NOTES ON FIELD TRIPS TO WILPATTU NATIONAL PARK

11.02am I noticed a small flowering tree at Weerakutti Wala. This is the first time I photographed this species at Wilpattu. The flowers depict features of Citrus and Atalantia species. I have sent the images of the flowers and the leaves to some experts for identification but had no response yet.

11.20am reached Aththa Villu which is located towards the northwestern part of the park and is about 3.5km from Tala Wila Pomparippu road. N 08.39813, E 079.88046 Having observed this large villu on google maps I had wanted to visit this location for a long time but was not able to do so due to the absence of a motorable road. The road had been cleared by the DWC with the support of the jeep drivers from Eluwankulama but the shrubs on either side were overgrown due to nonuse. It is a very large and a picturesque water body covered with reeds. Observed one Wild Boar and 6 Spotted Deer.

8.23am a Large Guava Blue Virachola perse butterfly was perched on a Ceylon Atalantia shrub between Maha Wewa and Maradanmaduwa. The females of this species lay its eggs on the calyx of the flower of a young fruit of a species referred to as Common Emetic (Kukuruman in Sinhala). The fruit of this species resembles a young Gauava. The tiny caterpillar, upon emerging from the egg, will immediately bore a hole in to the soft pulp of the fruit leaving a small trap door. It will continue to feed on the seeds and the pulp of the fruit. The rear of the caterpillar is always close to the trap door through which it would release its droppings. As this would result in the fruit to fall off the tree the caterpillars would creep out of the fruit, usually at night and spin silk produced by them tying the stem of the fruit to the branch. This is done each night to ensure that the life-giving fruit is intact to the tree. After a few days the caterpillar will form itself into a chrysalis and will get attached to the top of the dying fruit from inside. It will remain inside until the metamorphosis in complete in the safety of the protective casing. The butterfly that emerges from the chrysalis will quickly creep out of the trap door made by the caterpillar before its wings open, as it would otherwise trap the insect inside the fruit. As to how these tiny insects with their pinhead sized brains figured out such a meticulous process to ensure their survival is one of the most remarkable observations I have experienced in nature. Interestingly a butterfly of the same genus, the Common Guava Blue employs a similar relationship with the Wood Apple fruit. The dried fruits observed by people under these trees with the inside empty and referred to as those swallowed by elephants are in fact fruits used by these butterflies.

They were both lying on the horizontal branch of a tree and were hardly visible to the naked eye. As the road was narrow it was not possible to stay until they moved off the tree. With many safari jeeps arriving at the location, I decided to leave.

11.24am a Brown Wood Owl on Kokkare Villu upper road. I have heard the call of this species at night on so many occasions while staying over in park bungalows and also from my house at Hunuwilagama but never had the opportunity to see one or get any images. Thus, I was quite pleased to have got some good images of this species at last. This is one of our largest owl species and is found throughout the country from the highest mountains to the seashore wherever there is adequate forest cover. It is also found in well wooded areas adjacent to forest reserves. This nocturnal predator feeds mainly on small mammals. Its breeding season is during the first half of the year and is known to raise one chick at a time. These owls’ pair for life.

1.51pm a Brown Fish Owl caught a large frog from a pool of water on the road. It perched on the ground for a few minutes and flew off on to a branch with its prey. After having killed the frog with its beak the bird flew off again with the luckless amphibian dangling in its talons to a well foliaged tree to enjoy its meal. This is the second largest species of owl in the country and the only large owl which is active during the day.

Safari jeep driver Sandun was parked at the location and kindly indicated that there is a leopard behind a termite hill close to the road. Within a few minutes the leopard moved towards the road. I was parked behind the other jeeps thus with much difficulty I managed to maneuver my camera and the lens to get few images of the leopard. It was a young female. I estimated its age to be around 13 months. She walked on to the road and lied down but with the arrival of a few more safari jeeps walked into the forest. We drove forward and managed to get a few more images. I have received images of this leopard cub from those who contribute to my study thus I knew that this is one of the first litter cubs of Borupan Wila Female 4 (BWFC 4). Since it is my first record of this leopard, I named it Lunu Wewa Road Female 1 with the code LWRFC 1 for the purpose of my study.

