Old school birding...

 

There was a time when December was a month I look forward to. The holiday season, the magic of Christmas and so forth. It is also a good time for birding as well. However, for the past few years, horrendous traffic congestions and overwhelming crowds leave very little reason to celebrate. And this season, the recent loss of a loved one compounded the situation. Thankfully, an invitation from an old friend to join him for a day of birding provided some Christmas cheer and we found ourselves at the paddy planting district of Kubang Semang in mainland Penang at first light. Waterbirds are our main objective as Dave has a soft spot for this fascinating group of birds - a sentiment that I share. A stunning adult Purple Heron was certainly a good start to our endeavour.

We came across a number of Purple Herons throughout the locality and this is a juvenile on the hunt for breakfast.

Grey-headed Lapwings are a regular sight here each migratory season but it was one of my companion’s target birds as he now resides in East Malaysia where it is rare. A couple of birds in flight caught our attention and it did not take long for us to find the first flock of this lovely bird.

I have not been out in the field as often as I used to and the Grey-headed Lapwings made me realize how much I miss birding. So, two seasoned birders who undoubtedly have a fair share of experience with this species, took the effort and time to document the encounter.

The Red-wattled Lapwing is just as attractive or even more so but it did not evoke as much emotions. In this locality, it is outnumbered and overshadowed by the former.

Talking about beauty, the weather condition was near perfect for birding this morning and the lighting brought out the true appeal of this agricultural landscape.

At this time of the year, the Amur Stonechat is a rather drab-looking grassland bird. It would be a sin not to capture some images of this individual posing in front of a sea of green.

One does not usually get to see a Slaty-breasted Rail in the open at this locality and the reason behind this bold behaviour soon revealed itself. Another rail was present and I can only presume they were having a dispute.

Reed beds can be a gold mine during the migratory season as they are favoured by open country warblers. Certain patches could harbour more than five different species and one of the most sought after here would be the Manchurian Reed-Warbler. It is not that rare. However, it looks very much like the commoner Black-browed Reed-Warbler. We had at least 2 Manchurians today and I only have a photo of its commoner cousin for show in the end.

This Yellow Bittern had the utmost confidence in its ability blend into the surrounding environment. And we just played along...

Little Cormorants are now a common sight in my home state. Despite its status, most of them are skittish and normally do not allow close approach. And whenever I come across a confiding individual, it deserves some space in my memory card. Regardless of the less-than-ideal lighting.

Lines of trees scattered around the paddy fields provide shade and refuge for the birds. For fruiting trees like this one, it is a great source of food and a small flock of Daurian Starlings took full advantage of it. When food-drunk, birds tend to be more accommodating towards birders but on this occasion the foliage was an obstacle we could not avoid.

A little patience and luck later, one Starling did wander into the open. Even though it was a female, we could not have requested for a better candidate to conclude the first part of our day out.

Along the way to our second destination, we stopped by the paddy fields of Penaga where the rare Black-headed Ibis turned up a few weeks back. I guess there is a limit to the magic of Christmas and this confiding Whiskered Tern was the only bird worth mentioning.

While waiting for the right timing to start our wader watch by boat, the jetty area along Sungai Tembus in northern mainland Penang provided enough attractions to help pass the time like this elegant Great Egret.

The colony of Black-crowned Night-herons continue to thrive here and are as confiding as usual.

A storm looms in a distance as we finally set out to sea. We were joined Afiq and Xian from Kuala Lumpur as well as Munira and her husband of the Shorebirds Peninsular Malaysia Project.

The worries immediately vanished when we were greeted by thousands of shorebirds. And a big flock flying in unison is a true spectacle of nature. Photographs and videos cannot capture the true essence of this marvel. I guess it is one of those things you have to experience in the flesh.

Asian Openbills have formed nesting colonies along the coast and huge numbers were recorded as expected. Most of the local birders are now accustomed to mass congregations of this interesting stork but it is still quite a sight.

Good photographic opportunities were far and few due to the lighting condition and distance of the birds from our boat. One of the more notable records of the trip is the presence of more than 1,000 Asian Dowitchers.

Flocks of gulls are rather conspicuous out here in the mudflats due to their size and white colouration. The majority of them were Brown-headed Gulls but we did positively identify a Black-headed Gull among them.The poles of the mussel farms are a great place to photograph resting terns and gulls and there was no exception for this trip.

