NELLIAMPATHYHORNBI

LL
SURVEYREPORT
Kar
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kaChandr
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Anur
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K.& Raj
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P.

Januar
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Ke
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Citation
Karthika Chandran, Anuraj R.K. & Rajkumar K.P. (2020). Nelliampathy Hornbill Survey
Report. Submitted to Nenmara Forest Division, Kerala Forests and Wildlife Department.
25pp
Copyright
© Nenmara Forest Division
Text
Karthika Chandran
Design and layout
Rajkumar K.P.

Front cover photograph

Great Hornbill © Dhanu Paran

Back cover photograph

Malabar Grey Hornbill © Dhanu Paran
 Abstract
A survey on hornbills of Nelliampathy hills was conducted from 9th to 12th January 2020, with
the support of the Nenmara Forest Division, Palakkad, Kerala Forests and Wildlife Department
and volunteers from various institutions and NGOs to estimate their diversity and distribution.
Nelliampathy has always been an important landscape for hornbills. A number of surveys on a
variety of taxa like birds, butterflies, mammals, herpetofauna, odonates etc. have been
conducted in different parts of Kerala but this is the first ever survey that looked specifically at
one kind of species, the hornbills. Such taxon-specific surveys are important to understand the
present status and distribution of their population and to develop conservation strategies
accordingly. The survey recorded a total of 59 detections of Great Hornbills and 50 detections
of Malabar Grey Hornbills across different parts of Nelliampathy Hills, with a total density of
8.37 individuals per km2 of Great Hornbills. A total of 149 bird species was observed during
the study and the checklist of birds of Nelliampathy has also been updated with an addition of
five species. With the ever increasing popularity towards tourism and bird watching in
Nelliampathy, it is essential to give priority to conservation of hornbills and their natural habitat
and hence follow-up surveys for the regular monitoring of hornbill populations in this area is
recommended.

Great Hornbill © Sreenivasan PP

Introduction natural habitats since they are mostly
dependent on large and tall trees for both
Hornbills (Family- Bucerotidae) are large-
feeding and nesting (Kemp, 1976;
sized birds found in the tropical forests of
Leighton, 1982; Kannan & James, 1998;
Asia and Africa. These wide-ranging and
Poonswad, 1995; Mudappa & Kannan,
mainly fruit-eating birds play one of the
1997). Apart from habitat loss due to
most important roles in the ecosystem as
deforestation, raising of plantations and
seed dispersers, thereby helping in the
agriculture, hunting also adds on to the
regeneration of these forests (Whitney et
vulnerability of hornbill populations in
al., 1998; Poulsen et al., 2002). There are
Asia (Bennett et al., 1997).
about 54 species of hornbills all over the
world. India is home to nine species of
hornbills, of which four are found in the
Western Ghats, namely, the Indian Grey
Hornbill (Ocyceros birostris), Malabar
Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros griseus), Malabar
Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros coronatus)
and the Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis).
The Indian Grey Hornbill is endemic to
India whereas the Malabar Grey Hornbill is
endemic to the Western Ghats. The Blue Bearded Bee eater © Sreedev Puthur

Malabar Pied Hornbill is ‘Near Threatened’
as per IUCN Red Data List (BirdLife
International 2016) and is endemic to India
and Sri Lanka. The widely distributed Great
Hornbill population is listed as
‘Vulnerable’ as per IUCN Red Data list
(BirdLife International 2018). It is also
listed under Schedule I of Wildlife
Protection Act, 1972 (MoEF, 2006). This
species is also the state bird of Kerala.
A lot of research had been going on on
various aspects of hornbills around the
world. Scientific studies on hornbills date
back to as early as the 1940s. In India, some
of the major works include studies on the
breeding and nesting ecology (Kannan &
James, 1999; Mudappa, 2000; Mudappa &
Raman, 2009; Kasambe, 2011; Pawar et al.,
2018), distribution and abundance (Raman
& Mudappa, 2003; Shukla et al., 2016) and
on conservation of the declining hornbill
populations (Bachan et al., 2011; Sneha &
Davidar, 2011; Krishna et al., 2012).

