sgbeachbum

Monday, July 7, 2014

brahminy kite, flying @ Changi - July 2014

Spotted this large raptor sitting on a bare tree branch in the morning sun close to the shore. I had initially thought it was a White-Belllied Sea Eagle but soon realised that it was a Brahminy Kite instead. It was accompanied by another much smaller bird on another bare branch to the left. This looked like an oriental dollarbird but it was too far away to confirm.

The kite soon took off and flew in my direction before i lost track of it above the canopy. Brahminy Kites are known to be masters of flight and frequently catch fish from the surface of water bodies and whereafter they eat their catch on the fly whilst skilfully coasting against the wind.

Despite being impressive masters of flight, brahminy kites have a cat-like call and one would be easily misled into thinking that there is a meowing cat somewhere in the sky above.

The clip repeats a section run at 10% showing the fluidity of the brahminy kite's flight.

brahminy kite flying @ changi - July 2014 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Read more about this locally resident and beautiful bird of prey :

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Haliastur_indus.htm

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/28/brahminy-kite/

http://singaporebirds.net/npassers_04/brahminy_kite.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahminy_kite

http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_687_2005-01-04.html

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Haliastur-indus

http://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-brahminy-kite.html

http://www.birdsinbackyards.net/species/Haliastur-indus

Sunday, July 6, 2014

pied triller, breakfast @ Changi - July 2014

Changi still does have some quiet corners where the birds aren't that afraid of people. I was standing below a huge Flame-of-the-Forest tree when a bird flitting from branch to branch caught my eye.

It was moving actively through the canopy. I soon saw why it was so active. It was looking for its breakfast. It managed to catch and eat quite a number of green caterpillars during the 5 minutes that i was observing it. It was rather quiet but for a few pips from time to time.

pied triller, breakfast @ changi - July 2014 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

This bird is relatively common in Singapore but it is rarely seen as it loves to stay in the canopy layer.

This was my first time observing this bird. The bird looked like it was a female with its grey wing colouration. The males have a 'black n white' colour whereas the females are 'grey n white'.

Read more about these wonderful birds :-

http://nusavifauna.wordpress.com/2012/07/30/pied-triller/

http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/speciesfactsheet.php?id=5951

http://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Lalage-nigra

http://www.besgroup.org/2011/07/18/call-of-the-adult-female-pied-triller/

http://ibc.lynxeds.com/species/pied-triller-lalage-nigra

No flash, No bait, No risk. Just natural photography goodness. :)

Sunday, June 22, 2014

crab-eating snake & dinner @ pasir ris mangrove - June 2014

Came across what seemed to be a neat spiral lump of turd on the sandy mangrove floor. It was about 6.30pm and getting dark. It looked suspiciously like someone had an emergency and 'had to go'. Only this little lump began to move slowly. It was alive.

At first i thought this was a mangrove pit viper. It's colour was a deep dark brown close to black. However, the shape of the head was not as triangular as the pit vipers i had come across earlier. And it was on the ground. I had never seen a pit viper on sandy ground. All my mangrove pit viper sightings have been of the snake wrapped around the branches of a tree. This one, I was prepared to assume, had fallen from an overhanging tree branch.

It was eating something as it moved its head swallowing the item. My guess was that the snake was eating a crab. It soon finished swallowing the 'crab' and straightened itself out. It was about 45cm long and had a pale patch below the head on its underside. The bulge of the prey item in the snake's throat was clearly noticeable as it would slowly move further down the snake's digestive tract. It flicked out its tongue as it moved towards a sandy mound and into a hole in the mound before totally disappearing into it.

The crab-eating snake is mildly venomous but is of little risk to humans (like most snakes which prefer to shy away from people). It is rarely seen as it is a nocturnal hunter and it more commonly encountered as the light fades and after dark.

crab-eating snake & dinner @ Pasir Ris Mangrove - June 2014 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Read more about the Crab-Eating snake here :

http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/vertebrates/snakes/fordonia.htm

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

paradise tree snake, hunting @ SBWR - 2014

Came across this wonderful paradise tree snake earlier this year during a quiet morning walk along a boardwalk at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (www.sbwr.org.sg). It was mid-morning and a bright sunny day. This snake was about one metre long and was in active hunting mode. It may have been looking for bugs or geckcos hiding about the boardwalk. Soon after i started recording the clips, the snake's attention was captured by something close to the boardwalk edge and it lunged at it. I did not see it catch anything but it soon decided to speedily slide a few metres along the boardwalk where it started looking amongst the boardwalk beams for its breakfast.

Paradise Tree Snake Hunting @ SBWR - 2014 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

The snake did not seem to be bothered at all by the horde of ants travelling across some of the wooden railings. Obviously, the ants were not on its menu list. The snake kept exploring the various beams on the rail and even took short breaks atop the railing looking down and about. Eventually, i watched it as it moved further along the wooden rail and finally onto a leafy overhanging branch quickly disappearing into the foliage. What a wonderful encounter!

Find out more about these wonderful snakes :

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/verts/flying_tree_snake.htm

http://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/snakes/paradise_tree-snake.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysopelea_paradisi

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/flying-snake/

http://www.flyingsnake.org/

http://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/2013/10/31/flying-snakes/

Monday, May 26, 2014

eagle vs eagle @ SBWR - May 2014

The Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve (www.sbwr.org.sg) still continues to amaze its many visitors on many levels. However, most visitors (the lucky quiet ones anyway) get to see the many monitor lizards, an odd crocodile, some of the many birds and even the occasional spotting of the family of resident smooth-coated otters which live in the Reserve.

It is not often that one looks up into the skies above the reserve but the tower hides provide for spectacular views if one is willing to climb them. And sometimes, that little effort coupled with a little quiet patience pays off.

As there was a storm brewing, three white-bellied sea eagles were seen flying in the skies above the Reserve. Two of the eagles seemed to be engaged in a chase. The third was lower in the sky and seemed to a little less interested in the two higher up. I was first aware of the unfolding action when I heard the characteristic squawking this specie of eagle.

The two higher up were engaged in a chase for about 5 minutes despite the strong winds brewed up by the impending storm. There were times when the birds were flapping their wings vigourously but were not apparently moving much at all due to the strong headwind. Despite this, the chase went on with both of the higher eagles making sharp twists and turns occasionally getting very close to each other. Finally, the two eagles locked talons and spun about 3 fast loops towards the ground before they parted ways well above the ground.

This was an amazing sight to see.

The chase and the locked talons suggest that the resident pair of adult eagles had been visited by another non-resident eagle and they had seen fit to see it off but the visitor had been reluctant to leave the area. The visitor left the territory after the spinning dive.

Next time you visit a nature reserve, be quiet and observe and listen to the sounds about you. You might be in for a rare treat.

Read about the white-bellied sea eagle :

http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/Haliaeetus_leucogaster.htm

eagle vs eagle @ SBWR - May 2014 from SgBeachBum on Vimeo.

Friday, May 23, 2014

mangrove balloon @ berlayar creek 23May2014

Saw this orange balloon amongst the mangrove trees at Berlayar Creek (Labrador Park) today.

Please be careful of helium filled balloons as they tend to escape one's grasp and risk eventually falling into the sea where they can be mistaken for jellyfish which is a favourite food of sea turtles or otherwise fatally entangle marine life such as birds, turtles and other animals.