Back to Sungai Lepoh - Aug 2013

There are a few locations which i have not visited for the past 1+ years since todate. So i started off my journey with this land of machetes. The birding conditions were perfect - the weather was fine, my camera functioned as it should be and the birds came out in numbers. Parked my car near the entrance and started birding at around 9.00am until about 1pm. All the photos taken were inside the trail and none from the car park area. Here are some decent shots taken.

The beginning of a journey. At this place you can see some common birds such as oriental magpie robins, white-rumped munias, doves, spiderhunters, varieties of bulbuls, flowerpeckers etc

A steep climb to birding location

The first bird which has dropped in on the trail.

Juvenile White-Rumped Sharma

It could already sing quite well.

Male Bamboo Woodpecker

Heard some soft knocking sound and was looking for the woodpecker when a pair flew and perched right in front. This male was following closely the female where ever she goes and both were enjoying "drumming" together.

A few field guides have illustrated a male bamboo woodpecker as having a red rump which isn't the case for this woodpecker. But then again this bird may not have reach the level of adulthood yet.

Yellow-Bellied Warbler

Most of the time this bird can be found close to bamboo crops.

Lesser-Cuckoo Shrike

The male bird is darker in color as pointed out by Allen J & Pearson (2012) which can be seen from the above photo. 

Male Rufous Piculet

The best photo i had so far of this tiny woodpecker.

Plain Sunbird

Could not really able to positively id this bulbul as there was no clear head shot. It could be a Puff-Backed or a Cream-Vented Bulbul.

Crested Serpent Eagle

Usually CSE will circle quite high up in the sky but this fella was quite near the ground. Its eerie calls actually silenced the forest momentarily. Took its photos from a huge clearing in the middle of the jungle and in my haste i have forgotten to reset my camera settings to daylight mode as it was in the jungle mode earlier. So the result was an overexposed pix.

Male Orange-Backed Woodpecker

It perched right in front of me just for a few seconds. Quite a huge fellow and its orange back could clearly be seen when it flew away.

Rufous-Tailed Tailorbird

This was the only second time i have seen this tailorbird. It moved inside the undergrowth just above the forest floor like a babbler would do.

Maroon-Breasted Philentoma?

Pale Blue-Flycatcher

Grey-Breasted Spiderhunter

Many articles and literature have written about this spiderhunter been seen near wild banana plants and this fellow was no exceptions.

Oriental Magpie Robin

Never really wanted to take its photo but it did tempted me with this pose.

Black-Thighed Falconet

This could be the same fellow which was seen by myself two years ago at the same tree.

An incoming raptor

It actually flew directly towards me but believe me i do not know where it went to after taking this photo.

Here are a combo photos of a Male Buff-Rumped Woodpecker - it was looking for ants to eat.

I believe this was a female Olive-Backed Sunbird

Javan Mynah in Nest Hole

Last year i have reported seeing two Javan Mynahs going in and out from a tree hole. This couple seen here could be the same couple. (the other bird was nearby at another tree trunk). 

In butterfly watching one could actually apply some of the birding principles. As some butterflies are also skittish like some birds do one should not approach the butterfly directly or point your camera towards them in a threatening manner. Butterflies also have their own comfort zone and one should be familiar/aware what should be the best distance to approach them. The best time i guess was when they are  busy "attending" to their favourite flowers or puddling. Like birds we could also "call" the butterflies to fly-in i.e. by introducing/placing their favourite fruits on their favourite resting place. There were quite a lot of butterflies at this place too. Saw some Malayan Birdwings and a Rajah Brooke flying around. Here are some the other butterflies seen.

Common Bluebottle

This was the butterfly which i have always seen in jungle trails but never had the chance to take its photo until this time.

Blue Glassy Tiger

Peacock Pancy

Nyctemera Coleta

Commonly known as "Marbled White Moth"

(Acknowledgement: all the butterflies identification in this blog were done one way or the other with the help from a SIG in butterflies which is based in Singapore) . I wished someone from MNS could also form one here.

Overall this place was always never short of birds and exitements.

Birding in Sungai Chongkak - July 2013

Today i went to another recreational forest which was nearby my local "playground". Quite a number of common birds seen here but the photos are nothing much to shout about . This was due to the reason that much of the area was surrounded by huge tall trees which have blanketed much of its canopy from sunlight.

One of the many locations here where you could bring your family for a dip. As for me i was waiting for perhaps a forktail or kingfisher to drop-in.

Purple-Naped Sunbird

Looks like this fellow was also a sub-adult. Apparently research has found that the DNAs of these bird sp has some connection with spiderhunters.

Chestnut / Black Headed Munia (L. atricapilla)

This bird was initially thought as a juvenile scaly-breasted munia but after further review of photos and getting the views from experts, this bird was actually a Chestnut / Black-Headed Munia. The funny thing was that this juvenile was all alone and it would flick its wings (like some flycatchers do) ! 

Abbott or Horsfield?

Yup it was just an Abbott's babbler.

Buff-vented Bulbul

Red-eyed and cream-vented bulbuls were also foraging on this same tree.

Yellow-Breasted Flowerpecker

Greater-Racket Tailed Drongo

Checker-Throated Woodpecker

Saw a pair and this fellow was a male. Also saw a Rufous Piculet banging its head on some bamboos nearby but no photos.

Yellow-Bellied Warbler

Ruby-Cheeked Sunbird

The only name i could think off for this bird was a Plain Sunbird - probably a female.

Magpie Crow

Don't ask me why they named this butterfly as such but it was the only butterfly which was kind enough to allow me to take its photo.

Birding along Sendat - July 2013

Sendat river flows along two towns which are Ulu Yam Bharu and Ulu Yam Lama in Selangor. It also offers many level of "white-waters" for the die-hard white-water blazers. This was the first time i have been to this place and i was unsure what to expect in terms of birding. Birding alone in the jungle can be scary ! You just never know what might jump out from the bushes - anacondas, jumping spiders, leopards, snakes, tiger-eating men etc. The last one is the most scariest ! The road leading to the location is all tared although its quite narrow at certain places. Entrance to the recreation area was RM1.00 but you will need to pay RM30.00 if you wish to do photography and another RM200.00 for video shooting. Reached the end of the tared road and started birding at about 9.00am. Saw quite a number of birds but no lifers though. 

Emerald Dove

Saw it just before the end of the tared road. It was seen here collecting fruits from the road side.

Juvenile Blue-Throated Bee-Eater

When i first saw it i thought i might have seen my new lifer but after checking the field guides it was just a juvenile Blue-Throated Bee-Eater. Also saw two adult birds but they did not perch. Nevertheless this was the first time i have seen a juvenile of this bee-eater species.

Asian Dollar Bird

As usual it would perched at the highest tree trunk.

Brown Barbet

The only barbet seen at this place.

Grey Headed Canary Flycatcher

They were the most noisiest bird at that time.

Orange-Backed Woodpecker

The male certainly did not give me any chance.

Black-Naped Monarch

From afar i saw a blue bird taking a few dips into the water. I quickly rushed to the area thinking it could be a kingfisher but found that it was just a black-naped monarch taking a few early bath.

Spectacled Bulbul

Black-Headed Bulbul

This fellow's head has a glossy sheen.

Verditer Flycatcher

Whiskered Treeswift

They seem to be at every places.

There were also a number of butterflies here but only a few have obliged to stay put.

Chocolate Albatross

Banded Yeomen

Commander

Chocolate Grass Yellow

Overall this place has the potential to produce many lifers example owls, nightjars etc. The only advice is that never go there alone.