Sighting European Goldfinch in Uttarakhand, India
WildFilmsIndia
2014-08-12
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The European Goldfinch is not an easy sighting in India, so this March end sighting in 2013, in Landour, was a real treat. Also, see a lovely green creeper covering a khakshi tree, catching the light of the evening pre-winterline sun.
The European Goldfinch or Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), is a small passerine bird in the finch family.
The average Goldfinch is 12--13 cm long with a wingspan of 21--25 cm and a weight of 14 to 19 grams. The sexes are broadly similar, with a red face, black and white head, warm brown upperparts, white underparts with buff flanks and breast patches, and black and yellow wings. On closer inspection male Goldfinches can often be distinguished by a larger, darker red mask that extends just behind the eye. In females, the red face does not reach the eye. The ivory-coloured bill is long and pointed, and the tail is forked. Goldfinches in breeding condition have a white bill, with a greyish or blackish mark at the tip for the rest of the year. Juveniles have a plain head and a greyer back but are unmistakable due to the yellow wing stripe. Birds in central Asia (caniceps group) have a plain grey head behind the red face, lacking the black and white head pattern of European and western Asian birds.
The goldfinch is native to Europe, North Africa, and western and central Asia. It is found in open, partially wooded lowlands and is a resident in the milder west of its range, but migrates from colder regions. It will also make local movements, even in the west, to escape bad weather. It has been introduced to many areas of the world. It was introduced at numerous places in south-eastern Australia in the 19th century, and their populations quickly increased and their range expanded greatly. They now occur from Brisbane to the Eyre Peninsula.
Source - Wikipedia
Landour, a small cantonment town contiguous with Mussoorie, is about 35 km (22 mi) from the city of Dehradun in the northern state of Uttarakhand in India. The twin towns of Mussoorie and Landour, together, are a well-known British Raj-era hill station in northern India. Mussoorie-Landour was widely known as the "Queen of the Hills". The name Landour is drawn from Llanddowror, a village in Carmarthenshire in southwest Wales. During the Raj, it was common to give nostalgic English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish names to one's home (or even to British-founded towns), reflecting one's ethnicity. Names drawn from literary works were also common, as from those by Robert Burns, Walter Scott, Thomas Hardy, Robert Louis Stevenson and many others.
Landour is for the most part carpeted by old-growth forests of Deodar Cedar, Himalayan Oak, Chir Pine, Blue Pine, West Himalayan Fir, Himalayan Maple, Rhododendron, Himalayan Manna Ash and other tree species. Landour's north-facing slopes have more Deodar and Fir than other species; the south-facing slopes have more Oak than other species. Pines are at lower elevations than Deodar and Fir, true to form. Among introduced species, the adaptable Platycladus (Morpankhi) does well, and Oriental Plane (Chinar) too are seen. A logging ban has long been in place in the Reserved forests around Landour, and the ban is reasonably well enforced.
Landour offers striking views of the Garhwal Himalaya, with a wide vista of up to 200 km (120 mi) visible on a clear day. The visible massifs and peaks include (West to East) Swargarohini, Bandarpunch, Yamnotri, Jaonli, Gangotri, Srikanta, Kedarnath, Satopanth, Chaukhamba (Badrinath) and even Nanda Devi. At its closest point, Tibet is about 70 miles (110 km) away as the crow flies; it is through Landour that Heinrich Harrer escaped to Tibet during World War II after breaking out of a British internment camp in Dehradun.
Birdlife is outstanding in its breadth of species; over 350 species may comfortably be seen at various elevations over the course of the year, including both endemic species and migratory species from Tibet, Central Asia and Siberia.
Source: Wikipedia
This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of HD imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of tens of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM 1080i High Definition, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Reach us at wfi @ vsnl.com and [email protected].
The European Goldfinch or Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), is a small passerine bird in the finch family.
The average Goldfinch is 12--13 cm long with a wingspan of 21--25 cm and a weight of 14 to 19 grams. The sexes are broadly similar, with a red face, black and white head, warm brown upperparts, white underparts with buff flanks and breast patches, and black and yellow wings. On closer inspection male Goldfinches can often be distinguished by a larger, darker red mask that extends just behind the eye. In females, the red face does not reach the eye. The ivory-coloured bill is long and pointed, and the tail is forked. Goldfinches in breeding condition have a white bill, with a greyish or blackish mark at the tip for the rest of the year. Juveniles have a plain head and a greyer back but are unmistakable due to the yellow wing stripe. Birds in central Asia (caniceps group) have a plain grey head behind the red face, lacking the black and white head pattern of European and western Asian birds.
The goldfinch is native to Europe, North Africa, and western and central Asia. It is found in open, partially wooded lowlands and is a resident in the milder west of its range, but migrates from colder regions. It will also make local movements, even in the west, to escape bad weather. It has been introduced to many areas of the world. It was introduced at numerous places in south-eastern Australia in the 19th century, and their populations quickly increased and their range expanded greatly. They now occur from Brisbane to the Eyre Peninsula.
Source - Wikipedia
Landour, a small cantonment town contiguous with Mussoorie, is about 35 km (22 mi) from the city of Dehradun in the northern state of Uttarakhand in India. The twin towns of Mussoorie and Landour, together, are a well-known British Raj-era hill station in northern India. Mussoorie-Landour was widely known as the "Queen of the Hills". The name Landour is drawn from Llanddowror, a village in Carmarthenshire in southwest Wales. During the Raj, it was common to give nostalgic English, Scottish, Welsh or Irish names to one's home (or even to British-founded towns), reflecting one's ethnicity. Names drawn from literary works were also common, as from those by Robert Burns, Walter Scott, Thomas Hardy, Robert Louis Stevenson and many others.
Landour is for the most part carpeted by old-growth forests of Deodar Cedar, Himalayan Oak, Chir Pine, Blue Pine, West Himalayan Fir, Himalayan Maple, Rhododendron, Himalayan Manna Ash and other tree species. Landour's north-facing slopes have more Deodar and Fir than other species; the south-facing slopes have more Oak than other species. Pines are at lower elevations than Deodar and Fir, true to form. Among introduced species, the adaptable Platycladus (Morpankhi) does well, and Oriental Plane (Chinar) too are seen. A logging ban has long been in place in the Reserved forests around Landour, and the ban is reasonably well enforced.
Landour offers striking views of the Garhwal Himalaya, with a wide vista of up to 200 km (120 mi) visible on a clear day. The visible massifs and peaks include (West to East) Swargarohini, Bandarpunch, Yamnotri, Jaonli, Gangotri, Srikanta, Kedarnath, Satopanth, Chaukhamba (Badrinath) and even Nanda Devi. At its closest point, Tibet is about 70 miles (110 km) away as the crow flies; it is through Landour that Heinrich Harrer escaped to Tibet during World War II after breaking out of a British internment camp in Dehradun.
Birdlife is outstanding in its breadth of species; over 350 species may comfortably be seen at various elevations over the course of the year, including both endemic species and migratory species from Tibet, Central Asia and Siberia.
Source: Wikipedia
This footage is part of the professionally-shot broadcast stock footage archive of Wilderness Films India Ltd., the largest collection of HD imagery from South Asia. The Wilderness Films India collection comprises of tens of thousands of hours of high quality broadcast imagery, mostly shot on HDCAM 1080i High Definition, HDV and XDCAM. Write to us for licensing this footage on a broadcast format, for use in your production! We are happy to be commissioned to film for you or else provide you with broadcast crewing and production solutions across South Asia. We pride ourselves in bringing the best of India and South Asia to the world... Reach us at wfi @ vsnl.com and [email protected].
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