manta blog

Flowering Tree Attracts Mass Feeding

2012-01-27T21:04:00.004+08:00

Chance upon this flowering tree at a neighbourhood park that attracted more than 20 different species of insects! Butterfly, bees, beetle,...

Mangrove Pitta Handling Crabs

2012-01-25T02:52:00.003+08:00

Ever since I picked up nature photography 2 years ago, biggest satisfaction came from the extra knowledge and the opportunity to observe & learn more about things that I don't get to see or previously unknown.

Through the course of photography, I learn more than just the name of the plants or animals that I photographed. I learn about their behaviour, their diet, their distribution & most importantly their habitat as well as their challenges.

Is quite a satisfaction being able to see this uncommon/rare Mangrove pitta (Pitta megarhyncha) in the wild! Is getting more difficult to see one as this species of pitta can only be found in the mangrove area. Looking at the area of mangroves in Singapore shrunk to just ten over percent from the original size over the years. That's no accident why Mangrove pittas are so rare now. (Mangrove pitta is also considered globally near-threatened)

While I was searching more details about this bird, most of the sources saying that the main diet are earthworms and snails. Pittas also consume a variety of invertebrates such as ants, beetles, bugs, centipedes, spiders, and termites, as well as small frogs, skinks and snakes. No crabs was mentioned!

This is my second sighting of this beautiful pitta and again, throughout the one hour of my observations, this pitta only take crabs and nothing else. It took three crabs before disappear from my sight.

Different from other birds that I seen, Mangrove pitta prepare their prey by simply removing their legs.
Mangrove pitta hold their prey by their leg and shake vigorously to dislodge their leg. After the initial shake, half of the legs on the right of the crab been dislodged.
Targeting the legs on the left side of the crab.

Only one leg left still dangling on the crab.

The last leg was torn off too.

All the legs of the crab are gone and only one pincer seen remained. The pitta is now ready to consume his catch.

After finish the crab body, the pitta pick up the legs from the floor and nothing is waste.

The legs of the crabs are removed and not the pincer, I wonder is it because to cripple the crab from escaping or prevent the crab from 'scratching' their stomach wall? Aren't the pincer can cause some damage too?

Even after 2 observations, there are still more things to be learned from this pitta...

Mangrove Pitta of Singapore

2012-01-15T20:57:00.005+08:00

Mangrove pittas (Pitta megarhyncha) are rare resident of Singapore and are considered as nationally-endengered due to loss of habitat.

Is certainly a great pleasure to watch this beautiful bird feeding at the few remained mangrove in Singapore.

The Thief

2012-01-02T16:42:00.006+08:00

With the wet season almost over, some birds has started their breeding preparation!! This Black-Naped Oriole(Oriolus chinensis) is certainly one of them. I saw this oriole keep going back to the same branch a few times. Not that there are insects nor fruiting on that tree but to steal the material needed for their nest building!

The oriole will use the bill to purposely got themselves entangled with the spider web, then try to 'hoover' (short flight and back to the same branch) and try to grab as much web as possible before flew off. Within 30 minutes while I was there, the birds repeated the process for 4 times!

My observations from the last season:

1. Protecting the nest

2. Feeding of chicks 1

3. Feeding of chicks 2

Birds at Pulau Sekudu

2011-12-27T21:23:00.006+08:00

We pay a visit to Pulau Sekudu during the Christmas Day. While the rest are still busy looking at the inter-tidal creatures, I do a quick scan on the birds that are around this tiny island that only surface during spring low tide.

This island is covered by sea water and only surface during spring low tide.

There are people that already on the island before we arrive. Since special permit is required for visit to this island, I assume this part-time fisherman got special permit??

Greater Crested Terns are the most common birds on the island.

Collared Kingfisher &

Common Kingfisher can be found on the island too.

Saw a Brahminy Kite too. Other birds spotted includes Little Egrets, Whimbrel & Grey Heron.

It Will Be Nice If...

2011-12-10T20:51:00.005+08:00

After a very fruitful trip this morning with HY at Mc Ritchie while on my way home, I drop by a tiny beach next to Seletar Dam that is one of the favourite fishing spot. Fishing rod can be seen day & night week day or week end!!

As I was looking for sign of any water birds, I spotted some tiny birds were running around this very tiny beach.

This Malaysian Plover (Charadrius peronii) was the tiny bird that running around the beach. I was trying to get a clean & clear shot of this bird but I gave up after a while!

No matter how I try, there are always some unwanted FOB (foreign object deposits) in my photo!!! :(
Saw this Common sand piper (Actitis hypoleucos) on the higher shore near the rock wall & the condition is as bad!
This tiny beach is a more quieter beach compare to all other beaches and is one of the very few beach on the main land that watching of shore birds is still possible. It will be nice if the beach is cleaner!! Perhaps visit to this part of Singapore is not that convenient without own transport. Out of sight out of mind?

Monkey Business 4 - Happy Family

2011-11-28T22:04:00.002+08:00

Saw this family enjoying the warm morning sun after the overnight rain at the Central Catchment Nature Reserve last week end.

This is their home and this is the place that they belongs to. There are plenty of food in the reserve and enough to feed every of their family member. However, things changed when people start to feed them. Out of convenience, out of curiosity and perhaps the fancy packing of humans food, some started to rely on human food instead of finding their own food in the reserve.

When they start to depend on humans food, they will become aggressive and start to snatch food whenever they see people eating or carry bag that look like carrying food. When the monkey 'walk out' from the forest, they can get themselves killed by the passing traffic.

Help them and also help ourselves...don't feed the monkey. Feeding the monkey is an offence and can be fined!

Monkey Business 3

2011-11-01T20:22:00.006+08:00

No doubt that monkey are the very intelligent creature. I have seen long-tailed macaque on several occasions, doing things just like us - human being!

This time round, I saw long-tailed macaque trying to put on a shirt!

This macaque grab a shirt from a chair that someone place it there for drying.

It caught the attention of other monkey and all 3 of them trying to take control of the shirt.

This monkey managed to 'own' it and he grab the shirt running away from the rest.

It must have seen how human put on their shirt and this monkey trying to follow the same. It almost put it on!

To prevent other from getting the shirt, this macaque just run with the shirt to another corner and try to put on again. They are the smart one, now you agree?

If you miss my previous sightings on this smart creatures... read this:

Monkey Business 1 - having some real hot actions!!

Monkey Business 2 - trying to have easy food!

Semakau Exploration with Bedok View Sec

2011-10-30T18:48:00.007+08:00

I was at Semakau again 3 days after the last trip. I was the guide for students from Bedok View Sec, a group of young, enthusiastic and fun people. We are glad the weather was good and the hunter seeker did a very good job. We saw a lot of very interesting animals that can only be seen by divers! However, due to the spring low tide, we manage to see them during the short period of time when the tide are low.

Group photo on the shore of Semakau!

Seize that moment! Capture this special moment with camera, the sun will drop below the horizon in no time!

More group photo!

One of the many interesting animal that we saw - Head Shield bug (Chelidonura pallida)

Thanks to Ms Goh & her students, I have a great trip too! :)

Semakau Inter-tidal Walk 26 Oct 11

2011-10-26T23:26:00.004+08:00

Is have been almost a year since I last exploring Semakau during the evening low tide. When we arrived at Semakau, the storm is brewing & looks like a heavy downpour coming very soon. Luckily, the wind is strong and blow all the rain clouds away. We have a real good weather exploring the Semakau rich inter-tidal area!

One of the many beautiful creatures that we saw include this beautiful nudibranch!

This is my group, from Singapore Poly taking group photo at the area usually submerge underwater! This area will only expose during low tide.

We also managed to reach the most southern part of Singapore! Cool weather, colourful creatures, what a good way to celebrate!

Raptormania at SBG

2011-10-22T15:18:00.010+08:00

I was at Singapore Botanic Garden (SBG) this morning for my usual birding trip. Since is now the peak of the raptors migratory season, I saw 3 raptors within 5 minutes!!
I first saw this Grey Headed Fish eagle Follow by a juvenile Brahminy kite
and follow by Chinese Sparrowhawk! Really a raptormania morning. More & more winter visitors are arriving such as this Asian Brown flycatcher

and also the Drongo cuckoo.
A very beautiful native bird - Oriental Magpie Robin that join the list & sing out loud just to make sure she will not be forgotten..

SBG is one of the few good birding spot in Singapore that always have something to discover... :)

Can't Decide What Camera to Buy?

2011-10-19T21:54:00.005+08:00

Ever got confused with all the different types of digital camera on the shelf and every manufacturer claim that theirs the best?

Got this illustration from ST Digital Life on today's paper. Hopefully it give you some idea on which type of camera you think is best suit you.

Other than the 4 major types of sensors available, there is actually another type - Full Frame camera. The sensor size is based on 35mm film roll. This type of sensor are used on Pro/Semi-Pro camera. The camera I'm using for most of the shots on this blog belong to this category.

If you just want a not so heavy, yet powerful enough to let you manually set some or all setting while shooting, my opinion is go for Micro four third camera. This type of camera have wide range of lenses that you can use & smaller than APS-C or DX cameras.

Happy shooting!

