Birding at Sungai Perdik, Ulu Langat, Selangor, Malaysia

After a year of absence from one of the popular birding spots in Selangor, I decided to re-visit the place. I found that most of the "common" birds which were sighted previously was still there. Here are some of them which i managed to get their pictures:

Looking at me is a male Whiskered Treeswift 

A female Raffles Malkoha foraging in the morning sun.

Always a beauty to see and photograph - female Chestnut-breasted Malkoha.

After further verifications from the experts including Dave Bakewell & Dr David Wells, this bird was renamed as a "Brown-Streaked Flycatcher" and not a dark-sided flycatcher as initially thought due to the time of sight which was in late June 2011.

A male Asian Fairy Bluebird.

The most common leafbird one could find along the jungle trails - a blue-winged leafbird (male).

After further verification from the experts, this bird was re-named as Rufescent Prinia and not a Yellow-Bellied Prinia as first thought.

Another common woodpecker in the forest - a crimson-winged woodpecker (male).

After further verification by the experts, this bird is re-named as a Rufescent Prinia  basking in the sun and not a Yellow-Bellied Prinia.

This is indeed a Dark-necked Tailorbird.

Here are some of the more recent photos taken:

A Verditer Flycatcher

A Black & Red Broadbill - a common resident in Perdik.

White-rumped Sharma

White-rumped Sharma (Copsychus malabaricus) is said to be a close relative of a Magpie Robin and some even say Thrush ! It frequents lowland and hill forest up to a height of 1,500m. The ones which we saw were near a bamboo forest. Notable for its bubbly songs but unfortunately can be found at many pet shops in this region. Said to occur from India, Thailand to Borneo. Listed by IUCN  as "Least Concern" but it is still a fully protected bird under the local law. Although it is said to be wide spread but nowadays one could only see the bird in prestine forest with bamboo outcrops.

White rumped Sharma size is about 20-28cm and weigh between 1 and 1.2 ounces and is around 9 to 11 inches in length. Males are glossy black with a chestnut belly and white feathers on the rump and outer tail. Females are more grayish-brown, and are typically shorter than males. Both sexes have a black bill and pink feet. Juveniles have a more grayish or brownish coloration, similar to that of the females, with a blotchy or spotted chest. They breed from January to September but mainly in April to June laying a clutch of four or five in a nest placed in the hollow of tree.

Here are some of the pictures taken on this beautifull bird:

These are probably males due to their glossy feathers. The one at the highest is quite an old bird as we have seen it since 2005.

This is another bird just taken recently at Sungai Perdek.

Ochraceous Bulbul (Alophoixus Ochraceus)

Ochraceous Bulbuls are said to occur at an extremely large range. It was recorded as far as Africa, Vietnam,Cambodia and Borneo. It can be found up to 1,500 m and said to prefer the understorey of the forest. It loves to eat berries and breeds from February - April. Locally it is named "Merbah Beringin" - the name which was derived from the bird's interest in eating buah beringin. Due to its extensive range, IUCN has listed it as "least concern". For a species to reach the threshold of "vulnerable", it must show a decline of more than 30% of its population over a period of 10 years or 3 generations. In other words the remaining population should be less than 10,000 matured individuals. Nevertheless, Ochraceous Bulbuls are still a fully protected bird under the local law (Akta 76/72).

The following are a sequence of pictures to illustrate the bird's interest in eating berries:

Perched high up on a tree trunk looking for berries.

It spotted a juicy and yummy red berry not too far away.

It grabbed the juicy and yummy red berry with its beaks.

and down goes the juicy and yummy red berry.