Big is beautiful

I yearned again to visit the nightbirds residing in the forest surrounding Pedu Lake in Kedah. Together with James, we departed from Penang in the middle of the night in order to reach our destination in time to catch these nocturnal hunters before they retire for the day. We stopped at a 24-hour fast food outlet for some breakfast to go and was surprised to see the number of patrons present at this hour. For them, their Friday night out was drawing to an end. But for us, it was just beginning. Upon arrival at this birding haven, we found it was a clear night and the view of the Milky Way from was mesmerizing as always.

Soon after, the diagnostic call of the Large Frogmouth echoed through the vicinity. My stargazing interest came to an abrupt halt because no astronomical spectacle can ever overshadow the presence of a Large Frogmouth. It did not take much effort to locate this amazing bird - again. Like my previous encounter, it was on an open perch at the edge of the forest. Only this time, it was a natural perch. For me, owling is one of the most difficult aspects of birding as we humans are certainly out of our element when darkness falls. However on those rare occasions when the subjects that we seek reveal themselves so obligingly, I cannot help but to believe in the existence of a Greater power.

The Large Frogmouth finally made it into my life list only a few years back (heard only records do not count in my book). Since then, I have been seeing it in the field quite regularly. Sometimes when you finally unblock a species, it shows up everywhere and makes you wonder why it took so long for you to see one. Anyway, the Large Frogmouth is a beautiful and remarkable species and I feel blessed that it is found in one of my regular haunts.

It was unfortunate that the Buffy Fish-Owl, Sunda Scops-Owl and Blyth’s Frogmouth only provided audio records this time. But the Large Frogmouth did enough to compensate for the rest. The breaking of dawn awakened the diurnal birds from slumber and the first one to break the silence was a Greater Racket-tailed Drongo. But the one vocal that had my undivided attention was not unlike the braying of donkeys and it is one of the largest (maybe even the largest) woodpeckers in the world. Great Slaty Woodpeckers are very vocal by nature and they seldom occur alone. That makes it almost impossible not to take notice of them whenever they are present.

A pair of this magnificent species kept us entertained for a prolonged period of time. They were not only foraging. Love was in the air as frequent courtship displays were observed. The male sports the red moustache but both birds are just as vigorous with their show of public affection.

The tallest canopies are their stage of choice. The distance and the speed of the birds’ movements made it difficult for my modest photography setup. But the encounter was a treat for the soul nevertheless.

In flight, the Great Slaty Woodpecker was just as difficult to capture. The flight is often direct and rapid and the only reasonable image I managed was strongly backlighted. The joys of forest bird photography...

A male Oriental Honey-Buzzard cast an eerie shadow as it glided very low overhead. Its presence panicked some of the smaller passerines as it is after all a predatory bird. The whole episode went by so quickly that I only managed a single shot before the buzzard disappeared beyond the gap in the canopy.

Pedu Lake is home to three species of Fish-Eagles and the biggest of them all is the White-bellied Sea-Eagle. The name may be misleading as this species is equally at home inland especially in the vicinity of a large body of water. There is no denying it is a common species even in Penang but the sheer size and beauty of this eagle will not stop me to be still in awe of its presence.

The Changeable Hawk-Eagle is smaller in size but it is much more tenacious as a hunter. An immature bird with a newly caught lizard delayed our departure from this birding haven. The lizard was nothing but a snack as this eagle is known to take much bigger prey. Today’s excursion may not have the quantity to match a typical good day of birding here but it did have its significant moments. The Large Frogmouth and the Great Slaty Woodpeckers alone was worth the trip here. Two iconic forest dwellers whose sizes are truly exceptional and presence, electrifying. We also recorded some birds that have gone missing for months and that is always a good thing.