Indian roller The Indian roller is distributed across Asia, from West Asia (Iraq), through the Indian Subcontinent (including Sri Lanka and the islands of Lakshadweep and Maldives Islands) into Southeast Asia. They are very commonly seen perched along roadside trees and wires and are commonly seen in open grassland and scrub forest habitats. In NEERI it can be seen basking under sun during winter months at sports ground. The Indian roller has been chosen as the state bird by the Indian states of Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Odisha.

The Indian roller is a stocky bird about 26-27 cm long .The breast is brownish. The crown and vent are blue. The primaries are deep purplish blue with a band of pale blue. The tail is sky blue with a terminal band of Prussian blue and the central feathers are dull green. The neck and throat are purplish lilac with white shaft streaks. The bare patch around the eye is ochre in colour. The three forward toes are united at the base.

The breeding season is March to June, slightly earlier in southern India. Displays when perched include bill-up displays, bowing, allo preening, wing drooping and tail fanning. The normal clutch consists of about 3-5 eggs. The eggs are white and broad oval or nearly spherical. Both sexes incubate the eggs for about 17 to 19 days. The young fledge and leave the nest after about a month. Nearly 80% of the eggs hatch and fledge.

The call of the Indian roller is a harsh crow-like chack sound. It also makes a variety of other sounds, including metallicboink calls. It is especially vociferous during the breeding season.

The Indian roller is very common in the populated plains of India and associated with legends. It is said to be sacred to Vishnu, and used to be caught and released during festivals such as Dussehra and Durga Puja. A local Hindi name is neelkanth, meaning "blue throat", a name associated with the deity Shiva (who drank poison resulting in the blue throat).