Pretty Backyard Birds

We're very lucky to have such colourful birds in our backyard. I guess tropical birds are pretty cool after all!

Common Flameback Woodpecker

Crimson Sunbird

Did you know this is the national bird of Singapore?

Raptor Watching in Singapore

November is an exciting month for birders in Singapore. It is migrating season for raptors passing through Singapore. We can see many uncommon birds of prey during this time, so bird watching is really fun. These big birds are very majestic and beautiful. Strangely, we also saw many of our good ol' resident raptors building nests during this time too!

White-bellied Sea Eagle

This is the biggest and most common raptor in Singapore. It always gets me excited to see it because it is sooo big and flies very low!!

 

Brahminy Kite

Brahminy Kite is the other common raptor in Singapore. We usually see him soaring high up in the sky, so it was super cool to spot him perched on a branch. We even got to see him in action getting his lunch!

 

He swooped down and grabbed a mouse in his claws!

Then, we were walking along the road when we spied a nest high up in a tree. I looked more closely and saw a clump of feathers. Hmm....could it be??

Something there??

We started grabbing our binocs in excitment. It was a mummy Changeable Hawk Eagle! This eagle was super sharp and smart. She spied us from a million miles away looking at her and hid behind the tree trunk. She peeped at us with one eye and half her body hidden behind the tree trunk. We looked at her with our spotting scope and she just looked back at us. She never came out from her spot!

Can you see the Changeable Hawk Eagle?

Maybe I will go back again and see little baby eagles in the nest next time!
Next, we saw something black moving up in the tree. When we looked through our spotting scope, we were amazed. There was a whole flock of more than 15 Black Bazas up in the tree.

Now you see me, now you don't!

Black Baza

Black Bazas are very cute with their crests and black bands on their chests. Suddenly, they seem to be everywhere I look.

And now, for my mystery bird.....

I couldn't figure this guy out for the longest time. I looked through all our Field Guides and through all the pictures on the internet. But nothing quite fit...

Mystery eagle in flight

Mystery eagle up close

Mystery eagle looking at me!

What is he????!!!

I thought I found a cool, new raptor.
Mum now says it is probably a juvenile White-bellied Sea Eagle :(  What an anti-climax!
Do you think so??

Migratory birds at Bidadari Park

School hols are great. No homework and lots of birding. Even better, the month of November is special because lots of birds pass through Singapore from the North . Simply awesome!

Today, Dad drove by Bidadari park for a spot of birding. The thing about birdwatching in Singapore is that it takes so much more skill and patience. In the US, raptors perch on bare branches, roadside fences and highway telephone poles. In Singapore, birds hide inside the dense foliage. Tough!

When our eyes finally got used to spying birds fluttering about, great treats awaited us.

Indian Cuckoo

 We couldn't believe our luck spotting the Indian Cuckoo. This is an unusual migrant in Singapore.
So, imagine our amazement when we spotted the next bird.....!!!

Hudgson's Hawk Cuckoo

It posed for us and even flew from branch to branch, playing with us!

 This cool birdie hails from India, visiting Singapore only in November. I love migratory season!!

White-throated Kingfisher

This noisy little guy is so handsome. He's a resident, not a migrant but I put it here because I love its colours.
But my star lifer soon appeared....

Ruddy Kingfisher!!!!!

This is a really special Kingfisher, so we were super excited. So were the dozens of photographers there. I just wished they wouldn't use their flashbulbs and scare the poor little guy :(

Next week, we go raptor watching. I can't wait! 

3 Really Cool Singapore Life Birds!

The hardest part about birding in Singapore is the heat.... and the humidity.... and the mosquitoes. So, imagine our luck when Dad spotted 3 awesome birds from the car with his super-sharp eyes, just driving along. We got out our spotting scope and .....OMG!OMG!OMG!!! Sadly, we didn't have our cameras with us and had to take the pics with my iPhone through the spotting scope!

2 Raptors on a tree in the distance.
What luck!

We looked through the spotting scope and *gulp*...!!!



