Square-Tailed Drongo-Cuckoo In Bidadari

I went back to Bidadari to hope to find the elusive Malaysian Hawk Cuckoo, after seeing it so many times in the social media and I did not really spot it last time I was there.

But I managed to observe a Square-Tailed Drongo-Cuckoo (a mouthful, and I only know the name after consulting an expert) perching on a tree and skilfully catching worms from the grass patch below. It caught about 5 worms during the 30-odd minutes I as observing it, and most of the worms were fat and juicy. I did not even know they were there! Not observable to the human eye I suppose.

So this post will be mostly of this bird. It was pretty "cooperative". I inched myself towards it cautiously, fearing that it would fly away, but it did not! I managed to get a good distance and some good shots of it.

The Cuckoo with one of its catch.

I was actually mesmerised by its beauty. It was not an entirely black bird, and somehow it looks elegant and graceful to me. Maybe it was quiet, that's why. 

It has some green and blue tint on its features. 

The Square-tail Drongo-Cuckoo. 

Other pictures taken because I thought they looked nice.

I always find and amuse myself with Changeable Lizard that are in weird positions. Here's one.

High up on one of the supposedly dead tree I saw this bee perching like this. 

While walking, I noticed something big flew near me. It was an insect and I thought it was a moth or sort. On close inspection (very close, these guys are good at camouflaging), it was this mantis.

All in all, it was a good trip and I enjoyed myself thoroughly, although I still do not have the luck to see the Malaysian Hawk Cuckoo.

Sidenote, probably a moment of folly. I saw many other birds like the Collared Kingfisher and Brown Shrikes but I could not find them on my memory card, even though I saw them on my camera preview. Oh well.

~Huat

Exploring What's Left of Bidadari

Bidadari was a wonderland for birders but it is no longer the place we know because the area is now in the midst of being developed into a residential area. I decided to see what's left of it.

Bidadari was one of the first places I went to when I started watching and photographing birds. The first time I visited Bidadari was a late afternoon, close to evening. For those who do not know, Bidadari was a cemetery, and going there alone in the evening alone was definitely an adventure to me. Soon enough, Bidadari became one of my favourite places because it is apparently the only place that I could get hold of a flycatchers and other passerines, which I love to watch. I can't seem to see them elsewhere. 

Now, there is only a small patch of land left, I could see that there were some new trees being planted. I felt a dull ache in my heart seeing a massive area of the place being hoarded up and cleared.

This is near the columbarium, probably the only entrance to Bidadari now. Can you see the hoarding further up?

I still like the scenic and quiet this place possesses. Take more pictures like this before it changes drastically.

Nevertheless, Bidadari still surprised me this morning with some of the encounters I have had.

A Blue-throated Bee-eater perching.  

A Brown Shrike, with that unmistakable eye-liner. It disappeared before I could get a closer shot.

A futile attempt of a Scarlet-backed Flower Pecker. Again it flew away and disappeared before I could get a better shot.

A Dollar Bird. This guy been perching there for quite sometime.

And there is this bald tree that has many interesting things happening. I accidentally spotted a Coppersmith Barbet.

Then a small group of Asian Glossy Starlings.

And.. I do not know what they are but I believe they are migratory birds. Update: Thanks to reader Gavan Leong, I now know these are Purple-backed Starlings, or Daurian Starlings :DDD (love it when I learnt something new)

Another futile attempt to take a sunbird in flight like this. Many people think they are hummingbirds but they are not. Hummingbirds do not exist here in our region.

An Asian Brown Flycatcher. I was observing this guy for a very long time. I got lucky because it perched on the branch close to me and enabled me to take this shot.

Because the sunlight was shining on it. I thought these where saga seeds, the ones that people pick to profess their love. But they are not. They are fruits of the raintree. Thanks to reader Gaven Leong confirming that these were indeed saga seeds. OMG.

More exciting photos I took prior to the clearing here.

~ Huat

Photowalk / Birdwatching - Pasir Ris Park

Pasir Ris Park is a quaint and quiet park that I enjoy visiting. In addition one can spot many birds rather easily.

Today a juvenile Oriental Magpie Robin showed its finesse in hunting. It caught 3 insects in a minute. Later I came across the regular residents - Collared Kingfisher. There were a couple of them around. I did not see the Stork-billed or the Laced Woodpecker this time. I was hoping to see a one-eyed Fish Owl called Buffy though.

Oh well.

The juvi OMR greeted me when I arrived at PRP.

One of its catch. Couldn't get a sharper copy because this guy was moving around so fast! Before this bug, it caught an grasshopper. After this bug, it caught another bug!

Before it vanished back into the woods, it did a pose for me.

Collared KF is becoming a common sight in PRP for me. Here's one looking up. If you see closely there's another one on the right. I honestly did not see it when I was taking this photograph. 

This Collared KF was perching in another location while I was on my way to see if I could spot any owl.

~Huat