Botanic Gardens 29Dec17

From Con

Von Schrenck’s Bittern female at SBG ECO Lake

Pasir Ris Park 27Apr13

From Con

I went over to PRP and there was Martin Kennewell on the boardwalk (7052 species). He had his video gear and said the Schrenck's Bittern was over there, far and difficult to see. And just then the bittern decided to come relatively close and in short order I had a few acceptable shots.

This one must be a female and the one we had in 2006 a juvenile male.

Jurong Lake, Tuas, SBWR 15Nov08

From KH

Today was an extraordinary day. We went looking for the Ruddy Kingfisher at Chinese Garden and harriers at Tuas but ended up getting the mega bird not seen in Singapore for the last 27 years at SBWR - Nordmann's Greenshank. Jia Sheng, Danny, Gim Cheong and I had the chance to observe this fine bird feeding and roosting at close range at Hide 1C. After confirming its ID, I rushed to the visitor centre to get David Li, Mendis Tan and gang. There was also a flock of 8 Great Knots at Hide 1C, the largest flock ever recorded in SBWR.

We observed the single bird from about 1-2 pm at SBWR. Interestingly, during this period, the bird did not associated itself with the Common Greenshanks and instead was feeding more or less alone, although there were a few Marsh Sandpipers around it. It fed by constantly walking in the water in a seemingly random manner giving us all round view of it. It seemed to feed more on small crabs than other creatures. After it has had its fill, it stood amongst a few PGPs and remained there for some time. At one time, it lifted one of its legs and stood one-legged. In the meantime, a flock of Great Knots flew in and we counted 8 of them. Gim Cheong was there for a longer time and took much photo. He actually took photos of 2 Nordmann's Greenshanks at 2 separate hides!

There was also a Terek Sandpiper, a few Lesser Sand Plovers and the usual suspects in good numbers: Whimbrels, PGPs, Curlew Sandpipers, Marsh Sandpipers, Common Redshanks and Common Greenshanks.

Raptor-wise, here's what we got for today:

Jurong Lake
1 pair of adult Brahminy Kites (resident to the area)
1 Chinese Sparrowhawk in flight
1 Black Baza perched
1 unid accipiter in flight
1 adult White-bellied Sea Eagle in flight

Tuas
1 Black-winged Kite perched
1 adult Brahminy Kite in flight

Sungei Buloh
1 Osprey in flight at main bridge
1 adult White-bellied Sea Eagle in flight
1 adult Brahminy Kite in flight
1 Oriental Honey Buzzard with tattered wings outside SBWR

No harrier at Tuas, but a Schrenck's Bittern was good company for us. The only disappointment today was to dip at the Ruddy KF at CG.

From GC

On the way to Hide 1C, I stopped by Screen 1.1 and took shots of some roosting shorebirds. Later on the lone Nordmann's Greenshank was sighted at Hide 1C at 1313H. When I reviewed the pics back home, i realised that the Nordmann's Greenshank was among the birds at Screen 1.1 and i had actually taken a few pictures of the bird earlier, at 1148H! The bird was roosting near a few Common Greenshanks - so quite handy for comparison. In the 2nd pic, I 'moved' the 2 birds closer together.

The Nordmann's Greenshank's main prey was the little reddish crabs which the bird caught in shallow water.

A total of 8 Great Knots were seen on 15 Nov 08

From Danny

More digicscope pics. First shows crab being caught, 2nd think it's a fish?

The 3rd pic shows spots instead of streaks on the neck, toe nails and below the translucent water, partial webs between the 3 toes.

From JS

The Nordmann's Greenshank has a long list of subtle differences from the Common Greenshank but the main differences are the following:

1) Has a paler head because there is an extended white supercilium beyond the eye
2) Has no streaks on the neck, instead has grey spots. (Including feature (1), the bird would look like a giant grey-tailed tattler)
3) Yellow legs and feet
4) Thick, short, bi-colored bill
5) Stout frame and short legs, making it look like a giant terek sandpiper
6) Feeds in deep waters

Just an id shot of a female Von Schrenck's Bittern to share... The bird was photographed today (15/11) at Tuas at around 11.30 am. It was sighted very close to the main road, so try to photograph it while the place is still wet.

Sime Forest, SBWR, Kranji 03Nov07

From KH

The day started with me picking up an injured juvenile Schrenck's Bittern at the void deck of my multi-storey carpark at Sengkang.

Upon reaching Rifle Range at 7 am, I showed the bird to Danny and we decided to bring it to BTNR where Con was conducting his course. It was then that Danny thought of passing the injured bird to the ranger there. The poor bird had a missing right wing but when I picked it up, there was no blood. Moreover, it looked like it had a broken leg too. We looked at the plight of the bird in dismay...

