The place
Sanjay Van, New Delhi, Delhi, India. I photographed this Jungle Babbler here on October 6, 2025, at about 8:29 a.m.
eBird lists 229 species all-time at Sanjay Van (as of October 2026).
The shot
Sanjay Van sits in the south of New Delhi, a 784-acre reserved forest on the Aravalli ridge where the 12th-century walls of Lal Kot are now wrapped in shaded woodland. I was working the understory just after 0800 on an October morning, when the light under the canopy was still soft and low. Jungle Babblers are everywhere here, moving through the leaf litter in loose, noisy family groups, and the trick is to let them come to you. I used the Canon EOS R5 with the RF800mm F11 IS STM and Extender RF1.4x, at 1120 mm, 1/125 s, f/16, ISO 3200, −1.5 EV.
The bird
The Jungle Babbler (Argya striata) belongs to the family Leiothrichidae (Laughingthrushes and Allies) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2024), with the population trend listed as stable. Source: IUCN Red List