Among the many wildlife parks around Sri Lanka, Kumana national park is has best sceneries that you can see while at the game drive. Compare to the
Yala national park, Kumana has lesser number of visitors mainly due to the distance / long drives from major towns in Sri Lanka.
But you will never get disappoint spotting the world famous Sri Lankan leopard in this mesmerizing national park. This big male was one of the attractions of many sightings we had
Name : Sri Lankan leopard
Scientific name: Panthera pardus kotiya
Conservation status: Endangered (Population decreasing)
The most unforgettable (still gives me chills) and most rarest
Sri Lankan hill country leopard sighting I even had in my life.
It is a very much challenging task to spot a leopard (even from far) in
Horton Plains National Park as it does not give much access to wildlife mainly because its landscape. So witnessing such beauty just in few feet's away from you and to capture it in your camera is something so many wildlife enthusiasts are trying to achieve. Now I know when the luck strikes you it hits you with a BIG BANG!! all you need to have determination and patients till luck comes your way
Location : Horton Plains National Park - Sri Lanka
Name : Sri Lankan leopard
Scientific name: Panthera pardus kotiya
Conservation status: Endangered (Population decreasing)
Date of Photograph : 16th June 2020
One of the most rarest sightings that you can have in
Horton Plains National Park - Sri Lanka. In fact this is my first ever encounter of Hotron plain leopards and to photograph it. Mesmerizing greenery and the always gloomy surrounding added extra vibrant to this shot as I believe.
Why its hard task to spot leopards in Horton Plains National Park ? It's mainly due to two reasons,
1) Habitat - Lush tall green grass for any animal can easy hide
2) Access - Horton Plains consist of one main route that connect two ends of the park. Also no one is allowed wander off the road to any other areas of the park. (These strict rules are to protect the wildlife and it habitats)
In a vast plain that spread miles and miles with beautiful mountains that covers with tall grass and bushy type trees, misty weather, with no access to all the parts on the park and you have to use the main road to scan the area around, but yet spotting this elusive predator is always memorable feeling for anyone.
Location : Horton Plains National Park - Sri Lanka
Name : Sri Lankan leopard
Scientific name: Panthera pardus kotiya
Conservation status: Endangered (Population decreasing)
Date of Photograph : 16th June 2020
The Legge's flowerpecker or white-throated flowerpecker is a small passerine bird. It is an endemic resident breeder in Sri Lanka. Males have dark blue-grey upperparts with white tips on outer tail feathers (less apparent in female), white throat and upper breast. Females are generally paler with grey-olive upperparts. Can be seen in pairs or in small family parties.
Can be misidentify with Purple-rumped Sunbird by its short, stout bil. One of the difficult bird to photograph as its continuously in the move and also move very quickly.
Location : Sinharaja Forest Reserve - Sri Lanka
Name: Legge's flowerpecker | white-throated flowerpecker
Endemism : Endemic resident breeder in Sri Lanka
Scientific name : Dicaeum vincens
Conservation status: Near Threatened (Population decreasing)
Ashy-headed Laughingthrush (Endemic bird to Sri Lanka)
The ashy-headed laughingthrush is a rangy bird, 23 centimetre (9 in) in length with a long floppy tail. It is rufous brown above and deep buff below, with a grey head and white throat. Like other babblers, these are noisy birds, and the characteristic laughing calls are often the best indication that they are present, since they are often difficult to see in their preferred habitat.
I manged to photograph this bird in
Sinharaja Forest Reserve. One of my favorite shots as I mange to get the isolated bird with a clear background.
Location : Sinharaja Forest Reserve - Sri Lanka
Name: Ashy-headed Laughingthrush
Endemism : Endemic resident breeder in Sri Lanka
Scientific name : Argya cinereifrons
Conservation status: Vulnerable