Birds Watching at SBWR

2011-10-15T19:56:00.009+08:00

With more & more arrival of the migratory birds, is time to head to Sungei Buloh (SBWR) to watch this once a year affair!

While I was washing my hand in the toilet, I heard someone knocking on the roof right on top of me. I was more than happy to see a pair of Oriental Pied Hornbill! Perhaps, they are knocking on their own image from the glass reflection.

There are quite a number of egret perch on top of tree just opposite the Main Bridge.

I saw this spider before entering the Main Hide. There are lots of birds feeding in front of the main hide.

This egret trying to scare the prey from their hiding so that she can hunt them.

Whimbrel is one of the bigger shore bird among those feeding on the mud flat.

Marsh sandpiper

This Lesser Sand Plover been to Singapore before! The ring (green & white) means it was tagged/ringed in Singapore before.

One of the best thing to do is just sit there watching the arrival/taking off of these birds.

Other than birds, the mud skipper can be found near the water edge. Good weather, good sighting & hope tomorrow the weather is as good! :)

Feeding Asian Paradise Flycatcher

2011-10-09T15:39:00.013+08:00

Last quarter is always the best time to go birding in Singapore. On top of native birds, there are lots of migratory birds that will arrived from the north to avoid the cold winter. Asian Paradise flycatcher is one of them.

Asian Paradise Flycatcher is one of the many birds that I like to see it in the wild. This year must be my lucky year, I have seen quite a number of them and even have the opportunity to learn more about their feeding behavior. I'm so happy that I saw this flycatcher just caught a cicada! The flycatcher is trying to align the cicada so that it can swallow it.

Perhaps the cicada is consider too big? The flycatcher transfer the cicada to the claw.
The flycatcher then start by biting off the head of the cicada.
Instead of taking the whole prey at one go, the flycatcher taking this cicada bit by bit.
The flycatcher now hold the half eaten cicada with its beak.
With one gulp, the half eaten cicada go down the flycatcher throat.
Is quite unusual for flycatcher to have this feeding behavior. They do not have strong & big talon to hold their prey & they also do not have curved or hook-like bill to tear their prey. Nevertheless, is an fantastic experience to be able to know more about this beautiful bird. This flycatcher continue to perch there for me to take more shots before flew off. What a satisfying birding trip for me! :)

Spotted House Gecko

2011-10-03T02:06:00.005+08:00

It has been raining the whole night and the weather starts to clear a bit in the late morning. I went over to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve for my birding trip while it was still drizzling. There are lots of Long-tailed macaque at the car park, some of them sitting on top of the parked vehicles! They should look for food in the forest and not at the carpark. .As I make my way to the Hindhede Trail, I saw a lizard of about 20cm crawling not too far in front of me. Upon closer look, it was a Spotted House Gecko (Gekko monarchus)! This gecko suppose to be a nocturnal animal. Perhaps it was forced to look for food after the overnight rain? The close-up photo of the gecko's leg looks like a dragon's palm! :)

It was a rather shy animal and run to hide and take cover upon seeing me in this tiny gap.

I manage to take a full body shot before it go hiding.

Stretching Dollarbird

2011-09-30T01:10:00.001+08:00

Saw this pair of Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis) perched on this high vantage point waiting for any flying insects for breakfast. Dollarbird got their name for the 2 silver spots on their underwing when they fly.

Looks like the bird on the right equally puzzle by the sudden actions of the bird on the left. The bird trying to open (stretch) it's mouth as wide as possible without making any noise or call.

My curiosity was answered when the bird come back with one huge prey! From the hard elytra of the prey, this insect was indeed are dollarbirds' favourite food - beetle!
The bird on the right just look on but did not show any sign of interest or looking for free food.

After the attempt to swallow the beetle fair, the bird whack the beetle hard on the tree branch. Some fluid was seen splashing but not sure is from the bird or the beetle.

The bird did not manage to swallow the prey on the second attempt.

The whacking continue and more fluid are seen splashing.

The bird managed to swallow the beetle on the 3rd attempt.

The beetle completely swallowed by the bird.

After this observation, I am curious if the stretching before the hunt is planned in anticipation of bigger prey? The beetle was seen flying nearby but the bird did not go for it right away instead the bird take its own sweet time to do some stretching before the hunt.

Monkey Business

2011-09-20T03:30:00.002+08:00

It was the 2nd day of Parks Festival 2011 when I visited Singapore Botanic Garden. Among the many visitors to the garden, this monkey certainly happy to be part of the week long events.
Indeed, the presence of this monkey were welcome by many visitors who trying to take a photo with it in the background.

The monkey scanned through the content of the bin looking for food!

The monkey just sit on top of the bin and starts to consume the free food on the spot.

After the monkey was done with this bin, it just climb up the tree and cross over to other bin.

Is a good thing to be able to see the abundance of wildlife in Singapore! However, is not right for the monkey to search for food out of the forest. Lots of signs on 'No Feeding of Monkeys" were placed at the Nature Reserves but not at SBG yet.

For whatever reasons, this monkey decided to look for food out of forest and move to high human activities park/garden! Once more and more visitors feed the monkey, it is almost certain that the monkey will not go back to the forest. Whenever there's a conflict between wildlife & human, the wildlife always at the looser end. If we love this beautiful monkey, please help by not feeding them before they turn aggresive and have to be 'removed'.

Fishy Story

2011-09-08T20:51:00.002+08:00

It was a quiet morning at SBWR and I happens to see this egret happily hunting his breakfast.

Fish after fish! They are really good at hunting fish!

Since birds don't have teeth, they swallow their food as it is.

The shape of the fish can be seen clearly and slowly moving down their throat.

The fish finally got aligned and going straight to their stomach.

Giant African Snails

2011-08-23T21:05:00.003+08:00

Native to Madagascar or East Africa, Giant African Snails were introduced to many countries and usually considered a pest. Probably the most familiar species of Land Snails to people in Singapore. The adult giant African snails prefer rotting vegetable matter and may even scavenge for carrion and feaces.

These snails are commonly encountered crawling on garden paths and pavements at night.

Reference : Singapore Biodiversity .
Know the Singapore A-Z biodiversity, sustainable development thru Singapore Biodiversity. Get a copy today!

Admiralty Park - North Most Park of Singapore

2011-08-21T21:06:00.011+08:00

Located not far from the Causeway - the 1st road link between Singapore & Peninsula Malaysia, Admiralty Park is the north most park of Singapore. Admiralty Park consist of several different habitats, a river, mangrove, secondary forest, grassland & a fresh water pond. This is also a good place for birding too!
An Ashy tailorbird was seen near the mangrove area
White throated kingfisher taking the top of the pole as a vantage point before hunting
The weather today is really hot, these sparrows is taking cover too.
A beautiful White-eye
An female Olive-backed sunbird
Asian Glossy Starling
Another curious sparrow looking at my camera
A not so welcome 'wildlife' & pest too.
Other than birds, this park is also home to many insects & flowers.

This chick was seen running around the ginger plants.

Dose this look like the famous bridge across River Kwai??
If you are visiting Admiralty Park, don't miss out the Waterfront that just across the road after the Admiralty Park. The building at the back is no longer Singapore but Johor Bahru of Malaysia.
I really wish that visitors do not leave behind any rubbish.
Is quite a hazy day...
Kite flying is not allowed as stated on the sign, perhaps is too close to Tengah Airbase?

Dairy Farm

2011-08-12T03:10:00.008+08:00

Is been a while since I last visited Dairy Farm. I revisited Dairy Farm on the National Day morning. Arrived there about 7am and spent about 2 hours.
I have no idea what fruits is this. Looks like a pear to me...

1st bird that I saw is this Banded woodpecker perch very high up the tree.

Is always nice to see Malkoha in Singapore! Is been a while I last seen a wild Chestnut bellied malkoha in Singapore!

Leaf birds are usually difficult to spot due to their colour that blend perfectly with the surrounding. However, this pair of Blue-winged leaf birds are just too difficult to miss without the usual leaves for them to blend with.

Saw this juvenile Dollar bird also perch high up on a tree branch.
This pair of Striped-tit babbler jumping from branch to branch actively looking for food.
These flock of Scaly breasted munia with half of them juvenile feeding on the grass seeds.
Soon, Barn swallow will join these Pacific swallow when the migratory season starts.

The landscape and the biodiversity of this area will change in few years time when the construction of ecolink is completed. Currently Bukit Timah & the Central Catchment Nature Reserves are split to 2 by the BKE. When the ecolink is ready, the wildlife will be able to cross freely from one side to another!

NDP of Different Kind

2011-08-03T06:05:00.003+08:00

National Day of Singapore is just around the corner. Prior to the actual day, as usual there will be lots of rehearsal & pre-view before the actual National Day Parade (NDP).

Last Saturday, while the pre-view is being conducted at Marina area, there is another patriotic group are having their own NDP of different kind.

The participants gather at the open field before the rehearsal starts.

The 'supervisors' (Cattle egrets) are busy running up & down to get everyone into formation.

"Attention!"

Although no fireworks, the highlight of the event is the inspection of the latest machinery! :)

Every participants get to feast on the free insects buffet that was flushed out by the gigantic grass cutting machine!

Little Terns Hover & Dive To Hunt

2011-07-31T12:53:00.006+08:00

I was having a intertidal walk with NUS High students at Pulau Hantu this morning and we chance upon a Little Terns hover & plunge dive to hunt.

