Fridays flowers: Crepe Jasmine

Merry Christmas

Traditionally, the christmas tree is an evergreen conifer.

Fridays Flowers: Hibiscus a.k.a ShoeFlower

Dec update from Chennai: Flourishing caladium leaves

Another one that has benefited from the recent rains in Chennai.. big ears caladium!

This fern appears to have liked the rains as well.

Dec update from Chennai: Tradescanthia spathacea

Thanks due to my blogging friend, the college gardner at Journey and Jonquils, for giving me the name of one of the two of my 'purple plants'. The recent rains have done it a lot of good... time for a bigger pot, or on a more adventurous note .. the ground! 

Dec update from Chennai: Coleus

December update from Chennai: Transformation

A chrysalis, possibly of a common indian crow butterfly

December update from Chennai: Pin Stripes

I was amazed at the variety in the colors of the stripes on the calathea ornata.

Participation

Head on over to this month's magical edition of the Festival of the Trees, get your monthly dose of 'the creepy-crawlies, the squishy-slimies, the fliers and jumpers and swimmers; the other 97%' at Wandering' Weeta's Circus of the Spineless, or simply tune in to 'NBR' - National Birding Radio for the latest installment of I and the Bird. For the first time I've participated in all three in the same month! yay!

Go on, click... they don't bite.

Snake climber.

Snakes that wind their way upward?

The tree on the right is a ficus, the ficus glomerata to be precise. And growing along iwth it is a snake climber, the bauhinia anguina.

The bark and the fruits of the ficus are rather interesting as well

The 200 year old Silk Cotton tree at Lalbagh

There are a few really impressive silk cotton trees at Lalbagh, but this must easily be the largest. No wonder, as it is the oldest, at about 200 years.

The Hot, The Loud and The Proud

This was a gift to my grandmother.. and this month's entry to The Hot, The Loud and The Proud.

Eucalyptus

Apparently the eucalyptus was first introduced in India in the late 1700s by Tipu Sultan in Mysore. No wonder then that neighbouring Bangalore has such an inordinate number of eucalyptus trees and plantations. Here is a row of eucalyptus trees from around the Lalbagh Lake.

Just another day at Lalbagh

Has the candlebush ever reminded you of a Hanukkiya?

Spotted at Lalbagh Gardens: A little egret

Spotted at Lalbagh Gardens: A Little Cormorant ?

Ducks

Spot billed pelican (grey pelican)

The pelicans are here! Several of them have been seen in various lakes across the city.. these are from Lalbagh, observed during the 2nd Sunday Bangalore Birders outing in November.

Kites

Not a great shot of the magnificent kite, but its the only one i have at the moment. Since the outing with the Bangalore Birding community I seem to be noticing an inordinate number of kites all over the city. They seem to be everywhere.. circling above parks, office buildings and homes. They are mostly all black kites, though every once in a while I do see the brahminy kite as well. Unlike the other common birds, they never seem to flutter their wings, but always have outstretched in the most strong and regal manner possible, gliding, circling, looking; thus living up to their classification as birds of prey.

Miscellaneous

It probably is time I got myself a copy of the recently released Book on Grasses.

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Pride of burma (amherstia nobilis)

The dried up new leaves seemed more dramatic than the chandelier like inflorescence of the flowers.

October's 2nd Sunday Lalbagh outing with the Bangalore Birders

Many birds were seen .. the ubiquitous common and jungle crows and the mynas; the koel, pariah kite and the brahminy kite, the purple rumped sunbirds, drongos, parakeets and many more.

The water birds (migratory) were easier to photograph.. there were several pelicans, though at a distance

A grey heron in the pond

Notice the red moor hen in the middle of the picture below?

One of the pelicans swam a little closer

A darter that went in and out of the water

And the cormorants appeared to be drying themselves

Elephant apple

The elephant apple tree at lalbagh is now green, unlike the last time when i saw it.