India Ramsar wetland
Ashtamudi Lake
146 bird species recorded; the most in January.
This Photo was taken by Timothy A. Gonsalves . Feel free to use my photos, but please ment · CC BY-SA 4.0
This month here
126 species in January.109 species in February.83 species in March.61 species in April.67 species in May.71 species in June.63 species in July.64 species in August.78 species in September.79 species in October.84 species in November.81 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
146 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 146Speciesrecorded more than once
- 47Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 2ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 16,341Recordsopen records within 6 km
- 8Raptors
- 5Owls
- 20Waders
- 11Gulls & seabirds
- 6Ducks & geese
- 15Herons, ibises & grebes
- 3Storks & cranes
- 45Songbirds
- 33Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 146 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors8 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Brahminy KiteHaliastur indus
- Black KiteMilvus migrans
- Booted eagleHieraaetus pennatus
- Western Marsh HarrierCircus aeruginosus
- Black-winged KiteElanus caeruleus
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
- Crested Honey BuzzardPernis ptilorhynchus
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
Owls5 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Jungle OwletGlaucidium radiatum
- Eastern Barn OwlTyto javanica
- Spotted OwletAthene brama
- Brown BoobookNinox scutulata
- Indian Scops OwlOtus bakkamoena
Waders20 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Red-wattled LapwingVanellus indicus
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Bronze-winged JacanaMetopidius indicus
- Wood SandpiperTringa glareola
- Black-winged StiltHimantopus himantopus
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Pacific Golden PloverPluvialis fulva
- Green SandpiperTringa ochropus
- Pheasant-tailed JacanaHydrophasianus chirurgus
- Marsh SandpiperTringa stagnatilis
- Little StintCalidris minuta
- Black-tailed GodwitLimosa limosaNT
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- Common SnipeGallinago gallinago
- Kentish PloverCharadrius alexandrinus
- Yellow-wattled LapwingVanellus malabaricus
- Greater Sand PloverCharadrius leschenaultii
- Bar-tailed godwitLimosa lapponicaNT
- Pin-tailed SnipeGallinago stenura
Gulls & seabirds11 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Whiskered TernChlidonias hybrida
- Lesser Crested TernThalasseus bengalensis
- Caspian TernHydroprogne caspia
- Great Crested-TernThalasseus bergii
- Gull-billed TernGelochelidon nilotica
- River TernSterna aurantiaVU
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- Little TernSternula albifrons
- Brown-headed GullChroicocephalus brunnicephalus
- Common TernSterna hirundo
Ducks & geese6 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Lesser Whistling DuckDendrocygna javanica
- Cotton Pygmy GooseNettapus coromandelianus
- GarganeySpatula querquedula
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- Anas poecilorhynchaAnas poecilorhyncha
- Knob-billed DuckSarkidiornis melanotos
Herons, ibises & grebes15 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Indian Pond-HeronArdeola grayii
- Little EgretEgretta garzetta
- Little CormorantMicrocarbo niger
- Great White EgretArdea alba
- Egretta intermediaEgretta intermedia
- Indian CormorantPhalacrocorax fuscicollis
- Purple heronArdea purpurea
- Black-necked IbisThreskiornis melanocephalus
- Oriental DarterAnhinga melanogaster
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Western Reef HeronEgretta gularis
- Black-crowned Night-HeronNycticorax nycticorax
- Striated HeronButorides striata
- Little GrebeTachybaptus ruficollis
- Glossy IbisPlegadis falcinellus
Storks & cranes3 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Asian Open-bill StorkAnastomus oscitans
- Painted StorkMycteria leucocephala
- Asian WoollyneckCiconia episcopusNT
Songbirds45 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- House CrowCorvus splendens
- Common MynaAcridotheres tristis
- Large-billed CrowCorvus macrorhynchos
- Rufous TreepieDendrocitta vagabunda
- Common TailorbirdOrthotomus sutorius
- Purple-rumped SunbirdLeptocoma zeylonica
- Black DrongoDicrurus macrocercus
- Jungle babblerTurdoides striata
- Oriental Magpie-robinCopsychus saularis
- Pale-billed FlowerpeckerDicaeum erythrorhynchos
- Black-hooded OrioleOriolus xanthornus
- Ashy PriniaPrinia socialis
- Loten's SunbirdCinnyris lotenius
- Red-whiskered BulbulPycnonotus jocosus
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Yellow-billed BabblerTurdoides affinis
- Oriolus kundooOriolus kundoo
- Blyth’s Reed WarblerAcrocephalus dumetorum
- Jungle MynaAcridotheres fuscus
- Red-vented BulbulPycnonotus cafer
- Purple SunbirdCinnyris asiaticus
- Indian Paradise FlycatcherTerpsiphone paradisi
