As soon as I got down from my bike, I was
greeted by one of the best good mornings I could have asked for - a Blue-winged
Pitta foraging in full view. Pittas are usually secretive birds but here at Air
Hitam Dalam Educational Forest in northern mainland Penang, this pair of
Blue-winged Pittas has become rather accustomed to human presence and bold.
However, the lighting was still a little dim at that time and good shots were
hard to come by.
Reluctantly I left the car park, and the pittas,
and made my way to the boardwalk that cuts through this swamp forest in search
of better prospects.
It was here along the boardwalk that I heard
faint but distinct calls of the Brown Hawk-owl. Although it was not calling as
frequently as my last encounter with this species here, I still managed to
trace the call back to the source. The reason for the less persistent calling
is because the bird was getting ready to roost.
The angle was a little steeper this time but it
was still a delightful and memorable experience. The owl was just as confiding
as the last time but with its feathers all puffed up for 'the day', it
certainly looked much more adorable. Sweet dreams, bud...
The Jungle Mynas nest in holes among the trees
and this year looks set to be another successful season. This juvenile bird is
proof of that.
The mynas are not the only ones that are increasing
the local population here. The Mangrove Blue Flycatchers are also doing very
well. This young male gave me a model-like pose from the shadow of the under storey.
The photo came out reasonably well despite the lighting condition.
While I was been distracted by the performing
flycatcher, a curious Plaintain Squirrel came quite close to investigate what
was going on. This species is also doing very well at the locality and on every
visit you are bound to bump into one or two of them.
The second most common bulbul in Malaysia is the
Olive-winged Bulbul. Although it sometimes overlaps with the commoner
Yellow-vented Bulbul, it thrives in more rural and "greener" habitats.
Despite the abundance of this species, I do not have many images of it in my
database. I was pretty excited to manage a few good shots today and it does not
really matter if it was perched on a man-made structure.
It was great to be able to shoot Greater Coucals
that are not trying to get the hell away from you for a change. This pair
sunbathing in the open was quite accommodating at first. But then one of them
gradually felt uncomfortable with my presence and disappeared into the
undergrowth.
As I was about to stand upright, the other
coucal decided to put on a performance and I for one is not about to turn down
an offer from this large but shy cuckoo. So, I got back down into my crouching
position and enjoyed the show.
When you gotta go, you gotta go...
I went back to the car park area at noon and not
surprisingly, the pitta was there to greet me again. As it is much brighter now,
I was able to capture much better images of it as well.
The pitta was not alone. Moments later a
juvenile Mangrove Blue Flycatcher came into view. I could see from what I
assumed are the parent birds among the nearby vegetation, trying to keep the youngster
in check but to no avail.
Being young and rebellious, it came ridiculously
close a few times.
I was about to chow down lunch when I caught
sight of an unfamiliar bird foraging near the under storey of the swamp forest.
A quick glance through my binos revealed that it was a stunning Red-whiskered
Bulbul. And this is the first record for me at this site. It is possible for it
to be a feral bird because this species is a very popular song bird. It behaved
very much like a wild bird to me. It sure the heck was not feeding from the
palm of my hand. It was rather wary of my presence and difficult to approach. Anyway,
it was a good bird to wrapped things up for another fine trip at this birding
hotspot.
6 comments:
Wow! What a tour. Spectacular pictures and many prized species. Beautiful pitta pics. I wanna go! Thanks for the tour, Choy!
This place had always been a hit. Very sharp photos you have there. I guess F2.8 is the way to go at this location!
Amazing birds. The hawk owl is most impressive.
Thanks everyone for your comments.
That looks like a great morning birding! It's always a delight to see the Blue-winged Pitta, such a wonderful common species. Interesting to see the Red-whiskered Bulbul there too!
Lovely, saturated-looking colours on the Pitta.
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