Our first contact with CNS was through Prakash Sir in August 2018. After reading an article in The Hindu regarding the Birds of Coimbatore booklet, we wanted to purchase it and called the number given. I spoke to Prakash Sir and he gave me information not just about the booklet, but also about the Sunday morning birding trips. My husband, Babu, and I were so excited to hear about these outings, not because we were birders at the time, but because we had been looking at ways to spend time in the midst of nature with our sons, Surya (7 yrs old ) and Shiva (3 yrs). Also, we were new to the city and felt this would be an excellent way of exploring it.
Our journey with CNS kick started with a trip to NBRP (September 2018). Some of our favourite memories: seeing a tree teeming with
butterflies, including the graceful Southern Birdwing, in Kanjikozde
(September, 2018); a huge flock of spot-billed pelicans flying over the
Vellalore lake (December, 2018) which reminded Surya and me of the flying
pterodactyls from the Jurassic park movies; a beautiful Paradise
flycatcher(white morph) at Anuvavi Subramaniyar Kovil (March, 2019); the mid-air
acrobatics of the whiskered tern at Achankulam (March, 2020); the Spotted Owlets at Kalangal; a Western yellow wagtail flitting among the lillies at
Kolarampathy (March , 2020).
As has been mentioned
often, it is really the members that make up the spirit of CNS. Selvaraj Sir,
Prakash Sir and Chetan Sir and others have been so open in sharing their
knowledge with us. Selvaraj Sirs'
dedication to making these trips possible and nurturing an appreciation of
birds in particular and nature in general is so inspiring. Further, the group
is similar to nature, inclusive of everyone, from young kids, novice birders to
experts; passionate people from different walks of life.
I think the memories we make with CNS has not just made our
dinner table conversations so much more interesting but has also given us a fun
way to bond with each other and our kids.
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