Contributed by Ian Rickword.
This is an edited version.
After 6 days of continuous rain, the weather smiled on us on Saturday 14th January for the second anniversary reunion of the birdwatching class of 2004. As a result, the birds in and around Malcolm Park were busy drying out or restocking on food, giving us ample opportunity to supervise them. Around base camp (Jane's house) there was a raucous dawn chorus and early sightings of a white-bellied sea eagle and a white-throated kingfisher. After we started moving, three straw-headed bulbuls very kindly perched close by, preening themselves and giving us intermittent blasts of song. Also right outside Jane's house were close and clear views of striped tit-babbler, common iora and Asian brown flycatcher.
Across the long (and wet) grass between Malcolm Road and Goldhill we stopped to feed the mosquitoes and watch a juvenile brahminy kite swoop to a treetop to pick up a green breakfast (frog?) which it proceeded to eat while circling. It all seemed so easy it could probably have taken in a coffee and read the newspaper at the same time. Around Goldhill a black baza posed nicely for us before we headed back to Jane's where a sumptuous breakfast was waiting for us. Many thanks, Jane.
Full list of birds seen and heard:
- White-Throated Kingfisher
- White-Bellied Fish Eagle
- Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo
- Yellow-Vented Bulbul
- White-Breasted Waterhen (H)
- Dollarbird
- Pink-Necked Green-Pigeon
- Asian Koel (F)
- Straw-Headed Bulbul
- Striped Tit-Babbler
- Common Iora
- Black-Naped Oriole
- Javan Myna
- Asian Brown Flycatcher
- Olive-Backed Sunbird
- Hill Myna
- Arctic Warbler
- Red Lory
- Long-Tailed Parakeet
- Asian Glossy Starling
- Dark-Necked Tailorbird (H)
- Banded Woodpecker (H)
- Yellow-Crested Cockatoo
- Rose-Ringed Parakeet
- Blue-Tailed Bee-Eater
- House Crow
- Brahminy Kite
- Pacific Swallow
- Crimson Sunbird
- Scarlet-Backed Flowerpecker
- Rainbow Lorikeet
- Black Baza
- Greater Coucal (H)
- Spotted Dove
- Common Tailorbird
Contributed by Doreen Ang.
This is an edited version.
One week into the New Year, AH, NK and I decided to recce some ponds, namely the ones in Marina City Park (site 1) and Tampines Mountain Biking Trail (site 2). Date - Saturday, 7th January 2006.
Site 1:Weather was overcast with light drizzle. Less than a dozen people were around. Only noise pollution was the ear-blasting handheld 'leaf-blower' - thankfully that didn't last long!
On arrival at 0745h, we heard the calling of the Golden-bellied Gerygone, Asian Koel, Collared Kingfisher and the Spotted Dove. One and a half hours spent at this site produced 30 Lesser Whistling-Ducks, 6 Wandering Whistling-Ducks, 2 Brahminy Kites in flight, a Grey Heron, a Purple Heron, Pink-necked Green-Pigeons, White-throated and Collared Kingfishers, Blue-tailed Bee-eaters, Yellow-vented Bulbuls, House crows, White-breasted Waterhen, a sub-adult Common Moorhen among the whistling ducks, Yellow Bitterns (1 juvenile and 1 adult) and a male Asian Koel busy picking Indian cherries. Of interest was a Black-capped Kingfisher which AH first spotted as it flew across the pond at 0850h. Unmistakeable - black cap and red bill.
Over at the Marina South MRT bus-stop, there were a few Common Mynas, a Sunda Woodpecker and a Common Tailorbird.
Site 2:Weather - drizzle to light rain. Grounds very wet with puddles of water in many areas. No bikers save for some plane enthusiasts. Continuous dull droning of vehicles from the adjacent Tampines Expressway.
Site 2 was disappointing. Although the TMBT took us slightly over an hour and a half on foot (1010 - 1145), the walk produced only a pair of Common Flameback (male and female), White-throated Kingfishers, a Pied Fantail (calling aloud), Yellow-vented Bulbuls, Spotted Doves, Javan Mynas, a flock of 10 House Crows in flight, Blue-tailed Bee-eaters, White-breasted Waterhen, a Sunda Woodpecker, 2 Ashy Tailorbirds, Black-naped Orioles, 1 Purple Heron in flight and an adult White-bellied Fish-Eagle perched on a bare tree. We could not make a positive i.d. of an accipiter which suddenly shot across our path in what looked like a bird chase. A search for ducks at the 2 main ponds (on the left and right) yielded nothing.