Greater Crested Terns were in their usual numbers but the absence of Lesser Crested Terns was a little disappointing.

Whiskered Terns tried to distract our attention from the its larger cousins by performing admirably…

To end this post, is a dedication to my late Godfather who was the one responsible for introducing me to the world of birding. The memories I shared with Lim Ban Beng are priceless and he will be missed. This is a photo taken back in 1989 when birding was so much different. Digital cameras were not invented yet, photography “ports” were non-existent and no social media. We were on the summit of Bukit Larut and have just observed a pair of Great Hornbills flying across the valley below. A pair of newbie binoculars captured the encounter into memory and a pen and notebook immortalized it. Now, nearly 4 decades down the road, it remains to be one of the main highlights of my birding life.

A taste of European birding

 

I have to admit that life has not been the same ever since the Covid-19 pandemic. My overall outlook on life have changed and not mention my occasional (I would not call it a crisis) ‘midlife pinch’.  Birding unfortunately has taken a backseat these past few years and my beloved blog lies dormant more often than ever before. But when I found myself in a whole new continent for work, a blogging post after a lapse of more than a year finally emerged. My company decided to spread its wings (no pun intended) and participated in an expo held in Berlin. It was a big event spanning over four days and occupying almost half of the Messe Berlin – a huge event venue. And a modest Airbnb in the outskirts of the city was our home for a week. It may not be the best accommodation around but it did have its charms.

Best of all, there was a small park just across the road that became my temporary local patch. Almost all my birding was done within the borders of Preußenpark. Every morning before work, I endured the chilly winds despite being spring to experience the local bird life. At this time of the year, it gets bright by six in the morning thus providing much-appreciated additional time in the field.

One of the most conspicuous birds here is the aptly named Common Wood-Pigeon. There was even a pair roosting just outside the window of our Airbnb among the foliage of a roadside tree. And intimate views were obtainable from the comforts of the house balcony.

Due to the physical size and number of these birds present in the park, it was impossible to miss them during every visit. Although not as confiding as feral pigeons, I found them to be quite approachable and prolonged observations were not really an issue.

The Common Wood-Pigeon is a social species and usually occurs in pairs or small flocks. They can cause quite a commotion when a few are present on the same tree. And I soon learned to recognize their lumbering presence and vocals from a distance.

Big birds are more easily recorded for obvious reasons and it did not take long for me to get acquainted with the Hooded Crow – another common resident. This park, which is located right in the middle of a residential area, is quite popular and has a number of visitors regularly. Visitors tend to leave leftovers behind and the scavenging life is good for the crows. Hard to imagine that here I am, more than 11,000 kilometres from home, looking at an-all-too-familiar sight – crows picking up after my fellow humans.

However, its bi-coloured plumage does give the Hooded Crow a certain degree of appeal. Being another lifer, it received a fair share of attention from me. I used to find it a little amusing how foreign birders would gawk at the sight of White-throated Kingfishers in Peninsular Malaysia. I guess the locals would probably feel even more so about this bald Asian guy going down on his knees to photograph Hooded Crows.

The House Sparrow is not new to me as it has even colonized my home country. Google ascertained me before my trip that there is only one species of sparrow in Berlin to deal with. So, I tried hard to ignore them during my birding excursions here despite their constant their presence.

The same goes for the White Wagtail but unlike the former, there is only one individual in this entire park as far as I can tell.

Although I have encountered the Eurasian Jay during my trip to Japan, I was rather excited to cross paths with one here. Unfortunately, it was wary of my presence and kept a safe distance away.

Despite the frustrating time with the jay, I feel the birds here are generally more confiding than back home or other parts of Asia. And the Eurasian Blackbird is a fine example. The first time I laid eyes on one, it nearly flew into me and alighted at my feet before proceeding to forage.

I cannot be certain if it is always the same bold individual but the Eurasian Blackbird provided the most photographic opportunities and some from surprisingly close proximities.

Its behaviour could be influenced by the fact that it is the breeding season for this common thrush. Judging from the number of images I obtained, it is safe to say that the Eurasian Blackbird was one of the highlights of the trip.

