Crested Myna

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.

Myna - Common or Javan?

Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis) was one of the very common birds in Singapore once but was loosing grounds to their cousin Javan Myna (Acridotheres javanicus).

I find Common Myna more and more photogenic thus decided to do a posting just on Common Myna. This good looking bird have a black head, brown body, bright yellow beak, eye patch, and legs. Below are some of the photos I took last Sunday when I visits Pulau Ubin with Ling.
The Common Myna is just so beautiful when capture on photos.

This is the same photo that I posted on Monday showing a thirsty Myna drinking water.
Since birds don't carry tissue paper or handkerchief, they just wipe their beak on the tree branches after drinking water.

Another photo of Common Myna on flight.From far both Common & Javan Myna looks very similar. Just in case you are not sure which is which, this is the Javan Myna, without the very distinctive eye patch. Does it looks like a big bully?

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In most places (nature area) like this, it will be good if there are network that we can log on to check the huge resources available such as Google and MSN or email friends/experts to find out the facts/info. We can even search photos library such as Flickr to compare what we just spotted...

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Birds at Singapore Botanic Garden

This is the continuation from my last post on Singapore Botanic Garden. Other than the beautiful duck that I have posted earlier, there are many interesting sighting in the garden too.Up on a very tall tree, I saw a pair of Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis) building their love nest converted from a hole on the tree. I tried from different angle, but didn’t able to see if there is any chicks in the nest. Perhaps got to come back again and check it out.The birds in & out of the nest taking turns quite often.Managed to get a shot showing the changing shift in progress.Looks like is feeding the chicks but I don't have a visual.On another branch slightly higher than the Myna nest, I saw another nest that looks like a House Crow‘s nest.I saw a big bird sneakily move to the nest direction.On a closer look, it was a female Asian Koel (Eudynamys scolopacea). Asian Koel are known to be brood parasite. This Asian Koel must be trying to lay eggs in the nest and expect the host to incubate and feed their chick until they fledged.Across the field on the palm tree opposite, I saw big flock of Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis panayensis) perch on the palm leaves. There are at least few hundreds of them with more than half of them are juveniles.Young Starling has a very different plumage from the adult starling. They are not black as seen on the normal adult starling but appear to be scaly. The big numbers of off-spring show that the food supplies in the garden must be good. An adult Asian glossy starling snatch a piece of bread left behind by a tourist and later found it sharing with another juvenile Starling.

I’m not sure if it is feeding the juvenile or the juvenile actually try to intercept the food from another adult starling.

I saw a dark shadow slightly bigger than a carpenter bee flew pass me over to the palm tree on the opposite. Oh it was a fledgling yellow-vented burbul (Pycnonotus goiavier).

Looks like is now the peak of the breeding season for birds in the SBG.

Uncommon, Common Myna

Perhaps Common Myna is too common that we ignore the facts that they are beautiful bird to watch too. Although Common Myna do not have colourful feathers, when capture on photos with high speed, it is beautiful!

Photo above were taken in Ubin showing Common Myna prepare to land from flight . Isn't Common Myna beautiful?