Bird Walk at Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Van, Bhopal, MP
- Bhopal
- 22 February, 2026
- Kritalee, Tarang Ecotours and MP Tourism
About Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Van
Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Van, tucked into the Barrai area of Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, is a beloved city green space that offers a refreshing escape from urban life right in the heart of the state capital. This publicly accessible park spans a comfortably large area of landscaped lawns, winding walking paths, and shady groves of native trees and flowering shrubs that help cool the city’s summer heat and support urban biodiversity. Visitors are greeted by lush greenery and a variety of ornamental and native flora, offering seasonal blooms, gentle rustling canopies, and a backdrop of natural colours year-round. While not a large wilderness reserve, the variety of plants here attracts insects and small wildlife, creating lively micro-ecosystems that garden lovers and casual nature seekers alike can enjoy on leisurely strolls or picnics amidst dainty birdcalls and rustling leaves.
For birding enthusiasts, the park is a pleasant surprise. Smaller resident birds such as sparrows, bulbuls, doves and other common urban avifauna make their homes among the trees and bushes, while seasonal visitors may stop by during migration, especially in the cooler months, adding vibrancy to the canopy with varied plumages and calls. The presence of bird feeders and water spots makes it an inviting stopover for winged visitors, and early mornings here can be especially rewarding for spotting active birds and hearing dawn choruses. However, like many city green spaces, Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Park faces challenges from pressures such as littering, nearby traffic noise, and periodic maintenance gaps that can affect both plant health and wildlife use. Conservation here is more about urban stewardship encouraging local communities to keep the green space clean, support planting of native trees, and protect water features, so that both people and nature continue to benefit from this peaceful urban oasis.
Partnered with
Bird Guide: Kritalee Chindarkar
She is the Founder of the Tarang Eco Tours where they organize nature trails and camps focused on sustainable tourism and to create environmental awareness among people.
Bird walk Location
Common birds of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Van
Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Van in Bhopal is a rewarding urban birding hotspot, especially around its wetlands and wooded edges, where a vibrant mix of waterbirds and woodland species can be seen throughout the year. The marshy stretches host elegant Bronze-winged Jacanas and striking Pheasant-tailed Jacanas delicately walking over floating vegetation, while stately Purple Herons, Pond Herons, Cattle Egrets, Little Egrets, and Great Egrets patrol the shallows. Winter often brings flocks of Red-crested Pochards and Spot-billed Ducks, sharing waters with Indian Cormorants and Great Cormorants, as Common Kingfishers and White-throated Kingfishers flash electric blue along the banks. The reed beds echo with the calls of Grey-headed Swamphens, while open skies may reveal a circling Shikra or a perched Black Drongo. In the surrounding scrub and groves, birders can spot Asian Green Bee-eaters, Indian Rollers, Purple Sunbirds, Red-vented Bulbuls, Ashy Prinias, White-browed Fantails, and the melodious Oriental Magpie-Robin. Ground dwellers like Grey Francolins, Spotted Doves, and the secretive Jungle Nightjar add further intrigue, while the resonant calls of the Greater Coucal drift through the foliage. Together, these species make the park a lively mosaic of color, movement, and song—an urban sanctuary where Bhopal’s birdlife thrives close to the city’s heart.
Bronze-winged Jacana
Purple Heron
Pheasant-tailed Jacana
Asian Green Bee-eater
Purple Sunbird
Red-vented Bulbul
Ashy Prinia
Grey Francolin
White-throated Kingfisher
Indian Pond Heron
Indian Roller
Red-crested Pochard
Indian Spot-billed Duck
Black Drongo
Asian-pied Starling
Greater Coucal
Spotted Dove
Great Egret
Grey-headed Swamphen
Shikra
Summary of Walk
At Bhoj Wetland’s Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay Van in Bhopal, Kritalee Chindarkar of Tarang Ecotours, in collaboration with MP Tourism, led seven enthusiastic participants through a diverse mosaic of wetland and woodland habitats. The walk brought together individuals from different age groups, all eager to learn and observe. Kritalee’s interactive approach encouraged participants to ask questions, carefully observe field marks, and understand how birds use their environment.
A total of 33 species were recorded during the walk. A particularly striking moment was watching 4–5 peacocks perched dramatically on a single tree, followed by the graceful flight of two Western Marsh Harriers overhead. Wetland specialists like jacanas, cormorants, egrets, and kingfishers enriched the experience, while woodland birds such as fantails and shrikes added variety. The walk not only highlighted biodiversity but also fostered deeper curiosity about urban wetland conservation.
Number of Participants
0
