ALL-WILD

Brown Wood Owl - Fledglings

2011-12-29T05:00:00.039+08:00

In my last visit to Fraser's Hill on 17-Aug-2011, I encountered a pair of impressive and adorable fledglings of the Brown Wood Owl (Strix leptogrammica).

I heard the owls were calling very sharply in the forested area during our owling session at around 9pm, indeed, it was an abnormal and eerie call during the month of the Chinese hungry ghost festival, but I strongly believe the eerie call must be the call of the owls or any nocturnal wildlife.

At the beginning, it's difficult for me to locate them, however, with my passion and patience, I finally found two adorable owls with the white head robe perching on one of the big trees. I was really lucky to locate them, and had a wonderful moment to digiscope and record their eerie call.

It's my first picture and call record of a pair of Brown Wood Owl fledglings, probably the first fledgling call recorded in Malaysia.

Click on the play button to listen to the recorded call of one of the fledglings :

WARNING: this recorded call is for learning purposes only, do not use this as a bird call playback, you may seriously attacked by the owl.

Click HERE to view the Brown Wood Owl which I digiscoped during the day time about a year ago.

A Gentle Reminder: Owl is currently threatened by illegal poaching for exotic meat market, click HERE to read the recent news report. Please free and save the owls.

Happy Owling, and Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.
*Special thanks to Peggy and Connie Khoo for their help during the recording.

Black Kite on Christmas Day

2011-12-28T13:11:00.014+08:00

Meihua Blossom (click on the picture to enlarge)

(December 25, 2011, Tainan) - I visited Meiling (梅嶺) in Tainan on Christmas day, mainly for viewing and appreciating the beautiful plum flower blossom or Meihua in Chinese (梅花). Meiling is one of popular spots for appreciating Meihua in southern Taiwan, and winter is the best and only season to appreciate this beautiful flower blossom.

After appreciated the flower blossom, I traveled further to Cengwun Reservoir. In one of the parks in the reservoir area, I had a close encounter with an impressive Black Kite (Milvus migrans, 黒鳶). It's my lifer of the day and also my first experience to observe and digiscope a Black Kite in a close distance.

I noticed that this particular raptor is very aggressive, it attacks anything that move closer to where it rests and scavenges, eg. stray dog. It is an opportunistic hunter and also a scavenger, I saw it landed on the park table and also on the ground to feed on the bread or remaining food left behind by the visitors.

scavenging on the park table (click on the picture to enlarge)

I hope that you enjoy reading this blog write-up on what I'd observed on the Christmas Day. Wishing you a Happy New Year, 2012.

Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Pheasant-tailed Jacana in Tainan City - Fledgling.

2011-12-10T23:20:00.054+08:00

(July 24, 2011, Tainan) - It was a wonderful experience for me to volunteer in the Pheasant-tailed Jacana census with the Wild Bird Society of Tainan. I had seen many adult pairs and fledglings of the Pheasant-tailed Jacana, they are beautiful and elegant birds, the fledglings are hairy, puffy and adorable.

Here are some of my digiscoped pictures of the parents and fledgling of the Pheasant-tailed Jacana during the bird census :

Male bird and the fledgling (click on the picture for enlarged view of the fledgling)

Fledgling (click on the picture for enlarged view of the fledgling)

A pair of Jacana

The male alone securing its territory and the fledglings

Come and visit one of the world's best Pheasant-tailed Jacana Eco-Educational Park (台南市水雉生態教育園區) in Tainan, Taiwan.

Click HERE to view the documentary (in Chinese)about the Pheasant-tailed Jacana conservation in Tainan.

Click HERE to view my first sighting of summer Pheasant-tailed Jacana with breeding plumage.
Click HERE to view the first Pheasant-tailed Jacana that I saw in Malaysia, it was my lifer.

Happy Birding.

Pheasant-tailed Jacana in Tainan City.

2011-12-10T15:44:00.005+08:00

(June 7, 2011, Tainan) - There 8 species of Jacana in the world and Taiwan has only one species, known as Pheasant-tailed Jacana (Hydrophasianus chirurgus, 雉尾水雉). Pheasant-tailed Jacana is one of the elegant birds you must see in Taiwan, it is also one of the birds listed in the "100 Birds To See Before You Die", surprisingly you can easily see it in Guantian, Tainan City, Taiwan.

Guantian is an agricultural town in Tainan, well known for its water caltrop farms and produces. The most popular annual event in Gauntian is the Water Caltrop Festival (官田菱角節). Due to the abundant of water caltrop farms and other water-based vegetation farms, Guantian is also an important habitat for many species of waterbirds especially the rare Pheasant-tailed Jacana .

