Bangalore – birding at Hoskote lake

The months of December and January are the peak of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, which means birds from as far as Siberia migrate to India and other warmer parts of the world during this period. Bangalore being in south India  is no exception and has a number of nesting or roosting sites for these birds, especially around large water bodies.

To make the most out of this birding season, I try and visit nearby birding hotspots every weekend. One such visit was to Hoskote lake in mid December. It was a 15 km drive from my place on ITPL road and took around thirty minutes to reach by road.

As soon as I reached the entrance of Hoskote lake, I was greeted by a brahminy kite even before I had started walking towards the lake.

Next, on top of a watch tower made of stones, which was at the same height as the elevated road I was walking on, I sighted a juvenile shikra staring straight at me. I love raptors and to start this session with two of them was fairly exciting, I must say.

Next, was a cinereous tit perched on top of the electric wireline. I had never managed to get a clear shot of this bird earlier as I had always seen them in badly lit areas (read dense cover).

Surveying the surroundings through my lens at full zoom, I spotted a purple heron on the other side of this narrow end of the lake. The size of this bird might not be evident from the pic below, but a purple heron is one of the largest birds you will find here.

As I walked further, a white-throated kingfisher flew right in front of me. I followed its movement and went back to the tree it had flown into. From a not so great angle, I did manage to find it.

As my focus shifted back to the lake, I saw this large bird in a slow flight as compared to other birds that were flying around. This one was unmistakable… a spot-billed pelican. Just three to four weeks back, I had spent half a day making images of these birds at Ranganathittu Bird Sanctuary where they were nesting in hundreds.

Moving ahead, I came across an ashy prinia, Indian silverbills, Indian cormorants, white-browed wagtails and Indian pond herons.

By now I had reached the junction, from where one can walk down towards the grassy patches around the lake. I was pleasantly surprised to see at least ten to twelve other people with their telephoto lenses busy photographing birds by the lake side. Hoskote lake seemed to be quite a popular birding destination amongst the residents of Bangalore. With most of the photographers shooting in this area, it was clear this is where all the birding action was. It started off with a Grey Heron on a wetland to my left.

By the lake on my right, I spotted some painted storks, barn swallows, wood sandpipers and cattle egrets.

Moving towards the last stretch of the lake, I came across numerous western yellow wagtails, black drongos, juvenile rosy starlings, grey-headed swamphen (with a young one), glossy ibis (a first for me), more painted storks and grey herons, black-winged stilts, eurasian spoonbills, little cormorants and a siberian stonechat.

These were just twenty five odd species of birds that I managed to take pictures of and document. There were a large number of others birds which I could not take images of such as black kites, sunbirds, common and jungle mynas, numerous species of ducks and other waders, amongst many others.

As I headed back and walked out of the lake area, coincidentally, the last bird that I saw and my final shot for the day was that of a brahminy kite. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the same one that had greeted me earlier in the day when I arrived at the lake.

All in all, it was a fairly good outing. I continue to be amazed by the colors of nature, the beauty and the abundance of wildlife, in every part of India. This little trip to Hoskote lake definitely didn’t disappoint. If you have been to Hoskote lake or other birding hotspots in and around Bangalore, feel free to share your experience and suggestions through your comments.