மனம் கொத்திப் பறவை ~ Black-rumped flameback

For long I could only differentiate between a ‘Crow and sparrow’ – now I am seeing Mynahs, Pigeons, Vultures, Parrots, Woodpeckers, and few other tiny tots on my terrace !!  

மனம் கொத்திப் பறவை என்று ஒரு சினிமா வந்ததாக ஞாபகம் - தேடியதில், சிவகார்த்திகேயன், சூரி,   ஆத்மியா ஆகியோர் நடித்த படம் என்று அறிகிறேன்.  இது மர வாழ் பறவை மரங்கொத்தி பற்றியது. 

Bird-sighting !!  - Bird-watching,  the observing of birds,  is indeed interesting. You might spot an odd one with naked eye but more difficult to capture them with a camera.  As you stand in the early hours of morning, there would be so much of interesting sounds of various birds that attract .. ..  that is for common man. 

Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds. They study various aspects of bird life - evolution, behaviour, food habits, migration, mating patterns, and more. 

Spotted here in the photo is not an ordinary wood pecker but “black-rumped flameback” (Dinopium benghalense), also known as the lesser golden-backed woodpecker found widely distributed in the Indian subcontinent. It has a characteristic rattling-whinnying call and an undulating flight. It is the only golden-backed woodpecker with a black throat and a black rump.

 

The black-rumped flameback is a large species at 26–29 cm in length. It has a typical woodpecker shape, and the golden yellow wing coverts are distinctive. The rump is black and not red as in the greater flameback. The underparts are white with dark chevron markings. The black throat finely marked with white immediately separates it from other golden backed woodpeckers in the Indian region. Like other woodpeckers, this species has a straight pointed bill, a stiff tail to provide support against tree trunks, and zygodactyl feet, with two toes pointing forward, and two backward.  

      They feed on insects mainly beetle larvae from under the bark, visit termite mounds and sometimes feed on nectar.   The black-rumped flameback was described and illustrated by two pre-Linnaean English naturalists from a dried specimen that had been brought to London. It  was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under the binomial name Picus benghalensis.   

Interesting !  - this one came to my house terrace and posed very briefly before flying away.  

 
With regards – S. Sampathkumar
12.3.2024.