The Courtship feeding of Orange-headed Thrush

[Samrat Sarkar]

The queen remained in a same place and did not budge much. Most of the time it was engaged in cleaning its body with its beak. Its wings hung loosely on either sides of its body while the male bird was busy rummaging in the dry leaves for earthworms and then feeding its partner those earthworms very happily. Each time after being fed, the female bird was repeatedly coming to a particular place on the ground with lots of dry leaves under the sun-rays, spread its wings widely and sat there.
On one occasion I noticed that the male bird brought some nest building stuff in its beak and hopped around the female bird which was sitting there in the same spot.