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When the world hit pause in 2020, I was lucky to be back home in Goa. It allowed for a front-row seat to feathered fabulousness.
Every dusk and dawn, my windows became a Nat Geo documentary: Malabar-Pied and Grey Hornbills trumpeting like regal brass bands, Paradise Fly-Catchers flitting in perfect choreography, orioles painting the sky in sunshine hues, and Drongos playing Houdini among the branches. Bulbuls provided the daily gossip, while Streak-Throated Swallows zoomed past in high-speed cameo roles.
As I age, birding continues to be a cherished pastime. This page holds a small collection of birds I’ve been lucky enough to see and photograph at relatively close distances.
Malabar Pied Hornbills were among the first birds I noticed from my bedroom window in Goa during COVID, and the joy that sighting brought me then, and still does, is unparalleled. I may never fully understand the evolutionary logic of their extraordinary beaks, but I did once watch one put it to excellent use in a victorious standoff with a bully crow. In a particularly surreal moment, I even caught a male Malabar Pied Hornbill appearing to hold a brief conversation with our dog, Mitzu.
Fun fact: female Malabar Pied Hornbills have white patches around their eyes; males do not.
Grey Hornbills often dropped by as well. One came to my balcony often, looking for a suitable nesting site.
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