Redwattled Lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus)
Have you ever heard a call similar to ‘did-he-do-it’
(...now it is not exactly word-by-word tone-by-tone same, but somewhat
similar). If you have or if you do so in the future, don’t forget
to look around for this partridge-like bird called Redwattled Lapwing.
¤ Easily Traceable
The best place to locate it is once again the water bodies, where it
can be seen in pairs. It generously affects open country, ploughed
fields, grazing lands, and margins and dry beds of tanks and ponds.
The bird is found all over the Indian Union upto about 1800 m in the
Himalayas and peninsular hills.
It is also found in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar. It is a
bit larger than partridge, colour above is bronze-brown, below is
white; breast, head and neck are black and there is a crimson wattle
in front of each eye. Both the sexes are alike.
The food includes insects, grubs, mollusks etc. Female lays four
stone coloured or greyish brown (sometimes blotched with black) eggs.
The eggs are laid on bare ground in open waste land, occasionally with
the depression ringed around with a few pebbles. They match the soil
to perfection and are difficult to identify. |
