<< Previous Next >>

Kalij Pheasant


Kalij Pheasant
Photo Information
Copyright: Ram Thakur (ramthakur) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3024 W: 114 N: 8085] (26147)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-08-10
Categories: Birds
Camera: Sony DSC-P200
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Date Submitted: 2006-10-11 4:17
Viewed: 897
Points: 24
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Friends, after seeing some very attractive pictures of the Himalayan monal on TN shot by Pam and Janice in the zoos in New Zealand, I too was inspired to try my hand at it. I had gathered from somewhere that a zoo in Shimla, India, housed monals, so soon after reaching there this summer, I walked one morning for nearly two hours to reach the Tutti Kandi zoo at the bottom of the hill on which the town is situated.
You can imagine my despair when I was told that there were no birds in that zoo anymore. Mercifully, they informed me that I could perhaps visit an aviary at another location in Shimla and try my luck there.
Luckily, the aviary seemed to be in good condition with numerous species of Himalayan birds leading a peaceful life in an artificially created habitat.
Shooting the Himalayan monal in that aviary was a flop story which I will narrate at some other time. On the plus side, I shot some other interesting birds there out of which this one I have posted today has been bothering me no end in terms of its ID since I shot it 2 months ago. The nearest I have reached is that it could be a Crawfurd’s Kalij pheasant. I could, however, be way off the mark, so any help in identifying it would be highly appreciated.
In the meanwhile, here is a short note on Kalij pheasants:

Kalij Pheasant
(Lophura leucomelanos)

Habitat:

Varied; from mountainous forests to lowland cultivated lands and forests, depending on race.

Description:

Considerable variation between the races; western Kalij (sometime known as the Blue or Himalayan Kalij in captivity) tend to be overall dark blue.
Of the subspecies that are kept in captivity, the White-crested Kalij L. l. hamiltoni is perhaps the most common. Native to the western Himalayas from the Indus River east to western Nepal, where it possibly intergrades with the Nepal Kalij. Their status in the wild seems secure and are considered to be quite common in northwest India.
The two Grey Kalij races consist of the Lineated Kalij L. l. lineata males with very fine vermiculations of black and white on upperparts that give gray appearance with white streaked feathers on the side of the breast; the crest, chin, breast and belly is black; tail long with central feathers buffy-white. Hens are brown above with a dark brown crest, the breast and abdomen with white v-shaped streaks that are bordered with black; both sexes have brownish to gray legs. Crawfurd's Kalij L. l. crawfurdi resemble lineata, but legs are reddish and the vermiculations of the back and sides wider and coarser, tail is shorter; hens are darker with very dark, almost black underparts, white v-like streaks wider and bolder.

Status in Wild:

As a species, they are considered safe and unthreatened. The races in the west are common in most areas, the eastern races are considered vulnerable.

Source: http://www.gbwf.org/pheasants/kalij.html

TFL
fyapici, scottevers7, jcoowanitwong, fartash, BEHRAD, pvs, pablominto has marked this note useful
Only registered TrekNature members may rate photo notes.
Add Critique [Critiquing Guidelines] 
Only registered TrekNature members may write critiques.
Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To marhowie: Thanks, Magic Man!ramthakur 1 10-12 03:30
You must be logged in to start a discussion.

Critiques [Translate]

Hi Ram.
Whay this bird seems very sad? You show us very nice its expression. Colours, POV and other details are acceptable. Bravo and TFS.
Greetings.
Fevzi

Hi Ram,
An excellent portrait shot on this Kalij Pheaseant. Very nice color saturation and sharp detail. Intricate patterns shown in the plumage. This is well composed and framed. Nice shot!
Scott

  • Great 
  • osse Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1029 W: 0 N: 90] (7755)
  • [2006-10-11 7:55]

Hi Ram
Nice portrait shot. Good colours, light, sharpnes and POV.
Well done mf

osse

Hi Ram,
This one is excellent. Great composition. Sharp and clearly seen picture. I like the vibrant colors that you well captured. Congratulations.
JC

Hello Ram
Very nice shot of bird,
Good composition, and colors

Regards
Fartash

  • Great 
  • jojo Gold Star Critiquer [C: 168 W: 0 N: 8] (176)
  • [2006-10-11 12:02]

Excellent portrait, beaux détails, belles couleurs
TFS

jojo

Hi Ram
Perfect portrait.Good POV and colour composition.
I like it.
Regards
Behrad

  • Great 
  • pvs Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1159 W: 255 N: 2639] (11925)
  • [2006-10-11 13:57]

Hi Ram,

A nice shot of this pheasant,considering the long walk you had to see other birds,
Nice colors and details,well done and TFS

Paul

Well done mf.
Excellent detail, sharpness, color, and you handled the difficult exposure well.
Against the TN rules of posting, but I did a WS adding a textured canvas to the BG..Just for fun :)

Hi Ram,
Very nice makro.POV,colours and composition are wonderful.TFS

hAyAti

  • Great 
  • manyee Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3100 W: 234 N: 5930] (20012)
  • [2006-10-12 2:15]

What a stunning looking bird, Ram.
The contrasting colors are beautiful.
Sharp details.
Wish the concrete wall were not so visible.
In any case, a great shot.
TFS. : )

Hello Ram,
Beautiful portrait of this proud guy!
The bird is well framed and presented in a dynamic composition...
Nice colours and details in the plumage, and I'm impressed by his hairdo..!
Greetings,
Pablo -

Calibration Check
















0123456789ABCDEF