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Early morning trip to the bird sanctuary and break for the lunch,
then again spotting birds in the evening.
Keoladeo National Park :: The
Birdwatchers paradise was once the bird hunting resort for the
royal people. Although small in size,
29 sq. km. only, it boasts to house more than 375 species of
beautiful birds, and more than 132 of them breed inside the Keoladeo Ghana National Park and nearly every year new ones are
added to the list. The sanctuary not only attracts birds from
India but also from places like Europe, Siberia, China and Tibet.
Before mansoon hundreds of these exotic birds roost and nest
building activities start on the babool and kadam trees of the
park. Water coming through the Ajan Bandh starts filling the
various ponds and lakes of the Park. When assured of enough food,
hundreds of large, medium and little cormorant, darter, purple and
Grey heron, various species of egret, painted, open-billed, white
necked and black necked stork, white ibis, spoonbill, night heron
and other birds get busy in courting and mating. The trees are
over flowed with nests, one can observe a tree housing nests upto
fifties and sixties in number belonging to different species of
birds looking after their loving young ones. The nests on the
trees look like pearl necklaces.
Gracious Saras cranes, the tallest flight birds nest in exposed
and open area, both partners share the duty of hatching, while
chanting incubating duties, they come together, raise their
neckand give out shrill trumpetic calls in unison and at the same
time fan their feathers. The newly born chicks are only 10 cm. in
size but grows upto one meter in height within a year.
About 11 sq. km. area of the park is covered with water the
remaining portion is rich with Kingfisher, Red Vented and white
cheeked Bulbuls, Babblers, Quails, Partridges, Sunbirds, Sparrows
and Parakeets which live in bushes and burrows. The year round
activity of the winged beauties has made the park a pilgrimage for
bird lovers and an omithologists delight.
A paradise for the avian world, and the pilgrimage for the bird
lovers, it was known as the best duck shooting resort in the
British empire. But was declared a reserve for birds in 1956 and
later upgraded to National Park. UNESCO has listed it as a world
heritage site.
Government Museum :: The building Kamra Khas within the fort has
been converted into a museum, displaying a rich collection of
antiquaries,
exquisite sculptures and some ancient inscriptions. The sculptures
speak volumes about the art of a by gone era and culture
typical of this area. The inscriptions are of immense historical
vault and helps in tracing back the royal lineage as well as
the local life.
Timings : 10 AM to 4 PM
Places Around
Lohgarh Fort :: The Lohgarh
fort or the Iron Fort with its rock solid walls was unconquiered
for a long time. Some interesting monuments in the fort are
Kishori Mahal, Mahal Khas and Kothi Khas. Moti Mahal and towers
like Jawahar Burj and Fateh Burj were erected to commemorate the
victory over the Mughals and the British army . The Gateway has
paintings of huge elephants.
Deeg :: Located just 34 kms in
the north of bharatpur Deeg, the lovely garden town is a must
visit attraction. It has beautiful gardens, fountains and
meticulous palaces. Deeg Palace which includes Gopal Bhawan,
Bengal Chamber, Suraj Bhawan, Nand Bhawan, Purana Mahal.
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