🐦 Wild India Travels presents Birding Expedition at Bihar’s Hidden Wetlands & Grasslands
📆 Dates: 9th January – 11th January 2026
⏳ Duration: 2 Nights / 3 Days
📅 Day 01 | Arrival & Grassland Explorations
🕔 05:35 AM – 🚉 Pickup from Bhagalpur Railway Station
🕕 06:00 AM – 🏨 Hotel check-in & freshen up
🕡 06:30 AM – 🚙 Depart for field
🕗 08:00 AM – 🐦 1st Session: Grassland Explorations ☕🍞 (breakfast & tea en-route)
🕛 12:00 PM – 🍽️ Lunch
🕑 02:00 PM – 🦅 2nd Session: Raptors on the Move (en-route) → 3rd Session: Stork Encounters
🕔 05:00 PM – 🌿 4th Session: Riverine Trails
🕡 06:30 PM – ☕ Wrap-up (tea on the way)
🕖 07:00 PM – 🏨 Return to hotel
📅 Day 02 | Dawn Birding & Dolphin Cruise
🕠 05:30 AM – 🚙 Depart from hotel
🕕 06:30 AM – 🌅 1st Session: Dawn Birding at Bihar’s Prime Hotspot ☕🍞 (breakfast & tea en-route)
🕤 09:30 AM – 🌳 2nd Session: Arboreal Specialties
🕥 10:30 AM – 💧 3rd Session: Wetland Wonders
🕑 02:00 PM – 🐬 Dolphin Cruise Experience 🍽️ (lunch on the way)
🕕 06:00 PM – ☕ Wrap-up (tea on the way)
🕡 06:30 PM – 🏨 Return to hotel
📅 Day 03 | Wetland Birding & Departure
🕠 05:30 AM – 🚙 Depart from hotel
🕕 06:30 AM – 🌿 1st Session: Garden Trails & Arboreal Birds (includes visit to Stork & Turtle Rescue Centre)
🕣 08:30 AM – 💧 2nd Session: Wetland Birding ☕🍞 (breakfast & tea en-route)
🕦 11:30 AM – 🦆 3rd Session: Ducks in Focus
🕧 12:30 PM – 🍽️ Lunch
🕑 02:00 PM – 🐾 4th Session: Ducks & Waders
🕓 04:00 PM – ☕ Final birding session + tea before departure
We travelled to Bhagalpur for birdwatching from the 9th to the 11th of January. It was our first group trip of the year, and a team of twenty of us set off together to this corner of Bihar. Our birding adventure began on the very first morning amid dense fog and biting winter cold. The day’s destination was the Ghatora Wetland. Locals told us that during the monsoon the water level rises so high that even Gangetic dolphins can be seen surfacing there, and tall trees disappear under water. But in winter, when the waters recede, the same landscape transforms into a paradise for birds.
When we announced our plan to visit Bhagalpur, many people asked in disbelief—what is even there to see? Are there really birds in such places? I only smiled in reply and nodded quietly, knowing what awaited us. By the end of the trip we had recorded 93 different species of birds. Besides that, we were lucky enough to spot Gangetic dolphins and even a jungle cat.
The experience was not limited to birdwatching alone. We clicked photographs in mustard fields glowing with yellow flowers, enjoyed hot aloo parathas with sharp mustard chutney, and ended our days with the unforgettable taste of Champaran mutton. Wandering over the sandbars and along the riverbanks with cameras in hand made the trip even more delightful. We visited Kadoa, known as the village of the mighty Garuda (Greater Adjutant Stork). Along the river we explored soft muddy stretches, maize fields, litchi orchards, and even the historic ruins of Vikramshila Mahavihara—everywhere finding birds in surprising abundance.
Every member of our twenty-strong team was incredibly supportive and deeply enthusiastic about birding. For many it was their very first birding trip, and their excitement was truly inspiring. Our YouTube channel may be small, but we have managed to build a close and passionate community of nature lovers, and that feels like a real achievement.
