Endemic bird tour, South India for 10 Days

A mesmerizing experience of the bird watching in Kerala.

Package Details

Arrival at Cochin Airport

Day, 1 & 2, 3

Thattekkad is a lowland forest with several types of eco-systems – riverine, grasslands, evergreen, scrub, dry deciduous, lowland forest, enabling it to be one of the best birding destinations in India. This is also home to most of the endemics of the Western Ghats. One should sight the White bellied Treepie, Rufous Babbler, Crimsonbacked Sunbird, White Bellied Blue Flycatcher, Malabar Parakeet, Malabar Grey Hornbill besides  owls like the Mottled Wood Owl, Spot-bellied Eagle Owl , Srilankan Bay Owl, Oriental scopes owl, Brown Fish Owl, Great eared Nightjar, special mammal Slender Loris. You should also be able to sight the Red Spur fowl, Grey Jungle Fowl, Indian Pitta, Black-throated Munia and the Lesser fishing eagle.  

Stay PJ International  or Tented camp

Day 4 & 5

Periyar Tiger Reserve is one of the finest wildlife & birding destinations in South India. With over 320 bird species identified and a leading habitat for the Bengal Tiger, this sanctuary is an ideal destination of the tour. Periyar National Park contains a variety of habitats from grassland and dry deciduous forest to evergreen forest and riverside scrub. As a result of its wide range of habitats Periyar boasts an impressive list of resident species including about half the peninsular endemics and near-endemics We will spend the day searching here for some very special species including the Wynaad Laughing thrush. Other birds to look out for include White-rumped and Brown-backed Needletails, Oriental Honey-Buzzard, Black Eagle, the striking Black Baza, Pompadour Green and Mountain Imperial Pigeon, the migratory Chestnut-winged Cuckoo, Yellow-browed Bulbul, Gray-breasted Prinia, Thick-billed Warbler, Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, and the Asian Fairy Bluebird among other more widespread species. We may also sight the Woolly-necked Stork, Besra, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Jungle Owlet, White-rumped Spinetail, Black-naped Monarch and the Little Spider hunter.

Stay Abad Green Forest

Day 6 & 7

We will leave for Munnar via the Ghats to Khambam where we should sight the Large Grey Babbler,  Jungle Bush Quail and the Grey Fancolin. We will proceed to Bodi Ghats en-route Munnar and stop over for sighting the rare Yellow Throated Bulbul, Indian Robin, Sirkeer Malkoha, Short Toed Snake Eagle, Bluefaced Malkoha and the Black eagle. We will reach Munnar by evening. The next day we will go birding in the sholas (high altitude montane forests) and grasslands for the Nilgiri Pipit, Painted Bush Quail, Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, Black & Orange Flycatcher, Nilgiri Flycatcher, Whitebellied Sholakkili, Broadtailed Grassbird, Grasshopper Warbler. .

Stay Olive Brook

Day 8

We will start early in the morning birding at Chinnar (dry scrub forest) looking for White-bellied Drongo, Blue faced Malkoha, White-naped woodpecker, Blue-beared bee-eater, Sirkeer Malkoha, Jungle Bush Quail and the Yellow-legged Button quail. From here taking the long drive, we will reach Ooty by evening. Ooty - a hill station, at about 2,200m in the Nilgiri Hills - is where we will look for the endemic Nilgiri Laughing Thrush, Nilgiri Sholakkili, and Black-and-Orange Rusty-tailed and Nilgiri Flycatchers.

Stay Taj Hotel  

Day 9 & 10

After Ooty, we will make our way to Mudumalai located at the foot of the of the Nilgiris hills. The terrain is varied with hills, valleys, ravines, watercourses and swamps, moist deciduous forests, dry deciduous forests and scrub forests and hence is ideal birding country. Should see Jerdon’s Bushlark, Sirkeer Malkoha, Indian Blue Robin, Indian Nuthatch, White-bellied Minivet, Yellow-billed Babbler, White-bellied Woodpecker, Large Cuckooshrike, Banded-bay Cuckoo, Thick-billed Warbler, Malabar Lark and Painted Bush Quail.

Stay Jungle Hut Bokkapuram

Day 11

Proceed to Bangalore airport