Gavin Sahabandu Photography

Gavin Sahabandu Photography Professional Services Photographer
Environmental Conservation Srilanka is a continental island famous for its remarkable scenic beauty and rich biodiversity.

Hello, my name is Gavin Sahabandu and I’m from Sri Lanka; a little island in the middle of the Indian Ocean, also known as the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. Given its ancestry that could be traced to the Gondwanaland, Sri Lanka considered not only one of the richest areas in its culture and its’ biodiversity and is one of the world's hottest biodiversity hotspots. I am an insurance broker by professi

on, but my main love in life is for the wildlife of my country and to travel to its many mysterious locations. I also listen to a lot of music especially ‘rock and heavy metal and love to read. Sri Lanka is indeed a land like no other and the abundance of the biodiversity it presents is unparalleled. I consider myself to be truly blessed to be living in such a diverse country with its sights and sounds and it is my hope that you will be inspired by browsing my page.

The most important lesson I learned is that there are no walls between humans and the elephants except those we put up o...
13/02/2022

The most important lesson I learned is that there are no walls between humans and the elephants except those we put up ourselves, and that until we allow not only elephants, but all living creatures their place in the sun, and the respect they deserve we can never be whole ourselves.”

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Elephant


Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)It is called the Ceylon Small Blue Kingfisher. In Sinhala it is calld Podu Mal Pilihudu...
23/01/2022

Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

It is called the Ceylon Small Blue Kingfisher. In Sinhala it is calld Podu Mal Pilihuduwa and in Tamil Meenkotti.

This kingfisher is slightly larger than a sparrow. It has brilliant upper parts and underparts. The ear coverts of this bird are chestnut. This being the most noticeable difference between it and the Blue-eared Kingfisher. It is a small, stout little bird with a beak that is dispropotionately large.

It eats small fish, aquatic insects, small frogs, small crabs etc.

This particular specimen was observed during a drive in the evening, and was unusually tolerant of our presence and allowed for a few close-ups.

This unique raptor is a rare but regular winter visitor to the dry coastal lagoons and estuaries of the country. Occasio...
15/01/2022

This unique raptor is a rare but regular winter visitor to the dry coastal lagoons and estuaries of the country. Occasionally it may visit inland sheets of water. Four subspecies have been recognized. P.h. haliaetus, which is the nominate subspecies occurring in the Palearctic region and the race that winters in Sri Lanka.

Ospreys are superb fishers and indeed eat little else—fish make up some 99 percent of their diet. Because of this appetite, these birds can be found near ponds, rivers, lakes, and coastal waterways around the world.

Ospreys hunt by diving to the water's surface from some 30 to 100 feet up. They have gripping pads on their feet to help them pluck fish from the water with their curved claws and carry them for great distances. In flight, ospreys will orient the fish headfirst to ease wind resistance.

I had the good chance of spotting one last December in Yala National Park - Block V (Weheragala) our guide mentioned to us that it was his first observation in three years. This specimen needed sometime before it allowed us to approach and gave me some perfect photographs.

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Indian Pitta is a relatively common migrant encountered throughout the island except highest hills. It inhabits forest u...
15/01/2022

Indian Pitta is a relatively common migrant encountered throughout the island except highest hills.
It inhabits forest undergrowth and any such habitat with shade such as dense home gardens, plantations and even urban parks. After arriving each bird demarcates its own territory and remain there for rest of its stay while not letting other Pittas to intrude it. Its territorial call often heard at dawn and dusk. It feeds on the ground skulking in undergrowth and turning over dead leaves in search of insects. Other than insects Indian Pitta also feeds on worms, small snails, etc. It has a habit of slowly lifting tail up and down. It breeds in the Himalayan foothills and Central India.

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Diyaluma Falls is 220 m high and the second highest waterfall in Sri Lanka and 361st highest waterfall in the world. It ...
23/07/2021

Diyaluma Falls is 220 m high and the second highest waterfall in Sri Lanka and 361st highest waterfall in the world.

