Nature clicks by Pradeep

Home
Sri Lanka
Kandy
Nature clicks by Pradeep

A simple page for uploading random nature clicks, Check my shutterstock account
http://www.shutterstock.com/g/Pradeep+Hewage?rid=247804596

08/03/2026

Sri Lanka Swallow ශ්‍රී ලංකා ලක්ලිහිණියා
(Cecropis hyperythra)
A cute bird from the Hirundinidae family, the family of the swallows. Endemic to Sri Lanka and resides in almost every region of the island.
Upper parts are glossy blue and the lower parts are rufous (reddish brown) and unmarked, including the rump. The tail is deeply forked. These characteristics can be used to identify them from other swallows.
They prefer open areas like paddy fields, grasslands in hill sides and tea plantations. They feed on insects and capture while flying. They build their nests by mixing clay and saliva and placing these mud pellets to form a bottle shape. Usually they build these nests in caves, underside of the bridges or even inside buildings. Spotted in the Madulkele area.

07/03/2026

Blue Admiral
Kaniska canace haronica (Moore, 1879)
ත‍ටු-දැත්තා

A beautiful butterfly belonging to the Nymphalidae family. When resting, it blends perfectly with the surroundings and is often very difficult to spot. The margins of the wings are irregular and jagged, and the colours resemble dried wood or dead leaves.

However, the real magic appears when it unfolds its wings. A prominent iridescent blue median band is visible, which is broader in females.

These butterflies feed on overripe fruits, plant sap, and even f***l matter, as several other nymphalid butterflies do. They usually fly low but very quickly.

The species is found mainly in the wet and intermediate zones of Sri Lanka, where it prefers forest vegetation. Globally, the species is distributed across South and Southeast Asia, while Kaniska canace haronica is an endemic subspecies to Sri Lanka.

The larval food plants include Smilax species (කබරොස).

The butterfly in the first image was observed basking near a water stream close to Hunnasgiriya Mountain, occasionally opening its wings. The second image was taken in 2022 near my home garden and is included to show the wing pattern more clearly.

02/03/2026

Sri Lanka Hanging-Parrot (ගිරා මලිත්තා)
(Loriculus beryllinus)

A small yet beautiful bird from the Psittaculidae family, the family of parrots. This endemic parrot species is the smallest one found in Sri Lanka, measuring about 13 cm in body length.

Both sexes show a red bill and red rump, while the male also possesses a scarlet crown.

Found at canopy level, the bird feeds on nectar, pollen, and the juicier fruits occurring in the canopy; they are also known to feed on soft seeds. They hang upside down to reach fruit, nectar, and blossoms in the canopy; this explains why it is called the hanging parrot.

The often-given flight call is a metallic “zit-zit-zit” when flying around. It can also be given singly, as a drawn-out “zeeet.”

01/03/2026

Black Eagle/ කළුකුස්සා (Ictinaetus malaiensis)
One of the largest birds of prey. The genus Ictinaetus only contains the Ictinaetus malaiensis (monotypic). Easily identifiable by the finger like primary feathers and yellow ceres and legs. This one was soaring in the sky looking for prey. Observed at the Hunnasgiriya Mountain.

07/02/2026

Adorable squirrel buddy 🐿️💚

18/01/2026

Brown Shrike patiently waiting for a prey
බොර සබරිත්තා (Lanius cristatus)

Fun fact: Lanius genus name derived from Latin which means butcher 🫠. This is because some shrikes have some interesting feeding strategies 🥹.

03/01/2026

මලක් ? ✿ නෑ, සිතිරි මුදුවා 𐦍
White four-ring
(𝘠𝘱𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘢 𝘤𝘦𝘺𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢)

21/12/2025

Crested Serpent-eagle
සර්ප රාජාලියා
(𝘚𝘱𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘢)

A bird of prey from the Accipitridae family, which consists of diurnal hawks, eagles and kites. As the name suggests, they preferably feed on snakes but also preys on frogs, lizards and other small animals. The "cheela" species name comes from hindi which means kite.

Spotted at the home garden, captured using Nikon D3500 with a 55-300 mm lens.

03/11/2025

Scaly-breasted munia/ ළය කායුරු වී කුරුල්ලා
(Lonchura punctulata)

A beautiful little bird from the Estrildidae family which includes munias and other seed eating birds. They are commonly seen in grasslands and paddyfields where their favourite seed types are abundant. The adults are dark chestnut-brown above, white below, with a fine dark scaly pattern on the belly from which they get their name.
They are seen in small groups. I often see them together with the white rumped munia. They are small and agile and their beaks are well adapted for the seed eating. The beak is short, triangular and conical in shape. This enables them to pluck small seeds and crush them.
It is quite pleasing to watch them hanging on the Panicum plants and feeding on them.

30/10/2025

A mating pair of Narrow-banded Bluebottle
නිල් ජවසැරියා (Graphium teredon)

26/10/2025

Plain prinia
සරල ප්‍රීනියා
(𝘗𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘢 𝘪𝘯𝘰𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘢)
A tiny little bird from the Cisticolidae family, the family of warblers. Even though it's smaller in size, the song and the calls are quite sharp and heard from a distance.
The plumage is grey- brown on the back and white on the underside. They have white supercilium (a stripe that runs from the base of the beak, above the eye and running towards somewhat behind the head). The tail is longer and wags it similar to a common tailor bird.
Common in paddy fields. Quite active and swiftly moves (flits) among tall grass and seen commonly on wires.
Their nests are hidden within the grass. A cup shape nest woven from the grass or paddy is used to lay eggs. They are insectivorous. The song consists of repeated clik-clik-clik notes.

20/10/2025

Instant Beauty 💚♥️

This common green forest lizard (Calotes calotes) was basking in the morning sunlight when I noticed a gradual but fascinating transformation. Its body colour, including the limbs, began to darken, and the white stripes along its sides became more prominent. Meanwhile, the head and neck region turned a vivid bright red.

In just 1–2 minutes, an ordinary looking lizard had transformed into a strikingly bold and vibrant creature 🤭. It then looked up toward a branch above and began performing the characteristic push-up display perhaps to show off its strength or dominance.

Since I couldn’t spot another lizard nearby, I’m not entirely sure whether this behaviour was meant to attract a potential mate or was a reaction to a perceived threat. Interestingly, after about five minutes, the colours began to fade and the red hue disappeared, and the body returned to its usual green tone.

Previous observations suggest that such colour changes can occur either as a stress response or as part of a courtship display. Either way, it’s a fascinating example of how expressive these lizards can be by using the body colours. The mechanism behind this colour change is an equally interesting thing for another post.

Address

Kandy

Telephone

+94775912929

Website

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/pradeep_hewage

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Nature clicks by Pradeep posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Nature clicks by Pradeep:

Shortcuts

Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company in Kandy?