Asian Brown Flycatcher

Asian Brown Flycatcher (Muscicapa dauurica), a rare birds in Taiwan but common in Malaysia. It was sighted at Tainan City Park on 28th of December 2013, a day for the "New Year Bird Count" event in Taiwan.

Happy Birding and Happy New Year.

Oriental Pratincole in Tainan

To re-post my lifer on 24-7-2011. Oriental Pratincole, a summer migrant at Guantian in Tainan.

  

Happy Birding. 

Caspian Tern at Taijiang National Park in Tainan.

Caspian Tern, one of the common abundant birds at Taijiang National Park in Tainan.

Taijiang National Park and Sihcao Wetland Ecology in Tainan are the recommended birding sites to see these endangered species of Black-faced Spoonbills as well as other water birds of Asia, both areas are IBA (Important Bird Area) recognized by BirdLife International.

Happy Birding.

Prinia in the Summer

In this summer, I have sighted two species of Prinia, namely the Plain Prinia (Prinia inornata) and Yellow-bellied Prinia (Prinia flaviventris), both were my lifer in Taiwan in 2010 and 2011, respectively.

The Yellow-bellied Prinia was digiscoped at Huben in Yunlin, the call of the bird is easily recognized, it sounds like a goat calling. The Plain Prinia was digiscoped at Barclay Memorial Park in Tainan, it is the most common Prinia in that park (I hope the Tainan City Government will stop destroying their natural habitat at the park). Both Prinia are the fascinating birds, always like to play and seek, hide behind or under the bushes.

(click on the pictures for the enlarged view)

Yellow-bellied Prinia

Plain Prinia

Finally exposed

Happy Birding

Common Kingfishers at NCKU

Today (4-15-2013), I spotted a pair of Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis 翠鳥) at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan, Taiwan. (click on the picture to enlarge)

 

 

A female Common Kingfisher with the reddish lower mandible.

A male Common Kingfisher with the dark lower mandible.

Happy Birding.

Daurian Redstart at NCKU

In the last spring (10 March 2013), I sighted this beautiful migratory bird which has an attractive orangy plumage and silvery crown. Daurian Redstart (Phoenicurus auroreus) is an uncommon spring visitor at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan.

Front View

Side View

Happy Birding

Black Bulbul at NCKU

In last winter (16-Jan-2013), I sighted huge flock of Black Bulbul (Hypsipetes leucocephalus) foraging and competing for food on most of the fruiting bayan trees at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan. There are two species of bulbuls can be sighted at NCKU, the Black Bulbul and the Chinese Bulbul. Chinese Bulbul is a common resident in the campus, while the Black Bulbul is the winter visitor.

Black Bulbul

Chinese Bulbul

 Happy Birding

Brown-headed Thrush at NCKU

In last winter (16-Jan-2013), I sighted more than 10 of this smart and beautiful Brown-headed Thrush (Turdus chrysolaus) at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan. It was my lifer.

Happy Birding

Black-faced Spoonbills at Taijiang National Park

Black-faced Spoonbills at Taijiang National Park in Tainan, Taiwan.

Taijiang National Park and Sihcao Wetland Ecology in Tainan are the recommended birding sites to see these endangered species of Black-faced Spoonbills, both areas are IBA (Important Bird Area) recognized by BirdLife International.

Watch the video about the Balck-faced Spoonbills at Taijiang National Park in Tainan, Taiwan:

Golden Plover and Grey Plover at Taijiang National Park

I'm back to my bird-blogging again.

Today, I would like to share the pictures of the Pacific Golden Plover (Pluvialis fulva) and Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola). I saw these two unique plovers standing close to each other in last winter at Taijiang National Park in Tainan, and Grey Plover was one of my lifers. From the pictures, you can clearly distinguish the non-breeding plumage of both species, one in golden plumage and the other one with grey plumage.

Pacific Golden Plover (Pluvialis fulva)

Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)

Happy Birding, 4-13-2013.

Empty Nest

On 21st June, the nest was emptied after the typhoon. I searched around the NCKU campus with the hope to see the fledglings and adults again, but I didn't find any of them. However. I was lucky to find this precious adult feather of the Malayan Night Heron under one of the empty nests.

From my weekly observations, the complete nesting period from hatchling to fledgling is about 4 to 5 weeks.

Click HERE to read my previous report about the hatchings/fledglings of the Malayan Night Heron.

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Two Chicks Left the Nest

On 15 June, I went back again to check the nest. I noticed two chicks had left the nest but prefer to perch on the nearby branches, and one chick still resided inside the nest. Besides that, the white feathers on their head were also less noticeable. At this moment, only one adult was still around and actively foraging on the nearby ground, the feeding session has also less frequent.

