Lodhi Garden Earth Walks: Citizen Science and Bird Atlas Experience
Creating avian records for the capital: A report of the Delhi Earth Walk held at Lodhi Garden
Date: 26 April 2026
Location: Lodhi Garden
Walk theme: Songs Among Stones Bird Atlas at Lodhi Garden
Walk Leader: Pankaj Gupta
Walk Coordinator: Salil Dutta
No of participants: 40
Creating official records is an essential step towards conservation, and engaging the youth in such initiatives has been one of the primary goals of Earth Walks. Keeping in mind the same vision, Asian Adventures, along with the Global Wildlife Fair and Delhi Tourism, had organised a walk in the Lodhi Garden. The walk, which was not only a birdwatching trail, was also a training program that taught the participants how their everyday sightings can be converted into useful data for the Delhi Bird Atlas records. One vision of this specific walk was also to introduce the participants to the concept of citizen science, wherein they understand their responsibility towards the biosphere that sustains them.
The participants met at the designated time, and the walk leader started it on a very light note, asking the participants what comes to their mind when they hear words like Bird Atlas and Citizen Science? The answers to these questions were the most interesting part, wherein they shared how these terms seem associated with scientific terms that researchers or practitioners use and how these concepts also seem associated with something in computer science. One participant even said that it seems something related to quantum physics. After sharing a hearty laughter on all the replies, the walk started, and the leader explained how he would disseminate these misconceptions on the walk one by one. This conversation was interrupted by the sound of a brown-headed Barbet, which flew across the sky, capturing the attention of the photographers and nature enthusiasts alike. It was then that the walk leader brought up the topic of the history of the location. The garden is also a place of great historical relevance. The garden holds the tomb of two of the well-known rulers of the Delhi Sultanate - Muhammad Shah and Sikandar Lodi. Because of the same importance of the place, it is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India.
After spotting a yellow-eyed babbler, the attention of the walk came back to the citizen science concept. The walk leader explained how to use apps such as eBird and iNaturalist and how simply adding your sightings to these can make a lot of difference. The people were amazed that a concept like citizen science was so easy to comprehend. It was made a task for everyone that they need to create a bird list for today’s walk, and the adventure that followed thereafter was a sight not worth missing. Some participants created their accounts, and some were discussing with others the scientific names of the birds they were adding to the report. Overall, it turned out to be a much more fun activity. The Red-naped Ibis became the next bird to be spotted after clicking its pictures and observing it with the binoculars, the participants started proceeding towards the end destination of the walk.
Overall, the walk was a huge success, where the participants not only learned about the applications related to citizen science but also discovered the various species that are found in the region. The participants had a lot of questions, right from whether children could accompany them for walks to whether Earth Walks organises special customised walks for special events. These were duly answered by the walk coordinator. There was a special request placed by the participants to ensure that a specific dedicated workshop is organised for the participants regarding the Bird Atlas. You can even make your Sundays better by adding something meaningful to them with Earth Walks. To join, click here https://asianadventures.info/p/af0725/
Bird List
- Rock Pigeon
- Laughing Dove
- Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon
- Red-wattled Lapwing
- Black Kite
- Indian Gray Hornbill
- Black Drongo
- House Crow
- Red-vented Bulbul
- Common Myna
- Red-naped Ibis
- Common Tailorbird
- Oriental Magpie-Robin
- Yellow-eyed Babbler
- Indian Peafowl
- Eastern Cattle-Egret
- Alexandrine Parakeet
- Rufous Treepie
- Purple Sunbird
- Brown-headed Barbet
- White-throated Kingfisher
- Black-rumped Flameback
- Rose-ringed Parakeet
- Large-billed Crow
- Red-whiskered Bulbul
- Indian White-eye
- Jungle Babbler
- Rosy Starling
- Indian Pied Starling