Blogging and Nature Trekking - July 2014

I have just discovered recently that my blog has been translated into a Russian blog - "ron-nature-adventures.ru" ! So if you have a Russian knocking at your door don't blame me. I have tried using wordpress but it was too depressing that i could not even post anything from there. Don't they have any better things to do!

I have some spare time recently and went for a short birding cum nature walk at this new location. In the jungle you can actually see, feel, hear and smell so many things. You can see things as small as a bug like this one:

or some nice flowers like the ones below:

or a colorful butterfly like the one here.

Danaus melanippus hegesippus

Family: Nymphalidae

Subfamily : Danainae

Genus: Danaus

Species: melanippus

Subspecies: hegesippus

Common Name: "Black Veined Tiger"

Note: Butterfly Circle Group reported that this butterfly can be found near coastal/mangrove areas but this location was certainly far from it.

Amazingly, i have heard squirrels at this location making calls like birds. Unfortunately can't download their calls here.  I have wanted to play the recording from a  rail babbler but decided against it for fear that "benda lain yang keluar nanti" - zombie, pontianak, hantu raya etc !

I have also realised that in order for you to have many "hits" or "likes", you will need  to post nice and sharp photos but unfortunately i can't do that with the birds i have seen here. Reached the location as early as 7am and it was pitch dark. Only the sound of crickets and a dozen of pin-stripped-tit babblers greeted me at this ghostly hour. 

  This owl was the first bird i have spotted. I believed it was a "Collared Owlet"

Black-Browed Barbet

Golden-Throated Barbet

Barbets featured quite prominently at this place, probably due to the abundant of berries which were just about to ripe.

Note: experts were equally surprised to learnt that Golden-Throated Barbet can be seen at this location as they are often associated with upper mountain regions. I guess birds do fly around when their habitat is threatened or when there are abundance of food in a particular area.

Checker-Throated Woodpecker - Male

Little Cuckoo Dove

Long-Tailed Sibia

Took me awhile to id this bird but finally settled for a "Little Pied Flycatcher" - Juvenile

Blyth's Hawk Eagle

On my way out i came across this feather which i believed is a "tail feather" of some large bird - most likely from an eagle or an owl. Any suggestions?

While i am completing this post there were about 298 lives whom have perished for nothing.  Its a pity and a tragedy of an epic proportion.  RiP passengers and crew of MH17 !

LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST, PEOPLE !
AND OH YES DON'T FORGET TO PRAY HARD AS WELL!

Birding in Ulu Langat Forest - May 2014

My birding journey in May 2014 continued with a trip back to the forest of Ulu Langat, Selangor. Photography wise, there were not many opportunities as the day was cloudy and most of the birds were up in the canopy. But for just less then 3 hours i was able to see and heard a total of 17 species of birds. Here are some of the "ok-lah" photos taken during this short outing:

Ruby-Cheeked Sunbird (Anthreptes singalensis) - female

This female sunbird has all the diagnostic features pointing it to an adult bird.

Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica)

Most of the time you would only see this dove doing a fast zig-zag flight in between the forest trees.

Spectacle Spiderhunter (A.flavigaster)

Distinguished it from Yellow-Eared Spiderhunter (A. chrysogenys) by its clearer/broader ring around its eyes.

Little Cuckoo Dove (Macropygia ruficeps) 

If you are familiar with this dove, you will realise that Little Cuckoo Doves are more often seen at hill stations rather than at a low land forest.  I believe the doves were most likely a pair as i saw courting behaviors among them whereby "head nodding" and "chasing maneuvers" were performed. 

Note: check out the eyes of the dove on the right ! 

Are these "medicine men" or "plant poaches"?

Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela)

Despite how hard it tried to hide itself, it was not too difficult to spot such a big raptor.

Lesser Cuckooshrike (Coracina fimbriata)

At 20cm, this lesser cuckooshrike is no larger than an Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis). You got to see it to believe its size.

Orange-Bellied Flowerpecker (D. trigonostigma)

Spectacle Bulbul (P. erythropthalmos)

Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo (D. paradiscus)

I certainly did not snip-off one of its spiral racquets with photoshop. 

Other notable records from this trip was probably the calls made by a "Rufous-Fronted Babbler" (Stachyris rufifrons). It is reported to be the host brood for Drongo Cuckoo (Surniculus lugubris) which coincidentally were also heard in this trip.