I remember in March 2005 when I was passing through the hilly region beyond Ramnagar on my way to Ranikhet I observed a fairy like bird having a long white tail which crossed the road. We stopped the vehicle and asked a tea vendor on the road side. He knew about the bird and informed that Sh Bhagat Singh ,birder comes to this place from Delhi and doing some research on it. But I got mesmerized by the look and the way it flies in the air and catches insects in flight is a wonder to watch.

At that time I was posted at Raipur Chattisgarh . I came to know that Asian paradise Flycatcher is the State Bird of Madhya Pradesh. Since Chattisgarh was a part of M.P till 2000 the chances of finding the same in the State were bright.

One fine morning I got the glimpses of the male paradise flycatcher while on the morning walk at the Solar Energy Park near the airport. After a few days I could locate a nesting on a tree about 15 feet high from the ground and observed the male feeding a chick who had just taken his first outing from the nesting.

My desire to know about this beautiful bird grew and nature gave me chance to study various aspects of his life by providing a nesting in our office cum residential colony at Tikrapara ,Raipur. Except the courtship I could record nest building, incubation, brooding and feeding of the young ones in the nest as well as outside the nest. This was really a lifetime experience for me.

One more interesting aspect during the courtship period which came to my notice about the male was his striking a mirror for nearly two days. In fact he saw his image and felt that another male is approaching from the other side. To keep him away he was frequently hitting at the transparent window glass of the flat at the first floor.

They are noisy birds having sharp skreek call. They are insectivorous and love to see them hunting as the tail wanders like a tail of a kite.

During summers I have seen them in various national Parks such as Bandhavgarh in Madhya .Pradesh , Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve in Maharashtara , Udanti Wildlife Sanctuary in Chhatisgarh, Rajaji National Park in Uttrakhanad and Ranthambore Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan.

They are migratory. They come and breed in Central and Northern India and after breeding is over they go back to Southern India and Sri Lanka by September or October.

I can say that these are one of the most beautiful bird in the avian world which mesmerizes every viewer.

Come and enjoy the beauty of this bird . In spite of seeing them for the last more than 12 years I can not stop myself when they come before my camera.