Admiralty Park 13Jun24

From KH

A short walk around Admiralty Park did not reveal anything much: https://ebird.org/checklist/S181165263

Admiralty Park 08Feb19

From KH

I went to Admiralty Park to twitch for the Slaty-legged Crake that apparently was reported here since Dec 2018! Others present included Lim KK, Veronica, Keita & friend, Martin & friend.

At about 6:20pm, the bird appeared out of nowhere to take a bath at a little pond along the trail. After a few minutes, it was gone, apparently for good, as people who subsequently looked for it could not find it.

1. dark swiftlet sp. 20
2. White-breasted Waterhen 2
3. Slaty-legged Crake 1
4. Changeable Hawk-Eagle 1 - heard
5. Pin-striped Tit-Babbler 2
6. Olive-backed Sunbird 1

Admiralty Park 10Dec18

From KH

A short retreat at Admiralty Park yielded the following common birds, and an Oriental Whip Snake.

1. 2 Pink-necked Pigeon
2. 5 dark swiftlet sp.
3. 2 White-breasted Waterhen
4. 1 Blue-tailed Bee-eater
5. 1 Lineated Barbet
6. 1 Laced Woodpecker
7. 2 Long-tailed Parakeet
8. 1 Golden-bellied Gerygone - Heard
9. 1 Common Iora - Heard
10. 2 Black-naped Oriole
11. 1 Yellow-vented Bulbul
12. 1 Olive-winged Bulbul
13. 1 Arctic Warbler - Heard
14. 1 Asian Brown Flycatcher
15. 5 Asian Glossy Starling
16. 3 Javan Myna

Admiralty Park 04Dec18

From KH

A short lunchtime walk around Admiralty Park.

1. 1 Spotted Dove
2. 10 dark swiftlet sp.
3. 3 White-breasted Waterhen
4. 1 Yellow Bittern
5. 1 Changeable Hawk-Eagle
6. 1 Blue-tailed Bee-eater
7. 1 Sunda Woodpecker - Heard
8. 1 Common Iora - Heard
9. 2 Black-naped Oriole - Heard
10. 3 Yellow-vented Bulbul
11. 1 Common Tailorbird - Heard
12. 1 Ashy Tailorbird - Heard
13. 1 Pin-striped Tit-Babbler - Heard
14. 15 Asian Glossy Starling
15. 1 Plain-throated Sunbird
16. 2 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 05Nov18

From KH

After lunch short half-hour walk in the park yielded the following 13 species:

1. 2 Spotted Dove
2. 10 dark swiftlet sp.
3. 1 Black-naped Oriole
4. 2 Yellow-vented Bulbul
5. 1 Olive-winged Bulbul - Heard
6. 1 Common Tailorbird - Heard
7. 2 Oriental White-eye
8. 2 Asian Brown Flycatcher - Heard
9. 5 Asian Glossy Starling
10. 5 Javan Myna
11. 2 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker - Heard
12. 1 Plain-throated Sunbird
13. 1 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 11Jul18

From KH

Pin-striped Tit-babbler were very active even in the afternoon (handphone shot).

Green Crested Lizard basking in the sun.

1. 1 Changeable Hawk-Eagle - Heard
2. 1 White-breasted Waterhen
3. 1 Spotted Dove
4. 1 Asian Koel - Heard
5. 1 Little Bronze-Cuckoo - Heard
6. 3 Collared Kingfisher
7. 1 Blue-throated Bee-eater
8. 1 Laced Woodpecker - Heard
9. 1 Golden-bellied Gerygone - Heard
10. 3 Common Iora
11. 2 Black-naped Oriole
12. 3 Yellow-vented Bulbul
13. 2 Common Tailorbird - Heard
14. 2 Ashy Tailorbird
15. 1 Yellow-bellied Prinia - Heard
16. 4 Pin-striped Tit-Babbler
17. 5 Asian Glossy Starling
18. 2 Javan Myna
19. 1 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
20. 2 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 05Mar18

