here is a selection of snippets from a visit to Chek Jawa...
the clip includes:
carpenter bee
goby
grey heron (with fish)
Sunday, June 16, 2013
Saturday, May 25, 2013
white-bellied sea eagle escapes a murder of crows @ SBWR - May 2013
The white-belied sea eagle, Singapore's largest resident bird, was enjoying a sunny morning on a bare branch at one end of Pulau Buloh across from Platform 1 at SBWR. It was soon joined by a single crow but within minutes, there were quite a few more crows crowding the surrounding branches.
As the crows grew in number, they started leapfrogging between the nearby branches constantly repositioning themselves around the eagle which was many times their size. It seemed as if there was intelligence behind the repositioning like a chess game being played on the chequerboard of branches.
The eagle was becoming increasingly concerned with the attention by the ever increasing crows. Soon, it was time for the crows to show the eagle who was boss of that corner of Pulau Buloh.
The eagle quickly decided to take flight after a crow brushed up too close against its wing. Time to escape a murder. It was immediately chased by some of the other crows which had ben waiting on the nearby branches. The eagle flew off to a less crow-ed (pun intended) part of the reserve.
The eagle was becoming increasingly concerned with the attention by the ever increasing crows. Soon, it was time for the crows to show the eagle who was boss of that corner of Pulau Buloh.
The eagle quickly decided to take flight after a crow brushed up too close against its wing. Time to escape a murder. It was immediately chased by some of the other crows which had ben waiting on the nearby branches. The eagle flew off to a less crow-ed (pun intended) part of the reserve.
Here are some links about crows :
Saturday, May 4, 2013
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.
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 :
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.
Find out more about these rarely seen resident birds here :
Sunday, March 24, 2013
an otteriffic encounter @ serangoon reservoir - 24Mar2013
It was a pleasant surprise for the Otter Trail guides to exclaim that there were otters in the reservoir at that moment when we were there. I had visited the reservoir many times before and had not seen any of the resident otters before. This was a good day then. There were apparently 10 otters in the group. I had managed to count '9' but another count by a biologist NParks officer who was skilled at counting mudskippers said '10'. (The clip below shows does not show the maximum counted all at once.)
It was amazing when the group seemed to disappear altogether under the water without a trace in a blink of an eye. I was left wondering where they had swum to and had to look at the other observers on the bridge to figure out where they were.
The Otter Trail bikers had biked over 15km through the Changi Village Heritage Tree trail and the Pasir Ris Park environs (and seeing unusual and rare birds such as the Oriental-Pied Hornbill, and Spotted-Wood Owl amongst others ) were therefore thrilled at spotting the otters (and a large group of 10 at that).
The Park Connector Network is certainly a welcomed neighbourhood feature which enables everyday people to get a good dose of exercise safely and also appreciate the flora and fauna of the area. What better way to enjoy a morning, afternoon or evening? Have a look here for information about the Northern PCN (http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/docs/NERL_Eguide_final.pdf)
These otters have been seen in various parts of the reservoir and surrounding coastal and even in adjacent reservoirs. They seem adept at crossing major roads at great risk to get from one enclosed reservoir to another or to the coast and certainly risk getting run over by the many speeding trucks and other vehicles which ply the roads around the reservoirs.
an otteriffic encounter @ serangoon reservoir - 24Mar2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.
It was amazing when the group seemed to disappear altogether under the water without a trace in a blink of an eye. I was left wondering where they had swum to and had to look at the other observers on the bridge to figure out where they were.
The Otter Trail bikers had biked over 15km through the Changi Village Heritage Tree trail and the Pasir Ris Park environs (and seeing unusual and rare birds such as the Oriental-Pied Hornbill, and Spotted-Wood Owl amongst others ) were therefore thrilled at spotting the otters (and a large group of 10 at that).
The Park Connector Network is certainly a welcomed neighbourhood feature which enables everyday people to get a good dose of exercise safely and also appreciate the flora and fauna of the area. What better way to enjoy a morning, afternoon or evening? Have a look here for information about the Northern PCN (http://www.nparks.gov.sg/cms/docs/NERL_Eguide_final.pdf)
These otters have been seen in various parts of the reservoir and surrounding coastal and even in adjacent reservoirs. They seem adept at crossing major roads at great risk to get from one enclosed reservoir to another or to the coast and certainly risk getting run over by the many speeding trucks and other vehicles which ply the roads around the reservoirs.
an otteriffic encounter @ serangoon reservoir - 24Mar2013 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.
Find out more about Singapore's Smooth-Coated Otter :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qD683_pbAO4 - 2 otters encounter a croc at sungei buloh
and here is a link to the iccs otters...
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
sunda pygmy woodpeckers @ pekan quarry, Ubin - Feb2013
The former Pekan Quarry is a good spot for birdwatching. The rainwater collected in the quarry provides for a large body of fresh water which would otherwise not be available to the flora and fauna which can be found in the area around the quarry. Freshwater attracts and sustains an incredible diversity of lifeforms which is all interdependant on each other sometimes in the most subtlest of ways.
Sunda Pygmy Woodpeckers are known to be rather common all over Singapore and so it is no surprise that they can also be found on Pulau Ubin. They can also be found right in the city (see Link) if you take the trouble to look at the small birds flying between trees in the city.
These birds at the Pekan Quarry were busy looking for food on some bamboo at the edge of the quarry. There were insects in the bamboo and the birds did a good job of extracting the insects with their bills and tongue.
Sunda Pygmy Woodpeckers are known to be rather common all over Singapore and so it is no surprise that they can also be found on Pulau Ubin. They can also be found right in the city (see Link) if you take the trouble to look at the small birds flying between trees in the city.
These birds at the Pekan Quarry were busy looking for food on some bamboo at the edge of the quarry. There were insects in the bamboo and the birds did a good job of extracting the insects with their bills and tongue.
Read more about these birds here :
Visit these links for more info on the NSS Bird Guide App :
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