Port Blair - Shoal Bay - Chidiya Tapu - Mount Harriet National Park
05 Days / 04 Nights
Our Andaman Short Birding Tours is designed to showcase almost all endemic birds of the Andamans over the course of five days. The geographic isolation of the archipelago of Andaman and Nicobar Islands has been a boon for its avifauna. Being hundreds of kilometres away from any More Info
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Our Andaman Islands Short Birding Tours is designed to showcase almost all endemic birds of the Andamans over the course of five days.
The geographic isolation of the archipelago of Andaman and Nicobar Islands has been a boon for its avifauna. Being hundreds of kilometres away from any continental land mass, this cluster of islands far south of the Bay of Bengal has not just been spared exploitation at the hands of humans, but has also seen, over centuries and millennia, evolution of several bird species that are exclusive to the islands. These incredible avian beauties are the target of our short birding adventure of the Andamans.
The archipelago itself is quite large and many parts are strictly off limits. Our Andaman short birdwatching tour focusses on South Andaman, particularly the areas around its capital Port Blair.
A short ferry ride away from Port Blair is a place called Shoal Bay, a marshy wetland of mangroves where you may see almost all of the endemic birds of Andamans, including: Andaman Woodpecker, Andaman Wood Pigeon, Andaman Cuckoo Dove, Andaman Crake, Andaman Serpent Eagle, Andaman Treepie, Andaman Shama, and Andaman Drongo.
Just as good a birding site, if not better, is Chidiya Tapu (Bird Island), a patch of evergreen forest spread along sea shore. This birding hotspot of Andaman yields the endemics and other birds such as Changeable Hawk Eagle, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Beach Thick-knee, Olive-backed Sunbird, White-headed Starling, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, and a host of kingfishers.
Chidiya Tapu is also a great place for nocturnal birding. Some sharp-eyed probing in the dark unveils the likes of Andaman Masked Owl, Andaman Scops Owl, Oriental Scops Owl, Brown Hawk Owl, Andaman Hawk Owl, Hume's Hawk Owl, Andaman Nightjar and Andaman Barn Owl.
Likewise, Mount Harriet National Park is a favourite haunt of birders, especially those who want to catch sight of a fascinating variety of wildlife, apart from a whole range of birds. Here, you get to sight woodpeckers, kingfishers, cuckooshrikes, minivets, drongos, treepies, parakeets, thrushes, sunbirds and raptors.
Our Andaman Short Birding Tours covers these hotspots in busy birding excursions that start in the morning and last till sundown. On several occasions, we continue birding well into the night to watch the nocturnal birds of Andamans. Each day is so chockfull of birding action that our short birding adventure of Andamans feels a lot longer than five days.
Lodging: Our Andaman short birding trip centres around Port Blair. For the entire course of the tour we stay at a hotel or resort in Port Blair and from there we head out to different birding trails of Andamans each day. The hotel is chosen for its location and quality of service. More often than not, the hotel is close to birding sites so that you can watch birds even from your window or balcony.
Meals: The hotels you stay in have both Indian and Western meals on their menu. Quality and delicious food of both vegetarian and meat-based cuisines is served for breakfast and dinner. Lunches are mostly picnic in the field, taken from packed meals. On no occasion are hygiene and taste compromised with. Seafood is quite popular in Port Blair, and if you wish, we may even try out a few local restaurants for a night or two.
Tour Difficulty: Our Andaman birdwatching adventure makes no strenuous demands on your physical stamina, but it has some back-to-back full days of birding that require long hours in the field, walking long distances, while carrying your own equipment such as binoculars, camera, field guide, backpack, etc. You should be equal to this task. The terrain is mostly flat, save a few gentle slopes at Mount Harriet National Park. On some evenings, we birdwatch late into the night.
Tour Extension: There is plenty of opportunity in the Andamans for water sports and adventure. You may want to go for a scuba dive or a short stint at Havelock Island, which is famous for its gorgeous beaches and yummy seafood. Or you may want to go sightseeing at Cellular Jail or Anthropological Museum. We can include these visits in tour extension, provided you inform us well in advance to let us make necessary arrangements.
Climate: The summer in the Andamans can be hot and humid, but the winter brings in a refreshing spell of pleasant weather. The six-month period from October through March is the best time to do birding in Andamans. The monsoon is well over by this time and the birds are out in large numbers. Casual summer wear is fine for this weather, and you may want to carry along a light raincoat or poncho for an odd shower. Do also bear in mind that the Andamans have early mornings and early evenings, as per the Indian Standard Time.
Our Short Birding Tours of Andamans takes off at the archipelago’s capital Port Blair. You arrive at Port Blair through a flight. Our representative meets you at the airport and drives you to a pre-booked hotel or resort. After a lunch break, we head out to watch the birds of Andamans.
