Trip Reports and More

  • Asiatic Wild Cat, Kutch
  • Ward’s Trogon, Mishmi Hills
  • Nilgiri Tahr, Anamalai
  • Lion-tailed Macaque, Anamalai
  • Sri Lanka Frogmouth, Thattekad
  • Brown Palm Civet, Anamalai
  • Malabar Trogon, Anamalai
  • Marsh Babbler, Roing Grasslands
  • Indian Wild Ass, Kutch
  • White-browed Piculet, Dihing Patkai
  • Indian Bustard, Kutch
  • Sloth Bear, Kanha
  • Himalayan Monal, Kedarnath WLS
  • Indian Rhino, Kaziranga
  • Western Hoolock Gibbon, Kaziranga
  • Long-billed Wren Babbler, Mishmi Hills
  • Himalayan Tahr, Kedarnath WLS
  • Syke’s Lark, Kutch
  • Asiatic Lion, Gir
  • Black and Orange Flycatcher, Nilgiris
  • Four-horned Antelope, Gir
  • Nilgiri Langur, Anamalai
  • Stump-tailed Macaque, Gibbon Sanctuary
  • Indian Fox, Kutch
  • Gee’s Golden Langur, Kakoijana
  • Indian Porcupine, Kutch
  • Painted Sandgrouse, Kutch
  • Nilgiri Striped Squirrel, High Ranges
  • White-crowned Forktail, Namdapha
  • Asian Elephant, Kumaon
  • Grizzled Giant Squirrel, Anamalai
  • Indian Long-eared Hedgehog, Kutch
  • Dhole, Kabini
  • Nilgiri Flycatcher, Nilgiris
  • Himalayan Marten, Kumaon
  • Great Pied Hornbill, Anamalai

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Featured Posts

Western Ghats: Lion-tailed Macaque, Brown Palm Civet and other endemic mammals, a trip report

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) A brief, mammal watching oriented guided tour, with a focus on endemic primates, to the Anamalai mountains of the southern Western Ghats, produced all primates of the region (including Lion-tailed Macaque, Nilgiri Langur and Slender Loris), Brown Palm Civet and Nilgiri Tahr among 21 species of mammals. While birding was decidedly…

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Stump-tailed Macaque, Golden Langur and other wildlife of Assam, Feb 2020: Trip Report

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) A report based on a mammal-watching oriented guided trip (with a focus on Primates) to the lowland forests and floodplains of the Bramhaputra in Assam, northeast India. Mammal Highlights included superb species like Gee’s Golden Langur, Stump-tailed Macaque and Western Hoolock Gibbon among six species of primates, One-Horned Rhinoceros (aplenty) among large…

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Great Indian Bustard, Grey Hypocolius, Desert Cat and other wildlife of Kutch & DNP: Trip Report

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) A birdwatching oriented guided trip to the thorn forests and grasslands of Kutch, the salt pans of the Little Rann of Kutch and the sandy Thar Desert of Rajasthan produced superb birds like Great Indian & MacQueen’s Bustards, Grey Hypocolius, White-naped Tit, Marshall’s Iora, Grey-necked and Black-headed Buntings, Laggar Falcon (among…

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Report: Caracal! and other wildlife from Kutch, April 2019

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) A report from a mammal watching oriented tour, with a specific goal to see/identify potential sites for the rarely seen, locally endangered (within India) Caracal, to Kutch (Western India) in April 2019.  Highlights included a sighting of Caracal (!), Leopard (a rarity in these parts), Jungle Cat, Indian Long-eared and Indian Hedgehogs and Indian Porcupine, among 17 species of mammals in 5…

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Nilgiri Marten – two personal sighting records of the elusive mammal

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) Why are there Martens in south India Six of the world’s seven species of Martens – reputedly pugnacious mammals, in the same family as weasels and otters (among other mid-sized carnivores) – have a largely Eurasian distribution, with one of their kind in the Americas. All species either occur in temperate…

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Report: Western Ghats endemic mammals, birds (and more), Spring 2018

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) This is a report based on a guided mammal/birdwatching oriented trip to various locations in the Western Ghats of south India this spring Dates: 25th March to 7th April 2018 (guided portion from 29th March onwards) Tour Locations: Kabini, Bandipur, Sethumadai/Top Slip, Parambikulam, Valparai, Chinnar, Munnar, Thattekad. Map of tour locations The trip was…

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Report: Mammals of the Anamalais (South India), Jan-Feb 2019

Author: Ravi Kailas (ficustours@gmail.com) This report is based on a guided mammal watching oriented trip to the Anamalai mountains in the Western Ghats of south India Dates: 31st Jan to 3rd Feb 2019 Tour Locations: In and around the Anamalai Tiger Reserve, including Sethumadai, Top Slip and Valparai. Map of tour locations  Tour Participants: Stuart Chapman and…