Durian Fest at Gunung Pulai

2011-07-25T22:45:00.002+08:00

Situated about 20km from Johor Bahru, Gunung Pulai is one of the many popular week end outing destination for locals and among Singaporean too!

Few of us decided to pay a visit to this mountain that is visible from Singapore too last Saturday. Driving from Singapore took slightly more than an hour. We set off early in the morning and arrived at the entrance of Gunung Pulai around 6.45am.

The car park is already half filled when we arrived. When we step out of the car, I smells my favourite fruit - durian!!! Before we starts our trekking up the mountain I already have plan after the walk. That is to enjoy my favourite fruits from the original source! Haaa....

We slowly make our way up the mountain that is 700m high. The entire trail is about 5km & there is a waterfall there too. It was a very pleasant walk, the air is fresh, the birds are chipping everywhere and most importantly, the people there are very, very friendly! Although is our first time there, we are like walking in the garden of neighbourhood. There is no strangers, everyone that we met along the way will smile & greet each other!

As we need to return to Singapore before 1.30pm, we didn't walk to the summit. We stay around 1km mark of the trail for birding. Although we spent just about 2 hours there, we saw lots of birds.

There are lots of fruits tree around the car park. Such as this mangostine tree.
Star fruits

Rambutans!!! And the fruits are so low that you can just pluck it when it is ripe.

and durian tree!

Before we head back to Singapore, we have these durians fresh from the tree. What a fulfilling trip. :)

You Are On Your Own!

2011-07-10T18:15:00.008+08:00

A juvenile White-bellied Sea Eagle trying to secure the area by chasing away the competitors... grey herons.

I seen many times that the sea eagle mob by crows. This is my first time seeing the eagle harassing grey herons that almost the same size.

Boy To Men

2011-06-30T09:04:00.005+08:00

This was another one of my many sightings in recent Borneo trip. We saw a group of Pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina) while we were cruising the Kinabatangan river.

The macaques are just as curious as teenagers! They are curious about the changes in their body...

Elephant Tears

2011-06-28T20:12:00.009+08:00

Found only in Borneo, the Borneo Pygmy Elephants (Elephas maximus borneensis ) are smaller and less aggressive than other Asian elephants. These elephants show a high level of tolerance to humans being in close quarters! I was less than 3 meters away when watching them feeding on the bay of Kinabatangan River. They have rounder faces, larger ears, and longer tail.
The primary threat to these elephants is the loss of habitat. The conversion of forest into plantations, logging activities & urbanization has increased the fragmentation of their feeding area. Contact with human has become more frequent when the elephants travel from one area to another.
According to the locals, the elephants have splited into 2 to 3 smaller groups and will get reunited once a year into big herds. They will spend some times together before breaking up again. Perhaps this is how the elephants adjust themselves to ensure food sustainability and yet remain bonded when they meet annually.

I have just too many questions about them unanswered! I wonder if there is any exchange of group members to maintain the male-female ratio due to attrition after the great annual party! They are believes to be able to remember (by smell) their enemies (those who have hurt them before) for life! How do they achieve that?

Whenever their enemy is nearby, they will show sign of aggresiveness & trumpeting non-stop to warn other elephants. There is so much to learn about this little & gentle giant!
Until someone really study them, these mysteries will remain unknown!

Cageless Caged Birds

2011-06-07T03:21:00.001+08:00

These cockatoos (Cacatua goffini) are not native and are one of the many caged birds introduced to Singapore sometimes ago. They have now established themselves in quite a few area in Singapore. You may see them at Changi village, Pasir Ris, Buona Vista, Jurong, etc.
Another popular introduced caged birds is this Red-Breasted Parakeet (Psittacula alexandri). You may find them building nest in many road-side trees on many parts of Singapore! These feral birds have all chosen Singapore to be their new home!
What I'm puzzled was their 'head shaking' behavior. Aren't this is the normal behavior for caged birds when they lost their freedom and will shake their head out of boredom? Why this behavior still shown on feral birds?...

Black Shoulder Kite

2011-05-23T15:25:00.006+08:00

One of the unique characteristic of Black Shoulder Kite is their ability to hover. Watch them hover really made my day.
I like this photo very much!

Another photo in animated sequence showing the take-off.

Another Nightjar is Born

2011-05-14T15:09:00.006+08:00

Welcome this cute little nightjar to this beautiful world!

Is really glad to be able to witness another new born in the wild.

Little Heron Celebrate Mothers Day

2011-05-09T22:43:00.009+08:00

Saw this pair of little heron having a conversation on Mothers Day. The adult Little Heron was perching on the fender on top of a monsoon canal.
The juvenile Little heron with dull brown plumage after several failed hunting looking at his mother for help.The chick " Mom, I couldn't get any fish and are very hungry, can you give me some thing to eat?"

"I am really hungry!"
The mother heron " My son, don't you know today is Mothers Day? You should instead get some fish for me!"The chick quietly move away and try to catch some fish...

That's my boy!!

Mothers Day Special

2011-05-02T17:58:00.006+08:00

Next week is Mothers Day! As promised, I prepared a video compilation as a tribute to all mothers.

Mothers Day Special (Ode to the birds) from Samson Tan on Vimeo.

Photos selected are all from nestling, breeding, feeding & fledging photos. These chicks stand no chance without the caring mothers!

Most photos are taken in Singapore, if you are looking for new birding destination, Singapore is not a bad idea!!

Mothers' Day Coming...

2011-04-27T11:13:00.004+08:00

With May just around the corner, most birds here would have breed & fledged by now. Is not difficult to spot some exciting shots of feeding, fledging just about anywhere you go. Be it at your neighbourhood park or nature reserves.

A feeding dove

The chick just fledged and was closely watched/escorted by mother bird.

Another feeding pair...

Since Mother's Day coming... I'll do a Mother's Day Special in next update. So, stay tune!

Breeding of Straw-Headed Bulbul

2011-04-19T14:50:00.006+08:00

Straw-headed bulbul is a shy bird and very often heard than seen. It is also a popular cage bird due to its very nice call. Saw this nest at central of Singapore 2 weeks ago and was waiting for the chicks to fledge. It was empty this morning and a search confirmed that the chicks had fledged!

The feeding continue although the chicks had fledged!
A very cute looking for this immature Straw-Headed Bulbul.The chick is falling a sleep after the satisfying meal fed by the parents!
The proud parent announcing to the world that their chicks had fledged!

Another Surprise at Pasir Ris Park

2011-04-12T09:47:00.011+08:00

Surprise after surprise... this is the impression that I have about Pasir Ris Park. My very first surprise was last October when I have a chance to observe the heronry right here in Singapore!

Since then, from common, uncommon to rare migratory bird(s) keep appearing one after another and it was really a fantastic birding experience. Most migratory birds have left and I was pleased to have met a flock of Chinese Pond Heron 池鷺(Ardeola bacchus) stock up reserves before their long journey home. Not just one but whole flock of them!

Wish them a safe journey home!

北方的氣候應該轉暖，這群池鷺應該也是時候回返故鄉了吧。有點令我不解的是，它們都換上了繁殖羽！既然要長途跋涉，為何不等回到故鄉後才換繁殖羽呢？

Street Fighters

2011-04-06T22:02:00.001+08:00

Competition for food, for space or simply for mate? Perhaps Javan Myna simply just like to fight? It is not difficult to see Javan myna involved in 'gang fight' and I have seen it many times. This time round, I managed to capture them in actions with my camera. The fight involved 4 birds and I presume they are 2 couples. When I saw this 2 birds trying to show others that they are bigger, I know they are fighting soon and my guess is correct.

One of the bird just charge to the other couple without warning.

The fight is on!!

The other 2 birds that not involve in the fight just cheer those in the fight.

They fight from ground to the air!!At last all 4 join the fight! A really messy gang fight!

The fight started without any warning and ended without any winner or looser. Perhaps fighting is their way of community bonding?? :)

Flower Festival

2011-04-01T00:47:00.004+08:00

Is the flowering season again in Singapore! Lots of tree are flowering now and they are just beautiful. I was at Sembawang Park and both the white & the pink flower at the same time.

I ever travel to Taiwan just to see the cherry blossom around the same period too. Although no seasonal change in Singapore, standing in the garden with the whole tree bloom with flower do bring a feeling of Spring isn't it? :)

My 1st Wild Cobra Encounter

2011-03-28T06:17:00.007+08:00

I have not been to Sembawang Park for very long time and it was more than 3 years ago since I last visited Sembawang Park!! The very loud noise was heard even before I arrived at the park was from this pair of Collared Kingfisher. This purple heron happily feeding in the warm morning sun. There are also lots of Rock pigeon in the park. I cross over to the Park Connector and in the Simpang Kiri river, there are waders actively feeding during low tide too. As seen here is a Common Sandpiper.

A Green Shank

The low tide also attracted lots of 'fisherman'

This uncle was searching for clams under the hot sun!!

Up above the river, Brahminy Kite was having his usual rounds perhaps looking for his next meal.

