Sri Lanka and its Endemic Birds

Speaker: Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne

Talk overview:

At 18.30 on Monday 23 March 2026, there will be a British Ornithologists’ Club meeting at its regular venue in the upstairs room of the Barley Mow pub, 104 Horseferry Road, Westminster SW1P 2EE. Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne, a well-published author of wildlife books will be giving an illustrative talk on the endemic bird species that inhabit the diverse island of Sri Lanka – see: https://boc-online.org/meetings/upcoming-meeting for more details. You are welcome to attend (free to all, but please register if you are planning to attend). Those wishing to can, from 18.00 (i.e. prior to talk), order a meal for consumption at ca 19.45 afterwards with other attendees.

More information about the talk:

In the first part of this illustrated talk, Author-Photographer Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne points out that the tropical island of Sri Lanka is disproportionately rich in species. He considers factors that drives this and makes the case that Sri Lanka is one of the best all-round wildlife destinations in the world. The talk will also briefly outline the top birdwatching and wildlife watching sites in the island, with a focus on the top sites for endemics. The second part of the talk will focus on the 34 endemic species of birds, where they are found and a few behavioural highlights. A diverse range of bird families in Sri Lanka have produced endemics ranging from the Sri Lanka Spurfowl to Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill to the montane endemic, Sri Lanka Whistling-thrush. Some are confined to small areas of habitats whilst some endemics such as the Sri Lanka Small Barbet and Sri Lanka Lesser Flameback continue to thrive even in large cities.

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Host or Publisher British Ornithologists' Club