On the trail of the Western Hooded Pitta
On the trail of WesternHooded Pitta A month ago in June , I had gone on the trail of the Western Hooded Pitta and I wanted to share my experience in finding this elusive and beautiful bird. There are 47 species of Pittas in the world, mostly found in Asia & Africa. India has five species, Indian Pitta, Mangrove Pitta, Blue-naped Pitta, Western Hooded Pitta and Nicobar Hooded Pitta. Western Hooded Pitta I was very keen last year to see the Western Hooded Pitta but could not get the right information on its probable places for sighting. This year, I was absolutely set to see the Western Hooded Pitta. I wanted to go to Manas National Park at Assam but could not finalize the dates due to work commitments before the Park gets closed for the onset of monsoons. Then, a senior birder Dr Sanjit Peter had suggested I should visit Kaladhungi for the WHPitta as it will be nesting there during the breeding season. I got on to maki...