Great Cormorants@Johor Straits~17April2021

https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/538700394

Three Great Cormorants seen flying about in the airspace between the Straits View Hotel, Eagle Point, Kranji Dam, Lido Waterfront at about 1030am on 17April2021.

Find out more about sightings of these birds:
https://fryap.wordpress.com/2014/07/28/great-cormorant-in-singapore/

https://besgroup.org/2019/03/15/great-cormorants-sighted-over-pasir-ris-park/

Clips shot in 120fps slowmo without audio.

Audio added in post : Incompetech.com - Kevin Macleod's 'Exotic Battle' CC3.0

Tailless crocodile rumble @ SBWR - 18July2020

'Tailless', a large crocodile frequently seen near the main bridge at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, had not been seen as regularly as it used to be. The incoming tide saw it entering the main river from the Johor Straits. As it crawled its way in the shallows, small groups of fish, likely mullet or milkfish, could be seen rippling the water surface swimming away from it. Earlier, there had been two smaller crocs about 3 metres long in the same waters but these had disappeared. Perhaps, they were male crocs and knew that Tailless was incoming. Tailless is after all a large male crocodile whose tail got stumped too many years ago likely in a fight with another capable croc. It's length is estimated to be about 2.5 metres from snout to stump. If it had a full tail, it might be about 4 metres long.

It headed below and past the main bridge much to the delight of the observing visitors and made its way to a small ditch nearby. There is usually a smaller crocodile about 3 metres long which uses that ditch and it had been seen earlier in the afternoon near the ditch but it was nowhere to be seen. My guess is that the smaller crocodile was a female and she was further up the ditch.

Tailless examined the ditch before turning out and backing his way in again. It then arched its back downwards raising its neck such that it angled the head down. Then it slammed the water surface with its head opening its jaw slightly before the water above its back exploded in vibration due to the low frequency murmur it was sending out claiming the area for itself and warning other male crocodiles that the area around the main bridge was his. There was too much noise from the visitors on the bridge to hear the murmur but I had seen and heard Tailless on another occasion about two years ago having performed the same territorial display. It repeated the vibration again before slowly making its way further upstream assisted by the incoming tide before crossing the river and following the bend to the right.

Find out more about crocodilian territorial and mating behaviour :

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20160426-watch-a-huge-male-alligator-sing-to-attract-a-mate

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCkTFEjo8qs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFeVAWrXrYs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAgRloUISEA

black-tailed godwits & asiatic dowitchers @ Endau, East Johor - 25Mar2019

The east coast of Johor continues to amaze. Kampung Teriang Besar has a muddy coastline and this is perfect for supporting yet another shorebird roost after Mersing Town's sandy bay. It was certainly a surprise to see 28 black-tailed godwits and 8 asiatic dowitchers huddling together with some (est. 80) common greenshanks and other waders as the tide peaked for the morning. In the background along the coastal edge of the mudflat, there were more than 100 bar-tailed godwits, 50 grey plovers and 50 whimbrels amongst a sizeable number of lesser/greater sand plovers, terek sandpipers and other small waders. There were a good number of greater crested terns and other terns also.

Both the Kg Teriang and Mersing shore sites are very likely complementary of each other with birds possibly flying to and fro to each site on a regular basis.

The black-tailed godwits repositioning themselves with the rising tide

Clip of the black-tailed godwits and asiatic dowitchers in the foreground.

28BlackGodwits&8Dowitchers from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Clip of the bar-tailed godwits, grey plovers, whimbrels and terns in the background. The heat shimmer over the 400m made it difficult to identify the species. The large passing clouds blocking off the sun made it briefly possible for a drop in the heat shimmer occasionally.

barwits, grey plovers, whimbrels&terns 25Mar2019 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

How to get there : [2.6320686, 103.7204811]

The access is behind SK Teriang Endau. Head on past the cemetary. There is a new clearing behind the cemetary for a watermelon patch. The access to the river mouth is a small pathway through some coastal vegetation. Quite easy to find. Check out the other coastal pathways south of the river leading from the coastal road. Some open out to good vantage points if you are prepared to brave the jigsaw (you'll understand  it when you see it) mud field.

Note : there may be some biting sandflies/mozzies/ants on the sand and amongst the shoreline foliage. Do come prepared. 

