Birdwatching in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a birder's delight. Its tropical climate, relative isolation and astonishing biodiversity is responsible for the amazingly varied birdlife which comprises more than 400 species. Almost 200 migrant species descend on the country each year, having flown south for the winter – some, like the sandpipers and plovers, come from as far north as the arctic tundra. Within a two-week birdwatching holiday in Sri Lanka, you can easily see all 33 endemic birds along with at least 200 species. Whether bird watching is your passion, or you merely fancy a dabble, pick up a pair of binoculars, a guidebook and a notepad and join us in this birdwatcher’s paradise.

Carefully-crafted itineraries can take advantage of Sri Lanka’s two distinct monsoon seasons and variety of landscapes to offer excellent birding holidays for most of the year. Only August to October is best avoided. The best times to visit for birdwatching is often regarded as between November and April, when the migrant birds have landed and the weather has settled. It is then you can watch as the storks, spoonbills, cormorants and kingfishers feed off the tanks in the dry regions and flamingos come in their hundreds to line the lagoons and water holes of Mannar and Jaffna in the Northern Province. But Kumana in the far south-east also offers wonderful bird watching opportunities between May and July, so allowing further opportunities. If birding is your passion, take a look at our fantastic Sri Lanka birdwatching holiday.

Don’t Miss
The mixed species feeding flocks of Sinharaja
The greater flamingos in Bundala
Endemics in Bodhinagala Rainforest
Wetland and forest bird species in the Talangama Wetlands
Waders in the Palatupana saltains
Montane endemics in Horton Plains National Park
Himalayan migrants at the Victoria Park in Nuwara Eliya
Kelani Valley Forest Reserve’s endemics including green-bill coucal, chestnut-backed owlet, orange-billed babbler and the elusive dollar bird
Waders and pink flamingos in Mannar and Jaffna during the migrant season