From KH

1. 4 White-breasted Waterhen
2. 4 Spotted Dove
3. 1 Asian Emerald Dove
4. 5 Pink-necked Pigeon
5. 1 Brush Cuckoo
6. 20 dark swiftlet sp.
7. 1 White-throated Kingfisher - Heard
8. 1 Collared Kingfisher
9. 4 Blue-throated Bee-eater
10. 2 Laced Woodpecker - A pair
11. 5 Long-tailed Parakeet
12. 1 Blue-crowned Hanging-Parrot
13. 1 Common Iora - Heard
14. 1 Black-naped Oriole
15. 1 Malaysian Pied-Fantail
16. 5 Yellow-vented Bulbul
17. 1 Dark-necked Tailorbird - Heard
18. 3 Pin-striped Tit-Babbler
19. 4 Asian Glossy Starling
20. 1 Common Hill Myna - Heard
21. 2 Javan Myna
22. 2 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 20Feb18

From KH

1. 4 White-breasted Waterhen
2. 4 Spotted Dove
3. 1 Asian Emerald Dove - Heard
4. 5 Pink-necked Pigeon
5. 1 Brush Cuckoo
6. 20 dark swiftlet sp.
7. 1 White-throated Kingfisher - Heard
8. 1 Collared Kingfisher
9. 4 Blue-throated Bee-eater
10. 2 Laced Woodpecker - A pair
11. 5 Long-tailed Parakeet
12. 1 Blue-crowned Hanging-Parrot
13. 1 Common Iora - Heard
14. 1 Black-naped Oriole
15. 1 Malaysian Pied-Fantail
16. 5 Yellow-vented Bulbul
17. 1 Dark-necked Tailorbird - Heard
18. 3 Pin-striped Tit-Babbler
19. 4 Asian Glossy Starling
20. 1 Common Hill Myna - Heard
21. 2 Javan Myna
22. 2 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 24Jan18

From KH

Got this Mangrove St Andrew's Cross Spider (Argiope mangal) during my evening walk.

1. 1 Striated Heron
2. 3 White-breasted Waterhen
3. 3 Pink-necked Pigeon
4. 2 dark swiftlet sp.
5. 1 Collared Kingfisher
6. 1 Red-breasted Parakeet
7. 2 Long-tailed Parakeet
8. 1 Common Iora
9. 2 Black-naped Oriole
10. 1 Yellow-vented Bulbul
11. 3 Asian Glossy Starling
12. 5 Javan Myna
13. 2 Plain-throated Sunbird

Admiralty Park 12Jan18

From KH

Evening walk.

1. 1 Striated Heron
2. 2 White-breasted Waterhen
3. 2 Pink-necked Pigeon
4. 1 Asian Koel
5. 1 Common Kingfisher
6. 2 Collared Kingfisher
7. 1 Laced Woodpecker
8. 1 Long-tailed Parakeet
9. 1 Black-naped Oriole
10. 10 House Crow
11. 2 Yellow-vented Bulbul
12. 2 Pin-striped Tit-Babbler
13. 50 Daurian Starling
14. 8 Javan Myna
15. 1 Plain-throated Sunbird
16. 1 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 04Jan18

From KH

1. 1 Striated Heron
2. 1 White-bellied Sea-Eagle
3. 2 White-breasted Waterhen
4. 1 Pink-necked Pigeon
5. 2 dark swiftlet sp.
6. 1 Blue-tailed Bee-eater
7. 1 Red-breasted Parakeet
8. 1 Black-naped Oriole
9. 2 Yellow-vented Bulbul
10. 10 Javan Myna
11. 1 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
12. 1 Olive-backed Sunbird

Admiralty Park 05-28Nov15

From KH

Spent 15 days surveying Admiralty Park and got 57 species, including a noisy escaped/released Rosy-faced Lovebird of the yellow variant on 23 Nov.

List:

	Species	Count
1	Cinnamon bittern	1
2	Striated heron	1
3	Little egret	1
4	Black baza	1
5	Oriental honey buzzard	2
6	White-bellied sea-eagle	3
7	Grey-headed fish-eagle	1
8	Japanese sparrowhawk	1
9	Changeable hawk-eagle	1
10	White-breasted waterhen	5
11	Common sandpiper	2
12	Spotted dove	2
13	Emerald dove	1
14	Zebra dove	2
15	Pink-necked green pigeon	8
16	Red-breasted parakeet	4
17	Rosy-faced Lovebird (yellow)	1
18	Asian koel	2
19	Little bronze cuckoo	1
20	Banded bay cuckoo	1
21	Large hawk cuckoo	1
22	Dollarbird	3
23	White-throated kingfisher	3
24	Collared kingfisher	2
25	Common kingfisher	2
26	Blue-tailed bee-eater	4
27	Sunda woodpecker	1
28	Banded woodpecker	1
29	Laced woodpecker	2
30	Common flameback	4
31	Common iora	5
32	Ashy minivet	1
33	Brown shrike	1
34	Long-tailed shrike	1
35	Black-naped oriole	2
36	Greater racquet-tailed drongo	1
37	House crow	12
38	Yellow-vented bulbul	10
39	Olive-winged bulbul	3
40	Barn swallow	3
41	Pacific swallow	1
42	Common tailorbird	1
43	Dark-necked tailorbird	1
44	Rufous-tailed tailorbird	1
45	Ashy tailorbird	2
46	Pin-striped tit-babbler	5
47	Oriental white-eye	5
48	Asian glossy starling	50
49	Javan myna	10
50	Common myna	2
51	Oriental magpie robin	1
52	White-rumped shama	1
53	Asian brown flycatcher	3
54	Orange-bellied flowerpecker	1
55	Scarlet-backed flowerpecker	2
56	Olive-backed sunbird	3
57	Scaly-breasted munia	6

Black-naped Oriole

Male Common Kingfisher

Common Sandpiper

Juvenile Zebra Dove

Details for the raptors:

Black baza	1 on 9-Nov
Oriental honey buzzard	2 on 12-Nov; 1 on 17-Nov
White-bellied sea eagle	2 on 13, 26 & 28-Nov; 3 on 20-Nov
Grey-headed fish eagle	1 on 26 & 27-Nov
Japanese sparrowhawk	1 on 25-Nov
Changeable hawk eagle	1 on 6, 9, 19, 24 & 25-Nov

Adult Grey-headed Fish-eagle (handphone shot)

On the 28 Nov, a Striated Heron was having happy hour with frogs on the menu, lots of them!

Admiralty Park 29Dec10

From KH

I went to Woodlands Waterfront, but nothing of note except for these raptors at Admiralty Park from 12 - 1 pm:

1) OHB 1 circling high
2) Black Baza 2 flying overhead
3) WBSE 2 heard

Admiralty Park, Simpang 11Mar10

From KH

Started the evening at Admiralty Park. It was nice to share this nice little park with some of my colleagues. We started off with a Changeable Lizard right outside RP.

Then two Cattle Egrets in breeding plumage were foraging in the grass patch.

At the pond was a Red-eared Slider, a commonly released pet.

As we walked further along, there were many more in the river. There were two White-breasted Waterhens in the river and Yellow-vented Bulbuls in the tall grass.

The insect life here is quite rich. There were quite a number of butterfly species here, but all of them did not pose for me! Fortunately, their relative, a moth, was more obliging.

  

There were also dragonflies, cicadas, ants, etc. Where there are insects, there are spiders. Shown here is a female Golden Web Spider.

At the mangrove portion of the park, a Common Sandpiper was wagging its tail on the bank.

A Giant Mudskipper was peeking out of the water.

Other fish here were a Green Chromide

and some Humpbacked Cardinalfish.

The greatest surprise today was a mixed flock of a pelican and six storks. It looks like an Australian Pelican. The storks were a mixture of Painted and Milky Storks. All these birds do not exist naturally in Singapore. They are free-ranging birds from the Zoo or Bird Park. The photo below shows all three species. The pelican is the largest of them all; the Painted Stork is the one with a black band on the breast; and the Milky Stork is the one at the bottom.

Scaly-breasted Munias were common here.

Also present, but hiding and calling in the bushes, was a Yellow-bellied Prinia. Other birds seen were an Oriental Dollarbird, a Dark-necked Tailorbird, 2 Common Ioras, 5 Ashy Minivets, 2 Paddyfield Pipits and the usual starlings, swallows, swiftlets, sparrows and mynas. A raptor flew behind the canopy and did not offer good views for identification.

However, the animal that got more attention from the group was a lone Long-tailed Macaque high up near the canopy. No prize for guessing its sex!

Finally, we ended our walk with what we started off with - a Changeable Lizard. This is a male in breeding colours.

Moving on to Simpang, I only had 15 minutes there. Started off with the common birds like Common Sandpiper, Pink-necked Green-pigeon, Brahminy Kites, kingfishers, etc. It was nice to see a male Red Collared Dove here. Finally, glad to end the walk with a Violet Cuckoo.

