It
is probably a little early in the year to visit this scrubland habitat for the
breeding colonies but it is pretty difficult to resist a quick detour before I
made my way to a business meeting in the nearby vicinity. There’s nothing like
some quality time “in the field” to start off the day. A Spotted Dove basking
in the golden rays of the morning sun was the first bird to greet me upon my
arrival.
The
Red Junglefowl may be one the commonest of the gamebirds but it is shy and
extremely difficult to approach. I don’t blame it for being so fearful of man.
It is not considered a gamebird for nothing. For many years the stunning male
has successfully evaded most my photography efforts and leaving me with only
distance record shots. Imagine my excitement when I came across this rather
confiding male bird foraging alone at the edge of the access road. I quickly
took a few shots but the clicks from my camera’s shutter put him into full
alert mode.
And
once my intrusion passed his tolerance level, it was a quick dash to the
nearest cover – a dash that would even put any Olympic sprinter to shame. This
encounter was the highlight of the day and much to my delight, I did not end up
empty handed this time.
There
were certainly plenty of Paddyfield Pipits foraging in the vicinity. I am
assuming that they are all Paddyfield Pipits and the not the rarer and almost
identical looking Richard’s or Blyth’s Pipit.
Honestly, I probably couldn’t identify them even if they were staring right
into my lens.
The
Red-wattled Lapwings looked all set for the coming breeding season and
hopefully, it will be another successful season as before.
I
almost drove past this male Plaintive Cuckoo resting among the scrub vegetation
and it was his signature call that caught my attention. Unfortunately, he was
in no mood for photography and flew away when I tried to reduce the distance
between us.
The
Common Myna is probably one of the most familiar birds in Malaysia but
when a bird is posing in good light and with a nice green background, I still
find it hard to resist a shot or two.
8 comments:
Such beautiful birds, and great captures.
The Red Junglefowl is like a rainbow. Such a shame when beauty like this is hunted.
I find Red Junglefowls in northern Thailand shy and extremely difficult to approach just like yours. They are much easier to see and photograph in central Thailand though (for example Khao Yai and Kaeng Krachan NP)
beautiful series, Happy CNY Choy..enjoy
Thanks Keith, Ayuwat & Sulaiman for your comments.
Nice shots indeed. I particulalrly like the Paddyfield Pipit and Common Mynah shots - as you say good to get a clear, preferably dark, background
Hi Choy,
You have many fine pixs on this blog of yours. Wondering if you can give your readers (like yours truly) a rundown on your photography tools? Also, as a starting birdwatcher, I wonder if you do any digiscoping; if so, if you can recommend some good/great combinations of telescope + PnS cameras?
Cheers
Eddie
Thanks, Phil & Eddie.
Eddie, I'm now using a basic setup of a Nikon D40X DSLR camera with a Sigma 150-500mm telephoto zoom lens and it has serve me well thus far.
Post a Comment