Not forgetting Cattle egret also looking for food.A big surprise for this trip is this Black Spitting Cobra!! I happily look up on the tree to look for birds and unknowingly intruded this Cobra nest. I was very fortunate that the cobra didn't attack me else I'll be in deep trouble!! The Cobra hissing at me very loudly just about 2.5m away right infront of me. Sensing something is not right, I stop and saw this Cobra with the head expanded and body upright in the waiting to strike position. The stand down after few seconds sensing that there is no threat as I stood still and didn't even raise my camera as I worry it will further irritate the snake. I just trigger my shuttle without looking through the view finder when I saw the snake start to withdraw and before it completely disappear into the nest and managed to have one shoot.

Is a beautiful creature and also a dangerous creature to avoid!

What if...

2011-03-20T13:57:00.007+08:00

Saw this pair of juvenile Yellow Vented Bulbul that fledged recently and still depends on their parents for food.

They at first patiently waiting in the dense bush and I have difficulty in getting a clear shot of them.

After waited for more than 45 mins, for whatever reason that I don't know, this bird come to the open! Follow the first bird, the other bird also come to the open and I can now take their full picture. Being in the open, they are also risking themselves to the predator!

Both juvenile birds go back to the thick bush after few minutes and there is still no sign of their parents.

The parents finally appear after another 30 mins! What a happy ending...

What if the parents never return?

The news & photos about school children in Tokyo waiting for their parents that might not appear to pick them anymore suddenly appear in my mind...

Japan was first hit by earthquake, tsunami and now trying to prevent the nuclear meltdown... to those who lost their home & their love ones, be strong!

Olive-Backed Sunbird

2011-03-15T06:27:00.002+08:00

I saw another pair of birds busy building their nest and this round was the Olive-backed sunbird. This is the female sunbird (without the blue patch on their throat)

A male checking the nest.Both male & female check & inspect their nest.
I don't know what this female bird is doing initially. Saw the bird peck on the fern that their nest attached too. After upload to the computer then I know the answer.The female sunbird is maintaining their nest by removing any potential intruder - including ants as seen on the photo above.

Is A Hot Hot Day!

2011-03-03T06:35:00.005+08:00

What will you do during a hot and lazy afternoon? Well, there's no better thing to do than dip in the pool of water to freshen up.
This female Oriental Magpie Robin have found the reason to be happy. She jump right in to this fountain of joy and having a good time!

Big splash was created wave after wave for about 3 minutes!
After all the splashes, the bird perch on the statue to preen & dry herself up.
The male bird just watch from the perch above the entire process and they flew off together after the female bird done with her preening.

Blue Crown Hanging Parrot

2011-02-13T15:58:00.003+08:00

Is been almost a year trying to look for nestling of Blue Crown Hanging Parrot (Loriculus galgulus) without success. However, I managed to spot a juvenile feeding at Botanic Garden!!

No actual nest spotted, there is a 50/50 chance that they are breeding in Singapore as no one can be sure that this juvenile is not another escapee.

Coppersmith Barbet Courtship Feeding

2011-02-06T20:38:00.004+08:00

Is the season of love again for birds in Singapore so as this pair of Coppersmith Barbet. Barbet looks the same both male & female and is not possible to differentiate them just by their appearance.
I'm not sure even with these series of photos, the male is the one on the right. I can only assume that the male will feed the female during courtship.

Can you tell the difference between this 2 barbet? Which one is male and which one is female?

Coppersmith barbet

2011-01-24T06:40:00.005+08:00

Coppersmith barbet is one of the few birds that dig a hole on the tree to build their nest. These are series of photo showing the birds hard at work. Both male & female looks alike & just not possible to differentiate them in the field. They will take turn to chisel bit by bit their potential new home.

One of them will be at work at a time. They will first perch on a tree nearby, to ensure no predator around before flew to their new home to be.After perched on the tree branch of their new home, the birds will again check if there is any predator out there.
The bird is now ready to carry on the unfinished job.
A final check just before entering the new home to be.

Time to get job done... Here it go...get in and chisel bit by bit.

Mouth full of debris moving out of the new home.
Ah! Just dump it of from the top!

So the next time if you found debris of saw dust like materials fall on your head while picnic out there in the garden, someone must be hard at work on top of you.

Asian Koel

2011-01-19T21:28:00.004+08:00

Most of the time Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopacea) rarely come to the open and more often are heard than seen. Well, this female Koel can't resist the temptation of this fruit and decided to grab it even she have to expose herself completely!

Birds at Botanic Garden

2011-01-10T06:05:00.002+08:00

Singapore Botanic Garden yet again proven to be a good birding place. I was at Botanic Garden over the week end, the weather is good and rather comfortable temperature thanks to the cold air from the North-East monsoon it was an enjoyable walk. This female Pink-Necked Green pigeon blend in so well with the vegetation here.

Spotted Dove a popular pet as song birds with the Rock pigeon at the background.
Another song bird that at one time almost extinct from Singapore - Oriental Magpie Robin.

This Large-Tailed Nightjar was awake and aware of my presence when I stop by to take a shot.
There are quite a number of White-breasted Waterhen in the garden. This one was happily swimming in the garden.

A female Asian Koel.

A very big and beautiful kingfisher, a Stork-billed kingfisher with a fish that she just caught.
Another not so common, Common Kingfisher taking advantage of the thick vegetation.
A winter visitor to the garden, a Black Bittern. After flying for a long distance, is time to replenish themselves with the fish in this pond.
Another rare winter visitor of the garden - a Hooded Pitta!

There are lots of other birds in the garden and I really don't mind going back over & over again. :)

Myna vs Centipede

2011-01-04T21:40:00.004+08:00

Chicken are known to feed on centipede, what I didn't expect was that Javan myna feed on centipede too. I managed to capture some shots by chance on Javan myna hunt & feed on centipede.
The myna spotted the centipede and pull it out from the soil, swing it to left & right very vigorously before swallow it.

Birding at Melaka World Heritage City

2010-12-30T01:31:00.001+08:00

Ever since Melaka declared as UNESCO World Heritage City, the number of tourist have been steadily on the rise. Most tourist will only interested in the historical building/structure. In fact there are more things to see or do in this old city and all within the same area! Bird watching is one of them! All the photos in this post are taken within 50 meters radius from the A Farmosa. I arrived in the late evening and this is what I saw. Flocks & flocks of birds are roosting on the tree that just next to the Melaka river where tourist taking the river cruise. As it was dark, I decided to pay a visit the next morning & I only have about 1.5hours in the morning before joining my friends for breakfast and other activities.

This Common Mynah on the good vantage point enjoying the cool morning breeze.

There are lots of birds that feed on this fig tree that are fruiting, including these Javan Mynah.
White-Bellied Sea Eagle gracefully glide on top of me. Nice pair of Asian Glossy Starling Yellow Vented Bulbul A female Asian Koel that often heard their call than seeing them.
Little Heron is waiting for prey at the side of the river.
This is quite a huge bird that looks like a vulture - a bold Large Billed Crow. Not sure what happen to the feathers.

A pair of Thick-Billed Green Pigeon

Brahminy Kite

As with other urban area, this invasive species - Crow is every where.

How nice to be able to see this cute little Coppersmitch Barbet!

Oriental Magpie Robin, didn't give me a second to take a proper shot.

Black-Napped Oriole with the very bright yellow feathers.

Tree sparrow

Pink-Necked Green Pigeon is enjoying this big local fruit.

A pair of White-Throated Kingfisher

This 1.5 hours is really well spent! Birding in Melaka, why not!!

Rare Eyebrowed Thrush in Singapore

2010-12-23T03:33:00.000+08:00

Although Singapore is 'summer' throughout the year (no seasonal change), however, it is worth to look out for rare birds that arrived from the north as far as Siberia! Migratory birds starts arriving from October and some will stay till April before returning to their place of origin. Eyebrowed Thrush (Turdus obscurus) is one of the many migratory birds that temporary stay in Singapore to avoid the harsh condition during winter.

You never know what you will find in the garden, they might be another rare visitors from the north.

Little Spiderhunter

2010-12-21T07:22:00.003+08:00

Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra) a very small birds that with very long beak that differentiate them from sunbirds. I have not been able to capture any photo or seen them hunting spiders and would love to see it some times.

The torch ginger flower as seen on the photo above is one of their main food source.

Asian Brown Flycatcher Feeding

2010-12-04T21:16:00.000+08:00

Although they are called flycatcher, that doesn't means they will only catch flies and nothing else. This Asian Brown Flycatcher (Muscicapa dauurica) got a big prey, not a fly but a moth.
To stop the prey from struggling, the flycatcher hit it against the tree branch.

When the moth no longer move, the flycatcher put it down to take a rest.
It then move over to the other side, pick up the moth and realign it so that is easier to swallow.
Yes! It swallow the whole moth! Another satisfiying meal for this flycatcher.

Rufous Woodpecker's Tongue

2010-11-30T01:20:00.003+08:00

I always wonder how exactly did the woodpecker get the insects out of tree branches. Did they really peck on the tree branches until the insects are exposed and then consume it?

Some of my doubts are answered when I got the chance upon a Rufous Woodpecker (Celeus brachyurus). The woodpecker start to peck on the branch and after a while, it uses the tongue to do the finishing kill.

This crack on the branch gave the woodpecker a easier meal.