Small Wader roost @ Jeram, Selangor - 17Nov2018

Another few moments at this tiny roost spot. Quite a number of small waders at this spot with curlew sandpipers, red-necked stints, little stints, broad-billed sandpipers, terek sandpipers, common redshanks, sanderlings, lesser sand plovers and greater sand plovers amongst others.

It's not often one gets to see small migratory waders in such numbers and this site is endangered due to increased human prescence and activity.

Nordmann's Greenshank @ Mersing, Johor 4Nov2018

Strangely the previous week saw about 60 common greenshanks at the shore but there were zero seen on 4 Nov. There was just one lone greenshank with the grey plovers and barwits. I had initially glossed over the greenshank thinking it would just be one of the many common greenshanks. It was only later when David started exclaiming excitedly that there was an unusual Terek Sandpiper (he was using his bins from a long way off) in the bunch of birds and that it could be a Nordmann's Greenshank that I turned my attention to it again. Scoping it out, we had to wait until it turned to show us its bill and started walking along the shore in order to confirm what it was. It did look similar to a Terek in that it was hunched although its bill was noticeably bicoloured and its legs were slightly off yellow. It did not raise its neck to stand tall much like how the Common Greenshanks would.   

Nordmann's Greenshanks (Tringa guttifer) are rare and there might only be between about 600 to 1300 mature birds left (according to the IUCN website). This is apparently due to breeding habitat degradation in Russia and also the loss of important coastal feeding areas along the East Asian coastline due to development. 

This was certainly a welcomed sighting and on my first Wader Conservation Watch #WCWW5. Check out waderquest.net/wader-conservation-world-watch/ for more information.

This group of shorebirds is rather sensitive to people on the shore or even other birds such as white-bellied sea eagles and house crows. You have to maintain a good distance from them so that they do not get spooked and fly off. Once spooked, it is unlikely that they will come back to the same spot as the shore is a very long one and there would be other spots to choose from. There are also nearby islands and rocky outcrops which they could roost. Birders should be careful about this to avoid spooking the birds.

nordmann's greenshank with friends @ mersing, johor 4Nov2018 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

More info :
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordmann%27s_greenshank
https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22693225/93391729
http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/spotted-greenshank-tringa-guttifer
https://www.arkive.org/nordmanns-greenshank/tringa-guttifer/image-G14593.html
https://singaporebirds.com/species/nordmanns-greenshank/
http://www.besgroup.org/2008/11/22/nordmanns-greenshank-at-sungei-buloh-wetland-reserve/
http://www.thaibirding.com/news/toptenresults7.htm

Whimbrel flypast @ Kingfisher pod-SBWR-22Sep2018

It was already 6.40pm and close to closing time for Singapore's Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. I had noticed the flock of whimbrels as they landed at the sandbar near Eagle Point. With the tide rising, it was only a matter of time before the sandbar would be covered with water and the birds would have to fly towards and into the reserve's controlled ponds for a safe roost on dry land. 

Luckily, the birds flew off at 6.50pm just when it was getting dark. They took just about a minute to traverse the about 1 kilometer of their flight path from the sandbar to just past Kingfisher Pod as they went behind the trees. This means they were flying at about 60km/hr just above sea level with a zero wind factor. That's fast! It's not obvious until about the end of the clip that the birds were flying in a V formation.

The whimbrels and some of the other shorebirds such as the common greenshanks and pacific golden plovers prefer to fly out to feed at the rich mudflats near the Singapore-Malaysia causeway at the mouth of the Sungei Pang Sua, Mandai Besar and Mandai Kecil estuaries. This is one of Singapore's last remaining northern mangrove mudflats. Although all three are short rivers and the mudflat is not wide, the area provides for sufficient food for a variety of these long-distance migratory shorebirds. 

Some of the shorebirds do also alternate visiting sites such as Sungei Danga and Sungei Sekudai across the Johor Straits roughly opposite of Sungei Buloh. Johorean birders have documented redshanks with Singapore green over white flags at Sungei Danga roosts.

