Egret near a pond, Sithawaka, Sri Lanka.

Egrets seem to have increased in numbers in Sri Lanka. They are now seen in villages and towns in Sri Lanka, close to rubbish dumps. When they rest for the night on trees any small disturbance below the tree makes them empty their bowels on the persons below. If the tree is over a highway, the road is covered with white bird shit accompanied by an unpleasant smell. Very often residents chase them away by firing sky rocket fireworks at trees, during sun-down when they come to roost.

Gloriosa superba: 'Niyangala' - Sinhalese: 'Kandal' - Tamil, flower, Wewalwaththe,

The flower of the 'Niyangala' or 'Kandal' is very beautiful. Its yam is poisonous and can cause death. I saw this in full bloom, in a wet humid environment, close to Rathnapura.

The Green Imperial pigeon, Malwala, Sri Lanka

On the opposite bank of the Kaluganga at Malwala, where I saw the Brahminy kite, I saw a largish bird, slightly smaller than the Brahminy kite. I took this photo of it. My son in law Charaka identified it as the Green Imperial pigeon - Ducula aenea.

A Brahminy kite on the banks of the Kalu-ganga, Malwala, Sri Lanka

The Brahminy kite is found all over Sri Lanka. It flies very high, riding the thermal air currents and has a piercing cry- something like 'weeeeee........we....we'. It preys on chicks of all species of birds. I saw this perched on a tree on the banks of the Kalu-ganga at Malwala. The camera used by me for this was photo was a Fuji Finepix 5.1Megpix - S5200 - at 10 zoom and anti blur, high ISO setting.

Ferry boat, upper reaches of Kalu Ganga, Rathnapura, Sri Lanka.

An old type ferry boat, built of bamboo trunks. Bamboo grows abundantly on the banks of rivers in Sri Lanka and help to prevent soil erosion on the banks of the rivers..