Birding places near Chennai
Birding places near Chennai might not be numerous like Bengaluru , Mumbai or Pune because it does not boast any major forest areas nearby. It does however compensate that with it’s beautiful coast line and numerous water bodies , making it one of the best places for water birds. In this post, we are listing some of the common spots that birders in Chennai visit to look for birds. We are writing this post as a simple guidance to amateurs and not for the serious birders who tend to look in nook and corners for birds. Also there are no top 10 places sort of thing here. For certain species there are certain places and for certain others there are the rest. For example Black-headed Cuckoo Shrike can be found in Vedanthangal but you can hardly find that bird in Pallikaranai. Hence all these places have their own special relevance.
Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary
While it does get crowded during weekends , Vedanthangal offers solitude during weekdays. Sometimes all you hear is the sound of birds. The pathway is fully covered by trees , so one can watch the birds without being in the open sun.
Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary is situated around 90 kms from Chennai. This place is very famous for birding during migratory season as the water birds do nesting in this sanctuary. There is a well paved pathway and also a watch tower. Recently, an educational center also opened. The birds can be clearly seen while walking on the pathway itself. Commonly seen birds are the water birds like Painted Stork, Grey Heron, Pelican etc. Apart from the easily seen water birds other birds like Spotted Owlet, Golden Oriole , Hawk Cuckoo etc can also be seen if you have a closer look. Apart from this, another sanctuary by the name of Karikili bird sanctuary is situated quite near to this place. While in Vedanthangal, the forest department charges a fee for entry , it is free in Karikili bird sanctuary. While the birds are much less in Karikili, it is calm and serene and is the best place to see some beautiful birds like Red Avadavat and Black-headed Cuckoo Shrike.
Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary
Flamingos are super elegant birds to look at and they are even more beautiful when they move together. Often feeding in ankle deep water these graceful birds area visual delight. Pulicat bird sanctuary is by far the best place to see them in Chennai
Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary is the second largest lagoon next to Chilika Lake in India. It is situated around 60 kms from Chennai. 97% of the Pulicat lake is in Andhra and only 3% lies on the Tamilnadu side. The common entry points on the Tamilnadu side is Palaverkadu boat point and Annamalaicheri and on the Andhra side, the best part would be the road to Sriharikota. There are also a few watch towers enroute to Sriharikota. Birds can be seen from the road itself during peak season. The main attraction of Pulicat Lake is the Flamingos. Infact the place even holds an annual Flamingo festival. We have no idea what they do in the festival ! It is the only place in Tamilnadu where thousands of Flamingos can be seen during migration season. Keen birders also take boat ride to explore Pulicat Lake. Pulicat Lake is also well known for its rare winter visitors like Lesser Noddy, Oyster catcher,etc . Other common birds one can see in Pulicat are White-bellied Sea Eagle, Marsh Sandpiper, Black-headed Ibis, Common Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Common Greenshank, Little-ringed Plover, Brown-headed Gull and the list goes on.
Here is a Vlog to share our Pulicat Lake Boat Experience
Pallikaranai Wetlands
Pallikaranai Wetlands is the major bliss to Chennai, but unfortunately this unique terrain is rapidly decreasing with garbage dumping and real estate issues. Pallikaranai Wetlands is known for its unique flora and fauna. During peak season, countless number of ducks and other water birds can be seen here. But to watch the birds in Pallikaranai, birders have to stand in the garbage area inhaling all the yukky smells or on the edge of a busy road watching their back rather than birds. The sight of birds living in the polluted water makes us always very sad. We have seen Pied Avocet, Northern Shoveler, Eurasian Wigeon, Northern Pintail,Eurasian Spoonbill in Sholinganallur part of Pallikaranai which is one of the busiest I.T places in Chennai. To watch these amazing migrants and the resident breeders like Purple moorhen, Night heron, Little Cormorant, Common Coot, Yellow bittern, Black-winged Stilt amidst peak traffic and horn sounds is always very discomforting. This little area we have given to these precious birds also will be soon gone in our fast changing world but as of now it is “The best ” place in Chennai for birding for someone who just needs to take a photo ! One of the beautiful moments we have captured in Pallikaranai wetlands is the feeding frenzy of Painted storks and Pied Avocets. These birds really deserve better place in this world!
Nanmangalam Forest Reserve
Scrub forest is not exactly a pretty sight and particularly with hot Chennai weather is never a relaxing walk. Regardless of that , a walk in Nanmangalam reserve forest is always rewarding not only for birding but also for wildflowers. Infact one can spot orchids here.
Nanmangalam Forest Reserve is one of the hidden treasures of Chennai. This is a dry shrub forest with an area of 320 hectares. We were residing near this forest 10 years back and this was one of the first places we frequently go , when we started birding. We used to walk in the path used by the locals who came to wash their clothes in a small water body inside a quarry. The same water body is also home for the Eurasian Eagle Owl. The birders just visit this place to see the Eurasian Eagle Owl and everyone was so conscious not to disturb the owl or any other birds. Few years back, Forest Department built a wall around the reserve and free entry was strictly prohibited. Now prior permission is needed to enter the forest reserve and there is even a billboard of Eurasian Eagle Owl infront of the Nanmangalam Forest Reserve. The Forest Officials take you for a small trek to see the Eurasian Eagle Owl. While we appreciate the effort by the Forest department , If the same Forest Department did these activities to protect the reserve from intruders, it would be good. But the walls are already broken and the locals were using this place as toilet as usual, so we are not sure what was achieved with all the restrictions to birders and photographers alone !