Schrenck's Bittern ©Tan KH

By the time we arrived back at Rifle Range, it was 0740h. The first interesting birds were 2 cuckoos - the Drongo Cuckoo was confirmed, while a Violet Cuckoo was possible as it was hiding behind branches. Then, the first bird wave hit us. It consisted of Arctic Warblers, 1 Eastern Crowned Warbler and 1 Asian Paradise-flycatcher. A fruiting tree on the way to the Jelutong Tower attracted 4 Red-eyed Bulbuls and 1 Asian Brown Flycatcher. Along the track, we got to see the Arctic Warblers, Asian Paradise-flycatchers and Asian Brown Flycatchers a few times more. At the tower, a male Asian Fairy Bluebird flew across the canopy. Except for Arctic Warbler and Asian Brown Flycatcher, we missed all these birds during the race. Where were they hiding back then? At the reservoir, a pale morph Changeable Hawk-eagle perched high on a treetop. Other than these birds, a Green Crested Lizard, a Clouded Monitor and some Papilio butterflies made the quiet trail less disappointing.

Lunch was nasi lemak at Sungei Buloh again. There were mostly redshanks at the main hide, but it was nice to see a pair of Magpie Robins, which we missed during the race. Most of the waders were at Hide 1C. Sieving through the Whimbrels for the Bar-tailed Godwits gave us our a stunning curlew instead. It was a big guy compared to the whimbrels. The only birds which could push it around here were the Little Egrets. Later, it was confirmed to be a Far Eastern Curlew! A global lifer for both of us!

Far Eastern Curlew ©Danny Lau

The godwits were present as well. Shifting attention to the sand-plovers, we tried to sieve through them for the Greater Sand Plover, but to no avail.

Lesser Sand-plover ©Danny Lau

Next, through the curlew sandpipers, we hoped to get a broad-billed sandpiper. No sign of the latter, but we picked out a petite little guy, which had slightly shorter bill and slightly different plumage. This was later confirmed by David Bakewell to be a 1st winter curlew sandpiper moulting out of its juvenile plumage while retaining its juvenile wing covert.

Curlew Sandpiper ©Danny Lau

We were at 1C for more than an hour, maybe two, until the dog started barking at the waders scaring the curlew and whimbrels away. The whimbrels came back after circling a few rounds above, but the curlew was gone...

And so we left Buloh for NTL2 hoping to get the sand martin and crested goshawk. Bad luck, the gantry was down... The decision then was to take Kranji Nature Trail and see what we could get. We did see the two common woodpeckers that we missed during the race - Sunda Pygmy and Laced. The former was on the wooden stilt at the boardwalk, exactly the same place we saw it 1 week before the race! Where was it hiding on Race Day??

The day ended with 72 birds heard and seen. The Far Eastern Curlew being the bird of the day.

Sengkang
1 Schrenck's bittern, juv, injured

Sime Forest
2 Oriental dollarbird
3 Common goldenback, heard
4 Banded woodpecker, heard
5 Blue-tailed bee-eater
6 Drongo cuckoo, 1
7 Violet cuckoo, 1 possible
8 Long-tailed parakeet, big flocks
9 Swiftlet spp.
10 Pink-necked green-pigeon
11 Changeable hawk-eagle, 1 pale morph
12 Oriental honey-buzzard, 1 in flight
13 Asian fairy-bluebird, 1 male
14 Greater racket-tailed drongo
15 Common hill myna
16 Barn swallow
17 Pacific swallow
18 Asian paradise-flycatcher, 3
19 Asian brown flycatcher, 3
20 Arctic warbler, many
21 Eastern crowned warbler, 1
22 Dark-necked tailorbird
23 Common tailorbird
24 Striped tit babbler
25 Red-eyed bulbul, 4
26 Olive-winged bulbul
27 Yellow-vented bulbul
28 Orange-bellied flowerpecker
29 Scarlet-backed flowerpecker
30 Brown-throated sunbird

En-route to SBWR
31 Common pigeon
32 White-vented myna
33 Common myna
34 House crow
35 Brown shrike

Drain outside SBWR
36 Wood sandpiper
37 White-breasted waterhen
38 Scaly-breasted munia

SBWR
39 Collared kingfisher
40 White-throated kingfisher
41 Asian koel, heard
42 Zebra dove
43 Far Eastern curlew, 1
44 Bar-tailed godwit, 2
45 Whimbrel
46 Common sandpiper
47 Marsh sandpiper
48 Curlew sandpiper
49 Common redshank
50 Common greenshank
51 Pacific golden-plover
52 Lesser sand-plover
53 Striated heron
54 Little egret
55 Asian glossy starling
56 Ashy tailorbird
57 Oriental magpie robin
58 Crimson sunbird

Kranji
59 Fork-tailed swift
60 Osprey, 1
61 White-bellied sea-eagle, 1
62 Spotted dove

NTL2 entrance
63 Black-winged kite, 1

Kranji Nature Trail
64 Sunda pygmy woodpecker
65 Laced woodpecker
66 Lesser crested tern
67 Great crested tern
68 Grey heron
69 Great egret
70 Golden-bellied gerygone, heard
71 Black-naped oriole
72 Paddyfield pipit

Chinese Garden, Mousedeer Trail, Sarimbun 18Nov06

We welcome Yamane back, albeit just for the weekend. He was back for work and he has slimmed down a lot! Beside our NSSG 'members' (Danny, Con, Peck Chan, Robert, Sree, I), Soo Yen and his colleagues were here to join in the fun. While getting ready at the carpark, 2 Pied Imperial Pigeons flew by - free-ranging birds from the bird park.

