Nilesh Lungare
“Bleed Blue”
The Grandala
Lachen, North Sikkim, India
This photograph was taken by freelance photographer Nilesh Lungare in the jungles of North Sikkim, India, capturing a rare moment of amale sapphire flycatcher (original photo, no filters, no AI).
The Grandala, also known as the Himalayan Bluebird, Blue Velvet, Latin name: Grandala coelicolor, is referred to as the sapphire flycatcher in China, a small bird belonging to the family Muscicapidae, measuring 19-21 cm in length. The male is entirely bright blue-purple with a metallic sheen, making it quite rare. The sapphire flycatcher is a montane bird, primarily inhabiting alpine forests and rocky grasslands at altitudes of 3500-5500 meters in summer, and descending to coniferous forests and mixed forests at altitudes between 3000 meters and around 1400 meters in winter. They are distributed in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal..