No doubt that the tongue play a very important role in woodpeckers' feeding behavior. However, I still have no clue on how exactly did they use their tongue to catch their preys. Do they have a sticky tongue like the lizards and use it to 'stick' their preys?

Perhaps video recording will help...

**Thank you YC for the link... "The woodpecker’s tongue is its most important tool when probing for larvae. It is extremely long, has specialised muscles that enable the bird to extend and retract it with ease, and the tip is covered with backward-pointing barbs. At the same time there are glands that secrete a sticky fluid. All these adaptations allow the bird to locate larvae hidden inside rotten wood and once located, to extract them."

Asian Glossy Starling

2010-11-26T04:08:00.000+08:00

Is not difficult to understand why they are called Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis panayensis). They usually move in flocks and and are very noisy.

Juvenile Asian glossy starling yet to moult to the glossy plumage.

This bird is in the midst of moulting and will eventually have the glossy plumage.
This is how it looks like from the back.Another bird that almost complete moulting to the glossy plumage.

Happy Moment Continues...

2010-11-23T03:18:00.002+08:00

I went back to check on the happy grey heron family last week end and the chicks already fledged and able to look for food themselves. On and off they will still go back to their nest and waiting to be fed b their parents. The parents will continue to feed their chicks for another one to two weeks even after they fledged.
Look at this young grey heron already a fully grown adult! It was sun bathing while waiting for parents.

Another sibling back to the nest and join the wait.
After about 10 minutes, the mother heron came back with foods.The mother feed one at a time, both chicks got their fair share.

After the feeding, the mother heron leave the nest to hunt for food and leave the 2 chicks behind. What a beautiful & happy family.

Buffet Meal

2010-11-20T19:01:00.002+08:00

We often see more food are wasted when they are serve in buffet style. The same thing happen to birds too!

This fig tree don't fruit everyday and every year when it fruits, it will attract lots of birds to feast on this rare opportunity - free meal and serve in buffet style!

This Pink-Necked Green Pigeon is having a hard time to choose which one to eat first!

It finally chosen a riped one red in colour.
Opppsss! miss it...is OK, there are lots more to choose!

The Ugly Duckling

2010-11-14T19:09:00.005+08:00

The pair of black swan is now prod parents of four! Both parents are black, interestingly their chick is white!...

Rings on Blue-Tailed Bee-Eaters

2010-11-08T09:54:00.004+08:00

Is the time of the year when migratory birds arrived from the north so as the Blue-Tailed Bee-Eater(Merops philippinus).

I saw a few of them this morning and what puzzle me was the rings on their wing. I can't find any info about the wing rings. I'm sure is for id purpose but usually the ringing are done on their leg instead of the wing. I took some of the photos when they fully extended their wings on flight. The feather arrangement seems affected by the ring.
Not too sure if their flight patterns affected as well? Anyone have any info about wing ringing?

Crested Myna

2010-11-07T16:54:00.004+08:00

I almost miss this familiar looking myna assuming that it is the usual myna that I seen in Singapore when I was at Taipei, Taiwan.

I took a few shot but didn't pay much attention to it until I cross check my list with the Taiwan bird list than I realised I might have missing something.

After checking the guide book and is confirmed that the myna that I took is actually another entire different species. I mistaken the Crested Myna with Javan Myna!

This is a Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus). One glance it look just like a Javan myna but if you look carefully, it have a different bill shape & colour. The Crested Myna also have a black with white undertail-coverts.

This is a Javan Myna (Acridotheres javanicus) taken in Singapore Botanic Garden. Javan myna have a clean white undertail-coverts.

I place them side by side, can you tell the difference now?

I took this shots at Taipei and it was raining quite heavily. Is also quite easy to tell the difference when compare with Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis) at below.

Birding Paradise

2010-10-30T22:38:00.013+08:00

Taiwan is really one of the good place for bird watching. I was at Taipei, the capital of Taiwan earlier this week just for bird watching. However, what I didn't expect was the rain. It rained from the day I arrived on Tuesday all the way to Saturday the day I return to Singapore. Nevertheless, it was a very fruitful trip. I achieve what I have planned including watching Sacred Ibis or Black Headed Ibis. I will talk about that in another post.

Since I am taking morning flight on Saturday so nothing was planned this morning after breakfast, I just sit by my window of my hotel's room just to see what are the bird(s) that live within the heart of Taipei City. Is not 1, or 2 or 3!! I only watch for 30minutes and it was already more than 9 species sighted! Imagine if we move away from the city for bird watching, I'm sure I will be overwhelmed by the rich biodiversity of Taiwan.

Another good reason for choosing Taiwan as a birding place mainly is the people here! They are so friendly and helpful. During my stay at Taipei, I met a few birders and they are from Wild Bird Society of Taipei, must thanks them for their very helpful tips.

台北果然是賞鳥的好去處。此行雖然遇到下雨天，從星期二我到達的第一天一直到我星期六離開都還沒有停止過。雨水除了帶來一些不便外，並沒有減低賞鳥的樂趣或對鳥況造成太大的影響。我還看到了我來此的目的 - 埃及聖鹮！

我星期六要乘早上的班機所以沒有安排賞鳥活動，早餐過後我就坐在窗邊看看到底有那些鳥兒會在忙碌的市區跟人類共同生活。

沒想到短短的半個小時，竟然看到至少有九種以上不同的鳥類！在飯店竟然也能夠賞鳥！真的令我刮目相看。如果是離開市區的話，可以想像鳥類將會是多到目不暇給！

我稍後在給你報導此行的所見鳥類。

我在台北其間還遇到幾位台北市野鳥學會的朋友，要在此特別的謝謝他們！

Eurasian Tree Sparrow 麻雀
Light-Vented Bulbul 白頭翁

Glossy Starling 輝椋鳥

European Magpie 喜鵲

White Wagtail 白鶺鴒

Rock Pigeon
Spotted Dove 斑頸鳩

Grey Tree Pie 樹鵲
Red Collared Dove 紅鳩

Happy Moment

2010-10-25T07:00:00.001+08:00

I still vividly remember when I was a child, I will wait anxiously every morning for my mum to return from the market. When my mum brought me my favourite peanut pan-cake from the market, I was so happy and contented and those are the momentous occasions that lingers in my memory till today.

I felt the same excitements when I was shooting a heronry at the north of Singapore last month! Seeing the chicks waiting anxiously and suddently jump in joy!
I'm not sure how the chicks knew that their parents is nearby, the chicks will get very excited & active before I even have the visual of the parents. There must be some form of communications that perhaps I didn't realize.
The chicks will rise from sitting and starts jumping and that prompt me that their parents is arriving.

The chicks can't wait to get their food from their parent.

I'm sure the food source is abundant as all the chicks got their fair share of food and they all look about the same size.Wow! This chick got a really huge eel for breakfast!

Is always an enjoyable experience to be able to watch and photograph feeding process. Feeding time means Happy Moment for me. How about you?

I Have Four Spoons

2010-10-12T14:08:00.017+08:00

Have you ever heard about crabs that having spoon shaped pincers? Instead of the usual sharp pointed pincers, these crabs with spoon tip pincers and they use these 'spoons' to scrap off algae from rock surface for feeding.

This is the crabs that having spoon tip pincers and usually can be found at coral rubber. They usually hide under the rocks during day time and will come out for feeding at night.

Oh My Hair!

2010-09-27T15:26:00.006+08:00

Is been a long time since I last take a real close-up photo of Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax). Is quite common however, is not easy to spot them as they hardly perch openly during day.
I saw this Night Heron last week end. This night heron is comfortable with me and did not go hiding although she knew my presence. Isn't she adorable, is so hilarious to watch when she do preening.

New Travel Companion

2010-09-18T17:00:00.009+08:00

"What lens should I bring for the trip?"... "What is the best lens I should get if I wanted to start nature photography?"... "Should I bring macro lens or zoom lens?"...

Regardless the level of photographer, one of the question I received the most about nature photography no other than type of lens to buy or to carry. Before I can answer this question, I always ask back "What do you intend to take then?". Types of lenses to bring very much depend on what we intend to take. Landscape, insects, birds or simply portrait. Each subject require a different lens as the distance between the subject and the camera is different. By identify the subjects, it helps to decide what lens to buy or to carry. Usually I will carry two lens with me, one zoom lens & one standard lens (that can act as macro too). However, if you intend to buy a Nikon camera, you can consider the new lens that just launched last month AFS-Nikkor 28-300mm / 3.5-5.6G ED VR. After years of feedback finally Nikon came out this lens that cover from landscape/portrait to even birds photography! You can use this lens as your travel lens or standard lens!

These are the photos I took using my this new travel companion without tripod as I wanted to try how good it is if I wanted to travel light.
Since this lens can zoom up to 300mm, I use it to shoot birds. I have no problem shooting both Mynas!Since this is a travel lens, very high chance that I will see something small and beautiful.... so I use this lens to shoot as macro. First this caterpillar. I then give it a more challenging task. The lens didn't fail me, look at the details of the photo above! So as this tissue paper like flower that just about 1.5cm wide.

More macro shots!

