Day 1: Jabalpur to Bandhavgarh National Park
Arrivals this morning into Jabalpur Airport in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Spend the remainder of the day driving to Bandhavgarh for a three-night stay. We will have time for some afternoon birding along our drive and around our lodge, where we can expect an introduction to the species of the wider region, perhaps Cattle and Little Egrets, Indian Pond-Heron, White-throated Kingfisher, Purple and Purple-rumped Sunbirds, Common Tailorbird, Indian Robin, Oriental Magpie-Robin, Asian Koel, Black Drongo, Black-winged Kite, and Shikra.
Days 2-3: Bandhavgarh
Occupying gently undulating land in the Vindhya Hills, Bandhavgarh’s Sal forests are a vital refuge for a good population of tigers. Despite being a somewhat isolated forest fragment, the park hosts a density of tigers that in parts equates to one per every 5 sq km with an estimated 22 or so living in the core area. Our daily and afternoon jeep excursions into the reserve will focus on the core zones of Tala, Magdhi and Khitauli, where alongside Tiger we can also expect to see Leopard in more peripheral areas, Jungle Cat, Small Indian Civet, Golden Jackal, Chital, Sambar, Nilgai, Northern Plains Grey Langur and Rhesus Macaque. The predominantly dry habitat hosts a good selection of associated birds, including Great Stone-curlew, Yellow-wattled Lapwing, Asian Emerald Dove, Eurasian Wryneck, Bay-backed Shrike, Common Hawk-Cuckoo, Blue-headed Rock-thrush, White-capped and Crested Buntings, Ashy Prinia, Jungle Bush-quail, Indian and Savanna Nightjars, and Spotted Owlet.
Day 4: Bandhavgarh to Kanha National Park
After a final morning safari at Bandhavgarh we drive south into the Maikal range of the Satpura Hills to Kanha National Park, one of India’s oldest and the region’s largest tiger reserve for a three-night stay. As we drive we will enjoy a selection of India’s more widespread birds, such as Red-wattled Lapwing, Spotted and Laughing Doves, Asian Green Bee-eater, Long-tailed Shrike, Brown-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Indian Roller, Jungle Myna, Red-rumped and Wire-tailed Swallow, Black Kite and Egyptian Vulture.
Days 5-6: Kanha
Kanha’s landscape is dominated by open ‘maidans’, or meadows, which punctuate the moist deciduous forest. Popular converging points for herbivores, these meadows and are highly conducive to wildlife sightings, particularly in the drier summer months. Our twice-daily game drives will take us into the park’s Mukki, Kanha and Kisli ranges, where we hope to encounter Tiger alongside the Barasingha or Swamp Deer for which the park was originally established, Barking Deer, Wild Boar, Ussuri Dhole, and with luck the striking endemic antelope Blackbuck and more elusive Sloth Bear and Leopard. The park’s luxurious forests support a good selection of birds, butterflies and reptiles all of which make Kanha enjoyable and productive and encourage an all-round appreciation of this region’s wildlife. As we explore the park in search of tigers and other mammals we will also encounter birds such as Painted Francolin, Painted Spurfowl, Red Junglefowl, Indian Peafowl, White-naped, Rufous and Heart-spotted Woodpeckers, Lesser Yellownape, Hair-crested, White-bellied and Greater Racket-tailed Drongos, Plum-headed Parakeet, Orange-breasted and Yellow-footed Green-Pigeons, Jerdon's Leafbird, Coppersmith and Brown-headed Barbets, Black-hooded and Indian Golden Orioles, Tickell’s Blue and Verditer Flycatchers, Yellow-eyed and Tawny-bellied Babblers, Forest Wagtail, White-rumped Spinetail, Crested Treeswift, Brown Fish-Owl, Crested Hawk-Eagle and Crested Honey Buzzard.
Day 7: Kanha to Pench National Park
After a final morning game drive at Kanha we drive south to Pench National Park for a two-night stay.
Day 8: Pench
Together with Kanha, Pench is part of a contiguous stretch of forest, of vital importance as others become increasingly fragmented. Our two game drives will take us into distinctly dry deciduous woodland that opens out into the floodplain of the Pench River and its reservoir, whose waters are a lifeline for wildlife in dry summer months. An estimated 65 or so Tigers reside here, accompanied by Leopard, Indian Wolf, Golden Jackal, Sloth Bear and the highest density of herbivores in India, dominated by Chital and Sambar and with smaller populations of Gaur, Chinkara (Indian Gazelle) and Chausingha (Four-horned Antelope). Birdlife is rich in the mosaic of habitats, with birds of dryland and woodland such as Zitting Cisticola, Yellow-throated Sparrow, Greenish and Hume's Warblers, Grey-headed Canary-Flycatcher, Rosy and Small Minivets, White-browed Bulbul, Rose-ringed, Plum-headed and Alexandrine Parakeets, Yellow-crowned Woodpecker, Brahminy Starling, Eurasian Hoopoe, Rufous Treepie, Grey Junglefowl, Indian Peafowl, White-rumped and Egyptian Vultures, Indian Scops Owl, Brown Hawk-Owl, Mottled Wood Owl, White-eyed Buzzard, Crested Serpent Eagle, and Grey-headed Fish Eagle, complemented by waterbirds including Painted Stork, Asian Openbill, Black-headed Ibis, River Tern, Bronze-winged Jacana, and Oriental Darter around the reservoir.
Day 9: Pench to Tadoba National Park
Leaving Pench this morning we continue our drive south out of Madhya Pradesh and into neighbouring Maharashtra to Tadoba National Park where we have our first game drive this afternoon.
Days 10-11: Tadoba
At Tadoba, the dry deciduous woodlands of the densely forested hills merge into the grassy meadows of the Tadoba Lake basin, the lake itself providing water security for wildlife throughout the dry summers and acting as a protective buffer between the reserve and the extensive farmland beyond. The Tiger density at Tadoba is high, and we can expect some memorable last sightings during our stay here. The varied habitats also support a rich diversity of other mammals; sightings of Dhole, Sloth Bear and Leopard are regular here, together with a selection of smaller mammals such as Ruddy Mongoose and Common Palm Civet with the usual supporting cast of herbivores and the chance of more elusive Striped Hyena and Indian Giant Flying Squirrel. The park also offers excellent birding, with Indian Grey and Malabar Pied Hornbills, Common Woodshrike, White-rumped Shama, Indian Paradise Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Black-naped Monarch and Orange-headed Thrush in the forests, Indian Pitta on summer passage, Indian Stone-curlew, Booted and Short-toed Eagles, and Jungle Owlet.
Day 12: Tadoba to Nagpur, depart
We will leave Tadoba by mid-morning to drive to Nagpur. Departures from Nagpur this afternoon.
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