   Plain prinia
34.   Ashy prinia
35.   Indian robin
36.   Baya weaver
37.   Common stonechat
38.   Indian Silverbill
39.   Scaly-bellied munia
40.   Zitting cisticola
41.   Large grey babbler
42.   House sparrow
43.   Red vented bulbul
44.   Plum-headed parakeet
45.   Small green bee-eater
46.   Spot-billed duck
47.   Yellow-wattled lapwing
48.   Red-wattled lapwing
49.   Black ibis
50.   Common sandpiper
51.   Little cormorant
52.   Tawny pipit

Abhiram G Sankar