Admiralty Park, Sengkang Riverside Park 19Feb10

From KH

After work, spent 1 hour (5-6 pm) at Admiralty Park. I started off from the pond and flushed a Common Sandpiper in the drain. Then came the resident birds -  Yellow-vented Bulbuls, Asian Glossy Starlings, Black-naped Orioles, Crimson Sunbirds. More notable was a flock of 20 noisy Ashy Minivets. Next, a Black Baza was flying from branch to branch high up in the canopy. Near the bridge, other residents appeared - Collared Kingfisher, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Dollarbird. In the forested portion, Striped Tit Babblers and tailorbirds were actively foraging and calling. Hill Mynas were singing and Long-tailed Parakeets were making a long of noise too. Finally, out of the forest, I saw Pink-necked Green Pigeons in the forest canopy, Rock Pigeons in the residential area, as well as Spotted Doves and a Zebra Dove along the walkway. On the way to the carpark, a pair of Brahminy Kites were soaring in the sky. Then a bird perched on the drain railing caught my attention. Shifting the bins to my eyes and there it was, a Grey Wagtail. Great to end the walk with an uncommon migrant.

On the way home, stopped by Sengkang Riverside Park. An Osprey was circling above Sungei Punggol, apparently looking for dinner. As it was getting late, Grey Herons seemed to be returning to their roost on the other side of TPE. Finally, in the park itself, Barn Swallows were drinking from the pond while in flight. Quite an interesting sight.

Admiralty Park 03Feb09

From KH

Admiralty Park has some interesting wildlife to offer even though it is so close to human establishments.

One of the most noticeable animals here are the band of Long-tailed Macaques.

Typically mistaken as chameleon or iguana, the reptile below is actually a Changeable Lizard. It is a very common garden creature and is so called as it does change colour slightly, especially during the breeding season. It is, however, not native to Singapore and has been introduced here since the 1980s. It has taken over the niche of the native Green Crested Lizard. This highlights the importance of not releasing exotic animals into the wild!

Changeable Lizard. Black Wood Spider.

The Black Wood Spider is an uncommon garden denizen and it is quite a large spider. With the legs stretched out, it can be larger than the human palm!

There is a good variety of dragonflies here, like this purplish-coloured male Slender Blue Skimmer (Orthetrum luzonicum). Other insects that can be found here include this Shield Bug, which is guarding its eggs.

Slender Blue Skimmer. Shield Bug.

The bird life here is also quite interesting. Blue-tailed Bee-eaters are one of the most colourful birds we have. They are so called because they eat various insects, including bees.

You may get the occasional surprises, like this flock of more than 16 storks flying overhead. This is a mixed flock of Painted and Milky Storks. Painted Storks have more black markings on the wings and body. They fly in a V-shaped formation to reduce drag and thereby save energy. However fascinating they are, these storks not wild birds in Singapore. They are actually free-ranging birds from the Zoo.

V formation. Spot the difference between Milky (left) and Painted (right) Storks.

The following is a sample of the other bird species one can find here.

White-bellied Sea-eagle. Male Long-tailed Parakeet.

Male Pink-necked Green-pigeon. Male Common Goldenback.

Dollarbird.  Yellow-vented Bulbul.

Asian Glossy Starling. Male Crimson Sunbird.

Admiralty Park 09Dec08

I was at Admiralty Park on Tue 9 Dec evening. Saw 1 Japanese Sparrowhawk, 1 adult Brahminy Kite and 1 immature WBSE, all flying in the same direction (from the park towards the MRT) each about 1 minute apart. Strange behaviour. Perhaps all rushing for a particular train.

Admiralty Park 29Oct08

I was at Admiralty Park on Wed 29Oct morning 0730-0845.

Here were the migrants seen:
1) 1 juv Indian Cuckoo
2) 1 Black Baza
3) ~5 Ashy Minivet
4) 1 Common Kingfisher
5) 1 Brown Shrike
6) 1 Common Sandpiper
7) 1 Little Egret

Some residents were:
1) 2 Common Goldenbacks
2) Blue-throated Bee-eaters
3) 1 Long-tailed Shrike
4) Striped Tit Babblers
5) White-breasted Waterhen
6) White-throated & Collared Kingfishers