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A modest representation of the impressive #biodiversity of the Western Ghats of south India, from a recent visit to these mountains. A visit to Ladakh this summer, exploring, primarily, the Chanthang Plains of Eastern Ladakh, but also parts of Central and Western Ladakh produced a number of Tibetan Plateau mammalian specialities including multiple sightings of Tibetan Sand Fox, Tibetan Gazelle and Tibetan Wolf as well as species largely seen in the Central Asian region, including #mammals like Pallas’s Cat, Ladakhi Urial, Mountain Weasel and Long-tailed Marmot. This impressive list also included 2 species of hares, 2 or 3 species of Pika (Id problems!), and at least 1 species of vole (seen both active around their burrows and expertly excavated by Pallas’s Cat and the foxes). While we did not focus on the rich summer birdlife of this region, sightings included species like Black-necked Crane, Tibetan Snowcock, Hume’s Groundpecker, Golden Eagle, Lammergeier, Tibetan Lark, Brandt’s Mountainfinch, Red-fronted Serin and Blandford’s Snowfinch. A handful of lizards and butterflies added to the faunal riches on show, underlining the surprising abundance of wildlife that make this stark, cold desert landscape their (brief) summer (often breeding) home. All this richness is supported by moisture (mostly from snow and glacial meltwater, forming a network of streams, rivulets and marshes), that become available in the relative warmth of the season. This year, was hot though, and worryingly, Ladhakis are seeing rapidly waning glaciers, significantly lower snowfall and uncharacteristically intense summer rains….. A very cooperative Pallas's Cat (one of 15 species of #wildcat recorded India), Eastern #Ladakh, July 2022. This individual was an ace vole hunter as well. #mammals #wildlife #biodiversity #naturalhistory Came across the uncommonly seen Madras Treeshrew, a species endemic to South and Central India, at Panna NP this April. Although #Treeshrews superficially resemble squirrels, they are believed to be more closely related to primates. #mammals #wildlife #smallmammals #mammalwatching #biodiversity #naturalhistory A visit to the enchanting, albeit, bitterly cold at times, Eaglenest WLS in Arunachal Pradesh, in December last year, turned out to be very satisfactory for a variety of sightings. The sanctuary lived up to its reputation as among the premier birding destinations in the world with species like the highly localised Bugun Liochichla, Beautiful Nuthatch, Sikkim Wedge-billed Babbler, Rufous-throated Wren Babbler, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Ward’s Trogon, Darjeeling Woodpecker, Rufous-necked Hornbill and Himalayan Wood Owl among a plethora of Laughingthrushes, Yuhinas, Parrotbills, Fulvettas….. I suspect anyone who has birded in the Eastern Himalayas will get the picture! There were Arunachal Macaque, Himalayan Palm Civet, Himalayan Marten, Himalayan Brown Goral and Hairy-footed Flying Squirrels among the interesting mammals recorded. Scenic vistas overlooking multihued temperate broad-leaved forests, enchanting trails through moss covered forests, flowering plants adding a dash of colour even in the the height of winter, more than a smattering of snow, all added to the charm of these biodiverse montane forests of the Eastern Himalayas. For more details please follow link in bio. Just another morning at Hollongappar Gibbon Sanctuary, a twenty square kilometre lowland forest in Upper Assam, that is known to host an impressive 7 species of primates. We saw 5 species, including a family of Western Hoolock Gibbon and a rare, unexpected sighting of Stump-tailed Macaque, grooming and feeding on a copiously fruiting Ficus tree (@markleonspence, I expect this was all the good karma of feeding leeches in the past, paying off!). #mammals #primates #apes #wildlife #nature #naturalhistory #biodiversity An early Oct evening drive along the Mysore-Niligiri road that traverses the Bandipur and Mudumalai Tiger Reserves, turned out interesting for two herds of Elephants, a lone tusker - all pachyderms, relaxed and foraging along this relatively quiet road (not even close to the pre-pandemic levels of traffic mayhem) and a young male sloth bear, apparently digging for termites/other food of that nature, also adjacent, albeit more hidden by the monsoon enriched, weedy undergrowth than the former, to the main road. There were also Black-footed Gray Langur, Gray Mongoose, Gaur, Chital, Indian Giant Squirrel and Bonnet Macaque in a 3 hr or so foray on this scenic route, on a cool, cloudy evening. #wildlife #nature #mammals #biodiversity #naturalhistory #elephant #bear #nilgiris The uncommon Indian Brown Mongoose from a visit to the Anamalais in Aug 2021. Other highlights from the visit included Nilgiri Tahr, Nilgiri Langur and Lion-tailed Macaque, the usual suspects in this landscape, Black and Rufous-bellied Eagles, Rufous Babbler, Black-throated Munia and a plethora of macro life, that thrive during the monsoon. For a detailed report, please follow link in bio. #Westernghats #biodiversity #naturalhistory #wildlife #mammals #carnivores A brief visit (5th to 7th Aug) to the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, turned out to be productive in unexpected ways, including for three different sightings of Sloth Bear, all with cubs, an Indian Rock Python with a belly full of something substantial, and a sighting of the uncommon White-naped Woodpecker. There were also several sightings of the patchily distributed Grizzled Giant Squirrel and Mugger Crocodile, four species of Owls, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Lesser Fish and Bonelli’s Eagles, among a modest diversity of birds and other wildlife. Here are pictures of some of the highlights from the trip: