changeable hawk eagle - dark morph @ bukit brown - 01May2013

Took a detour into Sime Road and entered the main gate of the Bukit Brown Cemetary when I noticed a large dark bird sitting high on a bare tree. 

It was sitting on a stump whilst the rain drizzled on. I moved around to get a better vantage point to observe the bird. The dead tree it was on was a little behind the banners put up to help save Bukit Brown from development.

The bird was on the branch for about 20 minutes before it flew off. I'm guessing it had gotten wet in a downpour and was sitting high on the bare tree drying itself off.

changeable hawk eagle - dark morph @ bukit brown - 01May2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Having seen the pale morph version of this rarely seen locally resident eagle, it was a first for me to see the dark morph version at Bukit Brown. Unfortunately, seeing these rarely seen birds at Bukit Brown will likely soon become history once development plans are put into a higher gear. Already, some trees near the entrance have been cut down. 

Find out more about these rarely seen resident birds here :

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.sg/2013/05/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-morph.html

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.sg/2013/01/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-morph-bukit.html

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2012/11/changeable-hawk-eagles-tanah-merah.html

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=31546

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/10/07/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-x-dark-morph/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/08/16/portrait-of-an-eagle-changeable-hawk-eagle/

 http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2007/01/changeable-eagle-attacking-colugo.html

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/11/02/changeable-hawk-eagle-and-the-long-tailed-macaque/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/07/21/changeable-hawk-eagle-nesting-observations/

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/changeable-hawk-eagle/

http://singaporebirds.blogspot.com/2012/06/buttonquail.html

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Nisaetus-cirrhatus

http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/Raptor%20Manual_circa.pdf

changeable hawk eagle - pale morph juvenile @ maxwell road - 4 May 2013

It's not everyday you see a large raptor in the vicinity of the central business district. I had seen the raptor briefly as it flew overhead into a clump of trees on the left side of the AYE-ECP just past the tip of Maxwell Road (this is the southern part of Maxwell Road closest to Marina South). Being only able to reach the clump of trees about twenty minutes later, I thought the bird was long gone. There was only a crow flying about the small sliver of trees bordering Maxwell Road. The crow was however repeatedly flying towards the ground behind some bushes and then up again as if it was trying to harass something on the ground. It was also calling out loud. Moving a little aside, through the bushes, I saw the raptor standing on the ground. It was trying to lift off with something but I was not able to see what it was it had in its talons. It soon flew to a tree branch just about 3 metres away before flying off to better cover further into the trees.  Perhaps the CHE had come from the nearby Gardens by the Bay. I tried looking for what it had been trying to lift behind the bushes expecting to see an injured bird or snake but did not see anything which was the likely target.

zCHEpalemorphjuvenile from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Find out more about these rarely seen resident birds here :

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.sg/2013/01/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-morph-bukit.html

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2012/11/changeable-hawk-eagles-tanah-merah.html

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=31546

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/10/07/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-x-dark-morph/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/08/16/portrait-of-an-eagle-changeable-hawk-eagle/

 http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2007/01/changeable-eagle-attacking-colugo.html

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/11/02/changeable-hawk-eagle-and-the-long-tailed-macaque/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/07/21/changeable-hawk-eagle-nesting-observations/

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/changeable-hawk-eagle/

http://singaporebirds.blogspot.com/2012/06/buttonquail.html

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Nisaetus-cirrhatus

http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/Raptor%20Manual_circa.pdf

changeable hawk eagle (pale morph) @ bukit brown - 01Jan2013

Spending the first day of the New Year at the Bukit Brown cemetary may seem out of place (and contradictory to local superstitious beliefs) but I was glad that there were not many visitors on the first day of the year. This left the whole place less disturbed and the birds more relaxed.
[Note : the cemetary was designated as a Municipal Cemetary on 1 Jan 1922 by the then Municipal Commissioner Tan Kheam Hock and so the 1st of Jan is an anniversary. Find out more here. LINK]

I spent about 7 hours from about 7am until about 2pm walking about the grounds. 7am is a good time to visit the cemetary as the sounds of the various birds is more clear than the lower level of traffic noise coming from the nearby Lornie Road.

