Bardiya Wildlife Safari and Birdwatching

Birds to look for

None of them is promised: wild birds keep their own plans.

★ seen with guests on this trip

• Sarus Crane

  Antigone antigone

  Bardiya Grasslands · 180 m · with a little luck

  “The tallest flying bird on earth, a grey giant with a red head, trumpeting over the wet fields.”

• ★ Great Slaty Woodpecker (seen with guests on this trip)

  Mulleripicus pulverulentus

  Sal Forest Interior · 200 m · usually seen

  “The world's biggest woodpecker, travelling through the sal in noisy family groups.”

• Lesser Adjutant

  Leptoptilos javanicus

  Karnali River (Geruwa) · 155 m · sometimes seen

  “A bald, lumbering giant that stalks the marsh edge.”

• White-rumped Vulture

  Gyps bengalensis

  Sal Forest Interior · 200 m · sometimes seen

  “A beautiful sight when vultures wheel over the river forest, and always a good day.”

• ★ Red-headed Vulture (seen with guests on this trip)

  Sarcogyps calvus

  Sal Forest Interior · 200 m · sometimes seen

  “A black vulture with a scarlet head and white thigh patches, a real thrill above the sal forest.”

• Jungle Owlet

  Glaucidium radiatum

  Sal Forest Interior · 200 m · sometimes seen

  “A barred little owl with a bubbling dawn call.”

• ★ Brown Fish-Owl (seen with guests on this trip)

  Ketupa zeylonensis

  Karnali River (Geruwa) · 155 m · sometimes seen

  “A big tufted owl of the river bank, with a deep, hollow hoot.”

• Black-necked Stork

  Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus

  Karnali River (Geruwa) · 155 m · sometimes seen

  “Tall, dramatic and iridescent, a showpiece of the wetland.”

• Painted Stork

  Mycteria leucocephala

  Karnali River (Geruwa) · 155 m · sometimes seen

  “Pink-tinged wing feathers and a long yellow bill, wading in a lake.”

• Oriental Darter

  Anhinga melanogaster

  Karnali River (Geruwa) · 155 m · usually seen

  “The snake-bird: a swimming neck and a spearing bill.”

• Bristled Grassbird

  Schoenicola striatus

  Bardiya Grasslands · 180 m · March to May · sometimes seen

  “Singing from the tall grass”

• Bengal Florican

  Houbaropsis bengalensis

  Bardiya Grasslands · 180 m · March to May · with a little luck

  “Display flights over the grass”

With guests

• Trip report, February 2026Gharials, a tiger at the reeds and a bee-eater by the lodge

A day on this trip

Jeep and walking safaris leave before sunrise and stay out until about midday, often with a long, quiet wait at a waterhole or a river bend. After lunch and a rest at the lodge we go out again for the evening light.

The way, day by day

1. Day 1
   Kathmandu1,400 m · Black Kite, Large-billed Crow

   1. Kathmandu1,400 m · 1 night

      Airport pickup, hotel check-in, and a photography-focused briefing (gear checklist, safari etiquette, target species).

   Birds 10: Black Kite, Large-billed Crow, Common Myna, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Red-vented Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Himalayan Bulbul, Eurasian Kestrel, Grey Wagtail, Egyptian Vulture

   Seen from here: Phulchowki (2,782 m)

2. Day 2
   Thakurdwara170 m · Cattle Egret, Asian Pied Starling

   1. Nepalgunj165 m

      A morning flight to Nepalgunj, then the drive to Bardiya National Park.

   2. Thakurdwara170 m · 6 nights

      Our base for six nights at the park's edge. An afternoon walk near the lodge to scout light conditions and river access points.

   Birds 21: Black Kite, Cattle Egret, Asian Pied Starling, Common Myna, Indian Pond-Heron, Black Drongo, Red-wattled Lapwing, Indian Roller, Spotted Owlet, Green Bee-eater, Long-tailed Shrike, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Red-vented Bulbul, Coppersmith Barbet, Rufous Treepie, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Lineated Barbet, Greater Coucal, Indian Grey Hornbill, Common Hoopoe, Asian Koel

   Mammals 1: Rhesus Macaque

   Plants 1: Silk-cotton Tree

3. Day 3
   Bardiya Grasslands180 m · Sarus Crane, Bristled Grassbird

   1. Bardiya Grasslands180 m

      Four full days of jeep and walking safaris across different zones of the park, timed around dawn and dusk light for photography. We start in the open grasslands, where deer herds graze at first light and tigers hunt the edges.

