Changi, Tuas 02Jan10

From JS

Today, Con, Danny, KH & I went to Changi Cove, Sungei Buloh and Tuas and we came one step closer of achieving my target of 12 raptors.

Here's a summary of the raptors sighted at each location:

Changi Cove
1) Black Baza (>7)
2) Common Buzzard (>2)
3) Oriental Honey Buzzard (>3)
4) Juvenile Japanese Sparrowhawk (1)
5) Adult Chinese Sparrowhawk (1)
6) Brahminy Kite (>3)
7) White-Bellied Sea Eagle (2)
8) Black-Winged Kite (>5)
9) Changeable Hawk Eagle (2)

Neo Tiew Lane
10) Osprey (1)

Tuas
WBSE (1)
Black-Winged Kite (2)

That's about everything there is to share on raptors.

At SBWR, I saw a terek-like greenshank at main hide. The bird was feeding at the far end of the pond on the left. It had yellow legs, upturned bill and unbarred uppertail/uppertail-covert. I couldn't make out the bi-color bill from afar even with 60x zoom nor the appearance. The yellow legs was easy to make out because there were some non-breeding marsh sandpipers and an upright greenish-grey-legged common greenshank. From afar, the uppertail bars would be hard to see but I was lucky to see the bird flying, together with the marsh sandpipers, further away from me, showing its uppertail/uppertail-coverts to me.

Although these features seem to point towards the NG, they are rather inconclusive without thorough observations being made. A point in case is the presence of a yellow-legged common greenshank near the suspected NG, which has a black "shoulder", streaky appearance and straight bill. Still, I am sure that there is a realistic chance of it being a NG. Worth checking out.

Shifting your attention to the last site of the day, Tuas, I saw a male Blue-breasted Quail near the flock of PGPs. Initially, I heard a wader-like call from the grass but couldnt see the bird. Approaching nearer to the sound but in the direction of the hiding flock of PGPs, I flushed a blue tennis ball. It had dark dangling legs, dark short bill, bluish wings, breast, belly and patches of chestnut. Alas, I found my quail. But, couldn't find the suspected agp.

Japanese Sparrowhawk ©Lau JS

Juvenile pale morph Oriental Honey Buzzard ©Con Foley

Same bird ©Danny Lau

Common Buzzard and Black-winged Kite ©Tan KH

I have attached 3 photos of 3 different OHB. (1 pale morph adult, 1 dark morph adult and 1 dark morph juv that was flying with the common buzzards.) ©Lau JS

Regarding the 3 raptors thermalling high up in the sky, 2 of them were Common Buzzards and the third is the aforementioned dark morph juv OHB. (see attached photo of the 2 common buzzards flying together.) Looks like the airport sentries need to have some exercise during their noon lunch break. ©Lau JS