Grey-headed Fish Eagle

This is supposed to be a near-endangered raptor in Singapore, so seeing 2 birds together is really, really cool. We watched them for some time, fishing in the river and preening themselves. And they are married! We even saw them .....mating!

The second raptor, we saw a dark "ball" in a faraway tree.

We took a good look through our spotting scope and .....



Changeable Hawk-eagle

Another life birdie for me! So happy and excited! Too bad my iPhone could not take a better pic.

Sometimes, bird-watching happens by accident. I was looking at an Ashy Minivet in a shrub with my binocs. Suddenly, a colourful bird landed on a branch just next to it. Wow! It's so pretty!

Coppersmith Barbet

  3 not-so-common birds. If we only look close enough.

Now, for some random birds which we also saw along the way:

Purple Heron

  

Pulau Ubin Island

Today is a Public Holiday. My parents, sis and I decided to check out the birds at the nearby island of Pulau Ubin. We had heard lots about birding on this island and were really excited! We took our bikes and after boarding the bumboat, were on our way to our adventure!

Exploring the island

 

Observatory Tower at Chek Jawa

The island was so crowded with people who made such a lot of noise I bet the birds went into hiding. We also met a lot of professional-looking photographers with huge cameras. They were playing recorded bird calls to attract birds. In USA, that would have been frowned upon.

After what seemed like a fruitless day, our patience was rewarded. With the absolute coolest-looking raptor!!

4 Black Bazas (woo!hoo!)

Check out the double crests on their heads and banded chests

The Black Bazas are supposed to be pretty unusual here (according to the photographers who gave us dubious looks when we told them). They must be winter migrants.

And then we saw my big-time fav, Oriental Pied Hornbills! We were quite disappointed because we had read that they were common in Pulau Ubin but we didn't see any.....until dad saw 2 big birds perched in a distance across the quarry.  

Always so beautiful!

We also saw the Blue-tailed Bee Eater

He waits patiently, then swoops down and catches an insect in the air

We ended our day with a delicious lunch at the jetty before saying good-bye to Pulau Ubin. I think we will be back for more birding!

Birding @ Bukit Brown Cemetery

It's been more than 6 month's since my last post! School work and exams have sadly limited my bird watching to school holidays. But on a happier note, exams are now over! I can dust my bins and take out my video cam again. For now.

After reading the awful news that Bukit Brown Cemetery is going to be destroyed for...more roads (argh!!!! Crazy, right?!!?), we decided to take a walk through the cemetery while it is still intact. This is so senseless! I'm so upset, but will leave my ranting for another day....

We braved the mosquitos and were rewarded with the largest number of life birds in Singapore! Wow! Why didn't we ever come here before? 

There were the usual suspects:

Olive-backed sunbird
Brown-throated sunbird
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Black-naped Oriole
Myna

But cooler still, we saw:



Greater Racket-tailed Drongo

  

Check out the rackets in its tail feathers!




Banded Woodpecker (cool!)



Common Goldenback Woodpecker (male)

 

Common Goldenback Woodpecker (female)



Asian Paradise Flycatcher (female)
- we caught a glimpse of the gorgeous white-tailed male but just couldn't photograph it!!

Asian Fairy Bluebird (male)
- he just refused to come out from behind the leaf!
We also saw the dull blue female

Striped-thoated Bulbul

Ashy Tailorbird

Sooty-capped Babbler

Common Iora

White-throated Kingfisher
- also hiding!

Pink-necked green pigeon

To round up our perfect day, a Brahminy Kite :)



A truly awesome birding day. If only I could see some owls too....

Raptor-watching in the UK!

It's the June school hols! Dad took sis & I on a vacation to the UK where he spent his school days. It was one of my most memorable holidays. Best of all, we got to go bird-watching. And we got to see lots and lots of raptors, my greatest love!

UK's many birding trails

Barn Owl - in broad daylight!

Great Horned Owl
- we were amazed to see him standing on the ground!

...but even more amazed to see him run off!!

Black Kite
- soaring in the air. Majestic!

Scops Owl
- so adorable!!

Tawny Owl

Tawny Owl

Honey Buzzard