We met up with Sree at the Black Bittern spot. The bird was doing its stuff while all of us zoom in on it. After some time, it went hiding.

Black Bittern ©Con Foley

Black Bittern ©Danny Lau

Black Bittern ©Tan KH

Next, a Common Kingfisher was sighted by Danny. Then, we ran into Albert Low and while he was talking about his trip to India for the Bugun Liocichla, the rest of us were looking at Purple-backed and Asian Glossy Starlings, Pink-necked Green-pigeons, Scarlet-backed Flowerpeckers and Asian Brown Flycatchers in the trees.

Asian Brown Flycatcher ©Lau SY

Con brought Albert to see the bittern while the rest of us moved on to look for other birds. Arctic Warblers were flying about giving us no chance to take a shot. An adult WBSE was flying high.

Soon we reached Chinese Garden and Robert saw a nightjar flew into hiding. In the middle of Jurong Lake was a Grey Heron with a big red plastic bag in its beaks. Fortunately, it managed to shake it off. A Great Egret was standing close by for size comparison. At this point in time, someone suggested going to the old Tang Dynasty side. So the bunch of us backtracked. A big raptor in the tree overhanging the lake caught my attention but was blocked by the leaves. Luckily, an Oriental Honey Buzzard and a Black Baza thermalling high up gave me good views. Jimmy Chew was at the black bittern spot. Next on the radar of attention were 2 juvenile Yellow Bitterns.

Thanks to Yamane for the human photos. And hence, he was not in any of the photos.

By now, we were at the old Tang Dynasty side of the lake. At the 'jetty' near the roundabout was a Common Kingfisher. Asian Brown Flycatchers and Pied Fantails were calling. Then 3 raptors appeared in the sky. A Brahminy Kite was high in the sky, while a juvenile WBSE was circling lower together with its 'tiny' relative - a Japanese Sparrowhawk.

Japanese Sparrowhawk ©Lau SY

Next destination was right within the old Tang Dynasty. However, Yamane had to leave, so we bid him farewell. Danny spotted a Stork-billed Kingfisher roosting in the trees.

Further down after the main entrance into the fortress was a pond. Robert was the first to spot a bittern there. It turned out to be a Schrenck's Bittern! A lifer for almost all of us, except for Albert, who helped us to positively identify it. After discussion with Albert, we think it is a subadult male due to the male features on the underparts and the juvenile speckles on the upperparts.

Schrenck's Bittern ©Con Foley

Schrenck's Bittern ©Danny Lau

Another interesting bird here was an Indian Cuckoo. Peck Chan was the first to locate it.

Indian Cuckoo ©Tan KH

After about an hour or so stalking this uncommon bittern, our bunch started dispersing.

1 Striated heron
2 Grey heron 1
3 Cattle egret
4 Great egret 1
5 Yellow bittern 2
6 Black bittern 1
7 Schrenck's bittern 1
8 White-bellied sea eagle 2
9 Brahminy kite 2
10 Black baza 1
11 Oriental honey buzzard 1
12 Japanese sparrowhawk 1
13 Collared kingfisher
14 White-throated kingfisher
15 Common kingfisher 2
16 Stork-billed kingfisher 1
17 Blue-tailed bee-eater
18 Rock pigeon
19 Pink-necked green-pigeon
20 Pied imperial pigeon 2
21 Asian koel
22 Indian cuckoo 1
23 Large-tailed nightjar 1
24 White-breasted waterhen
25 House crow
26 Black-naped oriole
27 Pied fantail 1
28 Common iora 1
29 Asian brown flycatcher
30 Asian glossy starling
31 Purple-backed starling
32 Javan myna
33 Common myna
34 Pacific swallow
35 Yellow-vented bulbul
36 Ashy tailorbird
37 Arctic warbler
38 Scarlet-backed flowerpecker
39 Olive-backed sunbird
40 Plain-throated sunbird

In the afternoon, Albert and Sree showed Danny and me the Mousedeer Trail at Old Upper Thomson Road. Lamppost 122. Last evening, Chestnut-winged Cuckoo was photographed here. Today, it was amazingly quiet. Besides the GRT Drongos and Siberian Blue Robins calling, there were only Thick-billed Green-pigeons and bulbuls in the fruiting tree at the steep slope. Walking to the other end of the drain, we saw a few people fishing and no birds. On the way back, A few Crimson Sunbirds were all there was. Nevertheless, we now know where the Mousedeer Trail is.

Mr Thick-billed Green-pigeon ©Danny Lau

Mrs Thick-billed Green-pigeon ©Danny Lau

Soo Yen and his colleagues were at Sarimbun in the afternoon and they had their prized catch for the afternoon - Red-wattled Lapwing.

Red-wattled Lapwing ©Lau SY

They also photographed juvenile Brahminy Kites.

Juvenile Brahminy Kites ©Lau SY