I then use it for landscape. I first shoot it with F22 with shuttle speed of 1/15sec. I then lower it to 1/2 sec to test the optical stabiliser (VR). Without tripod & filter I managed to create the effect as above.
Taking night shots is a breeze with the VR stabiliser. So if you are looking for a travel lens or simply want a 'multi-purpose' lens. Get this new lens from Nikon (if you are using Nikon camera...) This is my first choice of lens whenever I wanted to travel light.

Olive-Backed Sunbirds

2010-09-12T15:01:00.005+08:00

Olive-backed sunbird is one of the very common bird that can be found even in urban area. What do Olive-backed sunbird feed on?
Nectar is one of their main diet.
Through camera, we get to see what we usually missed just by our naked eyes. The nectar of Helicornia is richer than I thought. Just look at the nectar that splashed out from the flower!

They also feed on small insect & also spiders!

Water Monitor Lizard at SBWR

2010-09-05T15:26:00.007+08:00

Many times when I heard somebody shouting "Crocodile" in Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, very high chance is a water monitor lizard. From a distance they did looks like crocodile. Like with other reptiles, monitor lizards are cold blooded, which means they don't maintain their body temperature instead follow the environment.

Cold blooded also often refer to lacking feeling or emotion. Do monitor lizards really lack of feeling & emotion? Monitor lizards feed on anything that they can find and swallow including other monitor lizards!After seeing this monitor lizard keep the juvenile close to them at all time, they aren't really 'cold blooded' isn't it?
Judging from the size, the lizard on the left should be the father (male lizard are larger in size) and the mother on the right. What a happy family!

Monitor lizards use their fork-tongue to smells the air to look for food.
I am not sure if the monitor lizards also use their tongue to communicate as seen on this photo.

Monitor lizards is very common at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, check it out when you next visit there!

Semakau Guided Walk With SOTA

2010-08-29T21:37:00.005+08:00

Is has been a while since I last guided at Semakau! It was still raining very heavy when I left my house to Marina South Pier to catch the ferry to Semakau. However, it was all clear when I reach the pier.

After reaching Semakau, I give a short briefing on the history of Semakau and the landfill operation on the island. After the briefing, we walk to the entry point and stop short while for the participants to apply insect repellent and change their footwear to prepare for the inter-tidal walk. I have a group of 9 very sweet students from SOTA for the guided walk today. This is their first inter-tidal walk!
We need to walk through a forest to reach the inter-tidal area and the trail is famous with the 'Kamakaze' mosquitoes! It is recommended to apply insect repellent on all exposed area of the body.

After insect repellent, follow by sun-block lotion!
Since our group is named after crab, I make sure I introduce crab first. :)

Snapping shrimp is the next animal that we saw. The enlarge pincer of the snapping shrimp that give the snapping sound and it was use to stunt their prey as well as to deter their predator!
Common sea star have a very unique way of eating! The send their stomach to the food instead of sending food to mouth. Although they are called Common sea-star, they are now only common and can be found at off-shore island.

While crossing the sea grass area, we saw a dead cat fish some part have been eaten by crabs.
The participants can;t help but stop to look at how the swimming crab enjoying this big fish breakfast!

Next was this 'any money' - Anemones.
What a big surprise to see this cushion star that usually at the deeper water.

Is not easy to spot the hairy crab be it in or out of water! The participants take a closer look at this master of camouflage!

This shrimp burrow into the sands in less than a second!

This beautiful fan shape thing is not plant but worm - Fan worm

The participants is having fun with the empty crabs moult. Now they understand how the crabs moult and grow bigger and how the soft-shell crabs are prepared.

The fan shape thing is the feeding tentacles of the Synaptic sea-cucumber.

A beautiful big sea star with knobs on the back - Knobbly Sea Star!Since this big Knobbly sea star can not be found on the main land, the participants took a group photo with the Knobbly sea star.

It was a real wonderful trip! Thanks to the participants - you 'crabs' Rock!!! :)

Unlucky Day at SBWR

2010-08-28T16:52:00.010+08:00

It was a quiet Friday evening at the Main Bridge of Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. There's nothing better than just sit back and watch the kingfisher dive down with a very high speed from the tree branch to the river to hunt for fish.

I saw this Stork-billed kingfisher perched on a tree branch so I just sit back and wait for the kingfisher to hunt for food. I waited for 2 minutes before the kingfisher start hunting for food. The kingfisher dive down with a very high speed towards the river below from the tree branch. The kingfisher just touches the water surface and make a U turn back to the tree branch. I guess the kingfisher didn't managed to catch any fish.

The kingfisher just make a U-turn and back to the tree branch without any prey caught.The kingfisher just perch on the tree branch and looking for best time to make another try. The kingfisher strike again in less than 2 minutes and this time round it dive into the river directly.It must be the unlucky day for this kingfisher, the fish got away again for the 2nd time!

The kingfisher failed for the 2nd time in less than 3 minutes.

The kingfisher just make a U turn and back to the tree branch without and fish.

Desperate for food just before sun set, the kingfisher strike again in less than 2 minutes. In just a split of a second, the kingfisher dive into the river for the third time.

Yes! The kingfisher finally caught a fish! The kingfisher strikes 3 times in less than 5 minutes!

With the fish in the bill, the kingfisher flew back to the tree branch to enjoy his dinner. Based on this statistic, the success rate is only 33% which I think is rather low. I'm not sure if this is normal for Stork-billed Kingfisher.

Singapore 2010 Youth Olympic Games

2010-08-26T11:04:00.009+08:00

No birding or any nature trip for me last week end as I was at the first ever Youth Olympic Games, Singapore 2010!

One of the event that I watched was diving! This is also the first time that diving competition was conducted at night outdoor! Just as the spirit of the YOG, Friendship, Excellence & Respect. I got to know quite a few new friends throughout the YOG. Mr Heinz-Joseph Lenz all the way from USA is among one of my new friends. He and his family flew here to support their daughter - Annika Lenz who represent USA for the Aquatics Diving.

Annika Lenz before the competition.

These are some action shots of Annika and hope Lenz and his family have a wonderful stay at Singapore!

Brittlestars Heaven

2010-08-19T19:09:00.003+08:00

The inter-tidal area at Bali is known to be very rich in biodiversity. Last year, I spent 3 days there and only managed to explore a fraction of the entire inter-tidal area. The same thing happened this year, I couldn't cover the entire area and never will I expects that I will be trapped by thousand of brittlestars!!

They are every where and I have to basically watch every of my step so that I don't step on them!

I took a short clip with my mobile.

Birding, Bali??

2010-08-16T23:23:00.006+08:00

Birding at Bali?? Few years back the answer is no but situation are changing. One significant improvements will be the missing of cage bird trade from the market. Few years ago, wild birds are openly sold at market despite the ban.

I was at Bali last week and my guide told me that wild birds trade in market have been banned and no longer allowed. This explained why I couldn't find any stall that use to sell all kinds of wild birds in the market. With this improvements, the wild birds population will sure to increase.

However, while I was on the way to Mt Batur from Ubud for birding, I saw this small shop that still sell wild birds! Not sure the owner obtain the necessary approval.
Saw this Pied Bushchat at Mt Batur.

Spotted dove was very common and can be seen even in the hotel that we stayed.
Another common bird in the garden, Olive-backed sunbird.

Scaly-breasted munia is also very common and saw lots of nestling too.
Yellow-vented bulbul

Sooty-headed bulbul

Java munia

At Petulu, lots of cattle egret and herons are nestling.
Red junglefowl is also very common in remote area.

According to the villagers that I spoke to, cock fighting is history now. The fighting cock is now only as their pet.

With the enforcement from the Authority, Bali is sure on the way to become another birding area.

Ghost Shrimps Vs Brittle Star

2010-08-11T03:14:00.010+08:00

Thalasssinidean (Ghost) shrimps are burrowers, they construct branching burrows in muddy and sandy sediments or living in crevices under rocks and corals. This burrowing behavior makes them an important part of the marine environment.

During feeding and burrow construction, their constant movement helps mixing and transportation of particles and gases. The presence of burrows ultimately increases the oxygen content of the sediment leading to a healthier system.

Ghost shrimp maintain their burrow all the times.
They sometimes just wait in their burrow for the unlucky prey that make a wrong step. This Brittle star step on the wrong place and was immediately grab by the ghost shrimp.
The Ghost shrimp trying to pull the whole Brittle star into his burrow.

Just before the whole Brittle star got dragged into the burrow, the Brittle Star detach the arm that was grabbed by the ghost shrimp and escape The Ghost shrimp is back at the burrow entrance waiting for another unlucky prey after.

Brittle star that lost their arm can generate new arms and this have help them to escape from predators.

Monkey Business on a rainy day

2010-08-01T19:16:00.003+08:00

It has been raining since early morning and stay drizzle throughout the day. The rain are here to stay so I took my camera and set off to Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.
Perhaps is cold out there, I saw two long-tailed macaque behave like a couple deeply in love on a roof of a bungalow. They starts by kissing and follow by doing it in the rain!

The male just grab the female and turn in over to face the front and...

Looks like the population of the Long-tailed Macaque set to grow again!

The Hairy One

2010-07-28T03:18:00.000+08:00

We do know that birds feed on caterpillar. What if the bird got a real hairy caterpillar?
This Black-Naped Oriole (Oriolus chinensis) got herself a real big and hairy caterpillar. It hold the caterpillar and hit it against the tree branch real hard in order to remove the hair. As you can see from the photo above, slowly but surely it worked!

