Our South India birding tour takes us to the rugged lands of southern India and the impressive Western Ghats Mountains, a land of endless valleys, rolling tea estates and breathtaking highland vistas, well-known for harboring a superb range of highly localized endemic birds and a host of special mammals. This comprehensive tour showcases many of these special creatures: the gorgeous Indian Pitta, Wynaad's Laughingthrush, Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, the rare Sri Lanka Frogmouth, exquisite Malabar Trogon, Malabar Whistling Thrush and Heart-spotted Woodpecker are just some of the incredible birds we will search for, while Indian Elephant, Gaur (Indian Bison), Wild Boar and Smooth-coated Otter are potential mammal highlights. Join us for an unbeatable birding exploration to the southern part of this immense and extremely rewarding nation!
*2024 Prices are estimated and dates may change*
Painted Bush Quail, Red Spurfowl, Nilgiri Wood & Grey-fronted Green Pigeons, Malabar Grey Hornbill, White-cheeked Barbet, Blue-winged Parakeet, Malabar Woodshrike, White-spotted Fantail, White-bellied Treepie, Indian Black-lored Tit, Malabar Lark, Grey-headed, Flame-throated & Yellow-throated Bulbuls, Broad-tailed Grassbird, Indian Scimitar & Rufous Babblers, Wynaad, Nilgiri & Palani Laughingthrushes, Malabar Starling, Nilgiri Thrush, White-bellied Blue, Black-and-orange & Nilgiri Flycatchers, Nilgiri Blue & White-bellied Blue Robins, Malabar Whistling Thrush, Nilgiri Flowerpecker, Crimson-backed Sunbird, Nilgiri Pipit, Indian Pitta, Sri Lanka Frogmouth, Malabar Trogon, Heart-spotted Woodpecker.
Top Mammals Dhole, Gaur (Indian Bison), Smooth-coated Otter, Nilgiri Tahr
Habitats Covered sholas (montane forests), teak woodlands, lakes, wetlands, montane grassland
Expected Climate warm during day, cool at night, rain unexpected
Max Group Size 6 with 1 Rockjumper leader
Tour Pace & Walking moderate
Accommodation basic to comfortable lodges and hotels
Ease of Birding mostly unchallenging
Number of Species Expected +-250
Other Attractions Lake Periyar, roadside temples and shrines, Western Ghats Mountains, tea plantations
Photographic Opportunities very good
This was a great trip. A terrific itinerary and we saw lots of birds and we saw tigers at Ranthambhore and Corbett. Glen and [the local leader] were excellent guides—great spotting skills, and they made sure everyone saw the bird. The logistics worked very well because Glen and [the local leader] were a great team.
The entire tour was truly excellent. David is an outstanding, world-class bird guide, talented, able-bodied, friendly and courteous. I would definitely travel with him again.
David Hoddinott was at his best even on new grounds full of lifers.
This trip was great! We were told the trip should generate about 250 bird species and our total was very close. Peter was excellent at finding birds, leading us and keeping a positive group atmosphere. The local guides also were competent and helpful. Accommodations are not an important aspect of a trip to me but the ones we stayed at were excellent, as were the meals. The trip was an excellent introduction to India for me tho I was happy to have it very much concentrate on birding.
I thought David was an excellent guide. He certainly knows his birds and was very passionate and I also found him to be very keen to discuss birds and pass on knowledge; I enjoyed being able to share his passion. I also found him to be friendly and I had the impression that he was always trying to make sure that the group was generally satisfied. He was certainly very thorough at making sure that everybody had seen all the birds.