BBNP, Hindhede 11-22Dec05

Con at Hindhede on 11 Dec, Sun

Flowerpeckers and Flycatchers were reported at Hindhede Nature Park. Didn't see any flycatchers, but did see other NSS members looking for flycatchers. Did see this Oriental White-Eye, which was a new bird for me.

Danny at Hindhede and BBNP on 15 Dec, Thu

Reached Hindhede around 7.10 am but at the Quarry viewing corner there were a group of featherless birds working out yoga moves - enough space for JS to spend half an hour to pick out two Mugimaki flycatchers. Being squeezed out, spent some time to check out any cuckoo - no luck, only the usual Greater Racket tailed Drongos, Laced & Banded Woodpeckers, tailorbirds... but spotted a few Grey-rumped Treeswifts over the Quarry.

Shifted over to BBNP after 9 am. Starting from the BB East Ave 2 CP route towards the Quarry pond, sighted most of the usual resident birds... laughing thrushes, woodpeckers, sunbirds... and three Straw-headed Bubuls (managed a few back lit shoots) but no sign of flycatchers. Met an NSS member and info from her was they were over at the Transmission tower side.

Drove over but around the steps towards memorial site, grass cutting in progress, instead went to the back and located most of the flowerpeckers including the Thick-billed, Scarlet-backed... the trees pretty tall required scopes to id these relative small and active birds. The Green Imperial-pigeon appeared briefly and I was fortunate to spot it for a few seconds. Due to some other appointment stopped around 11 am.

Yamane-san has a book written in Japanese with a reference to Raptor Watch in Malaysia. Every year the Malaysian Nature Society sponsors a Raptor Watch weekend at Tanjung Tuan just North of Malacca to see the raptors crossing the Straits of Malacca on their Northward journey to their summer breeding grounds.

JS at Hindhede and BBNP on 17 Dec, Sat

The Mugimakis are at Hindhede from 7 am to 7.30 am, so most probably all of you have missed it. Nevertheless, sightings at BBNP are confirmed together with the Thick-billed and Yellow-vented Flowerpeckers. My father and I went there in the afternoon and met Kim Chuah who had difficulty finding the rare flowerpeckers due to height and weather. However, the Mugimaki was a common sight. Two of them jumping happily about the trees even though they are biased to the macaranga tree. We came and helped him but apparently, he appeared both confused and lucky as he sighted the Yellow-vented Flowerpecker. There were aplenty of birds on the mistletoe plant and its host. Con, Maybe you should try BBNP tomorrow. Find the macaranga tree which is located opposite the mistletoe plant and its host with the steps in the middle. The flycatchers are there and may stay for a while, enough for a good photo of it. Hope to receive a picture of the Mugimaki Flycatcher taken by you. :)

Just a short summary of our meeting with Kim Chuah. We spotted him at the stairs birding and I used my bino and identified him. We exchanged greetings and shared our sightings with him. Soon, we started birding. The scope was better than the bino in identifying the birds in the mistletoe canopy. Nevertheless, with his knowledge and bino, he still spotted the Yellow-vented Flowerpecker jumping cheerfully among the mistletoes. That was the only rare bird that I have not seen in BBNP even though I caught some glimpse of it with my bino. :( Somehow, I was more fortunate than Kim Chuah, as I had 2 days to identify the birds found there and he had only one. He came because of Kim Seng's sighting of the Thick-billed Flowerpecker which he failed to catch even a glimpse of the bird. Surprisingly, we saw the bird not on the mistletoe canopy but on a tree across the road. Soon, it rained. We went back to the cars to seek shelter. Kim Chuah is one of those crazy birders who birds in the rain. He tried to identify the Glossy Swiftlet which we told him that they were there in the rain. The rain got heavier so we left. Before we left, he told us about his Sunday's birding plan which was coming back here in the morning. That's the end of the summary of our meeting with a crazy birder, Lim Kim Chuah.

Here are some shots of the Mugimaki from Danny:

Yamane enlightens us on the meaning of Mugimaki:

BTW, "Mugimaki" is Japanese language.
It's divided into two parts, "Mugi" and "Maki".
"Mugi" means "wheat". "Maki" means "To seed".
"Mugimaki" means "the bird appearing at the season seeding wheat in the field".
Mugimaki Flycatcher only go through Japan. Not breed there.

Some shots from Con: Banded Woodpecker, Greater Racquet-tailed Drongo and White-crested Laughingthrush.

Con at BBNP on 18 Dec, Sun

I did try BBNP for about an hour this morning around 10:30 - 11:30 am. You could hear all the little flowerpeckers chirping up in the mistletoe canopy, but trying to identify them with binoculars was almost impossible, and not possible to take pictures. However, I did run into Alan Owyong and his wife and Low BW; they definitely helped with the identification, although they were just using binos and had a hard time seeing too. But we did see Yellow-vented up in the canopy, although it was not a great sighting. And an Orange-bellied came down and perched in a tree almost at eye-level long enough for us to get binos on him and a good sighting, but not long enough for a photo. I think they saw a few more than me, and they said the Mugimaki was there also.

Con at BBNP on 22 Dec, Thu

I was at BBNP again and got the Thick-billed Flowerpeckers.