It was a big male leopard and was walking ahead of the vehicle. I noticed an injury on its right hind leg. He walked on the road for a short distance and moved down into the bush towards the villu. I was able to identify the leopard without much difficulty as the Nelum Wila Male 5 (NWMC 5) the dominant male in this area of the park. He was apparently attacked by a sounder of wild boar on the 14th or 15th of April 2024 close to Manik Wila bungalow where he had susutained this injury. The injury did not appear to bother him much as he had killed an adult Wild Boar at this locality on the 16th and had dragged the carcuss into the thicket towards the villu. It is likely that he was feeding on the remains. The injury was showing signs of healing well. Despite waiting at this location for about 30-40 minutes the leopard did not come back to the road, and I decided to drive down to Kuruttupandi Villu to give him some time. I was pleased to have got an image of its injury so that I can study its spot pattern before and after recovery.

10.27am I observed a Golden-backed Woodpecker flying off a nest hole of a tree by the side of the road between Hearthhamy Wala and Kattarambu Villu. Having parked the vehicle about 50 meters from the tree I waited for about 40 minutes until the bird arrived at the nest and managed to get an image of the bird at the nest.
This is a breeding resident species found in the northern parts of the island. The southern race of this species, referred to as the Red-backed Woodpecker Dinopium benghalense psarodes is found in the southern parts of the island and is now accepted as a separate species endemic to the island. This species is also native to India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. Four colour forms of this species have been recognized. Some birds carry a yellow mantle and others a reddish mantle. The other two colour forms are Orange-backed and Red-backed (dull red unlike the bright red birds found in the south). All these forms have broad white facial marking as opposed to the narrow facial marking of the Red-backed birds seen in the south. I have seen this species from Anawilundawa on the northwestern cost and Anuradapura in the north central province towards the north. These two species intergrades where their ranges meet where a varying degree of the identification features such as the extent of white fascial markings. I have often seen such individuals in Wilpattu. It is a common species in the Mannar Island, the Jaffna peninsula as well as the Delft, Analathivu and Eluwathivu Islands off the cost of Jaffna. This is a common species in Wilpattu but a tough species to photograph unless you find a nesting pair. I have seen all the colour forms of this species in the park.

11.48pm There were many freshly built Termite Hills between Kuveni Palace and Mana Wila. The dark copper coloured earth in this area made these structures quite striking. Sri Lanka is home to 64 species of Termites. They play a vital role in forests by decomposing the plant matter and timber by feeding on cellulose contained in such matter helping to maintain carbon and nitrogen balance in these eco systems. Wilpattu is also home to one species of Black Termite (Geriya in Sinhala) that build their nests on trees. A typical termite colony contains lava, workers, soldiers, male and female reproductive termites and one egg laying queen. The life span of workers and soldiers are one to two years, but the queen can live up to 15 years. The bulk of the structure is underground with many chambers and the parts above ground are built mainly for ventilation, a sort of a natural air conditioning system. Leopards often lie on these termite hills during the dry season since its cooler than the rest of the area. It never fails to amaz me that the fingernail size worker termites that build these structures are all blind.

I spotted a young male leopard walking on the road from Thammanna gaha junction towards Nelum Wila. He moved into the forest in the direction of Nelum Wila pitiya. I decided to drive down to the pitiya and observe the behaviour of the Spotted Deer. I had received images of a young male leopard from this location and suspected it to be the same leopard. Almost after one hour the deer started making alarm calls and stamping their feet while looking into the forest. I was not able to spot the cat. I drove down to the furthest edge of the pitiya, waited for about 5 minutes and drove back. The leopard was seated at the edge of the forest about 50 meters from where the deer were still making alarm calls. It was a young male of about 2 years of age. I managed to get a few good images of the leopard. After about two minutes he decided to walk across the road in the direction of Nelum Wila sand patch. Just then a safari jeep arrived and moved too fast resulting the leopard to sprint across and disappear into the forest. This is my first sighting of this young male. I named it Nelum Wila Pitiya Male 1 with the code NWPM 1 for the purpose of my study.

This is a common breeding resident found throughout the lowlands and ascends the hills up to about 1500 meters. Other than in Sri Lanka this eagle is found in India and from the southeast rim of the Himalaya across Southeast Asia to Indonesia and Philippines. Two sub species are recognized of this eagle S.c.cirrhatus, the nominate race in India and S. c. ceylanensis, which is smaller with a longer crest in Sri Lanka and also possibly in Travancore.

