Archive for the 'Kathmandu' Category

Feral Pigeon in Kathmandu

One of the aspects of visiting Nepal in 2006 that excited me was the prospect of seeing many birds for the very first time. This was my first trip overseas and for months before I studied field guides to help me identify the birds, first in Thailand and then in Nepal.

At first I was quite disappointed with the birding I was able to do. I soon realised that watching birds was not my main purpose in visiting these countries, so any birds I did see were a bonus. Secondly, I realised very quickly that identifying birds in a strange country is not easy. Even though I had studied the field guides for many months, getting an ID for some birds was very hard. Third, trying to identify and photograph a bird from the back of a moving elephant, or in the lurching back seat of a 4WD or bus, or while gasping for air when staggering up the track towards Mt Everest IS NOT EASY.

So, in that context, the photo above was a bonus. This Feral Pigeon (Rock Dove) posed for me beautifully on a the ledge of part of a temple in Kathmandu. Still, I didn’t exactly travel a third of the way around the world to see and photograph a common bird I can see just by stepping out my front door at home. [Sigh]

Related articles:

• Himalayan Monal – national bird of Nepal.
• Another rhinoceros – and some birds too
• Canoe trip – and many birds
• An early morning birding walk – it’s hard in the fog!
• Royal Chitwan National Park – complete with a list of birds I saw.

Link:

• Trevor’s Birding – my blog about birding in Australia.

Near a Buddhist Stupa in Kathmandu

Wherever I walked in Kathmandu there were temples and special religious monuments everywhere. In many cases these are very colourful and so become focussed on by photographers like myself. Other structures are significant for other reasons.

This building is part of the Buddhist Stupa complex in central Kathmandu. The reason I took this photo was for the birds on the roof of the building. In this open public area near the temple there were literally thousands of Rock Doves (also called Feral Pigeons). They seemed to be everywhere in great numbers. It was therefore inevitable that one of them wanted to buy my hat – it left a deposit on it.

And so my hat needed a wash when I arrived back in the hotel.