Malabar Grey Hornbill © Dhanu Paran

One of the major threats the hornbill

population in India faces is the loss of their Jungle Owlet © Vignesh B Sivan
Western Ghats, one of the 36 biodiversity
hotspots of the world, is home to an
extremely rich diversity of flora and fauna.
It is not unknown that they harbour some of
the most unique, endangered and endemic
species of both plants and animals. These
include over 5000 flowering plants, 139
mammals, 508 birds and 179 amphibians
among others. Around 118 mammal, 500
bird, 173 reptile and 151 amphibian species
are found in Kerala (Nameer et al., 2015).
The continuity of this mountain range,
running parallel to the western coast of
India for about 1600 km, is cut off only by
a 40 km wide gap popularly known as the
Palghat (or Palakkad) Gap. This gap is
geographically very important as it forms a
natural barrier between the Nilgiri and
Anamalai Hills, isolating the endemic
species found in the two high altitude
habitats (Praveen & Nameer, 2012). It is
just south of this gap that Nelliampathy
hills are situated.
With the current trend of habitat
degradation and modifications, a large
proportion of trees are lost which in turn
Nelliampathy Valley
would greatly influence the hornbill species
that are dependent on them. Even though
Nelliampathy is said to be a haven for
hornbill sightings, especially the Great
Hornbill, what exactly is happening to their
population and their abundance is not
known. And to ensure and enhance their
protection in this landscape it is in fact
important to conduct yearly monitoring of
hornbill populations across different sites
and habitat types in Nelliampathy. This
survey which was conducted from 9th to
12th of January 2020 with the support of
Nenmara Forest Division and with
participants from different institutions and
NGOs of Southern India is the first of its
kind that looked specifically at
documenting one group of birds, the
hornbills. Also, an updated checklist of the
birds of Nelliampathy has been compiled.
This survey also aims to encourage regular
follow-up surveys of hornbill populations
in Nelliampathy every year in order to
better understand their population trends
and to ensure maximum protection to their
habitats as well.
© Rajkumar KP
Study Area (Table 1). The elevation of the lower hills
range between 200 to 900 m above msl and
The study area of Nelliampathy Hills is
the highest peak is the Minnamaparamala
situated in the Southern Western Ghats. It
which has an elevation of 1633m above
is bordered by Palghat gap in the north,
mean sea level. Variable climatic
Parambikulam Tiger Reserve in the south,
conditions prevail in these high elevation
Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary in the
regions due to its topographical features
east and Chalakudy Forest Division in the
and closeness to the Palakkad Gap. March
west. It comes under the Nenmara Forest
to May are the hottest months with
Division (351.203 km2). The Nenmara
December to January being the coldest. The
Forest Division includes three ranges,
temperature generally goes up to a
Alathur (81.328 km2), Kollengode (61.156
maximum of 41ºC and minimum of 21ºC in
km2) and Nelliampathy (205.526 km2). In
the plains and a maximum of 32ºC and
order to cover the maximum area, we chose
minimum of 8ºC in the high ranges. The
two basecamps (Anamada and
major portion of rainfall that Nelliampathy
Minnampara) in Kollengode Range and
receives is from the southwest monsoon
five (Kaikatty, Karapara-Hilltop, Karapara-
and the average annual rainfall varies from
Parambikulam, Suryapara and
2,512 mm to 4,578 mm.
Thuthampara) in Nelliampathy Range

Table 1. Details of the Basecamps

Sl. No. Range Base Camps Dominant Vegetation
1 Kollengode Anamada Wet evergreen & Grasslands
2 Kollengode Minnampara Semi-Evergreen; Rocky Patches & Dry
Grasslands
3 Nelliampathy Kaikatty Semi-Evergreen
4 Nelliampathy Karapara Hilltop Wet Evergreen
5 Nelliampathy Karapara Wet Evergreen
Parambikulam
6 Nelliampathy Suryapara Wet evergreen
7 Nelliampathy Thuthampara Wet evergreen & Teak plantation

