What's on in October
October is a special month for birdwatchers. It is around this time of the month that waterfowl and waders have made themselves at home in the neighbouring ponds, lakes, and rivers. Wintering warblers and flycatchers have begun to make their presence known in the woodlands.
Birds and their movements
Several passage migrants continue to move through India on their way to their wintering grounds in other parts of the world, and more will be expected to come through this month. European Rollers and Common Cuckoos pass through the subcontinent this month. Amur Falcons begin to pass through India at this time of the year, stopping by in large numbers in the northeast, but also in other parts of the peninsula as they bulk up on termites and other insects before continuing their long journey to Africa. If you’re in Gujarat at this time of the year, you may see more Rosy Starlings congregating together than at any other time of the year – certainly, a sight to behold!
Annual taxonomy update
The annual eBird taxonomy is over and the full update can be seen here.
Do not forget to change your language to English (India) from your eBird preferences menu to be able to see familiar english names for birds on your checklists. For lists from India, it is also recommended that you use the eBird India portal, either on the web or on the app.
Events & Campaign
Bangalore Bird Day- Birders from Bangalore come together for an annual event that is celebrated as ‘Bengaluru Bird Day’ in honor of Dr. Joseph George, who started the group birdwatching movement in Bangalore four decades ago. See here for more.
The Bharatpur Birding Week starts at Keoladeo National Park and the dates of this event are from 5th – 10th October. Details can be seen here.
India will celebrate its 4th Wild Bird Day on 9 October. The idea is to spend as much time as you can to observe and document birds on this day to generate a snapshot of the distribution and abundance of birds at this time of the year. Checklists uploaded to eBird on this day will be automatically counted towards the ‘October Big Day’—a global effort to document as many species as possible in a single 24- hour period.
The Global Bird Weekend is from 8 – 10 October. More details can be seen here.
15- 18 Oct is the Kati-Bihu Bird Count. Details here.
Participate in the Karnala Bird Count from 22 to 24 Oct. Details here.
Participate in the Phansad Bird Count from 29 to 31 Oct. Details here.
Challenges
The monthly eBird challenge for October is to aggregate 40 checklists throughout the month. See here to know more details and here to view the yearlong challenges for 2021!
Important: Considering the Covid-19 pandemic, please ensure that you adhere to all instructions by central and local authorities while birding.