Let's hope that the entire ecosystem triangle (taking into account future upriver and shoreline developments) is sufficiently protected for future generations of shorebirds.*

[UPDATE 7 Oct 2018 : It's been announced that the Mandai mangrove and mudflats will have the protection as a park managed by the National Parks Board. This is indeed fabulous news. Click these links for more info : 

https://www.nparks.gov.sg/news/2018/10/mandai-mangrove-and-mudflat-will-be-conserved-as-a-nature-park

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/environment/mandai-mangrove-and-mudflat-to-open-as-nature-park-in-2022

https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/mandai-mangrove-and-mudflats-be-singapores-newest-nature-park

marsh sandpipers & a curlew sandpiper @ SBWR-30Sep2018

Came across this bunch of sandpipers at the island across from the main hide at SBWR earlier in the afternoon as the tide was rising. The rising waters had caused the bunch to move up the slope on the island and they were moving out of their comfort zone.

All but one of the group was of the same species. Can you tell how many marsh sandpipers there are and can you also spot the lone curlew sandpiper?

This number of marsh sandpipers seems to be a recent record as they have not been recently seen at SBWR in such numbers.

The curlew sandpiper can also be considered a rare visitor now as it is difficult to spot especially at a distance.

These birds used to be more common and in much greater numbers about a decade or more earlier. 

Seeing the lone curlew sandpiper at SBWR in 2018 is indeed a rare opportunity.

marsh sandpipers & a curlew sandpiper @ SBWR-30Sep2018 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

feral dogs, river dogs, a croc (five actually), 35 redshanks & 2 common sandpipers @ SBWR - 12Aug2018

feral dogs, river dogs, a croc (five actually), 35 redshanks & 2 common sandpipers @ SBWR - 12Aug2018 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

These feral dogs were furiously barking at some unseen target whilst another within their group was swimming towards them after apparently investigating two otters which made a fast sprint past it underwater towards the main bridge. The dogs were sufficiently distracted long enough for the otters to make it away safely without being chased. (Dogs have been seen to chase after and attack otters. Although the otters are in their element in water, they can be cornered on land.)

The unseen element eventually showed itself as it peeked out from the shallows. Although it did not seem like it was of significant length, it was enough to prevent the dogs from going after it. The one that had swum after the otters was lucky to run the gauntlet of crocs in the shallows. Stumpy croc would have been somewhere nearby too.

The two otters had been seen exiting the river earlier in the morning and they must have explored a good part of the North-Western coastline the whole day as they only returned as the sun was setting. They swam to a spot about 20m just before the main bridge to survey the surrounding mudflats no doubt to see if the dogs had followed them. Seeing that it was safe to carry on, the otters swam past the main bridge much to the delight of visitors who had already been treated to observing Tailless and another smaller (but still formidable) croc waiting patiently in the lagoon near the sluice gate by the bridge.

The otters must have been tired as they did not stop to say hello to the two crocs. Instead, they swam straight past the bridge under water and towards the central sandbar in the river before running up the sandbar and crossing it before returning to the safety of the water and disappearing out of sight around the bend away from another set of gnarly teeth in the shallows to the left of the sandbar and watched by the line of common redshanks which had only recently arrived from their Northern summer grounds. (Can you spot the two common sandpipers flying off?).

The dog-croc-otter relationship triangle is a complicated one but Sungei Buloh can certainly do without invasive feral dogs. Let's hope the two otters decide, despite the dogs, that it is safe enough to start a family. Sungei Buloh has not seen any resident otter families for a few years now and this is likely due not because of the crocs but because of the dogs which can track down the otters to their holts which are necessarily above ground.

Sand Plover @ SBWR 9 Aug2018

Lesser or Greater?

Sand Plover @ SBWR Hide 1D - 9Aug2018 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Had a bit of a problem identifying this sand plover. The weight of opinion seems to be that this is a Lesser Sand Plover. It's got a rounded crown, legs which are not quite grey but slightly yellow-green. The feet were black but this could be due to being soaked in dark mud. The bill is also not as long as it should be if it was a "Greater SP'. Without a better picture, it'll have to be an LSP.

chain reaction fish wave @ Eagle Point, SBWR - 3 Dec2017

The tide was out and the water level around the Eagle Point observation deck was very low. The little egrets and striated herons were stationed at both ends of the circular stand of sticks and they were making quick work picking out the tiny fish which had been corralled within the vertical sticks. The mounds of tiny clams which had fallen off the sticks and accumulated at the base of the sticks were effectively a wall keeping the fish within the circular patch. There were only a few gaps through which the fish could escape.