Materials and Methods groups of four and each group was assisted
by staff/trackers from the forest
The survey was conducted from 9th to 12th
department. The survey teams were
January 2020 with a total of 25 participants
grouped in such a way that each team had 1
from different parts of South India (Table
team leader who was capable at forest bird
4), along with the support and participation
identification and at least one camera for
from forest trackers and Kerala Forest
documentation purposes. The seven survey
Department staff. A total of seven
teams were assigned to the seven selected
basecamps were selected for the survey,
basecamps.
two from Kollengode Range and five from
Nelliampathy Range of Nenmara Forest Line transect methodology was chosen to
Division. Participants were divided in to survey hornbills (Mudappa & Raman,
2009; Sneha & Davidar, 2011; Pawar et al.,
2018). Transects of 3km length were
walked along existing trails in the forest for
a period of 3 hours in the morning between
7:00 am to 10:00 am. During these transect
walks, all the hornbills seen or heard, the
number of individuals, sex (if possible),
their perpendicular distance from transect
and the activity were recorded. The
perpendicular distances were recorded as
distance bands of 0-10m, 10-20m, 20-30m,
30-50m, 50-100m and > 100m. Line
transects were carried out on three days in
different locations around the seven base
camps, which sums up to a total of 17
transects in the study area. Density
estimation was done using DISTANCE
software-Version7.2 (Buckland et al.,
2001). Different models of detection
probability (half-normal, uniform and
hazard-rate) with cosine adjustment terms
were evaluated to select the most suited
model for estimating density.
Great Hornbill
In the evenings, Point counts or Roost
counts were carried out (Sneha & Davidar,
2011) to count the number of hornbills at
any known vantage points or roosting sites
near the seven base camps. Depending on
the basecamp, already identified roosting
sites or vantage points were chosen for
evening observations from 3:30pm to
6:30pm for the two days. The team
members were instructed to first note
whether they have chosen roost count or
point count for that particular evening and
at every point, the start time, hornbill
species, number of individuals, sex, activity
(Perching, Calling, Feeding, Grooming,
Flying), time of arrival, direction of
arrival/flight, sighting distance and the total
time spent at each point was recorded.
Additionally we also recorded all the bird
species seen or heard during the entire four
days of the survey so as to update the
previous checklist of birds of Nelliampathy
(Praveen and Nameer, 2007).
© Murali Mohan

Results and Discussion
During the four-day survey, we observed
two hornbill species – Great Hornbill and
Malabar Grey Hornbill. Even though there
had been reports of Malabar Pied and
Indian Grey Hornbills in the previous
checklist, we could not observe them
during the present study. After a total of 51
hours of observation along 17 different line
transects in the 7 base camps, we observed
a total of 42 detections of Great Hornbills
and 29 detections of Malabar Grey
Hornbills.
Great Hornbill © Sreedev Puthur
As per the data from a total of 20 point
count sites selected in the 7 base camps to
observe hornbills, 17 detections of Great
Hornbills and 21 detections of Malabar
Grey Hornbills were recorded. Therefore a
total of 59 Great Hornbill and 50 Malabar
Grey Hornbill detections were recorded
from Nelliampathy Hills during the entire
survey period from 9th to 12th January 2020.
Great Hornbill © Dhanu Paran
Density Estimation
We did distance sampling analyses for
estimating the hornbill density. The fitted
cumulative distribution function and the
empirical distribution function did not
differ significantly (Kolmogorov-Smirnov
test: Dn = 0.157, P = 0.73). Since both the
functions were the same throughout the
entire range of the data (Cramer-von Mises
family tests: W2 =0.1129, P > 0.50, C2 =
0.0662, P > 0.50) and also based on the
smallest AICc value, we used the best fitted
model which was the Half-normal Simple
Polynomial model (χ2 =1.45, df = 2, P
=0.48).
Table 2. Details of parameters used in the
Distance sampling
Details Great
Hornbill
Number of transects 17
Total length of transects 51 km
Detection Probability 0.69
Effective Strip Width 65.82 m
Encounter Rate 0.63
Encounter Rate % CV 24.12
Value
As a result, we recorded a total of 42
detections of Great Hornbills and estimated
a density of 8.37 individuals per km2 (95%
confidence interval: 4.3-16.2
2
individuals/km (See Table 2. for details of
sampling and parameters). Malabar Grey
Hornbills were recorded from only 3 out of
the 7 basecamps and Great Hornbills were
recorded from 6 basecamps. Out of the total
17 transects, Malabar Grey Hornbills were
recorded from only 7 transects while Great
Hornbills were recorded from ten transects.
Due to a comparatively low number of
samples in the case of Malabar Grey
Hornbills, a best fitting model was not
available in the distance analysis.
However, on looking at the detection rate
Figure 1. Histogram of detection of Great Hornbills along line transects.
Long-billed Pipit © Sreedev Puthur
Bird Species Richness
A total of 149 bird species belonging to 49
families of 16 orders were recorded after
the four day survey conducted in the study
area of Nelliampathy Hills. The number of
birds sums up to a total of 238 species
belonging to 60 families (Table 3). An
addition of five species recorded in the
present study has been updated in the
earlier checklist. The five additional species
are Indian Peafowl, Blue-faced Malkoha,
Large Hawk-cuckoo, Grey-headed Fish
per km walk, we got a total of 0.57 sightings
per km for Malabar Grey Hornbills and
0.82 sightings per km for Great Hornbills.
Eagle and Lesser Fish Eagle. We compared
bird species richness across the different
base camps chosen for the survey and
observed that species richness was the
highest in Kaikatty (84), followed by
Suryapara (81), and the least in
Minnampara (38) (Figure 2). We also
compared the number of sightings of
Malabar Grey and Great Hornbills across
basecamps (Figure 3.). Majority of the
Great Hornbill sightings were from
Kaikatty (17) and Malabar Grey Hornbills
from Thuthampara (23). On looking at
family-wise distribution of birds in the
study area, it was found that majority of the
species were from the family Accipitridae
(15), closely followed by Muscicapidae
(13) and then Picidae (8) and Strigidae (7).
Kaikatty stood highest in having the most
number of families of bird species when we
looked at family-wise distribution of birds
in the 7 base camps and Minnampara had
the least number of families (Figure 4).
 Number of bird species recorded
90