The irritating hair did help the caterpillar from some predators but obviously failed against this beautiful Black-Naped Oriole!

Olive-Backed Sunbird

2010-07-24T18:52:00.006+08:00

My last trip to the North Sulawesi indeed was an eye opener for me.

When I first saw this beautiful sunbird, is so familiar and yet not too sure if this is an Olive-backed sunbird. Something was different from the Olive-backed sunbird that I used to see back in Singapore.

After double check on the guidebook when return to Singapore than I realise this one indeed a Olive-backed Sunbird and belongs to another sub-species - Nectarinia jugularis plateni (sulawesi). The main difference is the yellow facial-strips (as shown in the photo above)

These are the Olive-backed Sunbird that I used to see in Singapore and belongs to N. j. ornata. Very similar to the sunbird that I saw in Sulawesi but without the yellow strips.

There is always something new and something to learn on every trip! Wow!

Reference used: Birds of South-East Asia (New Holland), Birds of Wallacea (Dove).

Raining Birds

2010-07-19T16:33:00.005+08:00

Despite the heavy downpour and flash flood yesterday, we proceed with our planned birding trip to Pulau Ubin. We share a cab in order to reach Changi Jetty before 7.30am, CHL stay furthest, so he get a cab first and pick me up before we pick Ling. We arrive at Pulau Ubin as planned right before 8am.
The first bird that I saw was this very shy Lesser Coucal. It may looks very similar to Greater Coucal from far, however Lesser Coucal is smaller and with the very distinctive white streaks which Greater Coucal don't haveOne of the reason we want to reach Ubin early is to catch this pair of White-bellied Sea Eagle. They will perch here early in the morning and will flew off when the temperature rises.

A curious Yellow-Vented Bulbul checking on us.I saw this Blue-throated Bee-eater last week being fed and is now hunting his own food today.

A Common Myna that once very common now are found usually near coastal area. The weather changed rather fast and it was drizzling and we know is time we head back to the mainland.

Once back to mainland at Changi Village, we go for breakfast while waiting for the sky to clear. Saw these flocks of Rock pigeon fly in a straight line so I just took a shot of it.

There is no sign that the rain will stop so we proceed with our birding with umbrella around the Changi Village. AS usual, is not difficult to locate this very noisy but beautiful Pink-breasted Parakeet.
This pair of Tanimbar Corella in a lovey dovey mood...

Not a bad idea to go for birding in a raining day!

Feeding Behavior of Bee-eater

2010-07-14T07:12:00.005+08:00

As the name suggest bees and wasps formed main diet of bee-eaters but they also feed on most flying insect such as dragonfly. I’m particularly delighted to watch the bee-eater ‘process’ their prey before consuming it or feed it to their juvenile.

When the bee-eater caught a bee or wasp, the bee-eater will repeatedly hit and rub them on the tree branch and at the same time add pressure onto the prey. This will remove most of the venom from their prey. Only then the prey is considered safe for consumption.

I saw this pair of Blue-throated Bee-eater (Merops viridis) last week during my trip to Pulau Ubin.

The juvenile (just fledged and without the brown caped) on the left patiently waiting while the parent is processing the bee.

The adult bee-eater hold the prey in the bill and hit it against the tree branch that she perched on several time.
The bee-eater will at the same time add pressure onto the prey to force most of the venom out from the prey.

Only when the prey is considere safe for consumption, the adult bee-eater will feed it to their juvenile.
The adult carefully place the bee into the open bill of the juvenile.

The adult will just watch the juvenile slowly consume the processed food.
What a beautiful sight! "Like father like son!" or you may say "Like mother like daughter!
"

Another Exciting Pulau Ubin Trip

2010-07-11T20:23:00.008+08:00

It was quiet than usual when I arrived at Pulau Ubin (a small off-shore island at the north of Singapore) this morning. Perhaps the World Cup match between Germany & Uruguay finish at local time 4.30am partly the reason. Since the traffic is low, I suppose it will be a better chance to spot more birds?

I did have a really fruitful trip this morning and below are some of the photos that I have taken this morning. Just a few minutes walk once I off from the main road I saw a flock of Red-Breasted Parakeet (Psittacula alexandri) Being a noisy birds, is not difficult to spot them when they are nearby.

Saw this huge wasp at the side of the road and perhaps this also explain the high number of Bee-eaters around this area.
A pair of mother and juvenile Blue-throated Bee-eater were spotted just a few steps from where I saw that wasp.

A very colourful Pink-neck green pigeon hiding among the leaves. If the pigeon stay still, it will not be easy to spot them.

A Little Tern was spotted flew pass on top of meHuge red bill Stork-billed Kingfisher patiently perch on the tree waiting for prey.

Oriental Magpie Robin, bird that almost go extinct due to cage bird industry sometimes ago make a comeback after it was re-introduced.

Peaceful Dove taking sun bath under the morning sunlight.

As the temperature soar, this Scaly-Breasted Munia take shelter under the leaves.

A juvenile Scaly-Breasted munia is taking shelter from the hot sun too.

A really tiny bird that less than 9cm, a Scarlet-Backed Flowerpecker.

As the temperature continue to soar, I decided to call it a day as I also need to catch some sleep to be ready for tonight World Cup final at 2.30am local time.

My First Wallacea Birding

2010-07-07T22:06:00.007+08:00

The first time I visited Manado, North Sulawesi was about 2 years ago on a 7 days dive trip. This time round, birding was added as part of the itinerary on top of just diving. I starts off with 3 days diving at Lembeh Straits, Lembeh is one of the best muck diving destination in the world before make our way to Tangkoko Nature Reserves.

I have never been bird watch at any of the area within the Wallacea boundary and Sulawesi is within the Wallacea boundary. Since this is going to be my first birding trip in Wallacea, any birds that we saw could be an endemic species!

We arrived at the reserves around 3pm and after settle down and rest for an hour, we set off at 5pm for our 1st night walk with our Ranger. The first mammal that we came across was the crested black macaques. It was about time for them to settle down and rest for the day. We move on deeper into the forest to look for the elusive yet super cute Tarsiers. Our ranger ask us to stop and wait around a big tree and told us to just wait till the surrounding get dark. Since Tarsiers are nocturnal animals, they will leave their nest for hunting at night. Suddenly we heard a rustling of leaves and branches in the nearby bushes. The Park Ranger quickly turned his torch in the direction of the noise, and yes! Is the Tarsiers!! They are so cute, is an amazing experience to be able to see this elusive tiny creature up close! After about few minutes, the ranger switch off the light to let the Tarsiers carry on their activities and switch the torch back on after the Tarsiers disappeared in the dense forest.

What an amazing experience to be able to see Tarsiers up close!

While on the way back to our cabin, the ranger show us the 1st bird of the trip! An endemic Sulawesi Scops-owl (Otus manadensis)!

Sulawesi Scops-owl (Otus manadensis)

I set my ISO to the highest to avoid using flash. I took a few shot as the ranger shine on the owl. The light from the torch is just good enough for me to focus and make some shots without causing too much stress for the bird. We sleep rather early on the first night as we will be going to the forest again the next morning around 4.30am.

We set off at 4.30am sharp and were greeted by flocks of Great Eared Nightjar.

We were at the forest all the way till about 1pm before we go back to our cabin. We were out for birding again in the afternoon at 4pm but this time round we were on the boat, travel around the coastal area into the mangrove. As we were too tired, we didn’t go for night walk and check out the next morning.

It was an fantastic birding trip. We were there for just 2 days and more than 40 species of birds have been observed with more than half of them endemic. These are some of the birds that we saw in just 2 days.

Silver-tipped Imperial Pigeon (Ducula luctuosa)

Green-backed Kingfisher (Actenoides monachus)

Knobbed Hornbill (Rhyticeros cassidix)
Not difficult to look for Yellow-billed Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus calyorhynchus), as they are always nearby Crested Black Macaques.
Crested Black Macaques. When they move from tree to tree, insect are flush out of the tree and exposed them to the waiting Yellow-Billed Malkoha.

White-breasted Wood-swallow (Artamus leucorhynchus)
I have no idea what bird is this with lots of worn out feathers.

Looks familiar yet different from the usual Brown-throated Sunbird, this is a sub-species of Brown-throated Sunbird ( Anthreptes malacensis heliocalus)
Another sub-species of Olive-backed Sunbird (Nectarinia jugularis plateni )

Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis)
Chestnut Munia (Lonchura atricapilla)

Tangkoko is worth to go back again and again!

The Living Planet

2010-07-03T19:22:00.002+08:00

I attended this part of The Living Planet series at National Geographic Store at Vivo City - "Conservation in the heart of Borneo - Photography as a tool for change" . I've been to Borneo last year for a photography trip. Is a paradise for all nature photographer but it will not last long if nothing is done about it now.

Conservation does not always equal to sacrifice development. What is important is the balance and sustainable development.

Mattias Klum share with the audience about his experience in Borneo and how we can help to protect it. He is quite an inspiring speaker, I must say!

It was a huge turnout and is full house!

If you happens to be at Vivo, go to National Geographic Store to take a look at Klum's photos that are on display now.