Kelambakkam backwaters
Along the side of the road connecting OMR and ECR one can find this huge water body. The entire area is a salt pan with water levels changing as per the tide. Sometimes it is bone dry except for a few patches along the Buckingham canal which runs through it. It is the best place to see terns inside Chennai.
These are actually salt pans which are not in use these days. During dry season, the entire land is just dry patch. But when water is available because of the tide , you can witness good water bird activities here. Spot-billed Pelicans, Cormorants, Common Sandpipers, Pond Herons can be seen closely, while Plovers,Terns can be seen at a distant. Kelambakkam backwaters is basically the land between OMR and ECR starting from Muttukadu , so we usually just stop and check the birds and go on. Sometimes when weather was good, we do a early morning drive to see sunrise in the ECR beach and see the bird activities in Kelambakkam. This is one of the best places to see Pied Kingfisher. Another beautiful place for birding in backwaters near Chennai is Odiyur Lake.
Siruthavoor Reserve
Sirudavoor is one of the many lakes that surround Chennai. Since this one has an reserve forest close to it , one can find many birds here , particularly in the migration season. The grasslands and the lake bund are the best spots for watching birds.
Siruthavoor Reserve is located around 30 km froms Chennai. To roam inside the reserve you have to get permission from Forest Department,though drunkards will be roaming freely inside. So birding in Siruthavoor lake and the grasslands around that area is much preferred by birders than the reserve. During migration season, harriers can be spotted in the grasslands. Oriental Pratincole, Red Avadavat , Painted Snipe can be spotted in Siruthavoor Grasslands. In Siruthavoor Lake Common Pochard,Tufted Duck can also be spotted during migration season. Sadly, this place is famous for poaching also. Local people steal bird eggs and hunt the ducks, so recently very less birds were spotted in Siruthavoor compared to few years back.
Theosophical Society
This green patch right in the middle of Adyar is a urban abode for the winged beauties. Since it adjoins the adyar estuary , even water birds can be spotted from here.
Theosophical Society is the greenest place situated in the busiest part of Chennai. It is famous for the Adyar Banyan Tree. Again, this place limits entries and can be visited only for few hours in a day. Also, Camera is not allowed. So if you are a binocular late morning birder, you can enjoy this place. We are early morning birders, so we skip this place and go to Besant Nagar Beach and walk to the Broken Bridge, which is at the back of Theosophical Society. We just enjoy Hoopoe, Bee-eaters, Rose-ringed Parakeets, White-breasted Kingfishers here. We had seen even the rare Black-capped Kingfisher in the broken bridge. During Bird Race, Cameras are allowed inside the campus. So when we went for the bird race, we spotted the Brown Hawk Owl itself inside the campus. As there are many banyan trees, you can enjoy seeing the bats hanging up everywhere.
Adyar Park
Originally a beautiful estuary and then a garbage dump and then back to this ! This is one project where we will not be critical of the government. I went to the school nearby to this place and I can recall all the above transformation. One sad part though, those building in the background were also once part of estuary !
Adyar Park is one of the few nicest things done by the Tamilnadu Government. This place is mainly for school kids to get closer to nature and get educated along the way. There are well paved paths and a Guide will come along with you to explain about the native trees and the birds in the park. For normal tourists, entry time is only in afternoons. So most people avoid visiting Adyar Park as they have to walk only in hot weather. We went once inside the park and ended up teaching about the birds to other people who were in the same group with us ! Pelicans, Grebes, Night herons, Black-winged stilts can be spotted in Adyar park.
Arignar Anna Zoological Park
Our Zoo was once a scrub jungle like Nanmangalam reserve forest. Since the Zoo has much of the original forest intact and also the fact that animals have open enclosures with natural trees, make the zoo a birding spot for all common urban birds.
We are not fans of caged birds, so we don’t prefer Zoo. But Arignar Anna Zoological Park is a big campus with large varieties of trees. So there are plenty of opportunities to see wild birds. This is one of the safest places in Chennai to do birding when you are an amateur birder. Lesser Flameback, Loten’s Sunbird, Tailor bird, Brahminy Starling, Spotted Owlets can be commonly seen in Arignar Anna Zoological Park. You can walk or rent a cycle and do birding inside the park. But after the cyclone in Chennai, many old trees fell down and according to me the zoo lost its glory.
Guindy National Park
Personally , Guindy National Park is our least favorite place to watch birds. Here entry inside the park needs contacts with people working there or people studying in IIT which we don’t prefer. We are birders who enjoy birding when the birds are happy in their natural environment . In the case of Guindy national park , we just ask ourselves if Guindy national park is a national park then why is there so much commercial activity ? If green patches are lungs of the planet then why can’t the “brains” of IIT understand that and stop the constant construction that is going on there. Anybody who has been to IIT chennai over the last 20 years can tell the difference. But this Guindy National Park does still retain some dense patches and rare birds sighting often occurs here. Chennai rarities like Eurasian Hobby and the Dollar bird were spotted here.
We all think that the industries destroy forest land, so the forest inside Guindy National Park will be perfectly safe. Exactly the opposite. Can you imagine the educational institution who has to teach the importance of biodiversity itself destroying the forest land inside the park and engaging in constructing more buildings?
If you are interested in water birds, check this link to see the different terrains in India to see water birds. Birding in India will take you to some unique terrains and unique birds!