New bird in Kerala sky sighted at Iringol Kavu

KOCHI: Making bird lovers ecstatic, a new bird has been spotted in Kerala skies, thanks to the constant vigil of the birders in Kerala. The latest addition is the 'Eyebrowed Thrush' (Turdus Obscurus), locally named 'Purikapullu'. The local name has been coined by Dr. P.O. Nameer, head, College of Forestry, Kerala Agricultural University. The bird, which entered the Kerala checklist as 519th bird, was spotted on December 10 at Iringol Kavu, near Perumbavoor, by P. B. Samkumar. He is an assistant legal officer at Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit and pursues birding as a passion.

"This is the first sighting of the bird in Kerala. I had given the local name for the bird while translating a book on South Indian birds. At that time it was not spotted in Kerala," said Dr Nameer. "The striking features of the bird include a white supercilium and a white crescent below the eye, contrasting with dark lores. It has peachy-orange flanks contrasting with the white belly. The bird is found in open wooded forests. This bird flew in from the woods just to give a pleasant sight and disappeared back to the woods. I managed to get a picture of the bird," Mr Samkumar says.

This bird, commonly found in mainland of East and South-East Asia, Mangolia, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore are rare in Indian peninsula. The present report of the bird is the first in Kerala and third in South India. It was earlier spotted in Bangalore and Ooty. Mr Samkumar, along with fellow birders Raphy Kallettumkara and Nikhil, had earlier found 'Eastern Orphean Warbler' (Sylvia hortensis), locally known as  Karinthalayan Kuruvi, on October 22 which was the 517th new bird in Kerala. Another bird watcher Premchand Reghuvaran added another bird 'Black Tern' (Chlidonias niger; local name Karuppan Aala) as the 518th in the checklist on November 19.