It is approximately 6 km away from Koslanda in Badulla District on Colombo-Badulla highway.

The waterfall is formed by Punagala Oya, a tributary of Kuda Oya which in turn, is a tributary of Kirindi Oya.

After making the long trek up the cliff to Diyaluma Falls, you are greeted by a series of pools and a staggering view over the sweeping valleys and forests of Demondara.

The horsetail waterfall is the setting for a tragedy in a local fable in which a chief was wrongly exiled from his clan into the highlands. The man wanted to rejoin his tribe but all the entrances to the region were guarded, so he used a rope to climb down the cliff.

As he climbed down, the man slipped on one of the rocks and fell to his death. Filled with empathy for the man, the gods created a torrent of water to flow over the cliff and cover any evidence of the death.

The creation from the gods is where the name comes from, with a “rapid flow of water” translating directly in Sinhalese to Diyaluma or Diya Haluma.











"Beware The Court of Owls, that watches all the time, ruling Gotham from a shadowed perch, behind granite and lime. They...
04/07/2021

"Beware The Court of Owls, that watches all the time, ruling Gotham from a shadowed perch, behind granite and lime.
They watch you at your hearth, they watch you in your bed, speak not a whispered word of them, or they'll send the Talon for your head"

Scott Snyder, Batman, Volume 1: The Court of Owls

The Chestnut-Backed Owlet, is an owl which is endemic to Sri Lanka. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most of the smaller owl species.

Scientific name: Glaucidium castanotum

I was guided by Thilak Ellawelage and would recommend him to anyone interested in bird watching in and around Sinharaja.









30/06/2021

The view of from the top .
The landscape stretches before you all around for miles.









"Never forget your roots she said, so a part of you can always remain"As a cub, she was named Two-Tone for the two shade...
27/06/2021

"Never forget your roots she said, so a part of you can always remain"

As a cub, she was named Two-Tone for the two shades her eyes took.
As she grew older this all but disappeared.















"Tyger Tyger, burning bright, In the forests of the night; What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry?"...
26/06/2021

"Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?"

-William Blake-

This is a picture of Lucas (YM-16) at
whom we were most fortunate to see at a very close proximity.















One of the more gentler tuskers named as 'Parakum we saw on Safari in February this year.Did you know that tusks are tee...
26/06/2021

One of the more gentler tuskers named as 'Parakum we saw on Safari in February this year.

Did you know that tusks are teeth and just like our teeth, if one is broken, it stays broken. But unlike our teeth, a tusk can continue growing from the root if that isn't damaged.











24/07/2016

Tried out some Time-lapse photography at Galle Face Green

to a picture of an at ''We came across this solitary male at Panikkawila on one of our evening excursions in April ...
19/07/2016

to a picture of an at

''We came across this solitary male at Panikkawila on one of our evening excursions in April 2016.
He did not mind our presence and continued to splashing and grazing on the sweet reeds''

The Sri Lankan Elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) is one of three recognised subspecies of the Asian elephant, and native to Sri Lanka.
Since 1986, Elephas maximus has been listed as endangered by IUCN as the population has declined by at least 50% over the last three generations, estimated to be 60–75 years. The species is pre-eminently threatened by habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation.

The unique feature of Wilpattu is the existence of "Willus" (Natural lakes), sand-rimmed water basins or depressions that fill with rainwater.
Located in the northwest coast lowland dry zone of Sri Lanka.
The park is located 30 km west Anuradhapura and located 26 km north of Puttalam (approximately 180 km north of Colombo).
Nearly sixty lakes (Willu) and tanks are found spread throughout Wilpattu.
Wilpattu is the largest and one of the oldest national parks in Sri Lanka.

Wilpattu has caused much concern to conservationists the world over due to its deforestation.
Even very recently there was an outcry due to the expansion of Pallekandal Shrine causing Destruction within the park itself.












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