Access : Bus from Kochi to Kothamangalam, change bus to Thattekad
Accomodation : Homestay (recommended!!) - Bird Song Homestay (9746248274 - Mr. Vinod) or Jungle Bird Homestay (9947506188 - Mrs. Sudha)
Best Time : December to February, for at least three days to cover most of the birds. Suggested to take a guide for spotting birds (they know where which birds frequent)
List of Birds spotted:
(A - abundant, C - common, O - occasional, U - uncommon, R - very rare)
 |
| Black-Naped Oriole |
2) Grey Junglefowl - 15+ (C)
3) Cotton Pygmy-Goose - 4 (R)
4) Spot-Billed Duck - 1 (C)
5) Brown-Capped Pygmy Woodpecker - 4 (O)
6) Rufous Woodpecker - 2 (U)
7) Lesser Yellownape - 2 (O)
8) Common Flameback - 1 (U)
9) Black-Rumped Flameback - 6 (C)
10) Greater Flameback - 5 (O)
11) Heart-Spotted Woodpecker - 2 (U)
12) White-Cheeked Barbet - 14 (C)
13) Crimson-Fronted Barbet - 4 (O)
14) Malabar Grey Hornbill - 6 (C)
15) Common Hoopoe - 4 (C)
16) Malabar Trogon - 2 (O)
17) Indian Roller - 7 (C)
18) Dollarbird - 3 (O)
19) Common Kingfisher - 6 (C)
 |
| Bronzed Drongo |
21) Stork-Billed Kingfisher - 3 (C)
22) Pied Kingfisher - 1 (O)
23) Blue-Tailed Bee-Eater - 2 (C)
24) Chestnut-Headed Bee-Eater - 1 (C)
25) Chestnut-Winged Cuckoo - 2 (R)
26) Common Hawk Cuckoo - 1 (O)
27) Drongo Cuckoo - 3 (U)
28) Asian Koel - 2 (O)
29) Blue-Faced Malkoha - 1 (U)
30) Greater Coucal - 2 (C)
31) Vernal Hanging Parrot - 4 (C)
32) Rose-Ringed Parakeet - 4 (O)
33) Plum-Headed Parakeet - 3 (C)
34) Malabar Parakeet - 8 (C)
35) House Swift - 35 (A)
36) Brown-Backed Needletail - 2 (U)
37) Jungle Owlet - 2 (O)
38) Brown Hawk Owl - 2 (U)
 |
| Brown Hawk Owl |
40) Large-Eared Nightjar - 1 (O)
41) Jerdon's Nightjar - 2 (O)
42) Rock Pigeon - many (A)
43) Spotted Dove - 14 (C)
44) Emerald Dove - 2 (U)
45) Pompadour Green Pigeon - 4 (O)
46) Green Imperial Pigeon - 8 (O)
47) White-Breasted Waterhen - 12 (C)
48) Purple Swamphen - 1 (O)
49) Pintail Snipe - 1 (R)
50) Common Sandpiper - 2 (O)
51) Pheasant-Tailed Jacana - 2 (O)
52) Bronze-Winged Jacana - 1 (O)
53) Red-Wattled Lapwing - 5 (C)
54) Whiskered Tern - 30 (A)
55) Black Baza - 2 (U)
56) Black Kite - 1 (O)
57) Brahminy Kite - 1 (O)
 |
| Brown-Breasted Flycatcher |
59) Crested Serpent Eagle - 1 (O)
60) Crested Goshawk - 1 (U)
61) Shikra -1 (O)
62) Darter - 8 (C)
63) Little Cormorant - 15 (C)
64) Indian Cormorant - 3 (C)
65) Little Egret - 12 (A)
66) Intermediate Egret - 8 (C)
67) Cattle Egret - 4 (C)
68) Grey Heron - 2 (O)
69) Purple Heron - 1 (O)
70) Indian Pond Heron - many (A)
71) Asian Open-Billed Stork - 1 (O)
72) Indian Pitta - 2 (O)
73) Asian Fairy Bluebird - 2 (O)
74) Golden-Fronted Leafbird - 4 (C)
75) Rufous Treepie - 8 (C)
76) White-Bellied Treepie - 5 (C)
77) House Crow - 2 (O)
 |
| Brown-Capped Pygmy Woodpecker |
79) Ashy Woodswallow - 8 (C)
80) Eurasian Golden Oriole - 9 (C)
81) Black-Hooded Oriole - 7 (C)
82) Black-Naped Oriole - 3 (O)
83) Small Minivet - 4 (C)
84) Orange Minivet - 14 (C)
85) White-Browed Fantail Flycatcher - 2(O)
86) Black Drongo - 2 (O)
87) Ashy Drongo - 12 (C)
88) Bronzed Drongo - 14 (C)
89) Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo - 22 (C)
90) Spangled Drongo - 1 (O)
91) Asian Paradise Flycatcher - 8 (C)
92) Common Iora - 6 (C)
93) Large Woodshrike - 9 (C)
94) Malabar Whistling Thrush - 2 (O)
95) Orange-Headed Ground Thrush - 7 (C)
96) Indian Blackbird - 1 (O)
 |
| Common Flameback |
98) Asian Brown Flycatcher - 3 (O)
99) White-Bellied Blue Flycatcher - 2 (O)
100) Blue-Throated Flycatcher - 1 (O)
101) Tickell's Blue Flycatcher - 2 (O)
102) Oriental Magpie Robin - 3 (C)
103) Indian Robin - 2 (C)
104) Pied Bushchat - 1 (O)
105) White-Headed Starling - 8 (C)
106) Brahminy Starling - 2 (O)
107) Common Myna - 24 (A)
108) Southern Hill Myna - 8 (C)
109) Jungle Myna - 2 (O)
110) Great Tit - 8 (C)
111) Grey-Headed Bulbul - 1 (U)
112) Ruby-Throated Bulbul - 6 (O)
113) Red-Whiskered Bulbul - 7 (O)
114) Yellow-Browed Bulbul - 6 (O)
115) Common Tailorbird -2 (O)
 |
| Crimson-Fronted Barbet |
