Fishing Cat

The Fishing cat or Felis viverrina has a large body measuring to about 3 ft 3". Its tail is about a foot in length. It weighs about 25 to 32 lbs. The fishing Cat is distinguished from the leopard-cat by its larger size and shorter tail. Its body is covered with short course earthy-grey fur.

The lower parts of the body are spotted and the tail is more or less distinctly ringed with black spots. The forefeet of the cat have moderately well developed webs between the toes; the claw sheaths are not large enough to completely envelop the retracted claws. The Cat lives in the jungle, in scrubs and frequently in grass swamps or in reed beds, about rivers and tidal creeks. It preys on any animal or bird that it can secure. It can even kill dogs, calves, and sheep and is known to have even preyed on children. It also feeds on fish and fresh water molluscs. Its method of fishing is to crouch on a rock or overhanging bank and to scoop up the fish with a blow of its paw. It does not enter the water in pursuit of its prey.

The Jungle Cat

The jungle Cat has a very distinctive appearance. Its pale green eyes give it a very cold and cruel impression. The colour of its fur varies from sandy grey to yellowish grey. Its tail is black towards the end and has a black tip. The paws are pale yellowish, black or sooty brown underneath. The ears are reddish ending in a small pencil of black hairs.

The Jungle Cat has established itself over a wide territory ranging form north Africa through south-western Asia to India, Ceylon, Burma and Indo-China. This is a common wild cat of India and is found all over the Peninsula from the Himalayas to Cape Comorin.The Himalayan form is distinguished by its heavier winter coat. There is a sandy -coloured desert race and a south Indian race with a short coat much suffused on the back with grey, showing speckles of black and white.

Jungle Cats inhabit the drier and the more open parts of the country, keeping more to grassland, scrub jungle, the reedy banks of rivers and marshes. It preys on small mammals, birds and when near villages on poultry. It is very swift and exceedingly strong for its size it is quite capable of bringing a much larger game. Births have been recorded between January- April and in August and November. Litter size is usually three but occasionally the number goes up to five kittens. The kittens are tamed easily and purr like a domestic cat when content.

The Hog- Deer The Hog Deer or the Axis procinus is a relative of the chital due to interbreeding between them. It is smaller and stouter in built. It has a long body and relatively short legs. The fur is brown with a yellowish reddish tinge. The underparts of the body are paler and the inside of the ears and the underside of the tail are white. The young are spotted.

The hog- Deer is found in and around the low alluvial grass plains of north India from Sindh and Punjab to Assam where its range extends into Burma and Tenasserim.It also appears in parts of Ceylon.

The Hog- Deer prefers the grass Jungles by the banks of the rivers and grass covered delta islands or open grass plains, where grass is not too high. On the banks of the River Indus in Upper sindh they live in scrub jungle and in Burma they were once common in the mangroves. Hog Deers are generally solitary creatures. Sometimes a party of eighteen may be found grazing together. Their pairing season occurs in September and October and their young are born in April and May.

Marbled Teal

Marbled teal or the Marmaronetta angustirrostris is a resident in the western part of south Asia. It is found around the fresh water lakes and ponds, brackish pools and marshes. The Marbled Teal measures up to 40 cm. It has a pale grey head and a neck with brown markings and a dark brown patch around the eye extending towards the nape with a short crest.
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Its body is creamy-white and greyish brown spotted and mottled creating a marbled effect. Its wings are brown with pale secondaries and its tail is light brown. Both the sexes are more or less similar in appearance however, the females have shorter crest and paler eye stripe. Their juveniles are duller with less spotted flanks and paler nape. The males give a wheezing squeak whereas, the female give a feeble quack.

Smew

Mergus albellus or the Smew breeds in the eastern part of North Asia and moves to East Asia in the non-breeding season. It is 42 cm in length, and has a smaller bill and crest than the other mergansers. The male looks almost all white, but in flight shows black primaries and back.
The female is slightly smaller than the male. Its body is grey distinguished by the chestnut cap and white cheeks. It breeds close to rivers and lowland forests or otherwise on lakes and rivers.

Long Tailed Duck

Or the Clangula hyemalis breeds in North Asia and moves to the eastern part of North Asia and to the northern part of East Asia in the non-breeding period. It breeds by the fresh water lakes by the tundra or on the bays or the coasts. Its female measures upto 38-cm and the male usually measures upto 60 cm in length and has a long pointed tail.
Its moult sequence differs from other ducks. The two main plumages described here are:

Winter male: The winter male is white from head to neck and is pale greyish brown around the eye. Its breast and tail are black, with white scapulars. Its bill is black with fleshy pink bands; its legs are bluish grey.

Winter female : The winter female has a blakish brown crown and cheeks. Its face and upper part of the neck is white and the upperparts of its tail is black.

Summer male: The summer male is mainly blakish brown with white around the eyes. The scapulars have black centres and tawny-buff fringes.

Summer females: Their head and neck are largely dusky with a narrow whitish area around the eye on the sides of the head and neck.

Cotton Teal

Cotton Teal or Nettapus coromandelianus is the resident in the South and the South East Asia. It is 33 cm in length. Its male has a blakish brown crown and a white head, neck and underparts. When in flight its dark wings have a broad white band across primaries and a white trailing edge to the secondaries.

Its female is brown with a black eye stripe; its back is duller. It has dark wings with a white trailing edge to the secondaries. The Male has a rattling cackle whereas the female has a squeaky quack.

Grey Heron The Grey Heron or Ardea cinerea is found around the rice fields, marshes, rivers, lakes and mudflats. It widely breeds in Central, South, Southeast and the central parts of East Asia. Northern breeders move south in the non-breeding period. It is 94 cm in length. The Adult has a white crown and neck with black lateral markings on the side of the belly. It is active at night as well as in the day. Its voice is deep and during flights is high pitched. The juvenile has a dull greyish body.

Purple Heron Ardea purpurea is 79 cm in length. It is distinguished by its slender neck and chestnut hindneck. The adult has a dark crown with black markings running down the chestnut neck. When in flight, there is little contrast between dark grey wing-coverts and black primaries and secondaries. The juvenile has brownish upper wing coverts. It is mostly found around the marshes, ricefields, lakes mudflats and mangrove swamps. It breeds in Central, South and south East Asia. The northern breeders move to the south in the non-breeding period.

Glossy Ibis

Plegadis falcinellus is 52 cm in length. It is small and dark with a feathered head and a characteristic slender down curved bill. It is found near the marshes and lakes. It is a resident of the South and the South East Asia. The breeding Ibis has a rich dark chestnut coloured head, neck, chin, throat and lower back glossed with green and purple. The non-breeding Ibis are similar as the breeding species except that the colour of the head, throat and neck is brown-black with white streaks. The juveniles are similar in appearance to the non-breeding Ibis.