An overseas local patch

Japan is no doubt one of the best holiday destinations in Asia at the present time and an offer from a childhood buddy to stay at his abode should I want to visit the Land of the Rising Sun was too good of an offer to turn down. I have known William since our pre-school days as he lived just a few houses from my parents’ place. His work takes him all over the world and for the time being, he will be based in Japan. His company provided him with a nice and cosy little place in the suburbs of Shibuya just outside Tokyo centre and this was to be our home for the next week or so. It came with a garden and that provided me with my first taste of birding in Japan on my first morning in this foreign land.

William is not a bird person. He is into superbikes – Harley Davidsons to be more precise. I do share a some of his passion for these amazing machines. Riding a motorcycle is probably the closest you will ever get to flying without leaving the ground and I can certainly relate to that sense of freedom.

Japan is all about saving space and his designated car park will take a little getting used to…

It was a serene neighbourhood as well. Not that much traffic and people. Rows of Cherry Blossom Trees along certain spots add even more colours and beauty to the surroundings. These exquisite and delicate flowers are one of the reasons behind our visit to Japan at this time of the year and my better half was in floral heaven. She, like most members of the fairer sex, adore flowers and she was not to be disappointed in this trip.

As this was not a pure birding trip, it was crucial for me to find a local patch for which I can bird a couple of hours after the break of dawn and be back in time for breakfast and the usual sight seeing itinerary for the day. Lucky for me, next to our “home” was a shrine with a small wooded park called the Shibuya Hikawa Shrine. I found that most shrines and temples in Japan to be very well kept and “green” and it was no different with this one.

I visited this shrine almost every dawn and managed to obtain a reasonably good list at the end of my visit to Japan. My first lifer for the trip caught my immediate attention with its loud shrieking calls. It took a little effort to locate and identify it. I would learn later it is one of the commonest of Japan’s wooded habitat birds. The Brown-eared Bulbul is the only bulbul I recorded for the entire duration of my time in Japan. A stark difference from birding back home where half a dozen species on a single trip is nothing out of the ordinary. This bulbul might be common but good photographic opportunities are not easily obtainable. Apart from being slightly skittish, it has a preference for dense foliage. But the loud call, which is embedded into my memory by the end of my Japan trip, is heard almost everyday.

This is probably the cleanest shot I managed to obtain...

I hail from Penang where I see crows on a daily basis. Imagine the irony when I found it is not any different in Tokyo. But here they have the Jungle Crows (a recent split from the Large-billed Crow) and their enormous size and deep calls certainly make their presence felt far more than the House Crows back home.

Another species that reminded me of home was the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. Here, it is also a common commensal of man. I did not travel thousands of kilometres to photograph Eurasian Tree Sparrows but one foraging on some Cherry Blossoms is certainly a sight I will never get to enjoy back home in the tropics.

When I first encountered the White-cheeked Starling, I almost mistook it for a Common Myna. It was about the right size and the same shade of brown on the upperparts. It even behaved like the myna foraging on a patch of grass next to the road. That is until it turned around and I nearly tripped over the curb in my efforts to obtain better images. The features on the head and throat region were quite distinct and not much was required to ascertain its identification.

One of the most attractive garden birds in Japan is the Great Tit. Colourful, cute and charming, it was a pure delight to observe this little bird. It occasionally forages down at eye level and that is the best time to capture all the elements that make the Great Tit one of the most exciting garden birds in Japan for me.

I did not expect to find any rarities here at this suburban park. But a strange bird with strong markings hopping on the ground certainly roused my excitement. From its jizz, I guess it was some kind of a thrush and upon further scrutiny, turned out to be a Dusky Thrush. I do not know its exact status in Japan but I did not expect to find a thrush in this type of a habitat. I guess it is not that common as I only encountered it here on one occasion.

However, that one encounter was so memorable. The thrush performed well and was as obliging as any garden bird could be. It practically ignore my presence and all my efforts to reduce the distance between us. The Dusky Thrush was undoubtedly the best bird at this overseas local patch of mine.

A second thrush species was also present here at this modest locality. The Pale Thrush was seen the following day after my encounter with the Dusky Thrush. In fact, I thought it was the Dusky Thrush initially as it foraged at the very same spot. However, the absence of any distinct markings made me realise that I was looking at my second thrush lifer species. I was grateful it did not take place in the same morning because I was not sure if I could handle the excitement and adrenalin rush. Anyway, the Pale Thrush was a much shyer species and it made me work very hard to obtain shots without any motion blur or obstructed views.

