Sexes alike. A snow-white egret seen on and around cattle and refuse heaps. Breeding: buffy-orange plumes on head, neck and back. Non-breeding: distinguished from Little Egret by yellow beak; from other egrets by size. Widespread; equally abundant around water and away from it; routinely attends to  grazing cattle, feeding on insects disturbed by the animals; follows tractors; scavenges at refuse dumps and slaughter houses. Often seen on the backs of  buffaloes.

Medium-sized cormorant, smaller and slighter than Great, with thinner head, neck and bill; told from Little by larger size, longer, thinner neck, bill, and shape of head – oval rather than angular; no crest; breeding plumage black with bronze-green sheen, white ear-tuft, white flecked-feathers on neck, blackish gular pouch; non-breeding shows browner plumage, no ear-tuft or white plumes, yellower gular pouch; immature whiter below; gregarious; often in flocks; will fish together  with Little; colonial nester.

Sexes alike. India’s smallest and most common cormorant; short, thick neck and head distinctive; lacks gular patch. The Indian Cormorant P. fuscicollis is larger with a more oval-shaped head. Breeding adult: black plumage has blue-green sheen; silky white feathers on fore-crown and sides of head; silvery-grey  wash on upper back and wing-coverts, speckled with black. Nonbreeding adult: white chin and upper throat. Gregarious; flocks in large jheels; swims with only head and short neck exposed; dives often; the hunt can become a noisy, jostling scene; frequently perches on poles, trees and rocks, basks with wings spread open.

Fairly large, strong falcon, with wings broader at base; dark hood, broad moustache, white throat and cheek patches; dark grey above, barred below; many  racial variations; resident Shaheen peregrinator is darker above, rufous below; migrant calidus lighter grey above, white below, with barring; babylonicus breeds sparsely in Ladakh; solitary, or in pairs; generally rather crepuscular; renowned as skilled aerial hunter; hunts by scanning from air, or from lookout post, then  striking with great force from above.