80 84
81
70
Number of species

74 74
60

50

40 47
38 39
30

20

10

0
Kaikatty Suryapara Karapara A Karapara B Minnampara Anamada Thuthampara

Figure 2. Bird species richness across base camps

Sightings of Malabar Grey Hornbills and Great Hornbills across base

camps

25 23
Number of individuals

20 17

15
11
10
6
4
5 3
2 2 2 2
0 0 0 0
0

Great Hornbill Malabar Grey Hornbill

Figure 3. Comparison of number of sightings of Malabar Grey and Great Hornbills between the basecamps
 Family-wise distribution of birds across basecamps in
Nelliampathy Hills

23
42
24

36
39

28
37

Kaikatty Suryapara Karapara A Karapara B Thuthampara Anamada Minnampara

Figure 4. Number of bird families recorded from basecamps

Conclusion happening to their populations and how

During the course of the survey, we they are influenced by the anthropogenic
recorded a total of 59 Great Hornbill and 50 disturbances in their natural habitats in this
Malabar Grey Hornbill detections and a study area. Therefore, it has been planned
total of 149 bird species belonging to 49 to carry out more follow-up surveys to
families, thus underlining the importance of monitor hornbills yearly in Nelliampathy
the landscape of Nelliampathy hills in terms along with the support and co-operation
of its avifauna, especially the hornbills. from the Nenmara Forest Division and
Being the first of its kind as the survey other volunteers. It is important that we take
mainly focused only on a single group of measures to study and conserve hornbills
birds, this four day survey had its own especially in a place like Nelliampathy
shortcomings. Hornbill sightings were where tourism and hornbill watching is
comparatively less in some areas as they generating tremendous interest among the
had already started nesting and females nature loving public.
were not to be seen much. So, it should be
taken care that the following surveys start
well in advance of the breeding season, so
that we can monitor the initial period of
their breeding when they are more active
and can be easily observed. These large-
sized, fruit-eating birds that play a very
crucial role in the regeneration of tropical
rainforests call for a dedicated regular
monitoring of their behavioural activities in
Indian Blackbird © Karthika Chandran
order to study in detail what exactly is
Table 3: Checklist of birds of Nelliampathy with details of records from different base camps

Thoothampara

Minnampara
Karapara A

Karapara B
Suryapara

Anamada
Kaikatty
# English Name Scientific Name

Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
1 Indian Peafowl Pavo cristatus   
2 Jungle Bush Quail Perdicula asiatica
3 Painted Bush Quail Perdicula
erythrorhyncha
4 Grey Francolin Francolinus
pondicerianus
5 Grey Junglefowl Gallus sonneratii       
Order: Columbiformes
Family: Columbidae
6 Red Spurfowl Galloperdix spadicea 
7 Rock Pigeon Columba livia
8 Nilgiri Wood Pigeon Columba elphinstonii  
9 Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis      
10 Grey-fronted Green Treron pompadora     
Pigeon
11 Yellow-legged Green Treron phoenicopterus
Pigeon
12 Asian Emerald Dove Chalcophaps indica     
13 Green Imperial Pigeon Ducula aenea
14 Mountain Imperial Ducula badia   
Pigeon
Order: Caprimulgiformes
Family: Podargidae
15 Sri Lanka Frogmouth Batrachostomus
moniliger
Family: Caprimulgidae
16 Great Eared Nightjar Lyncornis macrotis  
17 Jungle Nightjar Caprimulgus indicus  
18 Jerdon's Nightjar Caprimulgus atripennis 
19 Indian Nightjar Caprimulgus asiaticus
20 Savanna Nightjar Caprimulgus affinis
Family: Apodidae
21 Crested Treeswift Hemiprocne coronata
22 White-rumped Spinetail Zoonavena sylvatica
23 Brown-backed Hirundapus giganteus 
Needletail
24 Indian Swiftlet/Indian Aerodramus unicolor
Edible-nest Swiftlet
25 Asian Palm Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis 
26 Alpine Swift Tachymarptis melba 
27 Indian House Swift Apus affinis
Order: Cuculiformes
Family: Cuculidae
28 Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis 
29 Blue-faced Malkoha Phaenicophaeus 
viridirostris
30 Chestnut-winged Clamator coromandus 
Cuckoo
31 Asian Koel Eudynamys scolopaceus
32 Banded Bay Cuckoo Cacomantis sonneratii
33 Large Hawk-cuckoo Hierococcyx 
sparverioides
34 Common Hawk Cuckoo Hierococcyx varius     
35 Indian Cuckoo Cuculus micropterus
Order: Gruiformes
Family: Rallidae
36 White-breasted Amaurornis phoenicurus  
Waterhen
Order: Pelecaniformes
Family: Ardeidae
37 Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnamomeus
38 Black-crowned Night Nycticorax nycticorax
Heron
39 Indian Pond Heron Ardeola grayii 
40 Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis
41 Great Egret Ardea alba
42 Intermediate Egret Ardea intermedia
43 Little Egret Egretta garzetta
Family: Phalacrocoracidae
44 Little Cormorant Microcarbo niger
45 Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Order: Charadriiformes
Family: Charadriidae
46 Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius
47 Yellow-wattled Lapwing Vanellus malabaricus
48 Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus 
Family: Jacanidae
49 Bronze-winged Jacana Metopidius indicus
Family: Scolopacidae
50 Eurasian Woodcock Scolopax rusticola
51 Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
52 Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
53 Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Family: Laridae
54 River Tern Sterna aurantia
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
55 Black-winged Kite Elanus caeruleus  
56 Oriental Honey Buzzard Pernis ptilorhynchus     
57 Jerdon's Baza Aviceda jerdoni
58 Black Baza Aviceda leuphotes
59 Crested Serpent Eagle Spilornis cheela       
60 Short-toed Snake Eagle Circaetus gallicus
61 Legge's Hawk Eagle Nisaetus nipalensis 
62 Crested Hawk Eagle Nisaetus cirrhatus   
63 Rufous-bellied Eagle Lophotriorchis kienerii   
64 Black Eagle Ictinaetus malaiensis     
65 Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus  
66 Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus
67 Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus 
68 Crested Goshawk Accipiter trivirgatus
69 Shikra Accipiter badius    
70 Besra Accipiter virgatus
71 Grey-headed Fish Eagle* Ichthyophaga  
ichthyaetus
72 Lesser Fish Eagle* Ichthyophaga humilis 
73 Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus     
74 Black Kite Milvus migrans 
75 Common Buzzard Buteo buteo 
76 White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalensis
Order: Strigiformes
Family: Tytonidae
77 Oriental/ Sri Lanka Bay Phodilus badius
Owl
Family: Strigidae
78 Brown Hawk Owl Ninox scutulata   
79 Jungle Owlet Glaucidium radiatum    
80 Oriental Scops Owl Otus sunia   
81 Indian Scops Owl Otus bakkamoena   
82 Short-eared Owl Asio flammeus
83 Mottled Wood Owl Strix ocellata
84 Brown Wood Owl Strix leptogrammica 
85 Spot-bellied Eagle Owl Bubo nipalensis 
86 Brown Fish Owl Ketupa zeylonensis 
Order: Trogoniformes
Family: Trogonidae
87 Malabar Trogon Harpactes fasciatus      
Order: Bucerotiformes
Family: Bucerotidae
88 Great Hornbill Buceros bicornis       
89 Malabar Pied Hornbill Anthracoceros coronatus
90 Malabar Grey Hornbill Ocyceros griseus      
91 Indian Grey Hornbill Ocyceros birostris
Family: Upupidae
92 Common Hoopoe Upupa epops
Order: Piciformes
Family: Picidae
93 Speckled Piculet Picumnus innominatus
94 Heart-spotted Hemicircus canente    
Woodpecker
95 Common Golden-backed Dinopium javanense   
Woodpecker
96 Lesser Golden-backed Dinopium benghalense     
Woodpecker/ Black-
rumped Flameback
97 Rufous Woodpecker Micropternus  
brachyurus
98 Lesser Yellow-naped Picus chlorolophus  
Woodpecker
99 White-bellied Dryocopus javensis     
Woodpecker/ Great
Black Woodpecker
100 Greater Golden-backed Chrysocolaptes lucidus     
Woodpecker/ Greater
Flameback
101 Brown-capped Pygmy Dendrocopos nanus  
Woodpecker
102 Yellow-crowned Dendrocopos
Woodpecker mahrattensis
Family: Ramphastidae
103 White-cheeked Psilopogon viridis       
Barbet/Small Green
Barbet
104 Malabar Barbet Psilopogon malabaricus     
105 Coppersmith Psilopogon  
Barbet/Crimson-breasted haemacephalus
Bar
Order: Coraciiformes
Family: Meropidae
106 Blue-bearded Bee-eater Nyctyornis athertoni
107 Green Bee-eater/Small Merops orientalis
Green Bee-eater
108 Chestnut-headed Bee- Merops leschenaultia    
eater
109 Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus
Family: Coraciidae
110 Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis 
111 Dollarbird Eurystomus orientalis 
Family: Alcedinidae
112 Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis   
/Small Blue Kingfisher
113 Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis
114 Stork-billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis
115 White-throated Halcyon smyrnensis   
Kingfisher/White-
breasted Kingfisher
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Falconidae
116 Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus  
117 Oriental Hobby Falco severus
118 Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus  
Order: Psittaciformes
Family: Psittaculidae
119 Plum-headed Parakeet Psittacula cyanocephala   
120 Malabar Parakeet/Blue- Psittacula columboides      
winged Parakeet
121 Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri
122 Vernal Hanging Parrot Loriculus vernalis     
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Pittidae
123 Indian Pitta Pitta brachyura
Family: Campephagidae
124 Small Minivet Pericrocotus  
cinnamomeus
125 Orange Minivet/Scarlet Pericrocotus flammeus       
Minivet
126 Large Cuckooshrike Coracina javensis
127 Black-headed Lalage melanoptera
Cuckooshrike
Family: Oriolidae
128 Black-hooded Oriole Oriolus xanthornus
129 Indian Golden Oriole Oriolus kundoo     
130 Black-naped Oriole Oriolus chinensis
Family: Vangidae
131 Bar-winged Flycatcher- Hemipus picatus 
shrike/Pied Flycatcher-
shrike
132 Malabar Woodshrike Tephrodornis virgatus     
Family: Aegithinidae
133 Common Iora Aegithina tiphia   
Family: Dicruridae
134 Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus    
135 Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus     
136 Bronzed Drongo Dicrurus aeneus  
137 Hair-crested Drongo Dicrurus hottentottus
/Spangled Drongo
138 Greater Racket-tailed Dicrurus paradiseus     
Drongo
Family: Laniidae
139 Brown Shrike Lanius cristatus  
140 Long-tailed Shrike Lanius schach  
Family: Corvidae
141 Rufous Treepie/Indian Dendrocitta vagabunda 
Treepie
142 White-bellied Treepie Dendrocitta leucogastra     
143 House Crow Corvus splendens 
144 Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos  
Family: Monarchidae
145 Black-naped Monarch Hypothymis azurea   
146 Indian Paradise- Terpsiphone paradisi   
flycatcher
Family: Dicaeidae
147 Thick-billed Dicaeum agile
Flowerpecker
148 Pale-billed Dicaeum   
Flowerpecker/Tickell's erythrorhynchos
Flowerpecker
149 Nilgiri Flowerpecker Dicaeum concolor 
Family: Nectariniidae
150 Little Spiderhunter Arachnothera 
longirostra
151 Purple-rumped Sunbird Leptocoma zeylonica    
152 Crimson-backed Sunbird Leptocoma minima  
153 Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus   
154 Loten's Sunbird Cinnyris lotenius  
Family: Irenidae
155 Asian Fairy-bluebird Irena puella      
156 Golden-fronted Leafbird Chloropsis aurifrons   
157 Jerdon's Leafbird Chloropsis jerdoni 
Family: Ploceidae
158 Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus
Family: Estrildidae
159 White-rumped Lonchura striata 
Munia/White-backed
Munia
160 Black-throated Lonchura kelaarti  
Munia/Rufous-bellied
Munia
Family: Passeridae
161 House Sparrow Passer domesticus
162 Yellow-throated Gymnoris xanthocollis
Sparrow/ Chestnut-
shouldered Petronia
Family: Motacillidae
163 Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus indicus  
164 Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni
165 Nilgiri Pipit Anthus nilghiriensis
166 Paddyfield Pipit Anthus rufulus
167 Long-billed Pipit Anthus similis 
168 Western Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava
169 Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea     
170 White-browed Wagtail Motacilla
maderaspatensis
171 White Wagtail Motacilla alba
Family: Fringillidae
172 Common Rosefinch Erythrina erythrina  
Family: Stenostiridae
173 Grey-headed Canary- Culicicapa ceylonensis   
flycatcher
Family: Paridae
174 Cinereous Tit / Great Tit Parus cinereus  
175 Indian Black-lored Tit/ Machlolophus   
Indian Tit xanthogenys
Family: Alaudidae
176 Ashy-crowned Sparrow Eremopterix griseus
Lark
177 Jerdon's Bushlark Mirafra affinis
178 Malabar Lark Galerida malabarica 
Family: Cisticolidae
179 Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis
180 Grey-breasted Prinia Prinia hodgsonii 
181 Ashy Prinia Prinia socialis
182 Plain Prinia Prinia inornata 
183 Common Tailorbird Orthotomus sutorius 
Family: Locustellidae
184 Broad-tailed Grassbird Schoenicola platyurus
Family: Acrocephalidae
185 Thick-billed Warbler Arundinax aedon 
186 Blyth's Reed Warbler Acrocephalus     
dumetorum
Family: Hirundinidae
187 Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica 
188 Pacific Swallow/Hill Hirundo tahitica
Swallow
189 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 
190 Dusky Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne concolor 
Family: Pycnonotidae
191 Black bulbul Hypsipetes     
leucocephalus
192 Flame-throated Pycnonotus melanicterus 
Bulbul/Ruby-throated
Bulbul
193 Red-whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus       
194 Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer  
195 Grey-headed Bulbul Brachypodius
priocephalus
196 Yellow-browed Bulbul Acritillas indica       
Family: Phylloscopidae
197 Tickell's Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus affinis
198 Greenish Leaf Warbler Seicercus trochiloides      
199 Large-billed Leaf Seicercus magnirostris   
Warbler
200 Western Crowned Leaf Seicercus occipitalis
Warbler
Zosteropidae
201 Oriental/ Indian White- Zosterops palpebrosus       
eye
Family: Timaliidae
202 Indian Scimitar Babbler Pomatorhinus horsfieldii   
203 Tawny-bellied Babbler Dumetia hyperythra
204 Dark-fronted Babbler Rhopocichla atriceps    
Family: Pellorneidae
205 Puff-throated Pellorneum ruficeps   
Babbler/Spotted Babbler
Family: Leiothrichidae
206 Brown-cheeked Fulvetta Alcippe poioicephala    
207 Rufous Babbler Argya subrufa   
208 Jungle Babbler Turdoides striata      
209 Yellow-billed Babbler Turdoides affinis
210 Wynaad Laughingthrush Garrulax delesserti 
211 Palani Chilappan/Kerala Montecincla fairbanki
Laughingthrush
Family: Sittidae
212 Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis      
Family: Sturnidae
213 Malabar Starling Sturnia malabarica  
blythi
214 Brahminy Sturnia pagodarum
Starling/Brahminy Myna
215 Chestnut-tailed Sturnia malabarica  
Starling/Grey-headed
Myna
216 Common Myna Acridotheres tristis   
217 Jungle Myna Acridotheres fuscus  
218 Southern Hill Myna Gracula religiosa      
Family: Muscicapidae
219 Indian Robin Saxicoloides fulicatus 
220 Oriental Magpie Robin Copsychus saularis   
221 Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica    
222 Brown-breasted Muscicapa muttui   
Flycatcher
223 White-bellied Blue Cyornis pallidipes 
Flycatcher
224 Tickell's Blue Flycatcher Cyornis tickelliae 
225 Blue-throated Flycatcher Cyornis rubeculoides
226 Verditer Flycatcher Eumyias thalassinus   
227 Nilgiri Flycatcher Eumyias albicaudatus   
228 Indian Blue Robin Larvivora brunnea 
229 Malabar Whistling Myophonus horsfieldii     
Thrush
230 Rusty-tailed Flycatcher Muscicapa ruficauda  
231 Blue-capped Rock Monticola cinclorhyncha 
Thrush
232 Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius
233 Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata   
Family: Turdidae
234 Pied Thrush Geokichla wardii
235 Orange-headed Thrush Geokichla citrina
236 Indian Blackbird Turdus simillimus  
237 Scaly Thrush Zoothera dauma
*Rows represented in green colour are the species recorded in the present study
*Rows represented in white colour are the species which were recorded in previous checklist
*Rows represented in yellow are the species recorded in the present study and addition to the
checklist