On my exit along the last stretch leading back to the carpark, I was approaching a huge rain tree at the first 'y' junction from the roundabout when a large bird took off flying low away from me towards a denser part of the surrounding foliage. It settled on a bare branch and moved to another tree soon after where it started calling out loud with its characteristic signature call. (check clip below and compare with LINK)  Somewhere close by, another changeable hawk eagle returned its call. It soon took off soaring in a spiral with the midday thermals but kept to about 50 meters off the ground in a tight circular path. After flying low for about 3 minutes, the bird flew off towards the main gate still calling out occasionally. After I left the cemetary about half an hour later, I could hear the calls coming from the forested area adjacent to Kheam Hock Road. This part of the forest would eventually be cleared for the proposed road building later on in 2013.

changeable hawk eagle (pale morph) @ bukit brown - 01Jan2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

I wasn't alone in appreciating the eagle as a very enthusiastic lady ('GC'), an accomplished bird photographer herself, drove by with two camera-toting friends. They must have heard the eagle's calls and came looking for it. GC's enthusiasm for the eagle can be heard in the background audio accompanying the video. The eagle was flying low and provided a good subject. GC, who visits Bukit Brown probably more often than anyone else, later shared that there were 7 types of eagles which could be seen in the Bukit Brown area. I had seen a crested serpent eagle flying in the sky above Bukit Brown about half an hour earlier and I had heard from others that one can see the grey-headed fish eagle as well as the white-bellied sea eagle around too. I would assume that the dark morph version of the changeable hawk eagle can also be found around Bukit Brown. Must keep a lookout for other eagles too!

What a fabulous way to start the New Year!
Best wishes to all!

Find out more about these rarely seen resident birds here :

http://sgbeachbum.blogspot.com/2012/11/changeable-hawk-eagles-tanah-merah.html

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=31546

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/10/07/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-x-dark-morph/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/08/16/portrait-of-an-eagle-changeable-hawk-eagle/

 http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2007/01/changeable-eagle-attacking-colugo.html

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/11/02/changeable-hawk-eagle-and-the-long-tailed-macaque/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/07/21/changeable-hawk-eagle-nesting-observations/

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/changeable-hawk-eagle/

http://singaporebirds.blogspot.com/2012/06/buttonquail.html

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Nisaetus-cirrhatus

http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/Raptor%20Manual_circa.pdf

changeable hawk eagles @ tanah merah - Nov2012

Tanah Merah seems to be a good spot (for now) to see Changeable Hawk Eagles. This species comes in two main morphs...pale or dark (and quite a few variations in between depending on the stage of maturity of the bird). The clip shows three different birds.
The first is seated on a Casuarina branch silhouetted by the morning sun. It was observed for about 5 minutes before it took flight calling whilst it flew off.
The second was seated on another tree looking around whilst highlighted by the morning sun. This one had a rich brown colour and the distinctive yellow feet can be clearly seen.
The third hawk eagle was a juvenile pale morph. This one had a white head and a pale coloured body with dark grey wings. It also had a small black crest atop its head. When it was first noticed, it was wagging its tail from side to side. Facing away from its observers, it was quite content until a motorbiker came by. Unfortunately, the noise from the bike set the bird off and it took off deeper into the nearby forest.

changeable hawk eagles @ tanah merah - Nov2012 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Habitat loss continues to be a problem for these shy birds which seem to prefer more quiet and non-habited areas.

Find out more about these rarely seen Singapore resident birds here :

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=31546

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/10/07/changeable-hawk-eagle-pale-x-dark-morph/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/08/16/portrait-of-an-eagle-changeable-hawk-eagle/

 http://besgroup.blogspot.com/2007/01/changeable-eagle-attacking-colugo.html

http://www.besgroup.org/2006/11/02/changeable-hawk-eagle-and-the-long-tailed-macaque/

http://www.besgroup.org/2007/07/21/changeable-hawk-eagle-nesting-observations/

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/29/changeable-hawk-eagle/

http://singaporebirds.blogspot.com/2012/06/buttonquail.html

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Nisaetus-cirrhatus

http://wildbirdsingapore.nss.org.sg/Raptor%20Manual_circa.pdf