- Ashy Wood SwallowArtamus fuscus
- Black-headed MuniaLonchura malacca
- Brown ShrikeLanius cristatus
- Clamorous Reed WarblerAcrocephalus stentoreus
- Plain PriniaPrinia inornata
- Greater Racket-tailed DrongoDicrurus paradiseus
- Rosy StarlingPastor roseus
- Eastern Red-rumped SwallowCecropis daurica
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Oriolus chinensisOriolus chinensis
- White-browed WagtailMotacilla maderaspatensis
- Spice FinchLonchura punctulata
- Booted WarblerIduna caligata
- Greenish WarblerPhylloscopus trochiloides
- White-rumped MuniaLonchura striata
- Phylloscopus nitidusPhylloscopus nitidus
- Grey WagtailMotacilla cinerea
- Zitting CisticolaCisticola juncidis
- Bronzed DrongoDicrurus aeneus
- Muscicapa latirostrisMuscicapa latirostris
- Common IoraAegithina tiphia
- Dicrurus leucophaeusDicrurus leucophaeus
- Common WoodshrikeTephrodornis pondicerianus
Other birds33 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- White-breasted KingfisherHalcyon smyrnensis
- Common KoelEudynamys scolopaceus
- White-cheeked BarbetPsilopogon viridis
- Greater CoucalCentropus sinensis
- Rose-ringed ParakeetPsittacula krameri
- White-breasted WaterhenAmaurornis phoenicurus
- Black-rumped FlamebackDinopium benghalense
- Blue-tailed Bee-eaterMerops philippinus
- Stork-billed KingfisherPelargopsis capensis
- Common KingfisherAlcedo atthis
- Western SwamphenPorphyrio porphyrio
- Indian RollerCoracias benghalensisNT
- Asian Green Bee-eaterMerops orientalis
- Asian Palm-swiftCypsiurus balasiensis
- Eastern Spotted DoveSpilopelia chinensis
- Pied KingfisherCeryle rudis
- Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus
- Rufous WoodpeckerMicropternus brachyurus
- Indian PeafowlPavo cristatus
- Malabar flamebackChrysocolaptes socialis
- Little SwiftApus affinis
- CootFulica atra
- WatercockGallicrex cinerea
- Plum-headed ParakeetPsittacula cyanocephala
- Vernal Hanging-ParrotLoriculus vernalis
- Chestnut-headed Bee-eaterMerops leschenaulti
- Yellow-footed Green-pigeonTreron phoenicopterus
- Common Emerald DoveChalcophaps indica
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
- Cuculus variusCuculus varius
- Black-capped KingfisherHalcyon pileataVU
- Indian CuckooCuculus micropterus
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species in January.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan30°/20°15 mm
- Feb33°/21°25 mm
- Mar34°/23°60 mm
- Apr32°/24°130 mm
- May30°/24°233 mm
- Jun28°/24°302 mm
- Jul27°/23°244 mm
- Aug27°/23°210 mm
- Sep27°/23°233 mm
- Oct28°/23°327 mm
- Nov28°/22°218 mm
- Dec28°/20°55 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Ashtamudi Lake.
Lake in India
Ashtamudi Lake is a wetland of international importance (Ramsar) in India.
146 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 16,341 open records.
The most recorded are the Brahminy Kite, the House Crow and the Indian Pond-Heron.
10 species come for the summer, 36 for the winter and 1 only pass through.
2 are threatened worldwide, including River Tern and Black-capped Kingfisher.
The most species are recorded in January.
Get there and watch
- Karbala Groundcampsite · 8.6 km · 2 within 10 km
- Clud Mahindraplace to stay · 1.3 km · 204 within 10 km
- Karuvanearest town · 2.2 km in a straight line
- Thiruvananthapuram International Airport (TRV)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 65 km in a straight lineCar hire at COK airport (Kochi)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 3viewpoints within 5 kmSunset Point
- 3restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- 2campsites within 10 kmKarbala Ground
- 204places to stay within 10 kmClud Mahindra, Backwaters homestay (vijeesh), KMML Guest House and 201 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- observation towers within 6 km
- marked trails within 4 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
- car parks within 3 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
In our other atlases
Around Ashtamudi Lake.
The lakes, beaches, islands, rivers and mountains around this place, and its night sky, in the family's atlases.
Riveryasthe river nearbyKallada River121 km
Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Ashtamudi Lake
India
- 56Birdyas Score
- 146Species
- 47Migrants
- 2Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q2605009) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 16,341 open bird records within 6 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Sister atlases | Lakeyas, Riveryas |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
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Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
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Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
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Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit