Along Jalan Sg Lalang & into Sg Tekala
Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Started the trip quite late as the weather doesn't look so good early in the morning. So, I didn't expect much though. The road towards Sungai Tekala seems quite good and after passing by Sungai Tekala, there are more birds flying across the road. So, I stopped at some of these areas to enjoy the birds.


There wasn't anything exceptional but still quite good for the day.


I also took a walk into Sungai Tekala Recreational Forest. No one was there and almost no bird calls until i walked up the stairs and heard a call. Only 1 bird, it looks like a bulbul - a hairy-backed bulbul.




Along the road towards the Semenyih dam, there were plenty of bulbuls, flowerpeckers, spiderhunters, tailorbirds, barbets etc.








One bad thing happened while I stopped my car next to the Semenyih dam. I turned my keys but it jammed and wouldn't start. This is not the first time it acting like this. 10 days ago it happened inside the wetland. So, I thought it could be the 3 years old battery or the yet-to-replaced spark plug. Immediately after reaching Kajang, I asked the service centre to change the spark plug. I thought everything will be alright, so i turn the key, it happen again!!! Then the supervisor came, and said it could be the starter problem. *sigh* cheap car....what to do?



posted by wengchun @ 12:23 AM, ,


Flyeater Observation Update 26 June 2006
Monday, June 26, 2006

The time was 6.30pm. 1 Cuckoo was heard calling from the same tree as yesterday morning. Immediately, a flyeater responded. Territorial warning? Here is another photo to compare the juvenile and adult flyeater.



posted by wengchun @ 6:15 AM, ,


Flyeater Observation Update 25 June 2006
Sunday, June 25, 2006

2 cuckoos were heard again this morning from 10am and managed to locate only 1 of them perching high up on the rubber tree very close to the flyeater's nest. No flyeater is seen inside the nest. However, a few meters away, the juvenile flyeater is calling for food. 2 hours later, the adult and juvenile flyeater is spotted on the same neem tree next to the bamboo for their routine feeding session.


This is one of the cuckoo spotted in the morning.


posted by wengchun @ 7:33 AM, ,


Flyeater Observation Update
Saturday, June 24, 2006

From 11.00am up to 2.00pm today, the flyeater is busy feeding the juvenile. Now only 1 adult bird is sighted with the juvenile. While both of them are busy feeding and being fed, I noticed another adult bird is inside the first nest. Could this be the missing individual from the family of 3? How can it be possible to incubate another egg?






Later in the evening between 6.30pm to 7.00pm, 2 little bronze cuckoo were calling and I managed to locate 1 of them perching high up on a rubber tree. I guessed both of the cuckoo is aware of the flyeater's nest. At the same time, the flyeater were calling together with the cuckoo. Territorial? being defensive?

posted by wengchun @ 7:19 AM, ,


Another Disappointing Nightjar Nesting
Thursday, June 22, 2006

I was planning to see how the nightjar nesting progress. Another disappointing observation again. After the heavy rain today, I went over to the spot around 6.30pm. No nightjar and no egg. Too exposed to predators i guess. *sigh*

posted by wengchun @ 7:44 AM, ,


Adult still sitting inside the first nest

after taking photograph of the adult and juvenile, i was passing by the bamboo where the nests were built. suddenly, I saw a flyeater sitting inside the first nest....so weird!!!! i am 100% confident that the chick has already fledged from that nest as i have observed a chick being fed by an adult flyeater. could this individual bird mistaken this first nest as the second nest which was built after the first nest was abandoned? can bird make mistake like that?

 

posted by wengchun @ 7:31 AM, ,


First Record of Flyeater Juvenile in Taman Wetland Putrajaya

Yesterday, I managed to witnessed the family of 3 flyeaters (2 adults and 1 juvenile) perching on a neem tree next to the bamboo where 2 nests were spotted. One of the adult was seen busy feeding the juvenile. The other adult was just hopping around.
 
Today, I was more prepared to take a snap of the juvenile to confirm the ID. After years of observing the nesting of flyeaters, this is the first time I recorded a flyeater juvenile fledged from the nest. From my previous experience observing the little bronze cuckoo chick being fed by the flyeaters, I can say, the cuckoo chick and the flyeater chick are very identical except for the size. The flyeater chick is almost the same size as the parent bird. It has a whitish eyering. The calls are also similar, however, the cuckoo calls are louder while the flyeater chick's call are softer. This time, only 1 adult bird was sighted with the chick, on the same neem tree next to the bamboo.
 
Below are some photos taken today while the last photo was taken previously showing a flyeater with its 'adopted' chick.
 
the adult.
 
the chick. notice the whitish eyering?
 
comparison: adult (back) and juvenile (front)
 
 
 
Compare the size of the little bronze cuckoo chick and the adult flyeater!

posted by wengchun @ 7:14 AM, ,


Large-tailed Nightjar - a new site record in Taman Wetland Putrajaya
Sunday, June 18, 2006

I was driving along the wetland cells of Upper North late in the morning 11.30am. I suddenly stopped my car when I saw a big dried leaf-look alike object on the ground next to a bamboo. Then, I realised it is a large-tailed nightjar. GREAT!!! This is the 4th site which I have seen a nightjar in daylight. Beak was wide open then. After a while, I just left. It started to drizzle so I decided to check out what happen to the bird. When I arrived, the bird was not there. I came out from the car and went near the ground where the nightjar was. A tiny egg. I remembered this egg and it belongs to a nightjar. The bird was incubating the egg. I left the site again when it started to rain heavily. Later around 6.30pm, I went back to this site, the bird came back to the egg. So, let's wait and see what happen. But I think I need to inform the gardener not to disturb the surrounding area of the nest. I have to learn from past experience.
 

posted by wengchun @ 7:33 AM, ,


Heard the Calls of the Flyeater

It was a rainy day since 12pm until late afternoon in Putrajaya. Well, it stopped for a while in between that, and I heard the flyeater's chick calling for food outside my cabin office. It was there up on the neem tree, located the bird - parents and juvenile, but couldn't clearly see the chick due to the twigs and leaves. Oh well, another day I suppose.   

posted by wengchun @ 7:23 AM, ,


Flyeater Fledgling and a 2nd Nest?
Thursday, June 15, 2006

I've been observing flyeater nesting for some time now. recently, i found something new in my observation. early this month (4 June 2006) , i saw a chick at the flyeater's nest. then the next couple of days, it was very quiet. last saturday(10 June 2006), my colleague send a sms (texting) informing me of another hanging nest next to the flyeater nest. she told me it's a neat hanging nest. so it couldn't be a sunbird's nest. when i went back to the park on 12 June 2006, a pair of flyeater was busy constructing the nest. as usual 1 of the bird carries materials while the other just accompany (or guarding) the builder. all i saw was just the hanging structure. a day after that, it was a completed nest. this evening, i heard a chick calling - sounded like little bronze cuckoo calling the flyeater, but softer. then the parent bird came near the chick and feed it. the chick is almost the same size as the parent flyeater. i did not have any optical equipment with me then. so can't positively say it is a cuckoo but it resemble more of a flyeater with kind of similar plumage color (or perhaps the lighting was poor). will wait for it tomorrow.i'll be glad if it is the flyeater fledgling, as from my other previous observations, only cuckoos were sighted on the nests.again, how is it possible to have the same pair of flyeater building a nest immediately after the chick fledged? or how is it possible to have a different pair building a nest next to an existing (but abandoned) nest? please comment. i have not come across any flyeater's nest constructed close to each other.

posted by wengchun @ 8:19 PM, ,