Our North India birding adventure continues! After leaving Ranthambore, we headed northeast, to the city of Bharatpur. Our primary objective was to go birding at Keoladeo National Park, located on the outskirts of the city. This location is famous for its amazing biodiversity, and is especially renowned for the wide array of waterbirds that can be found here.

Birding at Keoladeo National Park: Trip Report

This visit was part of our 10-day North India birding trip, organized by Asian Adventures. We spent 3 days and 2 nights at Bharatpur (9-11 April 2025), where we stayed at the Kadamb Kunj Resort, just minutes from the park’s entrance. We went birding at Keoladeo NP for one day only, on April 10th.

Information on Keoladeo NP

History

Keoladeo National Park was once the duck hunting grounds of Rajasthan’s Maharajas, until it was declared a bird sanctuary in 1956. It was then known as the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary until 1982, when it changed to its current name.

Due its unrivalled avian diversity, Keoladeo NP is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site (since 1985) and Ramsar site (since 1981).

Habitats within Keoladeo NP

Keoladeo NP comprises of two main habitat types: 

1. Mixed mosaic of dry scrub, scattered trees, dry woodlands, and grassland areas. This dense habitat is referred to as ‘ghana’, which means thick/dense in Hindi. Hence, the park’s full name: Keoladeo Ghana National Park.

   

2. Freshwater wetlands of various depths. These are artificially regulated to provide the maximum amount of suitable habitats for a variety of waterbirds.

   

Best time to visit?

More than 350 species of birds have been recorded within the park’s boundaries. Being a permanent wetland area in the middle of an otherwise arid region, this park is a veritable oasis for wildlife. This is especially true during winter, when innumerable migratory birds converge here to escape the harsh climate of their breeding grounds.

Therefore, the best time for birding at Keoladeo NP is definitely during the winter months, from November until early March. 

Our Experience Birding at Keoladeo NP

Unlike Ranthambore NP, safari vehicles aren’t compulsory for Keoladeo NP. Nevertheless, since the park is quite large, we utilised one of the park’s e-rickshaws (battery-powered rickshaws). Additionally, we also availed of the services of a park ranger.

We birded mostly on foot, with the e-rickshaw driving us from one spot to another. There were also several watchtowers sited within the park, where we set up our Optisan scope and scanned the expansive wetlands to search for lifers.

During our visit, it was dry and hot, with temperatures reaching close to 40℃. So, we paused our birding around noon, and had our lunch in the park itself, with the food brought in from our hotel. A thunderstorm began around 3.30 pm, which forced us to exit earlier than originally planned.

Birds at Keoladeo NP

When it comes to species diversity, Keoladeo NP truly delivered! Despite not being peak season, we still managed to see an astounding number of species. Over a period of roughly 8 hours, we logged 108 species. This is the highest number of species I’ve ever managed to log in one single checklist, anywhere. I can only imagine what this number would be like in winter….

While birding at Keoladeo NP, we saw a variety of migratory species such as ducks, shorebirds, wagtails, etc. Many of these were already decked-out in their breeding plumages. The Citrine Wagtails were especially noteworthy, as they were truly stunning in their bright yellow livery.

Additionally, there were plenty of resident species as well. For example, herons, egrets, cormorants, darters, jacanas, storks, and many more. Some of these were in full breeding plumage, such as the Pheasant-tailed Jacanas. It was the first time we’ve seen these birds with their exquisite pheasant-like tails.

Notable species seen while birding at Keoladeo NP

The following are some noteworthy species, all of which were my lifers:

1. Bar-headed Goose. One of the highest-flying birds in the world. These incomparable geese fly over the Himalayas when migrating to/from their breeding grounds in Central Asia. We only saw a handful of birds, as most had already left.
2. The Indian Spot-billed Duck is quite attractive, with red, black and yellow markings on their bill. This resident duck is numerous within the park.
3. The iconic Sarus Crane is the tallest flying bird in the world. Absolutely awesome bird, and my favourite bird of Keoladeo.
4. Indian Thick-knee. The second thick-knee species of our trip. Unlike the Great Thick-knee, this species prefers drier areas. They were rather challenging to spot amongst the dry grass and scrub.
5. Black-necked Stork. A large and beautiful stork. We saw several juveniles, in addition to at least one adult.
6. Indian Cormorant. One of three cormorants inhabiting the park. Similar to the Little Cormorant, but bigger and with a more rounded head profile.
7. Black Bittern. This bird is such a rarity in Malaysia, so seeing one in Keoladeo was most welcome. 
8. Indian Spotted Eagle. Quite similar to the Greater Spotted Eagle. We had to examine photos closely before correctly identifying it.
9. Indian Scops-Owl. Seeing this owl was a pleasant surprise, as it was roosting close to where we were having lunch. This bird was actually spotted by the experienced eyes of our e-rickshaw driver!
10. Spotted Owlet. In contrast to the Indian Scops-Owl, these owlets were much easier to spot, as they often roost on open branches.

Photos of birds within Keoladeo NP

Take a peek at our eBird checklist at Keoladeo to see more photos as well as the other 98 species that we encountered during our visit.

Other animals seen within Keoladeo NP

Keoladeo also harbours a plethora of non-avian wildlife. Below are just a few notable examples that we encountered:

1. Asian Golden Jackal
2. Indian Flying Fox
3. Nilgai
4. Chinkara
5. Chital Deer
6. Sambar Deer
7. Indian Hare
8. Indian Rock Python

Birding Around Bharatpur

The day before we went birding at Keoladeo NP, we went for a late afternoon birding session at a wheat field not far from Bharatpur. This site was actually located in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh, near the historical city of Fatehpur Sikri.

This location didn’t look like much initially, but it was soon evident that the place was a birding hotspot. The birdlife here was surprisingly impressive. The agricultural lands and irrigation canals attracted a variety of species, and we logged 59 species in just over 1.5 hours. An enjoyable afternoon stroll, indeed.

Our hotel area also turned out to be a mini-birding hotspot, as we saw a few interesting species there.

Several notable species are highlighted below:

1. Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon. A beautiful Treron pigeon that rivals the beauty of the familiar Pink-necked Green-Pigeon in Malaysia. 
2. Egyptian Vulture. My second vulture species, ever! Very distinctive when soaring, with their white underparts, black flight feathers and wedge-shaped tail.
3. Striated Babbler. Our fourth and final Argya babbler species of the trip, the others being the Jungle, Common and Large Grey Babblers.
4. Crested Lark. My first ever lark. This species is resident in India. Unfortunately for us, the migratory larks have all left.
5. Citrine and Western Yellow Wagtails. These look absolutely gorgeous in their breeding plumages. 
6. Red-headed Bunting. Any buntings are great for us, as Malaysia doesn’t really have any.

Photos of birds around Bharatpur

Conclusion

Birding at Keoladeo Ghana National Park was truly a mind-blowing experience. The sheer diversity and numbers of birds that we saw within the park in one day was truly astonishing, despite our visit coming during the ‘off’ season. From the towering Sarus Crane, to the diminutive Lesser Whitethroat, Keoladeo left us speechless, and wanting more. I absolutely hope we can visit Keoladeo again in the future, preferably during winter of course!

Coming up next: We visit Jim Corbett National Park, India’s oldest national park.

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REFERENCES

Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C. & Inskipp, T. (2016) Helm Field Guides Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. Christopher Helm, London, England.