In 1990, a massive project of Taiwan High Speed Train was built across Guantian, and many water caltrop farms and Jacana's natural habitat were disturbed. A conservation project known as Pheasant-tailed Jacana Eco-Educational Park (台南市水雉生態教育園區) was then established in 2000 by conservation groups, to preserve a natural habitat for the birds with minimum human disturbance, and to conserve the birds and its nests withim the farms. Currently, this park is one of the best Jacana conservation and educational parks in Taiwan, probably one of the world's best.

Following are the digiscoped pictures of the bird which were taken during the winter and the summer in the same park. (click on the pictures for enlarged view)

The non-breeding plumage in the winter.

Truly beautiful breeding plumage in the summer

An elegant bird wears a golden-yellow scarf and copper-bronze coat.

It has four elegant pheasant-like tails

Click HERE to view the documentary (in Chinese)about the Pheasant-tailed Jacana conservation in Tainan.
Click HERE for the fledgling of the Pheasant-tailed Jacana.
Click HERE to view the first Pheasant-tailed Jacana that I saw in Malaysia, it was my lifer.

夏天的水雉好美啊, 今天(7-June)是我人生第一次看到夏天的水雉. 好高興喔.
Happy Birding and Love Tainan.

Documentaries about the Pheasant-tailed Jacana Conservation in Tainan City, Taiwan.

2011-12-10T12:00:00.004+08:00

Red-headed Trogon in Fraser's Hill

2011-08-26T19:30:00.008+08:00

(18 August, 2011) - I encountered two impressive species of Trogon during my trip to Fraser's Hill, the Orange-breasted and Red-headed Trogon in Fraser's Hill. Due to the misty day, I only managed to digiscope the Red-headed Trogon.

Happy Birding.

World's Smallest Raptor in Fraser's Hill

2011-08-26T03:26:00.023+08:00

(16 August, 2011) - Black-Thighed Falconet (Microhierax fringillarius) is the smallest raptor in the world, it can only be found in South-east Asia region of Peninsular Malaysia, Peninsular Thailand, Borneo, Sumatra and Java.

Only two raptor species I saw in Fraser's Hill in the month of "hungry ghost festival", the Blyth's Hawk Eagle and Black-Thighed Falconet. The Black-Thighed Falconet was the only raptor that I have a chance to digiscope. (click on the picture for enlarged view):

Black-Thighed Falconet

On my way back from Fraser's Hill, I also encountered two impressive raptor species, the Changeable Hawk Eagle and Crested Serpent Eagle.

Changeable Hawk Eagle

Crested Serpent Eagle

Happy Birding.

Verditer Flycatcher's ...

2011-08-23T18:07:00.022+08:00

(17 August, 2011) - Verditer Flycatcher (Eumyias thalassina) has a beautiful turquoise-blue plumage, which is easily distinguished from other bluish Niltava and Blue Flycatcher, it is also one of the common flycatchers in Fraser's Hill. Here is my digiscoped picture of Verditer Flycatcher in Fraser's Hill recently:

Verditer Flycatcher

After digiscoped the flycatcher, I scanned around with my naked eyes for any bird on the tree and the ground, suddenly, something stunning on the grass reflected the sunlight like a gem with stunning colour, I then approached the item and confirmed it was a tiny feather, a beautiful turquoise-blue feather.

I cannot surely confirmed this tiny turquoise-blue feather is the feather of Verditer Flycatcher, but logically it should be, because I found this turquoise-blue feather at the same spot where I saw the flycatcher.

Photographed on Craig Robson's field guide, plate-92, to show how small the feather.

Thus, birding is not necessary only watching or observing the birds, sometimes you can find something interesting on the ground where the birds have perched or roosted.

Happy Birding!

Blue-eared Kingfisher in Ipoh

2011-08-22T23:18:00.020+08:00

I'm currently on vacation back to my hometown in Penang, Malaysia. I spent 6 days (14-19 Aug.) in Fraser's Hill and Ipoh, mainly for birding and food tasting. Bird watching in Fraser's Hill at this time was really quiet, not many active birds can be seen. Although without a lifer during this birding trip to Fraser's Hill, I still had some interesting birding experiences which I will update in my blog later.

In Ipoh, I saw a female Blue-eared Kingfisher (Alcedo meninting) hiding in the shed of a small tree on the bank of the pond at Kek Lok Toong region. The blue colour plumage of the Blue-eared Kingfisher is really attractive and magnificent.

