It’s time for more backyard birding at Bukit Gombak Park. The highlight of the day was spotting two Asian Brown Flycatchers. These birds are commonly seen in local parks and forests during the migratory season.
Asian Brown FlycatcherAsian Brown Flycatcher
However, the two birds I spotted were surprisingly calm and allowed me to observe them for quite some time. Perhaps they were exhausted from flying. We are approaching the tail-end of the migratory season now hence they should be heading back north now as spring approaches in the northern hemisphere.
I spent Saturday morning birding at Singapore Quarry and along the road leading up to the quarry (Jalan Asas). This was one of the first locations I visited when I began my birding journey in 2023.
Olive-winged Bulbul
The early morning walk along Jalan Asas yielded many of the common resident birds. However, they were all perched high up on some very tall trees which did not make for good photography.
Blue-throated Bee-eater
At the quarry, there is a resident pair of Gray-headed Fish Eagles. I only saw one of them and it was perched quite a distance away. It did not attempt any dives in the 1.5 hours I was there.
Gray-headed FIsh Eagle
An Asian Brown Flycatcher stops by the viewing platform for a look around before disappearing into the forest again.
Asian Brown Flycatcher
On the way out, I spotted this Tiger Shrike along Jalan Asas. Pleasantly surprised to see this uncommon migrant again as I have not spotted one for some time already.
On Sunday, I went to SBWR for some early morning birding as I had to leave by late morning for an afternoon appointment. Arriving on the first bus at 7:00AM as usual, this time, I was ready with camera out for my encounter with the Blue-eared Kingfisher.
Blue-eared Kingfisher
Sure enough, it was perched near the pond diving into the water to catch breakfast. Unfortunately, it was too dark to capture any action shots but I’m pleased with these photos that I’ve shot. After a few successful dives, the bird disappeared into the forest behind the pond.
Blue-eared Kingfisher
There were more shorebirds this time around inside the wetlands but nothing out of the ordinary. So I turned my attention back up the sky to find a lone Red-collared Dove (lifer) perched high up on a tree adding another unexpected tick to my life list.
Red-collared Dove
Later, I decided to walk near the carpark as there were reports of a Forest Wagtail in the area on eBird. Alas, only common birds like the Red Junglefowl and Ashy Tailorbird were around to entertain me.
Red JunglefowlAshy Tailorbird
Finally, I saw a pair of Lineated Barbets bring food back to this hole in a tree which I presume is a nest. I only saw the adult birds coming in and out to drop off food though. There was no sight of any chicks.
This week’s Saturday morning birding was at Jelutong Tower inside Singapore’s central catchment area. It was another early morning trek to the tower, just in time to witness the glorious colors of the morning sky.
Morning sunrise from atop Jelutong Tower
The first sighting of interest was a mating pair of Red-crowned Barbets. Hoping for a successful breeding season as the species’ conservation status is classified as “Near Threatened” due to habitat loss.
Red-crowned BarbetRed-crowned Barbet
Several Crested Honey Buzzards were also seen flying over the forest.
Crested Honey Buzzard
This is today’s target bird – the Violet Cuckoo (lifer). The male has a beautiful coat of iridescent violet on it’s head and back. Unfortunately, this could not be photographed clearly due to the harsh backlighting.
Violet Cuckoo
Nevertheless, it was a joy to observe the bird calling out from atop the forest to attract a mate. There will always be other opportunities in the future to get better photographs.
Violet Cuckoo
Lastly. a Blue-crowned Hanging Parrots was seen perched on a nearby palm tree.
I was back in Malaysia for the Chinese New Year holidays and had time to squeeze in one birding session at the Kledang Saiong Forest Eco Park. This was another productive visit with 3 new additions to my life list (White-bellied Erponis, Large Woodshrike, and Whiskered Treeswift).
White-bellied Erponis
It was a bright sunny day (after days of heavy rain) and the lighting was beautiful. I could not resist photographing some of the resident birds bathed in the morning sunlight.
Upon entering the park, I immediately spotted a Gray Wagtail foraging on the forest floor. This was a skittish bird who kept it’s distance from me at all times before flying off to forage near the water stream.
