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Jonathan Latimer in Goa

Jonathan Latimer



Jonathan Latimer discovers that Goa is the perfect winter holiday destination for birders and non-birders alike. Here are some of the drawings he made during a memorable trip. This sketchbook feature is brought to you in association with Birds Illustrated.

"Choosing the ideal birding destination to visit with a non-birding partner can be difficult at the best of times, but when your brief includes finding a place with guaranteed sunshine, good food and lots of exciting shopping opportunities, then you know you have your work cut out.... Flicking through the collection of bird holiday brochures I'd amassed over the years and after spending a few hours doing some online research, it soon became apparent that there was only one real candidate - the state of Goa, on India's Arabian coast.....

A pre-dawn taxi has brought me to the marshes at Santa Cruz. A bush-lined track leads inland towards an extensive area of paddies. The walk produces a number of Cattle Egrets and a handful of Common Mynas, the latter vying for the best positions on the domestic cattle that graze the boggy pastures.

Lifting my binoculars to check out a passing hirundine, I almost jump as the explosive chatter of a Smyrna Kingfisher shatters the tranquility of the scene. It darts across the milky green water of the pool and perches with a swagger on a telegraph post some 30 metres away. It is a beautiful bird and for the next half an hour I am treated to superb views of this most self-assured of fishermen."

Jonathan Latimer


"As I continue the vegetation thins and I seek the relative shade afforded by a row of palms. Small groups of villagers are working in the hot morning sun. Clumps of rice seedlings are gathered by hand ready to be transplanted into larger nursery beds.

A concrete wall skirting the River Mondovi in Central Panjim makes an excellent vantage point to watch herons, egrets and waders that throng here at low tide. The birds seem unconcerned by the commotion of city life, no more than a stone's throw away from these rich estuarine mudlfats, which have now become exposed by the receding water.....I count in excess of 80 egrets, and spot my first fiddler crabs emerging from their subterranean burrows. The ubiquitous Black Kites are circling low overhead, hoping to snatch any morsel of food that the squabbling House Crows might inadvertantly squandor. I have fallen in love with India, and vow to return to this wonderful place."

Jonathan Latimer


To see the full range of Jonathan's paintings and drawings visit www.jonathanlatimer.com