Here is the digiscoped picture of the kingfisher, hope you also like it, especially the beauty of the blue plumage. (click on the picture for enlarged view):

A female Blue-eared Kingfisher

Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is the most common kingfisher in Asia and Europe, in fact, it is an uncommon migratory bird in Malaysia. As compared to the Blue-eared Kingfisher, the Common Kingfisher has darker plumage and light blue on the back, whereas the Blue-eared Kingfisher has brilliant bluish plumage on the crown and the wings, and stunning light blue on the back.

A male Common Kingfisher, which I digiscoped in Singapore Botanic Gardens in 2009.

Question: Do you know how to distinguish the male and female of these Alcedo kingfishers?
Answer: You can actually find out the answer from these two pictures.

Immature Malayan Night Herons in NCKU

2011-05-16T16:24:00.019+08:00

The highest number of Malayan Night Herons in NCKU that I have counted in the month of May on a single day was eight birds, three adults and five immatures.

Here in my blog, I would like to share some of my digiscoped pictures with their beautiful immatured plumage (click on the picture for the enlarged view).

Immature with more brownish plumage

Beautiful immatured crest with black and white spot

Another immature with lesser brownish plumage

Ha ha, this one is smart, actually is peeping at me.

More, click HERE to view the adult Malayan Night Herons in NCKU.
and click HERE to listen to their call which was recorded at night in NCKU.

Happy Birding.
Boon Eu.

Four Keys to Bird Identification

2011-05-11T22:51:00.004+08:00

Why Birding? why I always go out searching for birds? interested to learn more about birding?

Find out more from the Inside Birding episodes from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology on the Four Keys to Bird Identification:

1. Size and Shape

2. Color Pattern

3. Behaviour

4. Habitat

enjoy birding,

Boon Eu

Brown Strike in NCKU.

2011-05-07T22:54:00.010+08:00

Today, I went to check out the Malayan Night Herons in NCKU, surprisingly I saw many immature Malayan Night Herons there in the campuses. Since April, the highest number of Malayan Night Heron in NCKU that I have counted in a day was 8 birds, 3 adults and 5 immatures. I noticed many immatures have been arrived in the campus and competing for the feeding ground with the resident adults.

After the count, I saw a Brown Strike (Lanius cristatus) actively searching for prey in one of the trees near to the library. Here is the digiscoped picture of the shrike, (click on the picture for the enlarged view):

Happy Birding.

為台灣白海豚發出『我要活下去』的心聲。

2011-04-21T14:01:00.005+08:00

保育媽祖魚 http://twsousa.blogspot.com/
Save the Taiwan Pink Dolphins: http://taiwansousa.blogspot.com/

Recorded Call of the Malayan Night-heron

2011-03-28T21:55:00.021+08:00

Today, at around 8.00 pm, I was lucky to hear and to record the call of the Malayan Night-heron in the NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) campus, Tainan, Taiwan. The call is loud, continuous for about 15 seconds, the interval for each repeated call is approximately 30 seconds.

This is my first recorded Malayan Night-heron's call. Let's plug in the earphone, click on the play button and enjoy listening to the call.

Warning: this recorded call is for identification purpose only, do not use this as a bird call playback. Click HERE to learn more.

Click HERE to read about the Malayan Night Herons in NCKU.

28-3-2011.
Boon Eu

Taiwan Barbet in NCKU

2011-03-26T22:41:00.019+08:00

Taiwan Barbet (Megalaima nuchalis) is a beautiful bird with the most colorful and decorative face in Taiwan. Taiwan Barbet is known as 5-color bird (五色鳥), it is an endemic species and also the only species of barbet exists in Taiwan.

The birds are currently very active in the NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) campuses in Tainan, the bird call is usually loud and the bird can easily be seen in most of the fruiting trees in the campuses.

Let's appreciate the beauty of the bird, as well as to preserve and protect their habitats in NCKU.

(click on the picture to enlarge)

26-March-2011
Boon Eu

A Pair of Crested Goshawk in NCKU

2011-03-16T23:55:00.071+08:00

Last weekend, I was lucky to spot a pair of Crested Goshawk (Accipiter trivirgatus, 鳳頭蒼鷹) in the NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) campus, Tainan City, Taiwan. It was my first experience of seeing a pair of Crested Goshawk.

It's an opportunity for me to learn how to distinguish the male and the female Crested Goshawk in the field. I learned in a raptor talk by Hsiao Ching-Liang (蕭慶亮), the author of Field Guide To the Raptor Watch of Taiwan,, saying that the size of the female Crested Goshawk is larger as compared to the male.

From my observation and comparison through the digiscoped pictures, I noticed that the male has smaller body size as compared to the female, it has shorter crest and round head. The male has distinguished yellowish lines near the nostril and the upper beak.

Let's take a closer look at the pictures of the pair.

The male:

and the female:

Besides that, I also heard the call that I have never heard of : "chiup.. chiup..chiup", an alarm call from one of them when I was trying to approach nearer.

Boon Eu, 16-March-2011, Tainan, Taiwan.

A Pair of Malayan Night Heron in NCKU. Part-2.

2011-03-09T20:31:00.031+08:00

This morning, I went back to the place where I saw a pair of Malayan Night Heron (Gorsachius melanolophus, 黑冠麻鷺) in NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) campus, Tainan City, Taiwan. It was my first experience seeing a pair of Malayan Night Heron perched on a mango tree.

From my observation, I would like to confirm that these two Malayan Night Herons are the breeding pair, because both were roosted side by side on the same branch. I believe the male has bluish lores (the space between the eye and bill) and striking plumage as compared to the female.

The front view

The rear view, the male is bigger in size.

Handsome male with striking plumage and bluish lores (left), female with less striking plumage and grayish lores (right).

Click HERE to read the part-1 of this blog.

Or click HERE to view the immature Malayan Night Herons in NCKU.

Boon Eu, 9-March-2011, Tainan, Taiwan.

A Pair of Malayan Night Heron in NCKU

2011-03-08T01:42:00.039+08:00

Today, I was so excited to see a pair of Malayan Night Heron in NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) campus, Tainan City, Taiwan. It was my first experience of seeing a pair of Malayan Night Heron feeding on the same ground and territory.

But, I have a problem to distinguish the male and the female, I can't even find a good and detailed reference about the differences. However, I noticed one of the birds has very bright blue lores (the space between the eye and bill) and striking plumage as compared to the another one. I strongly believe that the one with the brighter color on the lores and striking plumage is the male, while the other one with pale lores and plumage must be the female. Do you agree?

or could it be an adult with the striking lores and the immature with pale lores? I believe these birds are territorial birds, then why both can feed on the same ground if they are not a breeding pair?

Please comment if you have any idea or you have encountered a pair of Malayan Night Heron, or know how to distinguish the male and the female of this species of bird.

Click HERE to view the Part-2 of this blog.
and click HERE to listen to their call which was recorded at night in NCKU.

View my other blogs about the Malayan Night Heron:
Malayan Night Herons in northern part of Taiwan
Juvenile Malayan Night Heron spotted in Singapore Botanic Gardens

Boon Eu, 7-March-2011, Tainan, Taiwan.

Ulu Guar Birding Day Trip

2011-01-30T14:58:00.006+08:00

Back to Penang, and will stay until 18 of Feb, 2011. It has been about 6 months I didn't update my blog, so, here is the bird pictures which I digiscoped during the birding day trip to Ulu Guar on 7 Sept. 2010, it was my last birding trip in Malaysia in 2010, with a lifer Yellow-crowned Barbet.

Despite the birds, the lunch was nice with the delicious Hainanese chicken chop in Kuala Kangsar town. Thanks to Peggy for the birding companion.

Here are some of my digiscoped pictures on that day, hope you like it.

Red-throated Barbet

Asian Fairy Bluebird

Tickell's Blue Flycathcer

Black and Yellow Broadbill

Whiskered Treeswift

Crested Serpent Eagle

Happy Lunar New Year, 新年快樂.

Bramblings in Tataka National Park, Taiwan.

2010-09-26T21:12:00.010+08:00

Currently, I'm living in Taiwan and will be here for many years, therefore, I won't be able to update my blog as usual, mainly due to the tight schedule of my laboratory work. If you are interested to view my latest Taiwan bird pictures, you are welcome to view them in my facebook. Nevertheless, this blog will be only updated when I'm free from my lab work or when there is a rare bird sighted.

Here are some of the Brambling pictures which I took in Tataka National Park, Taiwan, in 2009. Hope you like it.

male Brambling

female Brambling

rare view of a male Brambling

Sunrise viewd from the peak of Yushan, the highest mountain in Taiwan, and East Asia.

Sunset viewed from Alishan

See you in Tainan City, Taiwan for the Second Asian Bird Fair in 2011.

Illustrated Field Guides to the Birds of Oriental South-east Asia

2010-09-12T08:00:00.203+08:00

I frequently received questions from friends who are interested to learn birding, about which field book shall they use when birding in Malaysia, Indochina Peninsula, China and Taiwan. Therefore, I would like to share my views about the field books which I have read and still using to ease the reader's decision on which field guide shall they purchase and use in the field..

Introduction

South China Sea as the central of the region, bordered by the Yangtze River in the North and Wallace Line in the South, this region ranges from subtropical southern China to the Greater Mekong, Sundaland, the Philippines and Taiwan. The Oriental South-east Asia region is also located along the important flyway of the East-Asia-Australasia migratory birds. As a result, this region is rich in both oriental birds and migratory birds of East-Asia-Australasia.

Oriental South-east Asia Region

Following are my selected 10 favourite illustrated field guides to the birds of Oriental South-east Asia region:

Mainland South-east Asia

The most popular illustrated field guide to the birds of this region is the one by Craig Robson. The painting of the birds are in high quality and illustrated by a group of artists. This field guide is particularly useful in Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar. This guide is also useful in Yunnan, China.

There are two versions of this field guide, the hardcover complete version and the softcover concise version. The hardcover version is a detailed book for further reference, the concise version is recommended if you need to bring the book to the field.

Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia

Birds of Thailand

A Guide to the Birds of Thailand by Boonsong Lekagul and Philip D. Round, is my favourite field guide to the birds of Thailand. The key field marks on every bird are clearly indicated, the field marks are particularly useful in the field to identify and differentiate the close related species. Currently this book is out of print.

A guide to the Birds of Thailand

Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore

A Field Guide to the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore by Allen Jeyarajasingam and Alan Pearson, is a recommended field guide to the birds of the Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. This field guide is currently out of print. Publication date for the second edition is April 2012.

A Field Guide to the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore

Quick Facts on the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia

Total number of bird species = 656

Total number of resident birds = 445

Total number of species occurring as migrants = 185

Total number of species occurring as vagrants = 58

Total number of species with both resident and migratory populations = 40

Total number of species considered extinct within Peninsular Malaysia = 8

Total number of regional endemics = 4

Total number of threatened species = 126

Borneo

My favourite field guide to the birds of Borneo is A Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo by Susan Myer. It is a complete bird book of Borneo with species distribution maps, the painting of the birds are in high quality, a good reference for detailed identification of Borneo birds. The other reason why I select this book is because the author separates the songbirds into two main clades, the Corvidans and Passeridans based on the phylogenetic relationships among modern birds.

A Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo

Indonesia's Sundaland

A Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Bali, by John Mackinnon, illustrated by Karen Phillips, it is a recommended field guide to the birds of Indonesia's islands of the Sundaland, which include Kalimantan, Sumatra, Java and Bali. This book is a bit bulky to bring to the field, but shouldn't be any problem if you bring a backpack.

A Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Bali

The Bahasa Indonesia edition of this field guide (panduan lapagan) and other field guides to the birds of Sulawasi, Wallacea and Papua can be purchased through Burung Indonesia.

The Philippines

Philippines is one of the countries in Asia with high endemic species of birds, it is also located at the important East-Asian-Australasian Flyway of the migratory birds.

A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines by Robert Kennedy et al. is the recommended field guide to the birds of the Philippines. I haven't visited Philippines and do not have this field guide, but I have read this field guide in the library at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

A Guide to the Birds of the Philippines

Taiwan

Taiwan is one of the countries in this region with high endemic species of birds, is one of the recommended birding sites in Asia, find out more from my blog about Birding in Taiwan. Field Guide to the Birds of Taiwan by Wu Sen-hsiang et al, illustrated by Takashi Taniguch, is the recommended field guide for birding in Taiwan, is my favourite as well.

Field Guide to the Birds of Taiwan

The book is written in traditional Chinese, with the exception of the common and scientific name. The paintings of birds are superior, the key field marks are clearly indicated. I personally like this book because it is a pocket size book, as small as the size of Lonely Planet's travel guide, very convenient to carry to the field. This book can be purchased from Wild Bird Society of Taipei.

Another handy pocket size and useful field guide illustrated by Takashi Taniguchi is A Field Guide to the Waterbirds of Asia, published by Wild Bird Society of Japan, and written in English.

A Field Guide to the Waterbirds of Asia

China

My favourite field guide to the birds of China is the one by John Mackinnon, illustrated by Karen Phillips. A complete book with species distribution maps, paintings of the birds are clear. The Chinese edition is available, with an affordable price, which can be purchased from Wild Bird Society of Taipei.

A Field Guide to the Birds of China

The birds of Hong Kong and South China by Clive Viney, Karen Philips and Lam Chiu Ying, is a good field guide to the birds of South-China region, with the emphasis on birds of Hong Kong. The Chinese edition is also available from Hong Kong Bird Watching Society and Wild Bird Society of Taipei.

The birds of Hong Kong and South China

I hope that this blog posting provides sufficient and useful information about which illustrated bird guides shall be used by a person who is interested to bird watch in this region.

Happy Birding.

Brown Hawk Owl, Penang.

2010-09-05T00:52:00.009+08:00

A Brown Hawk Owl that I digiscoped tonight in Penang on 4 Sept. 2010.

Visit The Owl Pages to learn more about owls, or follow the links below to view the owls posted in this blog:

- Owls in Penang that I spotted,

- Brown Wood Owls in Fraser's Hill

- Buffy Fish Owl in Sepilok, Sabah.

Many thanks to Terence, Eileen, Bee Cheng and Alan for the wonderful owling. Happy Owling.

Milky Stork in Chinese and Japanese Gardens, Singapore.

2010-09-02T09:24:00.002+08:00

On 29th August, I decided to visit Chinese and Japanese Gardens of Singapore together with my nephew, for the well known resident Milky Stork. Unfortunately, it's raining for the whole morning.

While waiting for the rain to stop at the entrance of the Chinese Garden, I spotted abundance of Coppersmith Barbets. The number of the barbets could be more than 10 on a single fruiting tree, it shows that the population of the barbet in the Chinese garden is very rich and healthy.

Before sunset, I saw a Milky Stork soaring around the Japanese Garden, it's an opportunity for me to challenge myself to digiscope a soaring bird. Finally, I got it! I learned how to digiscope a soaring bird.

I'm coming

The Milky Stork is a most majestic bird in the Japanese Garden, which intrigued me to spend an hour observing the behaviour of the bird. This individual could be part of the Breeding and Re-introduction Programme run by the Singapore National Park. It would be great if there is a pair of Milky Stork in the garden.

Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea is classified as a vulnerable species by BirdLife International. Counts from Malaysia falling consistently from over 100 individuals in 1984, to less than 10 birds in 2005. Click HERE to find out more about this species.

Let's take a closer look of the bird through these digscoped pictures.

perching on a pine tree

an adult with breeding plumage

comforting itself.

beautiful preening...

and ready for a catch...

fish?..

sunset.....

time to go home...

When the day was getting dark, I bid farewell to the stork with "sayonara, mata aimasyou (さようなら、また会いましょう)", with the hope to see the bird again in the future.

A beautiful floating Torii 鳥居

Happy Birding..

Collared Kingfisher in Singapore Botanic Garden

2010-09-02T08:18:00.000+08:00

I visited the garden on 27 August 2010, and it's a raining day. Therefore, not many birds I spotted in this visit, whereas it was still early for migratory birds sighting.

The only interesting bird I spotted was the Collared Kingfisher carrying a gecko, an indicator of successful nesting or fledging in the garden.

Visit my previous BLOG if you are interested to find out more about birding in Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Happy Birding.

Taman Negara, S.R.

2010-08-31T00:38:00.009+08:00

I spent 5 days of birding at the national park, Taman Negara Sungai Relau, from 16th to 20th August, and we have more than 100 birds sighted. Click HERE to find out more about Taman Negara, one of the best birding sites in Peninsular Malaysia.

The only lifer I have in this trip was the Buff-rumped Woodpecker. I missed my wanted lifers, Maroon Woodpecker and Banded Pitta, heard the Pitta called, but couldn't see it.

Buff-rumped Woodpecker (female)

The most memorable birds I spotted and digiscoped were the Scarlet-rumped Trogon, Rhinoceros Hornbills and Black Hornbills. Trogon is a crepuscular bird, usually active in the morning at dawn.

Scarlet-rumped Trogon (front view)

Scarlet-rumped Trogon (back view)

Black Hornbill (a family with two juveniles)

Black Hornbill (male adult and juvenile)

Black Hornbill (female)

Rhinoceros Hornbill

Last but not least, I would like to share a digiscoped picture of the peak of Gunung Tahan (Tahan Mountain), the highest mountain in Peninsular Malaysia, which can be easily viewed from the viewing tower of Bukit Seraya.

Gunung Tahan

Happy Birding.