Sengkang Riverside Park 25Oct24

From KH

I went to Sengkang Riverside Park today.

Some of the migrants included this very vocal Brown Shrike, sometimes in cattail, sometimes in Alligator Flag.

And this Asian Brown Flycatcher.

Raptor-wise, only this Oriental Honey-Buzzard.

Resident-wise, Purple Heron trying to blend in with the grass.

Yellow-bellied Prinia not hiding in the reeds.

Female Common Flameback and adult Asian Glossy Starling sharing African Oil Palm fruit.

Javan Myna and Common Myna in comparison.

Kranji Marsh 30Jun18

From KH

Con, Danny and I went birding at Kranji Marsh today.

First, a Yellow-bellied Prinia with a ring was busy collecting nesting material.

Then at the Tower, this Paradise Tree Snake kept us on our toes. One moment, it was on the beam, next moment elsewhere!

The tree beside the tower harboured a huge Giant Honey Bee nest!

While a Large-tailed Nightjar slumbered on.

On the way out, a Green Crested Lizard showed us how long its tail was.

Beware the Red-wattled Lapwing bomber!

While the dark morph Changeable Hawk-eagle looked on from the safely of its shaded perch.

1. 3 Gray Heron
2. 6 white egret sp. - probably Intermediate
3. 1 Striated Heron
4. 1 Black-shouldered Kite
5. 1 Changeable Hawk-Eagle - Dark morph
6. 2 Brahminy Kite
7. 1 White-bellied Sea-Eagle
8. 3 White-breasted Waterhen
9. 2 Red-wattled Lapwing
10. 7 Little Tern
11. 3 Spotted Dove
12. 2 Zebra Dove
13. 10 Pink-necked Pigeon
14. 2 Lesser Coucal
15. 2 Asian Koel
16. 1 Banded Bay Cuckoo - Heard
17. 1 Plaintive Cuckoo - Heard
18. 1 Brush Cuckoo - Heard
19. 1 Large-tailed Nightjar
20. 20 dark swiftlet sp.
21. 1 White-throated Kingfisher
22. 2 Collared Kingfisher
23. 1 Blue-throated Bee-eater
24. 1 Dollarbird
25. 1 Laced Woodpecker - Heard
26. 1 Common Flameback
27. 1 Rufous Woodpecker - Heard
28. 2 Red-breasted Parakeet
29. 8 Long-tailed Parakeet
30. 1 Blue-winged Pitta - Heard
31. 1 Golden-bellied Gerygone - Heard
32. 4 Common Iora
33. 2 Pied Triller
34. 1 Long-tailed Shrike
35. 3 Black-naped Oriole
36. 2 Malaysian Pied-Fantail
37. 2 Large-billed Crow
38. 2 Pacific Swallow
39. 1 Straw-headed Bulbul - Heard
40. 2 Sooty-headed Bulbul
41. 4 Yellow-vented Bulbul
42. 2 Zitting Cisticola - Heard
43. 3 Common Tailorbird
44. 1 Ashy Tailorbird
45. 1 Rufous-tailed Tailorbird - Heard
46. 2 Yellow-bellied Prinia
47. 1 Oriental Magpie-Robin
48. 8 Asian Glossy Starling
49. 10 Javan Myna
50. 2 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
51. 1 Plain-throated Sunbird
52. 0 Olive-backed Sunbird - 2 used nest seen
53. 2 Paddyfield Pipit
54. 2 Baya Weaver
55. 8 waxbill sp. - probably Common

Kranji Marsh 01Jul17

From KH

Con, Danny and I went to Kranji Marsh today and heard a Blue-winged Pitta, otherwise it was just the usual resident birds.

Luckily we were not under this Red-wattled Lapwing!

Common Iora trying to hide.

Male Long-tailed Parakeet showing off its long tail.

Male Pink-necked Green-pigeon just sitting right in front of us.

Singing Yellow-bellied Prinia with wedding band.

Dead Brahminy Blind Snake.

