Naresh Mitra

Where do you live?
Guwahati, Assam

What do you do?

I’m a journalist. Wildlife, environment and sustainable livelihood issues are some of the areas where I do most of my reporting.

When did you start watching birds?
2008, to be precise

Who would you consider your birding mentor?
I will like to acknowledge Sumit K Sen as my first birding mentor

Please describe a memorable birding experience.
I’m still a novice in the field of birdwatching. But my most memorable bird watching-cum- photography experience was in August 2009. I was in Kaziranga National Park and it was raining heavily. I wanted to click a picture of the Grey-headed Fish-eagle that was perched near a water body. My lens did not allow me to take a shot from a distance so I had to crawl closer to the bird and hide behind a bush. The ground was wet and I felt the sensation of leeches crawling on my legs. After few shots, I found that because of poor light the images were too dark. I was disappointed that my hardwork had gone down the drain. After extricating the leeches, I crawled even closer to the bird. There I found the bird sufficiently close to my lens for a descent shot. The light was benevolent, and I came back with highly satisfactory shots.

What is your favourite migrant?
Citrine Wagtail

What is your favourite place to watch migrants?
Deepor Beel, which is a Ramsar Site Wetland south-west of Guwahati

Do you have any advice for beginning birdwatchers and naturalists?
Always try to engage and persuade new people to take to birdwatching. Through birdwatching we can also spread conservation awareness.

Why do you think people should care about birds and nature?
Birds are intrinsic to the ecological health. These creatures provide an interesting peek into the nature’s phenomenon. Even human activities are influenced by birds.

You can write to Naresh Mitra at nareshmitra09 at gmail.com. His MigrantWatch sightings can be seen here.