Acknowledgements
We are grateful to the present Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force,
Shri. P. K. Kesavan IFS and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief
Wildlife Warden, Shri. Surendrakumar IFS for the necessary permissions and the good conduct
of the survey. We would like to extend our gratitude to Shri Aneesh C. P. (Divisional Forest
Officer, Nenmara Forest Division), Shri. Krishnadas K. R. (Range Forest Officer, Nenmara
Forest Division) and Shri. Sumesh C (Deputy Range Forest Officer) for providing permission
and all the necessary facilities and for their whole-hearted encouragement and support
throughout the survey. KPR would like to thank Dr. P. S. Easa, Former Director, KFRI, Peechi
and ZSL, EDGE fellowship programme for their support. KC would like to thank Dr. H.
Habeebrehman, Assistant Professor, Farook College for his constant help. We would also like
to thank Shri. Sandeep Das, Shri. Murali Mohan, Shri. Sreedev Puthur, Shri. Abdul Riyas K.,
Shri. Sreenivasan P.P., Shri. Bimal Nath, Shri. Kannadas, Shri. Dhanu Paran and Shri. Vishnu
O. for being a great support in managing the survey proceedings. Our sincere thanks to each
and every forest department staff and to the participants from various NGOs and Institutions
including Kerala Forest Research Institute, Farook College, Christ College and all the others
who have helped us in making the survey possible. A word of apology to all those who have
not been mentioned in person and a note of sincere thanks to all those who have worked for the
successful completion of this survey.

