Birding at Palampur

After a long stay of 48 years at Palampur I had to relocate to Zirakpur near Chandigarh last year due to health reasons. But I keep going back to Palampur from time to time to be with my friends and other acquaintances as also to pursue my hobby of bird photography.Palampur is a birder's delight because of its rich diversity of common and not so common bird species. It is also a destination for some birds that migrate from the higher ranges during winter when there is snowfall.My favourite areas for bird photography around Palampur are Awarna, Saurabh Vanvihar, Kandi, Lohna, Wah Tea Estate, Bundla and Sungal. There may be others but I have not explored them. Of all the sites mentioned by me, I personally like Awarna village and its surrounding area along the water channel (Kuhl) that runs from near Neugal bridge to Awarna village. This area has a variety of bird species such as Long-tailed Minivet, Verditer Flycatcher, Blue-capped Rockthrush, Black Francolin, Crimson Sunbird, Fire-breasted Flowerpecker, Small Minivet, Rufous Sibia, Paradise Flycatcher etc. There are some birds which are present throughout the year which include Great Barbet, Blue-throated Barbet, Plum-headed Parakeet, Speckled Piculet, White-capped Redstart, Black Bulbul, Himalayan Bulbul etc. Then there are birds which I have photographed around Palampur but these are rarely seen such as Chestnut-headed Tesia, Bar-throated Minla, Wedge-tailed Green Pigeon and Scaly-breasted Cupwing. The enumerated list is not exhaustive, many of the birds that I have photographed are not included and there may be many more that I have not encountered so far. However everytime that I go birding at Palampur I am rewarded with sighting of bird species not seen before. During my recent visit in the last week of February 2025 I photographed Bar-winged Flycatcher and Slaty-blue Flycatcher for the first time. Birding at Palampur is always a very satisfying and enriching experince but I hope the ongoing rapid building activity in the area does not destroy the bird and wildlife habitat. If that happens it will be great a loss for wildlife enthusiasts.