26/06/2010: Sungai Sedim (Kedah) & Penanti (Penang)

I arrived at the car park of this recreational forest just after dawn and I found that I was not the only one that was up and about. This Crested Serpent-eagle was already contemplating what to have for breakfast from a vantage point at the edge of the car park.

And so was this Finsch’s Bulbul. Although the lighting was still quite dim, the yellow throat was clear enough for me to make a proper identification.

I decided to take the trail up Gunung Bintang and the weather condition was much better than I had expected considering the previous days of rain back in Penang. Although the trip was great in terms of birding, photography was another let down. The Maroon Woodpecker, Rufous-collared Kingfisher and Orange-breasted Trogon provided tantalizing glimpses but not photographic opportunities. And don’t even get me started on the 3 species of Hornbills (Wreathed, Rhinoceros and Helmeted) that I managed to record during this trip.

If your ear drums haven’t experience the far-carrying territorial call of the Siamang before, then I guess you haven’t been to a Malaysian forest because it is certainly one of the most diagnostic and loudest sounds produced by any animal found there.

Around midday, I decided to call it a day and made my way home. However, I made a quick visit to Penanti as it was along my way back. As usual, I was greeted by the loud and distinctive calls of the resident Red-wattled Lapwings.

The Blue-throated Bee-eaters provided the photography highlights for the day.

I found a few sub-adults in the vicinity as there are still traces of its juvenile plumage and the elongated central tail feathers were not yet fully developed.

They may be called Bee-eaters but here in Penanti, I guess Dragonfly-eaters would be the more appropriate name…

And this is how you enjoy a Dragonfly for lunch….

12/06/2010: Kupang-Gerik (Perak)

The entrance to this locality has changed tremendously since my last visit. The Bat Hawks’ nesting tree now stands alone as most of the other big trees have been logged away. There is a new rest stop facility near the entrance as well. As this is an active logging area, the change in habitat is expected but not the rest stop - not to me anyway. As Choo Eng and I gradually move deeper into the logging trail, the piercing rays of the early morning sun started sending the mist back into the heavens.

The timing was just nice as a flock of 6 Blue-rumped Parrots filled the vicinity with the distinctive metallic calls as they flew about the vicinity. When the flock decided to alight on a nearby tree, I had a feeling that today is going to be a good one and it was because we managed to record over 70 species in the end. I have numerous encounters with this species in the past but this is my first good opportunity for photography.

As they bask in the sun and preen to their hearts content, we were delighted to find them rather confiding as well. We had ample time to go about the bottom of the tree to find the best angle for our photograph session. I don’t see myself as the kind of guy that will easily fall for cute little animals but for these adorable parrots, I’ll make an exception. The red bill and absence of blue on the head region suggest that this is fellow is an immature male.

Here an adult male sporting the diagnostic bluish head for comparison…

The Little Cuckoo-dove is not an uncommon species but it is very difficult to get close to them. I managed to capture this lone individual when it alighted on distant tree to rest. I reckon this is a male bird as females tend to have more barrings on the breast.

A male Whiskered Treeswift taking a break from its aerial sallies for insects.

This time, we recorded an unusually high number of Streaked Bulbuls around. In fact, I think this is the most I have seen from a single locality. We counted no less than 20 birds throughout the day.

The Scaly-breasted Bulbul is one of the most stunning representatives of this usually drab-looking family of birds. Unfortunately, this flock kept to the top most part of the forest canopy.

Photographing small active birds foraging among the forest vegetation is a challenge to any bird photographer. For instance, you are bound to come across the Dark-necked Tailorbird in any forest and yet, I still do not have an image I can truly be proud of.

This Large Woodshrike gave me no chance at all to obtain reasonable images…

This Crested Serpent-eagle, on the other hand, was not the least bothered by our intrusion.

All these years of birding has made all my senses especially heightened towards flying objects. However, birds are not the only things that fly about. There are also dragonflies. This individual had exceptional striking colours and was quite co-operative to my camera.

