Watching the birds go by

A Little Spiderhunter making calls to its mate

Eastern Crimson Sunbird at
Chinese hat plat

 A pair of Little Spiderhunter came to town and seeing them frolicking among the branches of a nearby Jackfruit tree inspired me to gather a few shots of other birds that habitually come to town a few days ago.  The extremely attractive Eastern Crimson Sunbird makes it a point to drop by the Chinese hat plant to check out the nectar.  It has been a daily ritual, if not in the morning it will drop by later in the day.  At unannounced times a swinging couple of the Yellow-bellied Flowerpecker will fill find time in the their busy schedule and may just pop out of the jungle fringe to chase each other in delightful play in the open.  It would be very fortunate if they come in pairs.  Such visits are very important for us to seek confirmation of its female species.  So I thought I was lucky again to get another glimpse of the female Orange-bellied Flowerpecker as shown in the picture below.  The Oriental Magpie-robin is calling the park home, having built its nest in the safety of the dense vegetation in one of Eugenia oleina trees at Zone G. They would seek refuge in the tree once danger in the open appears eminent.  Just watching the birds go by is therapy for the busy mind.

Yellow-bellied Flowerpecker - female of the species

Oriental Magpie-robin

FB cover theme - Garden in a forest

FB Cover page, 13 Nov'12

FB Cover page, Nov'12

FB cover page, Nov'12

2013 birdwatch albums cover

Birdwatch album - Tiong (Hill myna)

Birdwatch album - Flowerpeckers

 Flowerpeckers are a delight to watch because they are tiny but colourful.  They make happy tunes in the park.  The one species that attracts me most is the Orang-bellied flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma dayakanum) of which the male of the species is very colourful.  Recently I have been successful in attracting them for a photoshoot session.  I made the jackfruit as the bait.  I waited patiently from a hideout  and in one morning was able to capture many shots of the male.

Orange-bellied flowerpecker

Orange-bellied flowerpecker enjoying the jackfruit...
(Dicaeum trigonostigma dayakanum)

Birdwatch album - Pipit

Brown Pipit

 The Pipits are an everyday visitor to the park and some bild nests here..  They look for insects and grass seeds.  They come in pairs or in small groups.  To encourage them to come often  reserves of grassland are kept to help out with their daily diet of grass seeds.  They are two species found here viz the Pipit Rawa (Lonchura malacca) and another which has brown feathers all over the body.

Pipit Rawa (Lonchura malacca)

Pipit Rawa (Lonchura malacca)

Birdwatch album - Little Spiderhunter

 The Little Spiderhunter is a daily visitor to the park without fail.  It is attracted by the ever flowering yellow Ixora coccinea flowers especially by its sweet nectar. It is a very jovial bird that announces its presence by its loud chirping voice. Malays call it "Kelicap" because of its prominent 'churp -churp' calls.  It is a very lovely bird to watch especially when hovering by the flowers to sip at the nectar.  It visits the flowering ixora shrub throughout the day at the park.

Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra)

Rare Birds Album

 There are many moments of birdwatching when seeing birds could just be the rewards without any pictures of them.  You could be  unprepared because your camera is out of battery or the bird moves too swiftly thus giving you no opportunity to get your lens focused.  I have included inside this album a small collection of birds that dropped by at the park once and very seldom seen after the first encounter.  I call them ' rare birds'.  There are many others that I have seen but missed the opportunity to photoshoot them.  Among the missed opportunities are the woodpecker, eagles, kingfisher, little heron, pied hornbill and the very colourful emerald dove.  Wish I would be lucky the next time around....

Birdwatch album - Magpie - Robin

Magpie - Robin
(Copsychus satularis)

 They come to the park merry-making and  is among the best songsters here. In the Park they are wild compared with in the town gardens of Sarawak where over generations they are sufficiently tame.  They perch on tall dead tree branches and the males gives out a very melodious chatter that is broadcasted throughout the park.  I often see them in pairs and they feed on insects like crickets ants and caterpillars.  

Birdwatch album - Crimson Sunbird

 It is seen daily at the park especially between 8 am till noon.  It's tiny size makes it difficult to watch and you have to be a little bit more patient to catch a good glimpse of it.  The Crimson Sunbird is a beauty to photoshoot for its bright cheerful colours. I often see it enjoying the nectar from the flowers of the Ixoras, Chinese Hat plant and the Heliconias.  They fly fast to the next branch and thus making it extra difficult to get a good focus or close-up of them....

Crimson Sunbird
Family : Nectariniidae (Sunbird family)

Birdwatch album - Philippine Glossy Starling

Philippine Glossy Starling
(Aplonis panayensis)

The Perlings would visit the park when the jungle trees bear fruits or the ornamental Eugenia oleina trees black berries are produced after every flowering season.  They come in big flocks for days on end but they don't settle or make their homes here. The adults are all black with a green gloss and a conspicuous red iris.  Juvenile or immature birds are whitish below and streaked with black.  When they roost on the dead tree branches they produce loud chatter and will fly off simultaneously if provoked or are alerted.

A juvenile or immature bird have slightly whitish and streaked with black on their breast and body below.
This bird is eating the ripe fruits of the Eugenia oleina trees that are purposely planted throughout the park to attract many forms of wildlife.

Starlings or Perlings as they are generally called are social birds, flocking together and roosting in large numbers.

Birds of a feather flock together.