Gray Wagtail
Along the water stream, a Chestnut-naped Forktail was darting in and out of the vegetation along the riverbank. I waited for awhile hoping that it would come out for a better photo but it retreated deeper into the forest instead.
Chestnut-naped Forktail
It was also my first time observing an Asian Red-eyed Bulbul foraging on the ground. But it did not stay long before flying back up the tree again.
Asian Red-eyed Bulbul
Another bird that was busy foraging on the ground was a lone Common Emerald Dove.
Common Emerald Dove
Lastly, an Asian Brown Flycatcher was on a lookout for it’s next prey. I suspect this may be the same bird I’ve seen in January at the same location near the watchtower.
Another Saturday morning, another attempt at spotting the rare Fairy Pitta (lifer) in the Singapore Botanic Gardens (SBG). After three tries, at long last, success.
Fairy Pitta
The Fairy Pitta was actively foraging on the forest floor from uphill to downhill along the SBG Rainforest Trail. I was lucky enough for it stop right in between the gap of vegetation to get this relatively open shot.
I went to Bukit Gombak Park (BGP) for some casual birding after work on Friday. Besides the usual resident birds, I spotted a pair of Coconut Lorikeets foraging on the trees which is an uncommon species in BGP.
Coconut Lorikeet
I spent most of my time observing them forage, flying from one tree to another before they flew off the park grounds.
I had a late afternoon work meeting near Jurong Lake Gardens on Monday. So I decided to swing over for a quick birding session after I was done. I was hoping to see the Watercock which had been spotted there the day before.
Alas, it was a no-show. Some birders there told me that the Watercock was spotted earlier but had gone into hiding. After an hour of waiting, I decided to pack up and head for dinner.
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Birding on a weekday was a nice change though as the park was considerably more quiet. I had never seen a Medium Egret so brazenly cross the road before.
On Sunday, I joined the Nature Society of Singapore for a guided birdwatching walk in Kranji Marsh. This is a location which I’ve wanted to visit for a long time but I’ve been putting it off because of it’s difficulty to access via public transport.
The day started at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserves Visitor Centre carpark from where a chartered bus will ferry us to the starting point of the walk.
Collared Kingfisher
Another perk of the walk was we were allowed access into the conservation area of Kranji Marsh which is normally out-of-limits to the public. I saw a lot of birds in there and was very impressed with how well the guides can identify the birds (especially from call alone).
Red-wattled Lapwing
The highlight of the day for me was spotting the Wood Sandpiper (lifer), an uncommon migratory bird in Singapore.
Wood Sandpiper
Here’s another photo with a fellow migrant, an Asian Openbill, in the same frame. The two went about their business foraging for food unwary of each other’s presence.
I found myself at the Singapore Botanic Gardens again hoping to sight the Fairy Pitta. The rainforest trail where it was sighted had been closed till further notice due to a fallen tree.
There was one sighting of the Fairy Pitta reported on eBird just 3 days ago at an accessible part of the trail. I waited there for about an hour with nothing to show for. Not wanting to waste the entire morning away, I decided to move on.
I headed to the Learning Forest area where the Malayan Night Heron and Blue-winged Pitta were recently spotted. Unfortunately, I did not find the Heron or Pitta either. I did get to see this Oriental Pied Hornbill fly by.
Oriental Pied Hornbill
As for other wildlife, I spotted three Smooth-coated Otters in the lake near the Learning Forest. I spent some time observing them hunt for fish.
Smooth-coated Otters
This one looks like it’s about to take a large satisfying bite out of it’s catch.
Smooth-coated Otter
Looking back up in the sky, it was a good day to spot raptors. I counted the Changeable Hawk-eagle, Grey-headed Fish Eagle, two Brahminy Kites and two Crested Honey Buzzards in rapid succession.
Changeable Hawk-eagle (dark morph)
The clear, sunny weather was optimal for thermaling – a phenomenon where raptors exploit the updraft created by temperature difference in the air to allow it to gain elevation with minimal effort.
Crested Honey Buzzard
Finally, on the way to the MRT station, I spotted this Asian Openbill looking for snails at the Eco-Lake.
Asian Openbill
It was thrashing this snail very hard from side to side, presumably to separate the flesh from the shell for consumption.
The Salaryman Birder 