Nature watching @ Velas Turtle Festival

Just back from a quick day trip to Velas, a small village along the Konkan coast of Maharashtra. With a group of friends I had gone there primarily to see the release of Olive ridley sea turtles that hatch at this time of the year.

As these turtles are now considered vulnerable by the IUCN along the western coast of India (since quite a few years in multiple locations) their eggs are shifted to secure nesting sites and the hatchlings are collected and released in protected conditions by Forest officials and volunteer organizations.

In Velas, Sahyadri Nisarga Mitra (a local NGO) has managed to turn the release of these beautiful sea turtles into a popular tourist event that they have named the Velas Turtle Festival. (check their website here - http://snmcpn.in/)

Olive ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea) being released by the Forest officials

The male turtles will never return to land while the females that make it to adulthood are known to show Beach fidelity (i.e. they will return to the same beach where they were born to lay their eggs).

And here's the last two of them about to take their first plunge into the sea.

Once we were done with the turtles we spend a few hours watching birds and smaller life forms before heading back to Bombay.

The majestic White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) was out first bird of the day.

Then the Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) gave us good views.

Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos) - above and below photo..

Spotted Dove (Spilopelia chinensis)

Green Bee-eater (Merops orientalis)

Red-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer)

Jungle Myna (Acridotheres fuscus) and Rosy Starling (Sturnus roseus)

And here's a few photos of the Red-rumped Swallow (Cecropis daurica)

Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus)

Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis)

Purple-rumped Sunbird (Leptocoma zeylonica)

Red-whiskered Bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus)

Blyth's Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus dumetorum)

Black Stream Glider (Trithemis festiva)

A female Fulvous Forest Skimmer (Neurothemis fulvia)

A kind of Bee Fly. They belong to the Bombyliidae and are a family of flies. They can be identified by their hovering action and the presence of a long proboscis (as seen in the photo above).

A group of pond skaters also known as water skaters, water skimmers or Jesus bugs.These are true bugs belonging to the family Gerridae in the order Hemiptera.

A DSF of the Plains Cupid (Chilades pandava)

And to end this post a couple of images of the Brown Awl (Badamia exclamationis).