Thursday, July 30, 2020

SECOND TRIP TO WILPATTU IN 2020.....

I again went to Wilpattu in the last week of July with my family , my wife's sisters family, a friend and a couple of relations and stayed in the Manawila bungalow inside the park for 2 nights. As usual I managed to photograph quite a few animals and birds. It was a very refreshing and a relaxing time coupled up with good food and good company.

Woolly necked Stork


Male jungle Fowl


Adjutant Stork

Gobbling down a Cormorant


Rabbit


Green Imperial Pigeon 
Jackal

White rumped Shama
Indian Darter
Juvenile White bellied fish Eagle
A flock of Lesser Whistling Ducks

Black necked Ibis
White bellied sea Eagle



 History states that on a full moon day in the month of May in 543 BC. Several earthquakes & cyclones had occurred in the land & ocean surrounding the Indian subcontinent as it was the day of Parinirwana of Gauthama Buddha. In such a storm, sailed an Aryan ship of outlaws to the north-western coast of Heladeepa, to the point kudiramale which has reddish-brown/copper colored soil even today, headed by the well known Prince Vijaya.
With the help of Kuweeni: a lady of the royal house of the Yakkha clan of Sirasawasthupura, whom he married, Vijaya killed the royals in a night ceremony at Sirasawasthupura including the Yakkha king, “Kalasena” and other heirs to the throne. This made the kingdom of Sirasawasthupura collapse into many tiny independent Yakkha and other native states, Aryan states & a considerably larger & more powerful Kingdom of Thammannawa by the infant royal house of Singha. Upathissanuwara was named the capital of Thammannawa.



 Ruins En-route to Kudiramale


Turn off from the new manaar road



Kudiramale






 Reddish  brownish Copper coloured  soil and rock formations




Malabar pied Hornbil
We saw this NELUM VILA MALE on the 2nd morning 




It walked across the open area and went inside the jungle after about 15 minutes...
Stork billed Kingfisher

On our return trip to the bungalow for breakfast we again came across the same male walking along the road and we followed him for more than 20 minutes till it cut across just before Manikwila Bungalow. The best part was we en- counted 2 vehicles coming from that side and when we  inquired whether the male emerged from the thicket, they said they waited and came along the road but couldn't find. after we passed them it didn't take even a minute to confront him.... 









There were 2 White throat-ed Kingfisher chicks inside this tree near the bungalow. We presumed that they were on the verge of flying out with the parents encouraging from a distance but sadly we found both dead on the ground the following morning...




Serpent  Eagle
Majestic look..
Again we met the same male en-route to the bungalow in the evening around 6 on the   same day.
It rained in the night of the 2nd day and continued in the morning also  on and off...
An  un-expected sight of a rare migrant:An Osprey  as normally they are here from November to  March. 


Bush lark




Yellow Wattled Lapwing 



A pair of Peacocks  cleaning after the rains..

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This was the highlight of the trip and was a real gift. The brown fish Owl must have got really wet for the overnight rain and as a result it was perched on a tree branch just few feet away from us at our eye level and gave a full show for more than 20 minutes doing all kind s of tricks and also preying on a crab.
turning the head 270 degrees...


Cleaning..



Shaking....





Yawning...

All of a sudden with lightning speed it flew ,landed and came out with a ground crab with ease...








Munching greedily...