There is a playground next to the shrine that is utilised not by children but pet dogs. A handful of dog owners and their pets will be waiting for the gates of the playground to be opened every morning. Initially, they probably wondered what this bald stranger was doing stalking about the bushes at the break of dawn. Anyway, we got along just fine and the dogs are usually very well behaved. One particular dog that caught my attention was this handsome Pit Bull.

Shibuya has another side to it and this is the side it is famous for. About 1 kilometre away lies the world renowned Shibuya Crossing where at certain times of the day will have hundreds of pedestrians trotting across the crossroad. And it is quite a spectacle. That part of Shibuya has numerous dining, shopping, entertainment and leisure outlets at your disposal. Whatever you need, you can find it there. A very different environment from where we were staying and we got to experience the best of both worlds during our stay with William. 

Two decades and counting (19/03/2106)

I started birding when I was a teenage. It was my godfather, Ban Beng who took me to my very first birding trip more than 25 years ago. And the rest, as they say, is history. Occasionally, he does join me for some birding and last Saturday, he brought his friend Chng along. Like what he did for me back then, his friend got to experience a true birding trip for the first time. I decided to take them to somewhere not too far from home and where birds are easy to encounter. The first place that came to mind was Air Hitam Dalam. The elevator boardwalk that cuts through the swamp forest is the perfect passageway to the wonders of the natural world. As expected, it was an enlightening experience for the first-timer and I did my best to guide him through this captivating experience.

Chng had a keen interest in night birds and the trip was off to a very good start as the resident Spotted Wood-owl was one of the first few birds we encountered. It was resting high up among the foliage of a tree crown. It was a distanced shot and the morning sun was not quite bright enough but the encounter was certainly exciting. Seeing an owl in the wild for the first time always is.

We came across a number of the regular birds that are found here but some, more than others, left truly lasting impressions. A Greater Coucal glided across our field of view and alighted on a low bush not too far away. Instead of making the usual quick escape into the dense undergrowth, it stayed long enough to allow the moment to be captured into our digital archive.

The Mangrove Blue Flycatchers were back to their usual selves and we had close and prolonged encounters with two pairs of these striking birds.

At mid morning we left Air Hitam Dalam to seek out more nocturnal birds and modest environment around the Kulim Hi-Tech Park was our next destination. The Barred Eagle-owl has been performing well for the past few weeks and it did not disappointment this time as well. Its sheer size and enchanting beauty certainly captured our undivided attention. It was not much of a surprise when this nocturnal hunter ended up being the best bird of the trip.

The last bird for the trip was another night bird and it was the Savanna Nightjar. The remarkable camouflage was so effective we almost drove right past it.

And what could be better than to observe one Savanna Nightjar at its daytime roost? To observe two Savanna Nightjars and the second bird is a female as she lacks the white outer tail feathers of the male. Of the two birds she was the more relaxed one and provided the perfect to end to Chng’s first day out in the field.

One in the world (13/03/2016)

The anticipation of my second day of birding in central Peninsular Malaysia got me all worked up and I made my way downstairs full of zeal and excitement. Like the first morning, breakfast was all ready and waiting for me – courtesy of Foo’s wife, Connie. I must admit I was truly being pampered on this trip.  The drive to Bukit Tinggi in Pahang took slightly more than an hour but the winding journey was made shorter by Foo’s excellent driving and his awesome ride.

Bukit Tinggi is yet another tourist destination and is usually crowded on weekends like today. However through his connections, Foo managed to get us in way before the permitted entry time. This is the second time I have been to this hill resort but the first visit was a casual trip. Today, was a different story. I was on a mission and a remarkable gamebird was my target.

A short trek from the Botanical Gardens and we reached the spot where the renowned Mountain Peacock-Pheasants of Bukit Tinggi frequent. It looks like any ordinary patch of montane forest but the memories and experiences that birders far and wide obtained here are anything but ordinary. This pheasant is only found in the main range of Peninsular Malaysia and no where else in the world. Prior to the discovery of the pheasants here, this endemic has an almost mythical status. Elusive and scarce, it is rarely encountered in the field. I have seen it on two occasions in the past and they were only glimpses of its true splendour. It has been three years since the discovery and one of the reasons I chose to finally have a go at the pheasants now is to avoid a crowd when shooting. But fate would have it that I had to share the location with a group of half a dozen mainland Chinese birders and their local guide. They came shortly after we had settled down and waiting for my second target bird of the trip to start its performance. I may sound selfish and perhaps I am but I would very much preferred to enjoy my moment with the pheasants at total ease and solitude. Anyway, we did our best to accommodate the group.

