Birds at Hebbal lake

Last Sunday morning, I went to Hebbal lake, Bangalore for walk and bird watching. Here's a photo tour of the birds I found there...

The Asian koel is a member of the cuckoo order of birds. I found the female version of it. The Asian koel is a brood parasite, and lays its single egg in the nests of a variety of birds, including the jungle crow and house crow...

A Little egret was seen wading through water. They use a variety of methods to procure their food; they stalk their prey in shallow water, often running with raised wings or shuffling their feet to disturb small fish, or may stand still and wait to ambush prey.Little egrets are sociable birds and are often seen in small flocks. Nevertheless, individual birds do not tolerate others coming too close to their chosen feeding site, though this depends on the abundance of prey.

Some fallen leaves caught in a spider web...

A male Purple Rumped Sunbird was seen hopping around with great urgency sucking nectar.  It has been noted that they maintain special scratching posts, where they get rid of pollen and nectar sticking to their head. The shadow falling on its face made me try for a better shot.

Here's a better shot. When the flowers are too deep to probe, they sometimes pierce the base of the flower and rob the nectar, an action termed as "nectar theft" since the flower's primary purpose of attracting pollinators is foiled.

 Bougainvillea...

A Grey Heron standing motionless, waiting for prey to come within striking distance.

The sausage like fruits of Kigelia Pinnata, the Sausage tree. An alcoholic beverage similar to beer is also made from it. The fresh fruit is poisonous and strongly purgative; fruit are prepared for consumption by drying, roasting or fermentation.

The foul smelling flowers are borne on a long stalk which hangs from branches.

Bats are known to pollinate the large maroon flowers of the Sausage tree...

A Brahminy kite was seen gliding around lazily. It is primarily a scavenger, feeding mainly on dead fish and crabs. They may also indulge in kleptoparasitism and attempt to steal prey from other birds.

Common Hawk-cuckoo...

Bird details courtesy: Wikipedia