This species is quite common in all the dry zone National parks. I have also found it in most of the wet and intermediate zone forests and plantations. In the north I have observed this species in the Jaffna peninsula, Mannar Island, Kilinochchi and Mulathivu. It is common in the Knuckles Forest Reserve and the Rakwana hills. It is occasionally found at Talangama wetlands just outside the city of Colombo but can be regularly seen at Padukka, Labugama, Bodinagala and Meethirigala forest reserves. This, in my view, is the most fearless of all our eagles. In Udawalawa National Park I once observed one of these eagles attacking a grown Peahen and in June 1999 observe one of them feeding on the remains of a Black-naped Hare. In November 2001 I observed a pair of these raptors building a nest at Dolukanda and had observed nests with adult birding sitting or with chicks at different localities from January to August. My records indicate that these birds begin nest building towards the end or the beginning of the year resulting in most young eagles leaving the nests between June to August.

In Wilpattu the Crested Hawk Eagle can be seen throughout the park. During the second half of the year the loud ringing calls of the young birds of this species can be often heard at most locations in the park. In September 2012 I was parked at the Kombansanchi Pooval water hole, during mid-day observing and photographing the birds that come to drink. The stillness and the calm that prevailed was shattered by the alarm calls of the birds and Indian Palm Squirrels when an adult Crested Hawk Eagle flew in and caught an Emerald Dove with its talons. After a few moments on the ground the eagle flew off with it prey firmly secured in its feet. The next day I observed and photographed at the same locality a Crested Hawk Eagle feeding on a sub adult Ceylon Grey Hornbill. At Wilpattu I have observed these eagles feeding on Chameleons, Slender Loris, Little Cormorants, Jungle Fowl, mid-sized land Monitors, Indian Peafowl, and Indian Pond Herons.

8.31am a Buffalo at Borupan Wila.
8.48am 9 Spotted Deer at Lunu Wewa.
8.49am a Brown-breasted Flycatcher also referred to Layard’s Flycatcher flew across the road and perched an exposed branch. This is a common migrant species that can be seen in suitable habitat during the migrant season from the lowland forests up to about 2000 meters in the hills except in the extreme north. The Layard’s flycatcher breeds in north-eastern India, central and Southern China, northern Burma, and Thailand. The entire population is known to winter in southern India and Sri Lanka. I have always seen this species in localities associated with water in tall forests where there is plenty of shade. In such places it can be seen perched on branches or twigs few feet from the ground. I have found it to be more common in the wet zone than the dry zone. During the migrant season they can be seen even at locations close to Colombo such as such as Meethirigala, Bodinagala and Labugama Kalatuwawa. It has a habit of making short flights and returning to the same perch or to a nearby perch repeatedly. At Udawalawa and Yala National Parks it can be usually seen along the river. It is common in most wet zone forests and even in small, fragmented forests. It is often overlooked and noticed when it makes short flights in pursuit of insects. The highest attitude at which I have seen it so far has been at 1820 meters in the Peak Wilderness. In February 1997 I observed one of these birds catch and swallow a small wet zone Kangaroo Lizard Otocryptis wiegmanni at Bodinagala. The lizard was almost the length of the bird, but the little hunter picked it up skillfully and flew up on to a branch in one swift movement. The luckless prey was killed with a few dashes and swallowed, headfirst, without much difficulty. I have never seen this species in the Mannar Island or in the Jaffna Peninsula. This is not a bird, which is easy to see at Wilpattu due to its small size and retiring behaviour. I have seen it in the forest patch just before Percy Bendi Wewa and close to Kuda Boralu Wala. This is a difficult bird to photograph in the park, as most location where it can be seen will be quite dark. However, if you can arrive at a reasonable shutter speed it would usually stay still for long periods affording you to take a good photo.

8.52am a Barking Deer on Lunu Wewa to Ochchappukallu road.
9.08am the sun was covered by a heavy cloud and the butterflies took up resting positions. I located a Blue Wanderer butterfly perched on a Podi Singho Maranag leaf at Lunu Wewa. On such occasions these fast-flying butterflies will stay settled until the sun comes out again.

9.30am Chestnut-headed Bee Eater nesting at Borupan Wila. The bird checks around for any danger and then moves into the nest hole to dig the sand out with its feet. Many pairs were observed nesting on sandy areas of the park.