Click HERE to read the previous report about the hatchings of the Malayan Night Heron.

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Grey Treepie Feeding on Cicada

On 10-June, I spotted a Grey Treepie (Dendrocitta formosae formosae, 樹鵲 ) feeding on a cicada at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan.

Grey Treepie is an endemic sub-species in Taiwan. The cicada is identified as Cryptotympana atrata  (紅脈熊蟬).

Grey Treepie feeding on cicada (click on the pictures to enlarge)

Remaining parts of the Cicada, the wings and abdomen shell.

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Parents Left the Nest

On 10 June, I went back to observe the nest, I noticed the parents had left the nest and were foraging on the nearby ground, but occasionally one of them would fly back to the nest to feed the chicks. 

All three chicks had grown stronger and bigger with the distinguishable white feathers on their head. I also noticed one of the chicks had started leaving the nest and perched on the nearby branch, the other two chicks still resided inside the nest.

Click HERE to read the previous report about the hatchlings of the Malayan Night Heron.

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Three Chicks Survived

On 2nd of June, I noticed only three chicks survived. The last date I saw the fourth chick was on 27 May.

They were provoked by the squirrel.

Click HERE to view the fourth chick which I photographed before 27 May.

So, will all these three chicks survive?

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Malayan Night Heron Hatchlings

After about a week of rainy days, I went back to check the nest on 21-May. Surprisingly, I saw four hatchlings on the nest. I believe two hatched on mother's day (click HERE to view the hatched egg shells), and another two hatched after mother's day. 

The hatchlings look healthy and strong, they were aggressively competing with their siblings and begging for food from their parents. Both parents are very experience in parenting, they take turn to feed and care their chicks, they protect their vulnerable chicks by covering them with their body and wings after every feeding session.

 

Feeding session, so can you find all four hatchlings in the picture?

Will all these four chicks survive? let's wait patiently for the next update.

Happy Birding. Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Malayan Night Herons hatched on Mother's Day

Found these two hatched egg shells of the Malayan Night Heron on Mother's Day. Glad to see these two new born lives arrived to this wonderful world, successfully.

Length is ~3.5cm, Width is ~3.5cm, 
the complete egg is approximated as 5x3.5cm.

 

Keep Watching, Keep Listening, and Keep Exploring.

Birding on the eve of Mother's Day

I had my birding trip to Sinhua area in Tainan on the eve of mother's day, together with three members of NCKU Bird Club. We started our journey at 4.30am and reached the destination at about 5am, it's dawn in the summer in Taiwan. 

I was lucky to have a chance to see my lifer, a Bamboo Partridge (Bambusicola thoracicus, 竹雞), it is an endemic sub-species of Taiwan. The call is loud and easily distinguished, as "kee-koo-koo" repeatedly.

Partridges are usually shy and hard to be found and digiscoped, unless you play "hide without seek" with the bird. Then, how did I locate it? It's partly due to luck and "bird-sense" as well. I patiently and calmly followed the source of the call from the higher ground as possible. Surprisingly, the bird was actually calling on a tree branch at the same ground level as me, at about 20m away, without missing the opportunity, I just shot it, digitally. 

Therefore, I would like to dedicate these partridge pictures to my mom. Happy Mother's Day!

(click on the picture to enlarge)

Here are the bonuses of the day:

Taiwan Scimitar Babbler (Pomatorhinus musicus, 小灣嘴), 
an endemic species of Taiwan.

Maroon Oriole, an endemic sub-species of Taiwan. 
The maroon colour is closely similar to the red colour of the 
Trogon in Malaysia.

White-bellied Green Pigeon

Happy Birding.

Crested Goshawk Guarding Its Nest.

Today, I spotted a male Crested Goshawk in NCKU, perching on a tree branch and seriously guarding its nest with one of its legs hiding inside its belly feathers. The breeding plumage is pale and grayish in color, especially the grayish head plumage.

glimpsed at me....

then, turned its head, starring at the nest, 
and ignored me.

Click HERE to view my last year pictures of Crested Goshawk.

White Wagtail at NCKU, Tainan.

White Wagtail (Motacilla alba, 白鶺鴒) was my lifer on 24 December, 2010 in Tainan, Taiwan. 

28 March, 2012 was a fortunate date for me to digiscope this beautiful bird at NCKU (National Cheng Kung University) in Tainan City. There were three of them foraging food on the ground, two adults and one juvenile with the summer plumage, the juvenile was very shy and hard to approach nearer.

All pictures shown in this write-up are the adult with summer plumage. (click on the picture for enlarged view)

Keep Watching, Keep Listening and Keep Exploring.

Video clip of White Wagtail, digiscoped by Steen Heilesen: