Jahanpanah City Forest: Delhi Earth Walks Birding Paradise
Exploring the natural trails in the Urban Biodiversity - A report of the Delhi Earth Walks held at Jahanpanah City Forest
Date: 29 March 2026
Location: Jahanpanah City Forest
Walk Leader: Pankaj Gupta
Walk Theme: Whispers of the Urban Forest
Walk Coordinator: Salil Dutta
No of participants: 104
The vision to bring about a change was the foundation of Earth Walks, and with every trail we moved a step ahead in the accomplishment of this dream. Another milestone was added to our records as Earth Walks is about to complete two years of its establishment: we successfully conducted an Earth Walk with the second largest number of participants. This landmark Earth Walk was organised by Asian Adventures, in collaboration with the Global Wildlife Fair, Delhi Tourism, and Delhi Bird Atlas at the Jahanpanah City Forest. The walk started with the leader introducing himself, talking about Asian Adventures, Global Wildlife Fair, and Delhi Birding Atlas, and asking the group what had drawn them to birding. These crucial discussions brought to the forefront the common grounds of interest and the awareness that was present in the people regarding the birding practices. The walk leader began to explain that the Jahanpanah City forest is one of those rare sights in the capital that has escaped modernization to a great extent and continues to be a lush green forested area. The maintenance of the forest, which spans over 800 acres, is one of the Delhi Development Authority's biggest achievements.
A bit about the history of this forest was also shared by the walk leader. The name Jahanpanah was first mentioned in the 14th century when Muhammad Bin Tuglaq had named the city Jahanpanah, or the ‘refuge of the world’. The fortified city could not survive the test of time, but the forested area stands as proof of what the forest cover would have been during that time.
As the walk proceeded, the faint chirping of a bird became audible. The participants, along with the walk leader, started to trace the bird with the binoculars and cameras. Having looked in the bushes and the trees for about 15 minutes, a Hume’s warbler was finally spotted, hidden amongst the branches of a tree. After spotting a Rufous Tree pie, the walk proceeded towards another important discussion, which is the contribution that has been made to the Delhi Bird Atlas by these Earth Walks. Delhi Bird Atlas in itself stands as a one-of-its-kind initiative where the record of the number of birds in Delhi was created not with the help of extensive surveys and data collection procedures, but by sheer interest and natural walks, where people trace the birds with their binoculars add them on apps such as Merlin and eBird and this small step works wonders in creation of an official record.
The awareness about these applications and citizen science that has been spread by Earth Walks leaders and coordinators over the past 2 years has a crucial role to play in the success of the Delhi Bird Atlas initiative. Further, people asked a lot of questions about the best season for birding in the city and the reason for Delhi to be a major birding corridor, which was duly answered by the walk leader. The highlight of the walk, along with the birds that were spotted, was also the esteemed senior birders who had joined the walk. From Akshay Rao to Sourojit Ghoshal, birders have been associated with Earth Walks to take the passion of birding ahead among the people. Overall, the walk ended on a high note, where the people were enthusiastically eager to know more about the various walks that Earth Walks organise and how they can be a part of it.
Earth Walks have played a crucial role in changing the landscape of urban conservation efforts, and likewise have also made spending time in nature a fun activity for people. Want to gain a whole new perspective about the ecosystems that surround you? Earth Walks is where you have to be. To turn Sundays into meaningful adventures by clicking here https://asianadventures.info/p/af0725/
Bird List
- Indian Peafowl
- Gray Francolin
- Rock Pigeon
- Eurasian-Collared Dove
- Laughing Dove
- Yellow-footed green-pigeon
- Greater Coucal
- Asian Koel
- Red-wattled Lapwing
- Oriental Honey-Buzzard
- Shikra
- Black Kite
- White-throated Kingfisher
- Coppersmith Barbet
- Brown-headed Barbet
- Black-rumped Flameback
- Alexandrine Parakeet
- Rose-ringed Parakeet
- Plum-headed Parakeet
- Common Woodshrike
- Black Drongo
- Ashy Drongo
- Rufous Treepie
- House Crow
- Common Tailorbird
- Ashy Prinia
- Red-whiskered Bulbul
- Red-vented Bulbul
- Hune’s warbler
- Lesser Whitethroat
- Indian-white-eye
- Jungle Babbler
- Common Myna
- Oriental Magpie-Robin
- Purple Sunbird
- House Sparrow