chain reaction fish wave @ Eagle Point, SBWR - 3Dec2017 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Everyone at the Eagle Point observation deck were surprised by the fish wave which started from the right and moved towards the left and then repeated itself in a counter-clockwise manner as the fish kept jumping no doubt in panic. This lasted for a few minutes before the fish settled down. Is there a moral to this fish tale? Perhaps not all types of schooling is good :p.

greenshanks & a murder @ SBWR - Nov2017

The crows had a few moments ago ganged up against the visiting whimbrels successfully causing them to flee for fear of being clawed at. This time it was the greenshanks' turn (and a hapless common sandpiper who thought the greenies were safe to hang around with). With the crows being repeatedly concentrated within the safe refuge of the wetland reserve due to the crow-culling team shooters regularly lingering outside the boundary of the protected wetland reserve, their numbers have increased to such a level that any species even remotely competitive would eventually be harassed away by the relentless murders of crows. This change in the avian dynamics within Singapore's only wetland reserve seems inevitable given the persistent crow culling just outside. The crows have also begun their taste experiments with organisms within the muddy mangrove substrate. No doubt they had plenty of opportunity to watch and learn from their shorebird cousins. This puts them in direct competition with the shorebirds which unfortunately have a much less aggressive disposition as compared to the average marauding murder of house crows. This perhaps explains why the crows harass the shorebirds.

greenshanks & a murder @ SBWR - Nov2017 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Bar-Tailed Godwit & Whimbrels @ Pulau Sekudu

Ventured to Chek Jawa on 23Sep2017 a bit too late as the tide was fast rising. Some shorebirds had flown to Pulau Sekudu to roost on the granite boulders. There were a handful of about 15 whimbrels and a lone bar-tailed godwit along with some common sandpipers and what could be a grey plover. The video clip shows the bar-tailed godwit amongst the whimbrels as the wind picked up before a sudden downpour. The birds moved to another part of the island to avoid the worst of the strong winds which preceded the rain.

Bar-Tailed Godwit & Whimbrels @ Pulau Sekudu from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Yishun Dam shorebird primer @ 9Aug2017 PM

The Yishun Dam sees quite a number of shorebirds throughout the July to April months. Hearing that there were lesser sand plovers and whimbrels reported at the dam, i paid the dam a visit in the evening of 9Aug2017. It was a moderate low tide of about 1.0m at about 6.15pm and there was a bit of the mudflat exposed.

An average of two counts gave a number of 65 lesser sand plovers and 1 little egret on the mudflat near the dam. There were no whimbrels though. The presence of fishermen wading about at the shore area to the left of the mudflat was enough for some of the LSPs to take flight towards the right at first and then across the bay.

Looking beyond the bay towards the eastern tip of the military training area, there is a sandbar with eastern part of Pulau Seletar in the background. This is about 1250m away (measured via Google Earth) and one can just about make out some birds on the sandbar with a scope.

At this distance, any positive ID of the smaller shorebirds is purely a guess. I'm guessing there were about 70 to 90 LSPs (it was easy to lose count due to the distance and the birds flying about in small groups) at the sandbar. I also saw 3 whimbrels with their distinctive curved bills. I could not make out any redshanks or greenshanks. There were also two great-billed herons walking about looking for food. Discounting what most likely were mynahs, the sandbar seemed to house a rather large number of shorebirds. A conservative LSPs count alone for both the mudflat and sandbar should be between at least 135 to 155.

It is possible that the mangroves and shore area closer to the western tip of Pulau Seletar may also house a good many shorebirds. It is a pity this area is difficult to access....anyone got a boat?

Given the number of fishermen at the mudflat in front of the dam that evening, it looked like the birds were mostly avoiding the mudflat and preferring instead to stay at the faraway (and pretty isolated) sandbar.

Assuming that there would have been a much lower number of fishermen in the morning, perhaps a weekday low tide visit would see more of the shorebirds on the mudflat instead of on the faraway mudflat.

Given the lack of sandbars, mudflats and mangrove areas on both the eastern and western shores of mainland Singapore, the Yishun Dam mudflat and adjacent sandbars serve a very important role in feeding these yearly avian visitors much like how the Mandai mudflat (beside the Causeway) is on the western shore.

