The ornithologist Salim Ali’s unscheduled stopover at Thattekad in 1933 made it the focal point of a bird survey and 50 years later he helped establish in this unique ecosystem with 14 different habitats Kerala’s first bird sanctuary.
Salim Ali crossing the Periyar in 1933, with his car mounted on two boats.
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Sri Lankan frogmouth.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Malabar grey hornbill.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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R. Sugathan, a scientist at the bird monitoring cell, Thattekad Bird Sanctuary. ▲
Red-whiskered bulbul.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Little cormorant.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Blue-faced malkoha.
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Malabar grey hornbill.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Magpie Robin
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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White-cheeked barbet.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Malabar trogon.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Greater racket-tailed drongo.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Orange-headed thrush.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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Yellow-browed bulbul.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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A pair of Sri Lankan frogmouth.
Photo: SUBASH JEYAN
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The flimsy nest of the Sri Lankan frogmouth with the remains of an egg. The bird has only one breeding season in a year, during which it lays only one egg.
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Brahminy kite.
Photo: DR GIRIDHAR VIJAY
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Malabar parakeet.
Photo: DR GIRIDHAR VIJAY
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White-bellied blue flycatcher.
Photo: DR GIRIDHAR VIJAY
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Flame-throated bulbul.
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Golden-fronted leafbird.
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Red spurfowl.
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Red spur fowl (male).
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Jungle fowl.
Photo: DR GIRIDHAR VIJAY
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Brown wood owl.
Photo: DR GIRIDHAR VIJAY
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