Speckled Rattlesnake

'Speckled rattlesnake (Crotalus Stephensi) I saw last weekend at Pisgah Lava Flow in San Bernardino Co. Isn't she beautiful? She was found sitting coiled up under a sage plant (and then moved into the sun later for this photo)' - writes our friend Emily Taylor.

Yes, this looks beautiful! The venom of this snake is potentially dangerous to humans though that we got to know. They come in various colorations. Look how nicely it blends into its surroundings!

They eat small mammals, birds and lizards. When alarmed, it moves its tail back and forth and that makes a buzzing sound.

Photo: Emily Taylor

Rhino -the Boss of Jaldapara

Enter the Boss!

The Great One Horned Indian Rhinoceros at the Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary (North of West Bengal, India). Many of them of course you can find at Kaziranga National Park in Assam. Doro's friend and uncle had a recent trip at Jaldapara and they had a safari on Elephant back (during which they captured this)!!

Well, this one horned Rhino is the second largest among the all five varieties of them found all over the world. Both the male and female Rhinos have the very special horn! But the young ones don't have one (Is this young?) . And the interesting fact is that the horns are made of the same stuff (keratin) that our finger nails and the cow horns are made of. Rhinos are peaceful grass eating creatures.

Photo: Arunabha Adhikari. Kolkata

Location: Jaldapara Wildlife Sabctuary, North Bengal, India

American Robin in our backyard

Wait... what???? In case you're wondering what this was doing in my backyard let me just say that I am from Fresno, California. My name is Sanzari Aranyak and I am Doro's 10 year old cousin. The American Robin hangs out in our backyard every winter and my dad took this picture (with my little sister's help) during this year's Great Backyard Bird Count. (I was unable to participate because of school.) If you want to know what else they saw check out my dad's blog.

I like the American Robin because it has a warm breast and a cheery song. Though they are city and town birds they can also be found in the Alaskan wilderness and in mountain forests. To learn more about this bird go to All About Birds the website from Cornell University's Lab of Ornithology which conducts the Great Backyard Bird Count.

Photo: Madhusudan Katti, Fresno, California, USA

Write up: Sanzari Aranyak, Fresno.

Spotted Deer

Spotted Deer in Sunderban. This is also known as 'Chital' deer or Axis deer. They eat mainly grasses and vegetation but sometimes also eat their shed antlers as a source of nutrients! These beautiful deers are generally seen in a group or herd.
'Sunderban', the largest mangrove forest in the world is on the southern most part of Bangladesh and West Bengal over Bay of Bengal.
Our friend captured this through his Nikon D700 Camera on a recent tour there.


More on Sundarban:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundarbans_National_Park


Photo: Arunangshu Sinha, Kolkata

Feeding!

Red Whiskered Bulbuls. The mother and the chick.
This photo is recently captured by our friend at a rural area in West Bengal, India. Red Whiskered Bulbul and the Red Vented Bulbul (search for another entry here) are very common bulbuls found in this part of India.

Wikipedia Entry:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-whiskered_Bulbul


Photo: Shankar Sinha, Panskura
Location: Panskura, East Midnapore, WB, India

Bulbul (Yellow Vented Bulbul)

Bulbul: They are song birds! There are many varieties (around 130) of them. Is this a yellow vented Bulbul? We are not sure.


More info:
http://www.avianweb.com/bulbuls.html

Photo: Shankar Sinha, Panskura.
Location: Panskura, WB, India.

Stork

Wikipedia info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stork

Photo: Arunangshu Sinha, Kolkata
Location: Alipore Zoo, Kolkata

Painted Stork

Painted Stork - majestic and colourful! Our friend has captured this inside the Zoo in Kolkata. 
These birds are found around shallow water or wetlands, often seen wading through water in search of small fish. Because of the distinct colourful feathers the name 'painted' is added with this kind of stork birds. 


More info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_Stork
http://www.iloveindia.com/wildlife/indian-birds/stork-birds/painted-stork.html

Photo: Arunangshu Sinha, Kolkata
Location: Alipore Zoo, Kolkata, India