Yes, we were after the Ruby, a Siberian Rubythroat. It's a small thumb sized migrant bird with bright red throat, hence the name. As it's visit to our country is limited to winter months only, it is very high in demand among the birders. I have seen this bird only in photos taken by others,so, it was very high on my wishlist. Gomes and Babai were already there, and so was Ratul, along with a hoard of other entusiasts, but they didn't find the bird yet. I can't express my feelings and it was a mixture of joy and sadness, so it must have balanced out...they didnt find it means we still have a chance, and that also means it cannot be found, not that day. Then, where is the Ruby??
We were patiently waiting, while taking snaps of other little birds that demanded our attention, when Antonio arrived at the scene. He didn't bring his camera gears with him as he has seen the Rubythroat umpteen number of times (hats off to him), he was there to help us find the bird. He, then, made some special arrangements as all birders might be familiar with, so, no details here 😉. After waiting for quite some time without any luck, we decided to take a break, and then some movement in the bush caught my eye. A brown little bird with white border around the eyes made an appearance. I grabbed a few quick shots and showed them to the others, it was indeed the Rubythroat, the star has come out to overshadow the 🌞. Others were elated with joy with such a find and went on to a crazy shooting frenzy. I was very happy indeed, for spotting and getting some shots of the bird. Was I happy with the shots? Is anybody, ever? Need to get better shots next time, hopefully there will be a next time. Illegal hunting of these birds must be prevented and their habitat must be protected. Otherwise, nature will be in a state of imbalance.
This following image will describe the rest of the morning. Enjoy.
the clicking frenzy
my first shot of the Rubythroat
the Star, justifying it's name.