117) Western Crowned Warbler - 1 (U)
118) Thick-Billed Warbler - 2 (O)
119) Jungle Babbler - 8 (C)
120) Thick-Billed Flowerpecker - 3 (O)
121) Plain Flowerpecker - 1 (R)
122) Nilgiri Flowerpecker - 2 (U)
123) Purple-Rumped Sunbird - 5 (C)
124) Purple Sunbird - 8 (C)
125) Crimson-Backed Sunbird - 2 (O)
126) Little Spiderhunter - 2 (O)
127) Forest Wagtail - 1 (U)
128) Grey Wagtail - 3 (C)
129) White-Browed Wagtail - 8 (C)
 |
| Darter |
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| Cotton Pygmy-Goose |
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| Cotton Pygmy-Goose |
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| Dollarbird |
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| Flame-Throated (Ruby-Throated) Bulbul |
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| Flame-Throated (Ruby-Throated) Bulbul |
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| Greater Flameback |
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| Greater Flameback |
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| Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo |
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| Greenish Warbler |
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| Grey-Headed Fish Eagle |
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| Heart-Spotted Woodpecker |
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| Indian Blackbird |
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| Indian Pitta |
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| Jungle Owlet |
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| Lesser Yellownape |
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| Intermediate Egret |
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| Malabar Grey Hornbill |
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| Malabar Parakeet |
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| Malabar Trogon |
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| Malabar (Large) Woodshrike |
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| Nilgiri Flowerpecker |
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| Orange Minivet (Female) |
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| Orange-Headed Ground Thrush |
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| Pompadour Green Pigeon |
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| Eurasian Golden Oriole (Female) |
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| Southern Hill Myna |
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| Sri Lankan (Ceylon) Frogmouth |
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| Stork-Billed Kingfisher |
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| Stork-Billed Kingfisher |
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| Thick-Billed Warbler |
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| Vernal Hanging Parrot |
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| White-Bellied Blue Flycatcher |
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| White-Bellied Treepie |
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| White-Browed (Large Pied) Wagtail |
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| White-Cheeked Barbet |
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| White-Headed (Malabar) Starling |
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| White-Headed (Malabar) Starling |
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| Yellow-Browed Bulbul |
Missed out on some owls, cuckoos and munias. Specials I missed out included Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher, Velvet-Fronted Nuthatch, Speckled Piculet and Bitterns. Could have been covered in an extra day's effort.
All in all, a great place for birding with immediate results to even the slightest effort! Most uncommon birds in India are pretty common at Thattekad Sanctuary, thanks to the conservation efforts and bird-spotting skills of the locals.