The significantly few images of female Eurasian Blackbirds is not a true indication of their numbers. No, it is human nature at work here and the more attractive males will inevitably hog the limelight.

For someone living in the tropics, the cool condition of a temperate environment was a welcome change. As for the avifauna, the former undoubtedly overshadows the latter but that does not mean, one will not be mesmerized during an outing. During my first visit to Preußenpark, I was stopped dead in my tracks by a repertoire of musical notes rivalling even the best from back home. There is a renowned songster that occurs in Europe and I thought to myself that this should be how a Nightingale sings. A little field craft later, I found myself indeed looking at a Common Nightingale and he (based on its behaviour) certainly knew how to provide a warm reception to a lone birder from Malaysia.

There were at least two of them residing within this urban park and their beautiful songs serenade the locality during every single one of my visits. There is an old proverb “a nightingale cannot sing in a cage” and now after my enlightening trip to Germany, it is so true in every sense.

This being my maiden trip, it was overwhelming to be surrounded by those calls that are so foreign to my ears. Other than the Common Nightingale, there was another vocal talent found in the woods here. However, it took a lot more effort and luck before I finally obtained decent views of the Eurasian Blackcap. And I thought warblers would be easier in this part of the world...

My birding time in Berlin is limited and I did not get to spend as much time as I would like to with all the species I encountered including the commoner ones. Flocks of European Starlings will forage in the open areas of the park on a daily basis. They were reasonably confiding and full of character but it is their stunning plumage that had me spellbound.

This species is the one with the highest number here in my local patch and I guess it is probably one of the commonest birds in the region but its beauty is undeniable. Birds in full breeding plumage will sport less speckles but with their iridescent colours enhanced. And when seen in good lighting, it is indeed quite a sight.

The law of the jungle can be ruthless but that is Mother Nature. I witnessed a juvenile Great Tit predated by a Hooded Crow. It happened so quickly that there was nothing much me or the parent bird could do. The chick was dead before I could react. I managed to take a few shots of the opportunistic hunter before it took flight with its unfortunately prey securely in its bill.

I cannot be certain if this image was the parent bird because Great Tits are not uncommon here and it was taken at a different time. Among all the encounters, this was the only time I was given a reasonable chance to capture the image of this active little species.

My local patch provided a non-bird surprise for me in the form of wild rabbits and this adorable mammal is thriving here. I have to admit I did not do much research on mammals prior to the trip. It was after my first sighting that I found out that that rabbit colonies are not unusual especially in west Berlin.

They can be seen foraging all over throughout the day and in good numbers. One can even mistake them for domesticated animals because they are so tame. The young ones are utterly lovable - typical of juvenile mammals.

The Red Squirrel is another delightful creature that I managed to observe in this park. Unlike the rabbits, I always see only one and could well be the same individual. The tufted ears and bushy tail certainly have a way to melt one’s heart.

In nature where there is prey, there will be predators. I came face to face with an urbanized Red Fox one early morning and it seemed surprise that anyone eould be out at this hour. It may not be a perfect specimen suffering from what appears to be mange but it was an exhilarating encounter for me. I did not expect to see a wild fox and was truly grateful it allowed me to immortalized the moment before disappearing into the bushes.

My trip to Berlin yielded one last global lifer but it made me wait until I had a chance to explore the city centre. And along the banks of Spree river I came across my first Herring Gull. In fact, it is quite prevalent here and I recorded them on several occasions soaring gracefully above this historical city.

Since I have covered my birding experiences, it is only right to showcase some of the cultural wealth that can be found here and Berlin did not fail to deliver in this aspect. Majestic buildings set against beautiful blue skies appear surreal at times and my colleagues and I soaked it all in.

It is not only manmade structures that leave you breathless but the beauty of the natural world as well.

I also found the food here to be quite agreeable to my taste. That is always an important factor when I am abroad. The only downside of the trip was that certain locals are not as polite as I expected. Not so much during leisure but at work and of all places, the airport. It is during these occasions that I felt a little homesick and that rarely occurs.

Luckily, it was only a minor hiccup and not enough to rob me of an interesting trip to Europe. To end my post this time is a candid shot of yours truly taken by a colleague whom I managed to drag out of bed early to join me for a walk in the park.