Musician of the western ghats

October 29th, 2009

The call of the Malabar Whistling Trush, is one of the most melodious pieces of music I’ve ever heard in nature. I’ve always wanted to photograph this bird for a long time. Photographing them can be quite challenging given that they make their homes in the deep forests of western ghats and that they are shy. Valparai is one of the best places to photograph them, as they are all around the town.

Click the play button to hear the call of the Whistling Trush

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Category: Photography,Wildlife  |  Tags: , , , ,    

There are 22 comments in this article:

  1. October 29th, 2009 at 4:06 pmpavitra says:

    Ah! that just made my day..there isn’t a sweeter morning raga is there ?

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  2. October 29th, 2009 at 4:06 pmAnush Shetty says:

    Super pic of the shy bird :-)

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  3. October 29th, 2009 at 9:11 pmDeepak Venkatesan says:

    True. Just sitting in my hotel room in the middle of the Valparai town, I could spot this bird out of the window, and that too quite often.
    That’s a clear shot.

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  4. October 29th, 2009 at 10:52 pmRachna says:

    Brilliant picture and superb capture of the melodious song!! Amoghavarsha you excel yourself each time!!

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  5. October 29th, 2009 at 10:59 pmDeepa Mohan says:

    “A schoolboy singing as he walks home” says the beautiful description by Salim Ali, and how true a description that is, of the call of this beautiful bird!

    Lovely capture Amogh.

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  6. October 29th, 2009 at 11:29 pmBalu Hegde says:

    It really “Amogha”!

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  7. October 29th, 2009 at 8:36 amArun says:

    Beautiful image. These guys are so hard to see out in good light. Loved this one.

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  8. October 29th, 2009 at 4:00 pmNavneet Sidhu says:

    Brillant.What a sighting and ofcourse the whistling……..God’s melodious composer

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  9. October 29th, 2009 at 8:28 amSethu says:

    Simply drenches one in its sweetness.

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  10. October 29th, 2009 at 4:22 pmJayashree says:

    Missed being there when you shot this… wow the whistle is brilliant! Great work Amogh!!

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    amogh Reply:
    November 1st, 2009 at 11:28 pm

    There’s always a next time :)

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  11. October 29th, 2009 at 11:04 pmNikhil says:

    Amogh – awesome as ever !!

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  12. October 29th, 2009 at 3:56 pmHrishikesh Sagar says:

    superb,every one in my offfice , Didnt belive it, when i first told its bird voice.good work,both photography and Voice recording.

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  13. October 29th, 2009 at 5:13 pmAdarsh Sharma says:

    It’s a very composed picture of a bird interested in posing for the camera. Amogh, I hope you remember me? we met at Garden City college last week. I asked you if I could do something towards becoming a naturalist as I am not so good with technology or camera. U suggested that I connect with you on your blog. Kindly guide

    Adarsh

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  14. October 29th, 2009 at 12:41 amRohit Katti says:

    Can’t thank you enough for posting this!
    A couple of years back during the monsoon season, my friend and I lost our way in the deep forests of the western ghats. When we heard this call, we actually rejoiced thinking that there was a human somewhere in our vicinity and that help had arrived. Now I know who that mysterious person was.

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    amogh Reply:
    March 9th, 2010 at 10:16 am

    You probably should also look up the “Lyre Bird”, its quite interesting

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  15. October 29th, 2009 at 6:32 amShari says:

    Amazing and beautiful bird .. its song is SO UNIQUE!

    Excellent Capture!

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  16. October 29th, 2009 at 10:09 pmMeera says:

    Amoga,

    Chanced on your website thru Twitter – you are a true wildlife enthusiast. Photography is fast becoming the ‘it’ pastime in India just as the fashion design industry was a few years ago but unfortunately most are after the glamour and glitz and completely caught up in the manufactured product. You on other hand seem close to the ‘natural’ art form with a genuine and deep appreciation of our local fauna and flora. You have set yourself apart from the crowd that insists on doctoring up the shots with photoshop etc. You have a new fan – keep it up!

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    amogh Reply:
    June 14th, 2010 at 10:48 am

    Thanks Meera, Infact lot of people are taking to nature and wildlife photography of late. I hope things will get only better :)

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  17. October 29th, 2009 at 10:36 amsridhar says:

    I was woken up yesterday at 5 in the morning in my hotel room at Valparai by the suprabhatham of this amazing whistler. Suspecting some intruder or a budding musician at my window landing, I was amazed to see the whistling thrush instead which flew away instantly. I wonder where it gets all the power to give out such loooong musical whistles. Simply out of the world experience!

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    amogh Reply:
    May 30th, 2011 at 10:50 am

    Valparai is an excellent place to sight the bird, the usually shy bird can be seen sitting in open areas and near houses.

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  18. October 29th, 2009 at 5:09 pmSushi says:

    Awesome :)

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