Great Hornbill © Ranjith Rony

An interesting observation recorded during the survey – A male Great Hornbill trying to feed
a female in its nest which looked like it has been dead for may be one or two days.

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Table 4. List of participants of the survey

Sl. No. Name Institution/Organization
1 Abhishek C. J. Photographer, Thrissur
2 Ajithbabu Menath Menath House
3 Bimalnath K. G. Soil Conservation Department, Thrissur
4 Dhanuparan Tirupur
5 Dwarakanathan Photographer, Palakkad
6 Gowthaman K. A. Wedding Photographer, Padoor
7 Hariram B. Tirupur
8 K. Sasikiran Freelance Photographer, Palakkad
9 Kannadas Palakkad
10 Karthika Chandran Farook College, Kozhikode
11 Kochupaul P. M. Venkidangu
12 Krishnapriya M. Farook College, Kozhikode
13 Manav Sajan Farook College, Kozhikode
14 Manoj P. M. Photographer, Thrissur
15 Murali Mohan Gnome Systems, Thrissur
16 Nidheesh C. P. Athirapally
 17 Pavithra A. Ernakulam
18 Rajkumar K. P. Kerala Forest Research Institute, Thrissur
19 Ranjith Rony Photographer, Palakkad
20 Reshma T. T. Farook College, Kozhikode
21 Sreedev Puthur Scientific Officer, Thrissur
22 Sreenivasan P. P. UDC, Guruvayoor Devaswom
23 Surendran Nair Thrissur
24 Ullas U. R. Christ College, Irinjalakuda
25 Vignesh B. Sivan Kottayam

Survey group photo © Sasikiran K