Environment

In several years of visiting the Valley School area, I've passed this abandoned house so many times...but it was only yesterday, when we did "waiting" birding instead of "walking" birding, and when Mark went into the house to explore, that I also decided to walk around and in it. I do not know for whom this house was built. It seems a roomy, spacious house. The rooms seem to be of gracious proportions. The arches outside the house look lovely: In fact, with the date palms they give a slightly Islamic look: Were these sheds, next to the huge banyan…

If you find a horse in distress...abandoned, abused by its owner, or otherwise in distress, please call Samabhaava's: Sandesh Raju. +91 94495 59767   He deals with equine rescue.

If you find a horse in distress...abandoned, abused by its owner, or otherwise in distress, please call Samabhaava's: Sandesh Raju. +91 94495 59767   He deals with equine rescue.

With the sun's heat accelerating the rate of evaporation, the water level has fallen sharply in our Puttenahalli Lake and there are no more than four or five pools of water left. We have been consoling ourselves with the thought that this is still far, far better than this time last year when we had literally a few buckets of water in the entire lake. Fish had died in scores then and the lake bed was hard and with cracks and crevices. Encouraged by the monsoon filling the lake somewhat, in September we'd released 3000 fingerlings and the birds returned once again. …

With the sun's heat accelerating the rate of evaporation, the water level has fallen sharply in our Puttenahalli Lake and there are no more than four or five pools of water left. We have been consoling ourselves with the thought that this is still far, far better than this time last year when we had literally a few buckets of water in the entire lake. Fish had died in scores then and the lake bed was hard and with cracks and crevices. Encouraged by the monsoon filling the lake somewhat, in September we'd released 3000 fingerlings and the birds returned once again. …

Rose ringed parakeet The Rose Ringed Parakeet is an occasional visitor to our backyard to eat seeds from the Rajamalli tree. They perch on one claw, use the beak and the other claw to zip open the pods and eat the seeds with a precision that would be difficult for us humans to match. These birds are very quiet when they perch but we often see them squawk noisily as they streak across the sky in groups of 4 to 6 birds. Contrary to popular terminology - these are not parrots. A good place to see parrots now is the Rio…

Rose ringed parakeet The Rose Ringed Parakeet is an occasional visitor to our backyard to eat seeds from the Rajamalli tree. They perch on one claw, use the beak and the other claw to zip open the pods and eat the seeds with a precision that would be difficult for us humans to match. These birds are very quiet when they perch but we often see them squawk noisily as they streak across the sky in groups of 4 to 6 birds. Contrary to popular terminology - these are not parrots. A good place to see parrots now is the Rio…

When you're facing the summer sun When your skin burns and it's no fun To walk in the sunshine, it's too bright The summer glare hurts your head and sight... You've got mangoes on your mind....     You pick up the fruit, scattered all round Or in the market they can be found. Small and raw, or with golden ripe sheen Or any of the stages that happen in between, You've got mangoes on your mind....   Made into pickle or eaten with salt Made into milkshakes or a thick juicy malt Any of the numerous varieties you get…

When you're facing the summer sun When your skin burns and it's no fun To walk in the sunshine, it's too bright The summer glare hurts your head and sight... You've got mangoes on your mind....     You pick up the fruit, scattered all round Or in the market they can be found. Small and raw, or with golden ripe sheen Or any of the stages that happen in between, You've got mangoes on your mind....   Made into pickle or eaten with salt Made into milkshakes or a thick juicy malt Any of the numerous varieties you get…

  Pic Courtesy: Girish S V   The Pied Kingfisher used to be a frequent visitor to the Haralur Lake before the lake was drained for renovation. While most kingfishers are predominantly blue in color, this one is black and white (referred to as Pied) and it has a very unique characteristic of hovering over the water before diving vertically into the water. Obviously this requires clear and unpolluted water for the Pied Kingfisher to make a catch. They nest in a hole excavated in a vertical mud bank about five feet above water. We can still see a few of…