Friends in My Garden- 20

Rose-ringed Parakeet

A male parakeet

These lovely birds with gorgeous green plumage land on my Caesalpinia plant in the morning and evening. They spend a lot of time eating the beans; looks like their favourite food!

The rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri) is sexually dimorphic. The adult male sports a red or black neck ring and the female show no neck rings or a very faded ring.

They have adapted well to the environmental changes of deforestation and urbanization and are considered the least threatened.

Here are a few of their pictures, enjoying on my Caesalpinia, with their characteristic screeching sounds.

Enjoying Caesalpinia beans on a rainy day

And its a mouthful…

A couple- a late evening shot

 

Friends in My Garden- 19

Loten’s Sunbird

Loten’s sunbird male

This cute little bird couple is a regular visitor to my garden. They have made a nearby shrub their home.

Its long bill distinguishes Loten’s sunbird (Cinnyris lotenius) from the similar purple sunbird. More over the males have a reddish maroon breast band. I feel, for a layman the easy way to identify a female is when they appear as couple.

Like other sunbirds, it feeds on nectar and small insects. They build characteristic  nests using cobwebs and delicate twigs.

The male bird sings beautifully and the pair keeps on ‘chatting’ while moving around. They are too active and capturing their pictures needs patience.

Male bird among the foliage

Female of the species

She was feeding nectar

 

Friends in My Garden- 18

Garden Snail

Garden snail

A very common and widespread species, the garden snail is a typical land snail. I have seen two varieties in my garden. The one in the first picture has a designer shell and black lines on the body.

The next two pictures show another variety of garden snail, with plain shell and undecorated body.

Garden snail is mainly nocturnal, but it will emerge during the day after rain. It moves by means of a muscular foot; the mucus secreted by the foot aids with movement .

Garden snail spends the day, often in groups, beneath stones and other structures. It hibernates through the winter in similar locations .They can be serious pests of gardens.

Different species of garden snail

Hibernating or sleeping?!