Aranya Nivas was home base within Periyar Tiger Reserve. It was a great place to just sit and wait for the wildlife to drop in to visit. Spotted Sambar Deer on the edge of the hotel. The trio blended well into the background that it was hard to pick them out. Waited till they were passing a relatively clear spot to get my shot, however the adults were too big and fast to shoot. I focused instead on the fawn.
A troupe of Bonnet Macaques were harassing visitors at the cafe and at the boat ride landing area. This macaque is only found in India and it different to the Long-tailed Macaques we have here. These have more hair on their head and have a center parting on their flattened hair. A number of Bonnet Macaques were also amputees and according to the staff they have a vet on staff to care for the animals. 
I could not contain my excitement when I spotted the Malabar Giant Squirrel but they aren't easy to photograph. I spent quite a bit of time observing the one individual that lived near the hotel to finally get a reasonably good shot of the squirrel eating the seeds of a cotton tree. It scatter fluffy turfs of cotton on me.
Then I spotted a pair of Malabar Grey Hornbills, my first wild hornbill sighting on the first evening I was at the hotel. Didn't take me long to figure out that the pair might visit the hotel.
While staking out a fig tree by pool side for the Crimson-chested and White-cheeked Barbets. I found the hornbills on the same tree too. 
Also spotted on the same tree were the Asian Blue Fairybird.
On the last day the Nilgiri Langurs, they too raided the fig tree by the pool and stripped the tree of all its fruits. There goes the birds but luckily I was leaving for my next destination.
A troupe of Bonnet Macaques were harassing visitors at the cafe and at the boat ride landing area. This macaque is only found in India and it different to the Long-tailed Macaques we have here. These have more hair on their head and have a center parting on their flattened hair. A number of Bonnet Macaques were also amputees and according to the staff they have a vet on staff to care for the animals. 
I could not contain my excitement when I spotted the Malabar Giant Squirrel but they aren't easy to photograph. I spent quite a bit of time observing the one individual that lived near the hotel to finally get a reasonably good shot of the squirrel eating the seeds of a cotton tree. It scatter fluffy turfs of cotton on me.
Then I spotted a pair of Malabar Grey Hornbills, my first wild hornbill sighting on the first evening I was at the hotel. Didn't take me long to figure out that the pair might visit the hotel.
While staking out a fig tree by pool side for the Crimson-chested and White-cheeked Barbets. I found the hornbills on the same tree too. 
Also spotted on the same tree were the Asian Blue Fairybird.
On the last day the Nilgiri Langurs, they too raided the fig tree by the pool and stripped the tree of all its fruits. There goes the birds but luckily I was leaving for my next destination.
2 comments:
Great, you've got lovely shots of the birds. Maybe you would have spotted more birds and animals if you had visited during the December period. But, there may also be more people there at that time, so I'm not sure if it makes a difference.
Hi Shawn, I probably would have. The staff at the reserve actually recommend the dry season and not the Dec period.
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