Bukit Batok West 13May06

From PC, YY and Wing Chong

(1) Barred Buttonquails running across the path (only sharp-eyed Wing Chong saw them)
(2) Pied Fantails
(3) Common Iora in breeding plumage
(4) Pink-Necked Green Pigeon
(5) Zebra Doves aplenty
(6) Lesser Coucals aplenty. One has its tail cropped off. Wing Chong and Yamanesan took pictures
(7) Black-winged Kites a pair posing on the same tree from afar as if on guard duties
(8) Greater Racquet-tailed Drongos
(9) Mynas
(10) Black-headed Munias
(11) Paddyfield Pipits
(12) Black-naped Orioles
(13) Rusty-breasted Cuckoo calling
(14) Red Junglefowl, a pair. One flew across the big canal when we were on our return journey. What a sight! Too fast for the camera
(15) Yellow-bellied prinia
(16) Olive-backed sunbird
(17) Pacific swallows, a pair, posing on the rail
(18) Long-tailed Parakeet
(19) Asian Glossy Starling
(20) Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
(21) Common Flameback - have a glimpse at the very beginning of walk
(22) Scaly-breasted Munia, 1 in the canal with Mynas
(23) Lineated Barbet a few heard unfortunately no visual contact
(24) 2 Lorikeets, didn't have a good looked could be Rainbow Lorikeet
(25) Ashy Tailorbird - heard calls
(26) House Crow - Few flew pass
(27) Dollarbird
(28) White-throated Kingfisher
(29) Long-tailed Parakeet
(30) House Swift
(31) Spotted Dove
(32) White-breasted Waterhen
(33) Common Tailorbird
(34) White-crested Laughing Thrush
(35) Baya Weaver

Photos from Wing Chong

Yellow-bellied Prinia

Pacific Swallow

Photos from Yamane

"Tail-less" Lesser Coucal

Lesser Coucal basking in the sun

Nest of Baya Weaver

NTL2, Mandai Mudflat 01Apr06

From Danny (photos from Con unless otherwise stated)

It was meant to be another routine Sat birding event but it turned out to be a memorable weekend. Peck Chan did lead us to spot two Black-backed Swamphens which she counted during the last ABC (credit to her & her CNY cashew nuts).

One of the high-lite of the day was the display of the hunting skills of a "immature" WBSE (an understatement in relation to its fishing skill) right in front of us. It circled gradually down just off the Bund, about the last round, you could see it tilted its body like the F1 motorcyclist went round the bend, with both talons stretched, scooped out a big fish just below the turbid water surface. Just like what you see on N. Geographic channel (Sree did you manage to snap any precious moments?).

We thought it was a watercock (at least I thought so) but it turned out to be a White-browed Crake, lifer for most of us.

Yes it was a juvenile Common Moorhen, as I was able to track it on the scope with the typical cone shape upright tail and white fringes on both sides (back view) & the white markings on the flanks, other than its pale bill (after the event comments based on the video I had of the Common Moorhen I took at Marina South).

The sighting of the Rusty-breasted Cuckoo was sheer teamwork as we tracked it from tree to tree - it was nice to have someone who kept a perspective view on the bird movement while we try to view it thru' the cameras, binos/scope.

After the cuckoo on the way out, a WBSE was spotted hovering and suddenly a relatively smaller bird flew past with a distinct "kee" note call. The flying adult male Japanese Sparrowhawk picture Con took was wonderful (digiscope could never do it).

Further down the road where there was a side track, we came across a flock of about 25 to 30 mysterious long-tailed birds flying in big loop around a cluster of tall trees. The calls were like tri.tri...sisi... (sorry unable to reporduce in text) but definitely not parakeets or starlings.

Back to where we parked our cars, the faithful BSK was there on the same tree to wish us farewell and come back soon.

As Con left us to run some late errands for Marisol (welcome back, your breads were timely as most of us had little or no breakfast), we adjourned to the usual hawker centre at Kranji Loop for Pork ribs, Pork knuckers and Pig tails - Kok Hui not meant to make you homesick.

After lunch, both Sree and myself were to take a quick look at the Mandai mudflat track next to the Railway line (Yamane remember the canal bridge where the railway tracks cross over S. Mandai). While Sree waited along Kranji Loop as I send both Benjamin & Pat to Kranji MRT, he spotted a Large-tailed Nightjar perched on the roadside. We had wonderful time snapping pictures of the bird.

Lesser Whistling-ducks

Scaly-breasted Munia

Yellow-bellied Prinia

Large-tailed Nightjar from Danny