One has to ask why the shorebirds frequent these shores? What do these shores have that other shore areas do not have?


Yishun Dam primer @  9Aug2017 PM from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Redshanks @ SBWR-30July2017

The morning low tide was, as usual, dominated by the resident crocodiles (and there were 5 today) including a rather small one just over a metre long.

Then there was a flash of white and red that flew past the main bridge towards the sand bar. Could this be a redshank? One of the over-summering ones or a returning adult?

My first thought was that the two birds seen were over-summering juveniles. This is now some doubt as to whether the two birds in the videoclip are over-summering redshanks which did not return north with the larger group of shore birds in late April. After the main group had left in late April, there were about 7 redshanks seen in the weeks after at SBWR throughout the better part of May, occasionally being seen at the sand bar south of the bridge in the main river.

Given that one of the two birds has a geolocater in addition to the green-white tags, this means that the geolocater bird is not a juvenile and likely did return North (likely to the summer grounds in the Tibetan plateau) in April-May.

About two weeks ago, I had seen one redshank zoom past the main bridge but this was identified solely by a guess after momentarily seeing a very noticeable pair of red legs. This had been my first sighting of a redshank after even the over-summering redshanks had disappeared around mid-May. Perhaps this lone bird has been part of the over-summering group which had found another better place to roost.

Towards the end of the clip, a resident collared kingfisher greets the returning redshanks by dive-bombing one of the redshanks. Looks like SBWR is gearing up for the return of the migratory shore birds in August. It has begun.

Over-summering Redshanks @ SBWR - 30Jul2017 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Flight of the Whimbrels @ Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve - 16Apr2017

April is when the visiting shorebirds fly up North back to their summer breeding grounds. They will not be back until September-October as part of their annual cycle. In the videoclip, the birds appear to be rather plump as they fly past. Looks like they had a successful Winter stayover at SBWR.

All that feeding on the Mandai mudflats at low tides has paid off to restore the energy stores on these long range birds. They have to make the flight back up North. This is no easy task. This last weekend may be their last or rather our last opportunity to see the flock of whimbrels (numbering about 165 at the highest count this year) fly to, fro and about the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve along with about 60 greenshanks and up to about 250 redshanks for companionship. The counts vary every few days from September through April as the birds may alternate between roost sites.

Their reliance on the coastal mudflats is absolutely crucial and the birds' flight out from SBWR to the Mandai mudflats everyday in expectation of the best low tide window to feed is indicative of the importance of the mudflats for the birds. Without the rich feeding grounds presented by the mudflats and the safe open roosting sites nearby at SBWR, these birds would have disappeared from our skies in search of the right combination of feeding and roosting grounds elsewhere. Indeed, the numbers of shorebirds at SBWR ten years ago were in the thousands. In recent years, the number has reduced to just a few hundred and with a reduction in the number of species also. The reduction could be explained by the shorebirds preferring alternative roosting sites instead of SBWR.

Given that most of the shorebirds prefer open roosting grounds, it is possible that recent (within the last 4 years) mangrove land development across the Johor Straits has made open grounds temporarily available and the birds have flocked there instead. When the builders move in on that cleared land, the birds may choose to roost back at SBWR's open controlled water level ponds. It takes about 4 minutes for the birds to fly between SBWR and the Mandai mudflats and this short flight enables the birds to burn only a small amount of calories allowing them to stock up on their reserves without expending too much energy each day flying to and fro. Each day, they may get about 5 to 6 hours of feeding at the mudflats or more depending on how low or high the tides for the day were. The moon's effects on the tides nevertheless plays an intrinsic part as to how much the birds can feed each day. They even feed throughout the dark of night at Mandai if suitable low tides present themselves overnight.

Given that the SBWR birds often roost within the controlled ponds and do not have sight of the receding tides, the birds must have an innate sense for knowing when to fly out for the low tides. Generally, they fly out about 2 to 3 hours before the lowest tide and they fly back in about 3 hours after the lowest tide. The timing depends on how fast or slow the tides move. Sometimes, the birds are a little delayed in their departure out from the controlled water level ponds (where the water level does not change with the tides). This could be due to the 'leader' birds themselves losing track of tides and delaying their flights out.