Intraspecific Competition of Little Heron

2010-07-01T14:57:00.007+08:00

Competition is unavoidable when the population growth at high densities. At higher densities, resources will become limited as such the effect of intraspecific competition will happen. Intraspecific Competition refer to competition for resources within the same species.

I am fortunate enough to witness the intraspecific competition between 2 Little Heron (Butorides striatus) while I was on a birding trip at North Sulawesi.

This Little Heron happily landed near a coastal area thinking to feed while the tide is low.

Almost immediately, the other Little Heron that already started feeding earlier at the same location move in to protest to the 'intruder'.

A fierce fighting is looks set to happen...
After few rounds of chasing, eviction, display of muscle,...
The 'intruder' decided to back off.

The incumbent Little Heron managed to defense her territory and the 'intruder' just flew off to other location.

Morning Trip to Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve

2010-06-20T16:23:00.007+08:00

I was at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve this morning for a quick tour and here are some of the animals that I saw.
Immediately after the info counter, saw this Pink Neck Green Pigeon busy collecting nesting materials.

Under the Main Bridge, saw this Little Heron busy feeding in the river during low tide.
I turn back to The Mangrove Boardwalk and saw a flock of juvenile Scaly-breasted Munia. Along the boardwalk, I saw another 2 different tailorbird.

A Rufous-tail Tailorbird
and also a Ashy Tailorbird.

This Common Iora have a few different calls and I suppose it serves different purpose such as mating or distress call.

Another noisy bird will be this Collared Kingfisher.
Another kingfisher that I saw is this Stork-billed Kingfisher with a very distinctive large bill.

This Crested-Serpent Eagle very cleverly perch beside a tree trunk and this have helped the bird to camouflage with the environment.

I also saw quite a few number of Purple-throated Sunbird.

Saw this worm crawling under the boardwalk. It will turn to a big meal for birds in no time to craw out of the burrow.
For one I am higher than the squirrel! Saw this squirrel jumping around below the boardwalk.

When I turn back to the Main Bridge, the tide is even lower. The Croc is now exposed due to the low water level.

This are the sequential shots of the fish jumping out of the water. The fish will jump above the water when the are chase by predator or when they hit the shallow water during low tide.

A rather beautiful Common Bluebottle butterfly.

Managed to take a shot of this dragonfly in flight.

Although is now not the bird migratory season, yet still managed to see a lot of interesting animals. Not a bad trip.

Hand in Hand

2010-06-20T00:28:00.006+08:00

Saw this pair of Milky Stork (Mycteria cinerea) flew pass rather interesting. It looks like they are holding each other while gliding. Just like us human walking hand-in-hand!

Nut Cracker

2010-06-14T11:31:00.013+08:00

You might think that these photos was taken in the Bird Park isn't it? No! It was taken in one of the most frequently visited public beach. These photos was taken at Changi beach to be exact. All photos & video were taken with just my compact camera! It was not a birding trip so I did not carry my standard birding equipment.

These cute cockatoo birds are in fact introduced to Singapore through bird trade few decades ago. Some escaped and have established here in Changi. They are called Tanimbar Cockatoo (Cacatua goffini).

At times you can even see flocks of up to 30 looking for their favourite food on the ground. However, it was not these colourful flowers that they are looking for.

Their favourite food is the Sea Almond fruit/nut.
Their powerful bill can easily crack open the fruits and go for the nut inside.

The Sea Almond fruit was crack opened neatly and the birds only interested in the nut that sit right in the middle.

This clip was taken with just my compact camera and see for yourself how smart these birds are.

Mass Coral Bleaching at Tioman Island

2010-06-08T06:46:00.009+08:00

Coral bleaching

Anemones bleached too...

Mass Corals Bleaching at Tioman

2010-06-07T11:37:00.005+08:00

I was at Tioman over the last week end to show support for my friend, PT who are taking the Open Water Certification.

Suppose to be a leisure dive but turn out to be a sad experience to witness the coral reef going thru another mass coral bleaching.

The bigger the corals, the hardest they are hit!
Not just corals, sea anemones bleached too!
Hard corals, soft corals.... all bleached.

Free living Mushroom corals bleached too.

'Nemos' (Clown fish) celebrating White Christmas!

Comparison between bleached anemones...

Chek Jawa on 1st Jun 2010

2010-06-01T15:05:00.006+08:00

The first thing I saw from a distance when I arrived at the Chek Jawa Boardwalk this morning was these 2 birds. They are crossing path!
The Grey Heron & White-bellied Sea Eagle are like 'rubbing shoulders'! Not sure what are they up to initially.

When they start to pull a part, now is clear that the sea eagle is in the hunting position!

Yes! The white-bellied sea eagle got his prey!
Both of them go the separate way...
The grey heron decided to look for food at the water edge.

Oh! Is a nice Ball Sea Cucumber!
and Sea Anemones too!

There are lots of small fishes in the tidal pool! Is a relief that I don't see any casualty after the oil spills clean up!
The fiddler crabs are doing just fine as well!

Nice Collared Kingfisher waiting for his prey too.
Another bird that actively feeding is this Great-Billed Heron.

With all this signs, the situation at Chek Jawa is quite promising. Hopefully this good sign will continue.

Singapore Half Day Tour

2010-05-30T17:16:00.008+08:00

It was about two months ago since CS Ling join me for nature photography in Singapore. We have been trying to schedule another outing without success due to her super busy work schedule.

Finally she is able to spare some time this morning (confirmed only yesterday), thanks to the long week end. We visited 3 areas this morning! We start off from Bidadari. Bidadari is a defunct cemetery and all the graves have been exhumed pending for redevelopment.

We spent about 2 hours there before we proceed to Singapore Botanic Garden. Since Ling wanted to recce Wallace Trail for her upcoming workshop with a group of primary school students, we have prata at SBG as lunch and follow by Dairy Farm Nature Park for the Wallace Trail.

These are some of the photos we took this morning... A rather uncommon and beautiful Blue Pansy

Green Baron

Common Mormon
Paddy field Pipit (Anthus rufulus)Long-Tailed Parakeet (Psittacula longicauda)

Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis panayensis) taking off
Scarlet-Backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum cruetatun)

Changeable lizard

Coppersmith Barbet (Megalaima baemacephala)

Pink-Necked Green Pigeon (Treron vernans)

Javan Myna (Acridotheres javanicus)

Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris)

3 juvenile Asian Glossy Starling is begging for food from their mother

Lineated Barbet (Megalaima lineata)

Blue-Throated Bee-Eater (Merops viridis)

Another Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris)

Common Iora (Aegithina tiphia)

Once a very popular souvenirs...Saga Seeds

A very common Plantain Squirrel

A very cute Variable Squirrel

With the heavy downpour, we end our exciting half day Singapore Nature Tour!

Oil Spill at Chek Jawa

2010-05-29T13:11:00.011+08:00

Is probably every Singapore nature lovers nightmare - oil spill have hit Chek Jawa!!!

I was at Chek Jawa this morning and the rescue operation is still going on there. Oil marks remain on this palm tree after the cleaning of this part of beach has been done.

This could be the result from yesterday cleaning awaiting for disposal.

Either the impact was so light or the effect was not felt yet as the fiddler crab seems to be OK at this point of time. I didn't check the inter-tidal area as I was only observe from the boardwalk.

Sekudu seems clear...

However, boardwalk nearer to house No 1 is not so lucky. Rescue/cleaning work is still in progress and you can even see from far...the pillar are stained with thick layer of oil!

Sausage like float was used to prevent the oil from hitting the shore?

A closer look at the float

Worker are rushing against time to remove oil from the fragile shore

Oils that hit Chek Jawa shore

A close up look on the the foreign object deposit that landed on the Chek Jawa shore.

Hats off to these worker in keeping the shore clean.

Video footage on the cleaning work.

More rescue workers are mobilised!

Oil At East Coast Beach as at 27 May 2010

2010-05-27T10:44:00.005+08:00

As at this morning 27th May, 2 days after the collision off the east coast despite the containment, traces of oil can still be seen on the favourite East Coast Beach.
The sea water are chocolate colour near the water edge.

Beach are stained with oil marks.

These floating debris was a shore with oil stained.

Thick oil stains on the sand.
Workers are working hard in clearing the oils and debris stained with oil from the beach.

Spotted Wood Owl Preening

2010-05-23T20:41:00.009+08:00

Is always an enjoyable experience to watch the behavior of the birds in the wild. I was lucky enough to have found this beautiful large owl - Spotted Wood Owl (Strix seloputo).

Since owl is an nocturnal bird, which means they will roosts in the day and only active in the night. There are several reasons why animals show nocturnal behaviour, avoid predation being the number one reason, get away from the heat, competition for food, etc.

I have been visiting this owl several times this week on different time but all in the day and this have given me more knowledge about this bird and at the same time also more questions too! Do nocturnal birds preen in the day or night?

I have seen this owl yawn, doing stretching as well as preening in the day! Not sure if this is normal for just Spotted Wood Owl or is there any other nocturnal birds showing the same behaviour?

At times the owl will yawn, in the middle of roosts

Stretching of wings

Stretching of wing & leg

Preening

More preening

Give me a Five... or Three!

The owl was seen preening in the day several time and will continue to roosts.

I have it on video during one of my visit showing the owl doing preening in the middle of the day!