Port Blair and the areas around it so teem with birds that all it takes is a short trip to one of the local water bodies to see some incredible avian beauties like Chinese Pond Heron, Chinese Egret, Pintail Snipe, Common Snipe, Bar-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew, Common Redshank, Marsh Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Terek Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Great Knot, Sanderling, Little Stint, Red-necked Stint, Long-toed Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Pacific Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Little Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Lesser Sand Plover, Greater Sand Plover, Oriental Plover, Grey-headed Lapwing, Crab Plover, Oriental Pratincole, Gull-billed Tern, and Lesser Crested Tern. This Short Birding Tours of Port Blair warms you up for the busy birding days ahead.
We dine at the hotel, or you may try out local restaurants if you wish to. Overnight at the hotel or resort.
We start the day early to clock in precious hours of morning birding. After a short drive, we take a ferry to Shoal Bay, a patch of rainforest with marshy wetlands where aquatic birds throng to in large numbers. Time is of the essence in these early hours, and so we have packed breakfast and even carry our packed lunches.
Shoal Bay is where you may see almost all the endemic birds of Andaman, besides a lot of other winged beauties. A good day of birding at Shoal Bay yields the likes of Andaman Woodpecker, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Dollarbird, Blue-eared Kingfisher, Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Ruddy Kingfisher, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Asian Emerald Cuckoo, Violet Cuckoo, Asian Koel, Brown Coucal, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Alexandrine Parakeet, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Andaman Wood Pigeon, Red Collared Dove, Andaman Cuckoo Dove, Emerald Dove, Pompadour Green Pigeon, Green Imperial Pigeon, Pied Imperial Pigeon, Andaman Crake, Slaty-breasted Rail, Andaman Serpent Eagle, Andaman Treepie, apart from many others.
Lest we break our birding rhythm, we have packed lunches at Shoal Bay itself and continue birdwatching until the evening, when we return to our hotel in Port Blair for dinner and overnight.
A full busy day of birding awaits us as we leave our Port Blair hotel for Chidiya Tapu (Bird Island), which is an hour’s drive away. The birding trail starts about 4 km before Chidiya Tapu and runs right into the heart of the mangrove island and along its seashore forest.
The woods and waters here host many endemic, resident and migratory birds. A fruitful day of birding at Chidiya Tapu treats you to the sights of Andaman Crake, Andaman Woodpecker, Andaman Treepie, Andaman Serpent Eagle, Andaman Shama, Changeable Hawk Eagle, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Andaman Drongo, Beach Thick-knee, Olive-backed Sunbird, White-headed Starling, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Blue-eared Kingfisher, Collared Kingfisher, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Brown Coucal, Alexandrine Parakeet, Asian Emerald Cuckoo, Violet Cuckoo, Asian Koel, Red-breasted Parakeet, and a lot more birds.
Around evening, we spend an hour or two lounging on the beach and watching the sunset. There are also some water sport opportunities nearby. After dusk, we scour the surroundings for night birds, such as Andaman Masked Owl, Andaman Scops Owl, Oriental Scops Owl, Brown Hawk Owl, Andaman Hawk Owl, Hume's Hawk Owl, Andaman Nightjar and Andaman Barn Owl. Following this successful stint of nocturnal birding, we return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.
Mount Harriet National Park is named after the third highest peak (Mount Harriet) in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is a favourite stomping ground of nature lovers and birders alike, owing to the glorious flora and fauna that one finds here. The park is also touted as a butterfly hotspot and has a fascinating marine ecosystem on its eastern coast.
This biodiversity haven is located about 10 km from Port Blair and we arrive here early in the morning to make the most of our birding trip to Mount Harriet National Park. A day of birdwatching here unveils a wide range of avifauna, including Andaman Woodpecker, Andaman Wood Pigeon, Andaman Cuckoo Dove, Andaman Crake, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Black-naped Oriole, Black-hooded Oriole, Large Cuckooshrike, Bar-bellied Cuckooshrike, Ashy Minivet, Small Minivet, Andaman Drongo, Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Black-naped Monarch, Asian Paradise Flycatcher, Blue Rock Thrush, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Dollarbird, Collared Kingfisher, Brown Coucal, Alexandrine Parakeet, Red-breasted Parakeet, Pintail Snipe, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Andaman Treepie, Orange-headed Thrush, Olive-backed Sunbird, and White-headed Starling, and many others.
In the evening, we return to our hotel in Port Blair for dinner and overnight.
After breakfast, we transfer you to the airport in Port Blair for a morning flight to your destination. Our short birding adventure of Andamans comes to an end.