Flying back is necessarily dictated by the rising coastal waters and the average length of the whimbrel's legs. Usually, the smaller plovers (eg. mongolian, pacific golden) take off first with the rising tide followed by the redshanks, then greenshanks. The whimbrels leave last. The whimbrels and greenshanks were not seen on 22 April 2017. It is possible they finally flew North sometime during the week. There were still about 30 redshanks and handful of pacific golden plovers seen at SBWR on 22 April 2017. Last chance to see them before they too fly North this year.

 
Flight of the Whimbrels @ Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve - 16Apr2017 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Interesting links :
https://www.facebook.com/AWSG.sat.tag/?hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE&fref=nf

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W95SJ6BLdG0 - An Interview with a Bar-tailed Godwit.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRPZYjsMUZ0 - Oh My Godwit, The longest bird migration in the world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-mMMpl_T80 - TedEd - Bird Migration, A Perilous Journey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahm9x8QTQJk - the physics of bird migration
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JUYyMHOHb8 - how do birds know where to go when they migrate?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwIT9pv4kh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhwBDjfWr_M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FcCJIpsH0U

http://www.worldmigratorybirdday.org/news/2017/stopping-habitat-loss-china-proposes-yellow-sea-be-added-world-heritage-tentative-list-0

http://www.birdlife.org/worldwide/news/chasing-ghosts-how-technology-helping-track-bird-mysteriously-disappeared

crows vs eagle @ SBWR - Feb 2017

This clip shows the ubiquitous house crows harassing a juvenile white-bellied sea eagle. The crows are certainly persistent and each brave enough to mess with the much larger eagle.

The eagle tried its best to maintain its balance but lost it and had to take to the air although it was clearly unprepared to do so and seemingly forgot to tell its legs that it was no longer on the tree.

crows vs eagle @ SBWR - Feb 2017 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

osprey diving @ eagle point - Feb 2017

osprey diving @ eagle point - Feb 2017

Whimbrels flying from Eagle Point towards Sungei Danga/Sungei Sekudai - 12Nov2016

A flock of about 35 whimbrels flying off from Eagle Point (Singapore) across the Straits of Johor (Malaysia) towards Sungei Danga/Sekudai in Johor. The incoming tide chased the birds off for the evening. Eagle Point (part of the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve) is at the western edge of the Mandai mudflats which is a rich coastal mudflat area which the shorebirds feed at during the lower tides. As the incoming tide rises, the shorebirds fly off to roost at either the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve nearby or across the Straits of Johor towards the Sungei Danga/Sekudai mangroves. Time : 6.36pm Tide : 0.9m @ 3.30pm, 2.9m @ 9.30pm The clip was shot at 96fps and played back at 24fps. Certain sections were sped up (especially where the focus starts to suffer and the birds are far away enough to start merging into the background.)

Whimbrel Flock flying towards Sungei Sekudai - 12Nov2016 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

The red lines show some of the routes taken by various groups of shorebirds to and from the Mandai mudflats from roosting sites at SBWR and the Danga-Sekudai rivers. There may be other roosting areas (eg. Sungai Melayu) closeby too. (Music : Symphony No. 4 in B-Flat Major : Op 60 IV. : Allegro ma non troppo)

harrier @ kranji marshes - 19Nov2016

At first, I thought a brahminy kite was flying low over the marsh but soon realised that this was not a kite but a harrier.... likely a juvenile eastern marsh harrier. The head of the harrier was very visibly pale and the rest of its plumage was in much darker tones of brown with a distinct white rump.

It made several passes over the marsh before flying off towards the north.


harrier @ kranji marshes 19Nov2016 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Juvenile White-Bellied Sea Eagle Fishing @ SBWR Eagle Point - 2Oct2016

This juvenile WBSE appeared out of nowhere in the sky above at Eagle Point, SBWR and quickly drew the keen attention of the few visitors at the lookout point. It swooped down towards a dead fish (probably a milkfish which is one of the types of fish farmed at the nearby offshore 'fishfarms') floating at the water surface which it skilfully picked up with incredible precision. It soon flew off into the fringing coastal mangrove forest. What a wonderful sight!

(no audio - footage shot at 120fps)


Juvenile White-Bellied Sea Eagle Fishing @ SBWR Eagle Point - 2 Oct 2016 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.