As we made our way back to civilization, a trio of crows caught my attention as the thought of Slender-billed Crows crossed my mind. In the end, they turned to be just the commoner Large-billed Crows. Overall, I am quite pleased with the outcome of the trip and some of the more notable species recorded include a Wallace Hawk-eagle and Rufous-tailed Shama.

29/05/2010: Bukit Gambir (Penang)

I paid a short visit to my local patch hoping to get a couple of hours of birding before heading into the office on this beautiful Saturday morning. This is one of the strongholds of the highly-successful Crested Mynas – an introduced species that is doing very well in Penang Island.

A Zebra Dove cooing its territorial call on an exposed cable provided the best images for this short outing.

There are a few resident Chestnut-headed Bee-eaters in this locality and this dead tree happens to be one of their favourite perches.

This handsome male Pink-necked Green-pigeon was resting outside a newly-built nest but with the morning sun behind him, it was quite impossible for me to obtain any really good images.

I had another tough time trying to photograph another malkoha and this time it was Penang Island’s only species - the Chestnut-breasted Malkoha. How difficult can it be to photograph a 1.5 foot long bird? Well, a picture says a thousand words…

As I made my way back to my car, I found another bird foraging just next to it. As with my last visit, I waited for it - this time a Zebra Dove, to gradually move further away before I got into my car. I guess word got around that this car belongs to a “bird-friendly” guy.

22/05/2010: Air Hitam Dalam (Penang)

It was supposed to be my second pelagic trip off the coast of Tanjung Dawai, Kedah but we had to cut the trip short due to the weather. It was raining when Dave, Hakim and I arrived at the pier before dawn. Despite the rain, the boat crew still decided to go out and try their luck. The rough sea conditions prevented them from reaping anything this time and they decided to turn back by lunch time. As for us, standing upright can be a little challenging at times let alone photographing seabirds. Anyway, Hakim and I were glad to be able to see one of our target birds, the Short-tailed Shearwater on two brief occasions. This lifer helped to ease our disappointment. I guess I have to leave the Brown Noddy, Bulwer’s Petrel and the rest of the rarities for another trip.

On the way to Penang, we made a little detour to Air Hitam Dalam to see if anything is about as the breeding season should be in full swing by now. We were greeted by a male Asian Koel upon our arrival at the car park. Although this is a common species, I still do not have any images that I’m really satisfied with. This time, a branch was in the way…

A resting Spotted Wood-owl provided some excitement to the trip…

Malkohas have a tendency to move like squirrels among the foliage of the canopy. This foraging Green-billed Malkoha was pretty restless making it quite difficult for us to follow it in order to obtain some images.

However, our patience did pay off I the end when it perched slightly in the open before flying to the next tree. Thanks, buddy…

15/05/2010: Mainland Penang

With the migratory season over, it is back to the forest again. I decided to pay a visit to Bukit Panchor as it has been quite a while since my last visit. However, the birding here is a pale comparison to how it was like when I first visited this forest reserve. Today’s trip only produced a record shot of a foraging Crimson-winged Woodpecker and the others either kept themselves well hidden or kept their distance.

Luckily, the other animals that call this place home was at hand to keep me occupied like these rather confiding Sun Skinks…

This squirrel was so indulged with breakfast that it totally ignored my presence…

After the forest outing, I swung by the Pulau Burung landfill and things were rather slow there as well. As the migratory season is officially over, I cannot gauge the damage done by the clearing works. I can only hope that by the time the first migrants start to arrive again, the place will be able to provide sanctuary again as usual. It was a relief to see that the resident Black-winged Stilts are not really affected…

There are still a few Whiskered Terns that have not undergone their journey back north yet.

The resident Long-tailed Macaques should be thankful there are no crocodiles here…

Before calling it the day, I decided to visit the Penanti grasslands to check on the resident waders but the numbers present were not that encouraging. The Oriental Pratincoles did show signs of another successful year with the number of juveniles running around the locality.

Here’s a striking adult bird in breeding plumage…