This time in Bhagalpur we saw several Greater Adjutant Storks. I have always been fascinated by how, in Sanatan traditions, animals and birds are associated with various deities as their vehicles. In a religious country like ours, this spiritual connection can be a powerful tool for conservation. Wildlife cannot be protected by outsiders alone—local communities must become the shield. And when stories of gods and goddesses are linked with these creatures, it becomes easier to inspire people to care for them. Despite all efforts, this bird is still listed as “Nearly Threatened” by the IUCN, which means danger still looms over it, though there are hopeful signs of recovery.
Once upon a time these storks roamed freely even in Kolkata; the first logo of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation in 1896 featured this very bird. Standing today amid the concrete jungle of modern Kolkata, it feels almost unbelievable.
Alongside birding in Bhagalpur, we also explored the historic Vikramshila Mahavihara, discovering many species even within those ancient ruins. At the Kahalgaon Dolphin Sanctuary we watched dolphins leaping playfully—a magical sight. On the last day, just like revising everything before an exam, we revisited all possible habitats, ticking off species from our checklist before leaving Bhagalpur. We covered several locations and varied ecosystems that day, giving us a complete and deeply satisfying birding experience.
| Graylag Goose |
| Ruddy Shelduck |
| Gadwall |
| Falcated Duck |
| Eurasian Wigeon |
| Northern Pintail |
| Green-winged Teal |
| Red-crested Pochard |
| Eurasian Collared-Dove |
| Spotted Dove |
| Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon |
| Greater Coucal |
| Common Hawk-Cuckoo |
| Eurasian Coot |
| White-breasted Waterhen |
| Black-winged Stilt |
| Little Ringed Plover |
| River Lapwing |
| Yellow-wattled Lapwing |
| Red-wattled Lapwing |
| Kentish Plover |
| Common Sandpiper |
| Green Sandpiper |
| Wood Sandpiper |
| Common Redshank |
| Spotted Redshank |
| Common Greenshank |
| Temminck’s Stint |
| Little Grebe |
| Asian Openbill |
| Lesser Adjutant |
| Greater Adjutant |
| Painted Stork |
| Oriental Darter |
| Little Cormorant |
| Great Cormorant |
| Black-headed Ibis |
| Red-naped Ibis |
| Black-crowned Night Heron |
| Little Egret |
| Indian Pond-Heron |
| Eastern Cattle-Egret |
| Medium Egret |
| Gray Heron |
| Purple Heron |
| Black Kite |
| White-eyed Buzzard |
| Common Hoopoe |
| Indian Gray Hornbill |
| White-throated Kingfisher |
| Pied Kingfisher |
| Indian Roller |
| Brown-headed Barbet |
| Blue-throated Barbet |
| Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker |
| Black-rumped Flameback |
| Eurasian Kestrel |
| Red-necked Falcon |
| Rose-ringed Parakeet |
| Small Minivet |
| Black-hooded Oriole |
| White-throated Fantail |
| Black Drongo |
| Bronzed Drongo |
| Brown Shrike |
| Rufous Treepie |
| House Crow |
| Large-billed Crow |
| Oriental Skylark |
| Delicate Prinia |
| Plain Prinia |
| Zitting Cisticola |
| Gray-throated Martin |
| Barn Swallow |
| Red-whiskered Bulbul |
| Red-vented Bulbul |
| Indian White-eye |
| Jungle Babbler |
| Indian Nuthatch |
| Indian Pied Starling |
| Common Myna |
| Bank Myna |
| Oriental Magpie-Robin |
| Bluethroat |
| Taiga Flycatcher |
| Black Redstart |
| White-tailed Stonechat |
| Brown Rock Chat |
| Pale-billed Flowerpecker |
| Purple-rumped Sunbird |
| Purple Sunbird |
| House Sparrow |
| Gray Wagtail |
| White Wagtail |
| Paddyfield Pipit |
| Olive-backed Pipit |
| Common Rosefinch |