A couple of hours later, a stream of continuous shutter clicks from the direction of my new found companions broke the silence. I knew that the pheasant has finally decided to show itself but from where we had positioned our hides, I could not see a thing. It is a good thing the pheasants here are accustomed to all this attention. Any other gamebird would have turned tail and disappear right back into the forest. Slowly, I could almost make out the shape of the pheasant foraging just behind the undergrowth. There was nothing I could do but wait. And it was one of the longest minutes I had to endure in my life. The intensity of the moment was unbelievable. If my heart were to beat any faster, I fear it would have broke through my rib cage. When this amazing creature finally showed itself completely to us, I took a few seconds to awe at this magnificent creature before commencing with the photo shoot.

It was a handsome male. The blue-green ocelli sparkled like jewels whenever they caught the few rays of the sun that have managed to pierce through the dense canopy. The chestnut colouration interwoven with intricate fine markings make this bird a true wonder of the natural world. Its near mythical status is no exaggeration. It is so beautiful that at times, it seemed unreal. It was like a secret passageway to a fantasy world was breached once upon a time allowing the Mountain Peacock-Pheasants to cross into our world and grace us with their poise and beauty for all eternity.

The mere presence of the pheasant drowned out everything else. The hide I was in became my own little private world and at that moment in time, it was just me and the pheasant. And all these astronomical feelings was the doings of a single male bird. Other birders have encountered pairs and even families of this pheasant here but I can only dream of such good fortune and privilege.

The whole encounter lasted about 5 minutes. During that time, the pheasant hardly stood still. The dim lighting offered very little reprieve for my modest photographic gear. The long tail that had me spell-bounded proved to be a double-edged sword as it was challenging to keep the entire bird in the frame. Naturally, I wanted more. The group left immediately after the performance. I decided to stay and wait for the pheasant to return.

While waiting, the other species present finally had my attention like this male Oriental Magpie Robin. For the second consecutive day, this species has appeared at my target birds’ location.

The Buff-breasted Babbler occurs in hilly forest and is not often seen as it tends to keep itself well hidden among the undergrowth. I have several failed attempts to obtain its image in the past. This confiding individual changed all that. In terms of appearance, there is not much I can elaborate on this non-descript species but that does not mean I did not relish the encounter. I finally managed to obtain some reasonably good images of this little brown job.

Active and small, it was a tough subject to photograph despite its confiding nature...

I was disappointed when the pheasant did not return after a couple of hours. On the other hand, that made the earlier encounter even more precious to me. As I was about to pack up, this Common Treeshrew scurried into view and was just asking to be photographed. Naturally, I obliged...

From Bukit Tinggi, we travelled to the adjacent hill of Genting Highlands. Well known for its casinos and theme parks, this hill resort is naturally another popular tourist destination. However, those attractions are of no concern to me. The Important Bird Area (IBA) of Awana along the lower slopes is. IBAs here in Malaysia are not given their due protection. Awana, as many other IBAs, is under threat by human activities. That is a real shame because it is certainly a very beautiful and a regular birding site for birders in this region including Foo.

The Collared Owlet here has performed well on numerous occasions in the past but not today. Today it was quite adamant of taunting us from the dense foliage of the forest canopy with its diagnostic calls. No amount of pleading will get it show itself and a flying Great Hornbill finally diverted our attention away.

A fruiting tree only yielded a pair of Fire-tufted Barbets. This species is undoubtedly the most impressive of all our barbets. The challenging lighting condition and the height of the tree robbed us of any great images despite the confiding nature of our subjects.

After such an exhilarating morning with the pheasant, it would take something truly spectacular to reignite my excitement. A small flycatcher hawking along the forest edge awakened my senses but after further scrutiny, it turned out to be only an Asian Brown Flycatcher – the commonest of our migratory flycatchers. Not quite the spectacle I was hoping for. 

Foo was a little puzzled as to why we have yet to come across the Orange-bellied Leafbird. This beautiful forest jewel is a common sight here. I have been to this site only once before a few years back and I obtained one of my images of this species courtesy of an exceptionally confiding individual. I know what it feels like when you fail to show a regular species at your local patch to a visiting birder. A handsome male on our way back saved Foo the agony. And Foo’s pet bird was a great way to wrapped up things up for this weekend of outstanding birding and great companionship in the heart of Peninsular Malaysia. I owe the success and rewards of this trip to Foo. Without him, photographing a certain migratory ground bird and an endemic game bird will still be very much in my bucket list.