   Birds 11: Indian Peafowl, Red Junglefowl, Plain Prinia, Black Francolin, Striated Grassbird, Chestnut-capped Babbler, Crested Serpent-Eagle, Bengal Florican, Sarus Crane, Bristled Grassbird, Pied Harrier

   Mammals 10: Spotted Deer, Wild Boar, Hog Deer, Swamp Deer, Nilgai, Northern Plains Gray Langur, Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, Asian Elephant, Bengal Tiger, Leopard

   Plants 1: Kans Grass

4. Day 4
   Karnali River (Geruwa)155 m · Lesser Adjutant, Brown Fish-Owl

   1. Karnali River (Geruwa)155 m

      A river float on the Geruwa, the eastern channel of the Karnali, for gharial and riverine birds. From the banks we watch the open sand for tigers and elephants crossing in the evening light.

   Birds 19: River Lapwing, River Tern, Great Thick-knee, Pied Kingfisher, White-throated Kingfisher, Little Cormorant, Great Egret, Woolly-necked Stork, Oriental Darter, Crested Kingfisher, Asian Openbill, Grey-headed Fish-Eagle, Black-necked Stork, Lesser Adjutant, Painted Stork, Brown Fish-Owl, Ruddy Shelduck, Common Sandpiper, Ibisbill

   Mammals 4: Ganges River Dolphin, Smooth-coated Otter, Asian Elephant, Bengal Tiger

   Reptiles 2: Gharial, Mugger Crocodile

5. Day 5
   Sal Forest Interior200 m · Great Slaty Woodpecker, White-rumped Vulture

   1. Sal Forest Interior200 m

      A full day by jeep deep into the sal forest, with long quiet waits at waterholes and clearings. Woodpeckers, hornbills and raptors keep the camera busy between tiger searches.

   Birds 17: Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Jungle Babbler, Common Iora, Black-hooded Oriole, Great Slaty Woodpecker, Greater Flameback, Lesser Yellownape, Oriental Pied Hornbill, Small Minivet, Changeable Hawk-Eagle, Great Hornbill, Red-headed Vulture, White-rumped Vulture, Jungle Owlet, White-rumped Shama, Indian Pitta, Indian Paradise-Flycatcher

   Mammals 8: Spotted Deer, Sambar, Barking Deer, Northern Plains Gray Langur, Asian Elephant, Bengal Tiger, Sloth Bear, Leopard

   Plants 1: Sal

6. Day 6
   Riverine Forest, Karnali Floodplain160 m · Lesser Flameback, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker

   1. Riverine Forest, Karnali Floodplain160 m

      A walking safari through the riverine forest and floodplain, quiet and close to the ground, with rhinos in the wet grass and kingfishers along the channels.

   Birds 11: Red Junglefowl, Jungle Babbler, White-throated Kingfisher, Lesser Flameback, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Tickell's Blue Flycatcher, Lineated Barbet, Stork-billed Kingfisher, Brown Fish-Owl, Jungle Owlet, Orange-headed Thrush

   Mammals 5: Rhesus Macaque, Spotted Deer, Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, Asian Elephant, Bengal Tiger

   Reptiles 2: Bengal Monitor, Indian Rock Python

   Butterflies 1: Common Mormon

7. Day 7
   Tharu Village, Thakurdwara165 m · Baya Weaver, Scaly-breasted Munia

   1. Tharu Village, Thakurdwara165 m

      A lighter day combining a village visit with a dedicated birding walk, useful for wide-angle habitat shots and smaller subjects between tiger searches.

   Birds 15: Baya Weaver, Black Drongo, Common Myna, Cattle Egret, Indian Pond-Heron, Red-wattled Lapwing, Scaly-breasted Munia, Indian Roller, Long-tailed Shrike, Spotted Owlet, Common Hoopoe, Green Bee-eater, Shikra, White-throated Kingfisher, Citrine Wagtail

   Butterflies 1: Plain Tiger

8. Day 8
   Kathmandu1,400 m · Black Kite, Cattle Egret

   1. Nepalgunj165 m

      A morning departure from Bardiya and the transfer to Nepalgunj for the flight back to Kathmandu.

   2. Kathmandu1,400 m · 1 night

      An evening at leisure in Kathmandu to review images.

   Birds 19: Black Kite, Cattle Egret, Asian Pied Starling, Common Myna, Indian Pond-Heron, Black Drongo, Red-wattled Lapwing, Indian Roller, Spotted Owlet, Green Bee-eater, Long-tailed Shrike, Large-billed Crow, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Red-vented Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Himalayan Bulbul, Eurasian Kestrel, Grey Wagtail, Egyptian Vulture

   Seen from here: Phulchowki (2,782 m)

9. Day 9
   Kathmandu1,400 m · Black Kite, Large-billed Crow

   1. Kathmandu1,400 m

      Final breakfast and the departure transfer.

   Birds 10: Black Kite, Large-billed Crow, Common Myna, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Red-vented Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Himalayan Bulbul, Eurasian Kestrel, Grey Wagtail, Egyptian Vulture

   Seen from here: Phulchowki (2,782 m)