Shivamogga-Tirthahalli Road – A Bird Haven

By Meera

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After spending some time at the Mandagadde Bird Sanctuary which is now an idyllic place for landscape shooting, I decided to explore other places on these breathtaking and sylvan surroundings of Shivamogga-Tirthahalli highway. Making my way back to Shivamogga town, I spotted many openings with spectacular viewpoints on the Tunga riverfront after crossing the Mandagadde village.

A view of the stretch

The canopy

Since the river island is flanked by rich dense forests, the views are unbelievable. One can spend time looking at Mother nature’s beauty and bounty amid the natural sounds emanating from the forest. Compared to Mandagadde island, which hardly supports or welcomes the arrival of migratory birds now (earlier, thousands of birds used to flock but now reduced to a few hundred), the wetlands on the opposite side seem to have attracted many native and migratory species.

A White-breasted Kingfisher stands watch

The green bee eaters enjoy the scenery 

Many winged visitors seemed to have found a way out in the aftermath of the submergence of the Mandagadde island and are now maybe, looking for new pastures. With clear openings on either side of this highway where the river flows silently, one can see many species perched on the native trees of the Western Ghats region. If one has patience, you can sight several species including hornbills and flycatchers.

Little cormorant basking 

The camouflage of the darter

   After spending some time on the Tunga river openings, I crossed over to the other side and came across a water body with lots of lotus plants and other vegetation. Since it was chilly and misty, I decided to wait patiently for the arrival of birds. To my surprise, I was happy to see many groups of birds in pairs and triples, and it made my day to capture on camera some of the common native species.

The water laden area

Another view of a misty morning

The sight of three green Bee-eaters perched in joyful silence, two varieties of Kingfishers, lots of wagtails, darters, herons, bittern, cranes, bulbuls, minivet, shrike, barbets, and others was a heart-warming sight.

Other species that have been sighted here – crested buzzard, Tickell’s blue flycatcher, Asian Emerald Dove, and bronzed Drongo, etc. Further, some bird watchers whom I met reported sightings of Eurasian moorhen and coots, Asian Brown Flycatcher, green warbler, small grebe, small swift, brown cheeked Fulvetta, and of course, the common Kingfisher.

The forest

The Forest

The more I spent my time in these local lakes on this national highway, I found that more and more species had found their way into these quiet and sylvan water bodies surrounded by reserve forests. One can explore this region to their heart's content - walking amid the verdant, sylvan surroundings for hours together but beware of langurs as they are out to ask for food.

Even as I walked back to Mandagadde Sanctuary, I felt very sad and wondered at the fate of this famous habitat. Although the watchtowers at Mandagadde stands forlorn with neither visitor, bird watchers, or tourists, local people said and hoped many avian species from far off lands would visit again but for that many mitigatory mechanisms have to be put in place by the authorities. Will Mandagadde once again open its doors for migratory and other birds is a million-dollar question?

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