Everybody Loves Termites
An evening walk outside ISI-Bangalore in August coincided with a mass emergence
of winged termites from underground. As they struggled out of their holes and into
the air they were attacked by a variety of birds. Here is a list
- Pariah Kite (group of half a dozen methodically hawking low on a hillock)
- Jungle Crow (picking them off the ground or with short jumps in the air)
- Spotted Dove (off the ground)
- Small Green Barbet (sallies from perch in low tree - flying back and forth
between two trees and picking up termites on the way)
- Whitebreasted Kingfisher
- Small Greenbilled Malkoha (short vertical bursts from top of tree)
- Spotted Owlet (in air)
- Whitethroated Munia (sallies from electric cables)
Some mails to the
bngbirds
mailing list have described other birds taking the
same opportunity to vary their diet. The next list is extracted from the mails of
U. Harish Kumar and M.R. Chaitra.
- Coucal
- Common Grey Hornbill
- Redrumped Swallow
- Yellowthroated Bulbul
- Redvented Bulbul
- Redwhiskered Bulbul
- Black Drongo
- Common Myna
- Tailorbird (unsuccessful!)
Amber Habib