Astounding 170 Birds of Monsoon in Rajasthan - Exploring Rare Species

Guest Name: Kalpesh Krishna X02
Destinations: Jaipur, Sonkhaliya, Desert National Park, Tal Chhapar, Jaipur
Date: 06 to 12 September, 2024
All Photos Credit: Kalpesh Krishna

06 September, 2024
This wasn’t my first trip with Mr. Kalpesh Krishna; we had also previously gone on a birding tour in North India. The guests were very enthusiastic about this trip since September is an amazing month to spot species of migratory birds. I left Noida at 4 am for Jaipur, where Mr. Kalpesh was arriving by flight. From Jaipur, we planned to head straight to Sonkhaliya. We hoped to do some birding on the way, but just 5 km before Kishangadh, we got stuck in a heavy traffic jam. Because of this, we had to skip our birding plans and went directly to check into our hotel. 

07 September, 2024
We packed our breakfast for the field and headed out early in the morning for our birding session today as we planned to see the Lesser Florican. After waiting a long time, we finally sighted the Lesser Florican's display and captured some amazing photos and videos. We also had another session of wonderful sightings of some birds. We spent the entire morning birding until noon and managed to spot all the resident species in that area. By noon, we returned to the hotel and planned to go birding again by 4 pm in the late afternoon. We hoped to find the white-tailed Iora, but despite our efforts, we couldn't hear any calls. So, we ended the day and headed back to the hotel, much satisfied by today’s session. 

08 September, 2024
Today, we left Sonkhaliya early morning at 5:30 a.m. as we had our long 8-9 hour drive to Jaisalmer, and we packed our breakfast for the journey. On the way, we stopped at the thorny forest near Kishangadh, where we visited the Dhukuli Mata Temple. There, we were lucky enough to finally spot the remaining three bird species we had missed earlier. 

After a successful birding session, we continued our drive and reached Jaisalmer at 5:00 pm. We had some time remaining before exploring the nearby fossil park. We decided to go birding, and we could sight Gray-necked Bunting bird species. By 6:00 p.m., we headed to the Desert National Park for our camping stay. Excited for the preplanned early morning safari the next day, we packed our breakfasts, looking forward to the next day ahead. 

09 September, 2024
We had breakfast at 6:00 am and left for the Desert National Park by 6:30 am. September’s weather is suitable for spotting many migrant and passage birds, and I’ve shared a few of the birds we could spot.

Upon our arrival at the national park, the forest department guided us to the area where Great Indian Bustards could be spotted. There was a nearby watchtower, but despite our efforts, the bustards were too far away to be visible, but only through scope. High grass due to recent rainfall covered their usual habitat, making it difficult to see them. Even though we managed to spot a few migrant birds, we returned to the camp by 6:30 p.m., calling it a wonderful day. 

10 September, 2024
Today, we had an early breakfast at 6:00 a.m. and left our camp by 6:30 a.m. to spot vultures. Although September isn’t ideal for vulture spotting, we set forth 40 kilometers to a village called Daav and were thrilled to find red-headed vultures. However, unfortunately, we couldn't spot any white-rumped vultures. 

After returning to camp and having lunch, we headed to Khaba Fort, where we could see a few birds, namely Desert Lark and Sandgrouse. Our trip to the Desert National Park proved enriching, as we finally could achieve our birding target and sight some interesting passage migrant birds. The next day, we set out for Tal Chapar via Khichan, hoping to see Demoiselle Cranes, and for this, we left our campsite early to increase our chances. 

However, on our return to camp, the driver spotted a flock of 50 Demoiselle cranes, an unexpected sighting that ended the day with much satisfaction. 

11 September, 2024
We had breakfast at 6:30 a.m. and departed for Tal Chapar, which is an approximate drive of 8–9 hours from Jaisalmer. We left early to carry out an early evening birding session. We arrived in Tal Chapar by 4:00 pm, and to avoid inconvenience, we had pre-booked our homestay as it was a small village. After dropping off our luggage, we headed straight to the Gaushala for the birding session. Our target was to spot the spotted creeper, and we were fortunate enough to spot it within an hour of our session. We captured some fantastic photographs, and, after a tiring day, we returned to our homestay. We planned the next day’s itinerary during dinner time to avoid last-minute problems. Overall, the day was fantastic yet again.

12 September, 2024
Today marked the last day of our tour, and yet we had the morning to finish the remaining of our birding sessions. Early in the morning, we set out into the national park to photograph Blackbucks. Despite the challenges posed by the rainy season and the faulty road conditions, which limited our vehicle’s movement, we managed to capture some great pictures of the Blackbucks.

By 9:00 a.m., we returned to our homestay for breakfast, and time after till noon we took advantage to go birding again. We visited a salt area that was located right behind the sanctuary, which was also an ideal spot for water birds. There, we also observed passage migrants like the Terek Sandpiper and Curlew Sandpiper.

After this birding session, we returned to the homestay and left for Jaipur, as our guests had flights back to their cities in the evening. Overall, the tour was enriching, where we sighted a whole range of beautiful birds, including the Great Indian Bustard, Spotted Creeper, and Lesser Florican, as well as various other passage migrants. We all left content and satisfied.