Posts Tagged ‘Sarus cranes’
A trip to Chambal River in Agra, India
Gharial crocodiles and the Sarus crane were the main objective…!
This was to be my last safari on this month long trip to India. The site is situated in Agra, east of Delhi where the famous Taj Mahal is located.
A female gharial regulating her body temperature early in the morning by the Chambal River in Agra…!
The Chambal River has some very interesting creatures and the main ones I was after were the gharial (thin-jawed fish eating crocodile) and the Sarus crane (the world’s tallest bird). Time was limited and I was lucky to photographed both species in one day.
Another female gharial and its tell-tale thin jaw for catching fish; they are an amazing crocodilian…!
I stayed at the Chambal Safari Hotel some 70 kilometers past the city of Agra. We left at 5am and arrived at the boat landing where a speed boat was waiting near dawn that was another 22 kilometers from the lodge.
And yet another female gharial before slipping into the Chambal River…! No males were photographed…!
Within no time at all, we bumped into gharial and I got several but they were all female. The males would slip into the river as soon as they spotted us.
A breeding pair of Sarus cranes feeding and dancing on Chambal; these wonderful birds mate for life…!
But I was happy to get some decent photographs and as the sun rose into the sky, it became dreadfully hot and light was very harsh so we returned to the hotel for lunch.
The Sarus crane is the tallest bird in the world and they are thriving very well in India at several locations….!
Other species captured were the mugger crocodile and Indian blue peafowl in full display mode. Many water birds are also found here.
A Indian peafowl male in full display. These birds thrive by the river and are absolutely beautiful…!
Back again at 3:30pm and we motored up the river once again. Shortly thereafter, two Sarus cranes were spotted feeding along a sandy bank. I was delighted and surprised to see how close we got to the tall birds.
A mugger or marsh crocodile basking in the morning sun. This reptile is estimated to be about 3 meters long…!
I will return in mid-March 2017 when the weather is much cooler and the crocs are a lot easier to see when they need to bask for long periods in the sun regulating their body temperature due to the very cold river. All in all, it was a quick but very satisfying trip to the Chambal River. Enjoy…!
