NO BIRDS IN VEDANTHANGAL - KARIKILI WAS BETTER

On 14th Jan. 2015, we (about 25 school students and five of us) went to VEDANTHANGAL BIRD SANCTUARY. 

We were in for quite a shock; the tank was without any of the usuals - the only birds to be found were: Pond Heron, a few species of Egrets, Night Heron, Spot-billed Duck, Red-watttled Lapwing, Grey Heron, Little and Great Cormorants, Darter -- that too in single-digit numbers.
Reason: Lack of rains [Also read this HINDU article POOR MONSOON KEEPS THE BIRDS AWAY]; there was very little water in the tank. The locals said that the birds do come but upon seeing that there is very little water, they just fly away. We saw a group of Grey Pelicans and Painted Storks circling above as we were returning: they went away without getting down. The locals said that the people in the village have started planting Groundnut as there was no water from the tank to their fields. 

We then went to KARIKILI BIRD SANCTUARY - [KARIKILI BIRD SANCTUARY - WIKIMAPIA] - a few kms from Vedanthangal; there is no entry fee, no crowd and quite some water when compared to Vedanthangal. There were also some birds: Northern Pintails, Northern Shovellers, Common Teals were the ones that attracted our attention. Overall, Karikili experience was way better than Vedanthangal. 

So All! Don't miss KARIKILI BIRD SANCTUARY, if you are visiting Vedanthangal.