9.31am an adult male Wild Boar at Borupan Wila.
9.36am 6 Spotted Deer at Demata Wila.
10.12am 2 Spotted Deer on Kokkare Villu upper road.
10.19am 12 Spotted Deer at Nelumm Wila pitiya.
10.41am Sword Bean Canavalia virosa (Mudu Awara) in bloom at Nelum Wila pitiya. The flowers were full of large black ants which are the known pollinators of this species. Some species of beans have tiny leaf like stricture at the base of the leaves that produce a sweet nectar to attract pollinators and many insects feed on this nectar. It is likely that the Sword Bean also produces such a reward for the ants to be present in such large numbers. Such fascinating symbiotic relationships are quite common in the natural world.

10.42am a Brown-capped Babbler that was among the leaf litter between Nelum Wila and Panikkar Villu, flew up on to an exposed branch permitting me to get a few images of this endemic species. Many of the resident bird species, including these babblers are engaged courtship behavior attracting females ahead of the breeding season in April and May. Most species breed during the non-migrant season due to les competition for food.
This is an endemic species. Two races have been recognized in the country. Pellorneum fuscocapillus fuscocapillus is found in the low country wet zone and the hills whereas Pellorneum fuscocapillus babaulti is found in the dry zone, which is paler in coloure. This is a species strictly protected in terms of section 31 read with schedule iv the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance as amended by Act No. 22 of 2009. I have seen the wet zone race of this bird at many locations including Labugama, Meethirigala, Sinharaja, Kitulgama, Bodinagala, Kanneliya, Kottawa, Madakada, Morapitiya and Gilimale. It can be found in all the forested monasteries in the wet zone and the hills. In the hills I have seen it at Morning side at an altitude of 1150 meters, Bandarawela at 1316 meters and at Meemure in the Knukles forest at 1310 meters. It is a common bird in most dry zone forests but usually its heard more than seen due to its skulking habits. In the north I have recorded it at “Devils Point” at Ponnaveli forest and at Omanthai near Mamaduwa tank. I have never seen it in the Jaffna peninsula or the Mannar Island. In September 2010 I found a nest at a Mirissala at Ambatenna at an altitude of 592 meters. The nest was built on the ground at the foot of a tall tree. It was dome shaped with a large opening. There were two eggs the ground colour was off white with large brown blotches at the larger end and smaller ones at the narrower end of the egg.
On 5th April 2015 I observed and photographed another nest at Aalam Villu in Wilpattu National Park, which also contained two eggs. These birds are usually seen in pairs on the forest floor among the leaf litter. While all other species of babblers found in the country would move on the ground by hopping the Brown-capped Baller can be often seen moving my walking and running. This is a very common species at Wilpattu and its call can be heard at most location in the forested areas. Birds belonging to the race P.f. babaulti, which are paler in colour to those in the wet zone and the hills, are found at Wilpattu.

8.11am a Buffalo at Percy Bendi Wewa.
8.12am a Ruddy Mongoose at Paaluwilandawa junction.
8.17am at 5 Buffalo at Palu Kola Wala.
8.35am 22 Spotted Deer at Maradanmaduwa
8.38am a Sambhur at Ibba Wala.
8.59am 18 Spotted Deer and a sounder of 8 Wild Boar at Borupan Wila.
9.05am 4 Spotted Deer at Thimbiri Wila.
9.40am one Elephant on Kokkare villu upper road.
10.02am 14 Spotted Deer at Nelum Wila.
10.24am 9 Spotted Deer at Panikkar Villu.
10.48am 27 Spotted Deer at Tala Wila.
11.20am a Ruddy Mongoose at Kuruttupandi Villu
11.32am 18 Spotted Deer at Manik Wila.
11.47am 5 Spotted Deer at Manikrala Uraniya
12.32pm Eriyakkulampooval was full of water. An image I have taken of this water body in October last year is posted to depict the transformation.

12.56pm observed a species of maroon-coloured fruits produced by a rambling wine at Ilanda Motte. Later Dr Samantha Suranjan identified this woody climber as the rambling wine referred to in Sinhala as ‘ Palu Kan’ Uvaria zeylanica. I had written a note on this species in my field guide section under wildflowers but had not observed these fruits before.   

1.21pm one Leopard between Illanda Motte and Manik Wila. N 08.45633, E 079.98872
It was an adult female. She walked towards Illanda Motte and moved in to the forest due to the arrival of a few vehicles. Upon studying her spot pattern, I was happy to note this is the Manikrala Uraniya female 1 (MRUF 1) on my site. She was seen with two cubs last Saturday, which is her second litter so far. Unfortunately for me the cubs were not with her company today.