Sukau birding primarily means staying in a more-or-less comfy lodge on the banks of the Kinatabagan river, and taking boat excursions on more-or-less rickety boats on the river. The mosquitos and the warmth and the sweat are free, the lodges aren’t. That is the way it appears to be like like:
Or at sundown:
A species I didn’t come for from Shanghai is the Black-crowned Night time Heron. Sure, we have now them in Shanghai as properly. Unsure why they spend time in Shanghai in winter after they might come right here although, however then once more, I often don’t perceive a lot of the habits of people both.
Blue-throated Bee-eaters construct nests on sticks protruding of the water. They appear crap however presumably provide some safety for the chicks, although not from one another (see the murderous actions inside the nests in my earlier put up).
As a result of these nests look so dangerous, I took a bribe from the Affiliation of Bornean Bee-eaters to not present them (truly, I simply forgot to take a photograph, silly me). So, simply pictures of the birds themselves.
The juvenile within the again has simply caught one thing. The guardian should be so proud …
The Sabah Partridge is listed as Close to Threatened. Its species title graydoni is in honor of Philip Newenham Graydon (1864-1940), a British planter in Sabah. Why that makes Mr. Graydon worthy of getting a chicken species named after him is a thriller to me.
The HBW calls it a “boldly-marked partridge” whereas eBird goes for “intricately-patterned partridge” which is sort of the alternative – test for your self which one of many two descriptions is nearer to the reality.
And if you’re in Sabah, you too can test whether or not the chicken is “unusual … all through its vary” (eBird) or somewhat “regionally widespread” (HBW).
Weirdly, a meta-analysis undertaken by Lim and Mojiol quoted within the HBW discovered “Sabah Partridge to be most plentiful in business forest reserves, and fewer so in state-owned areas and guarded reserves”. A chicken with a powerful perception in non-public property, perhaps?
The Massive Frogmouth is certainly one of these splendidly bizarre chicken species that make birding such a pleasure, when you recover from the warmth and humidity and mosquitos and leeches of Borneo’s lowlands.
It’s listed as Close to Threatened – the HBW states that it’s an “unusual or uncommon chicken that’s virtually definitely declining owing to destruction of its lowland-forest habitat”.
The HBW additionally remarks that there’s “no apparent sexual dichromatism, though feminine is claimed to be usually plainer and duller” – my recommendation to HBW employees is to not make such statements at events, as this would possibly make you comparatively unpopular besides with probably the most boorish of male visitors.
If you wish to know what occurred on August 31, 1984, I can title a minimum of one occasion: Within the Padang-Sugihan Wildlife Reserve in South Sumatra province, a Massive Frogmouth was mobbed by a Larger Racket-tailed Drongo, as described right here. At between 4 pm and 6 pm, to be precise. After all, many individuals nonetheless know precisely what they did when this occurred.
Apparently, when breeding, the 2 dad and mom divide incubation duties, with one chicken taking on the daytime duties and one other one the nighttime. Consequently, a paper describing this talks of the “day shift” and the “evening shift” chicken. The paper can be value trying out for some somewhat cute pictures of the frogmouth chick.
For some, the glass of water is at all times half full. For others, it’s at all times half-empty (I, being extra lifelike than most individuals, often doubt there may be any glass in any respect). Anyway, the Latin title of the Mangrove Blue Flycatcher interprets as one thing just like the Pink-bellied Flycatcher (rufigaster is the species title). Totally different views.
Whereas it’s a very engaging chicken, its habitat in swamps and mangroves apparently makes it tough for armchair ornithologists to check it, so there are few or no papers on the chicken.
The hornbills of Sukau are featured in a separate put up – they’re one of many predominant points of interest of this location although.
Ditto for Storm’s Stork.
Blue-eared Kingfishers suppose that sustainability is essential. They steadily reuse nest holes, thus saving important pure assets regardless that cleansing out the used nest gap takes about one week (supply).
Sadly, the Latin species title meninting doesn’t seek advice from a possible merciless Dutch governor with a sideline in naturalism however is simply the Javanese title for the Deep-blue Kingfisher. One good little story for my weblog put up misplaced.
Like different kingfishers, Blue-eared Kingfishers nest in excavated tunnels – however in comparison with different kingfishers, these tunnels appear to be fairly brief with a mean size of solely 25 cm. A kingfisher with a considerably poor work ethic, I suppose. Or speluncaphobia?
The Stork-billed Kingfisher is way larger and simpler to see.
Some scientists at Chittagong College, Bangladesh noticed the habits of Stork-billed Kingfisher and Pied Kingfisher at – guess the place – Chittagong College campus (presumably they’ve some issues expensing journey prices).
They noticed the Pied Kingfisher endeavor 8 actions whereas the Stork-billed Kingfisher was noticed performing solely 6. The 2 lacking ones have been hovering (too huge, too fats, too lazy, I suppose) and bathing. The final level makes me fear a bit about getting too near Stork-billed Kingfishers. Possibly they transform fairly smelly? I didn’t get shut sufficient to search out out although.
The Collared Kingfisher is much more widespread – it might steadily be seen sitting on wires and posts alongside the principle roads.
So widespread that my native chicken information truly gave the species for example of a quite common chicken he was nonetheless joyful to see throughout the COVID lockdown when it confirmed up in his yard.
The resident style critic of eBird will not be very impressed with the Orange-backed Woodpecker, stating that it’s “dressed all in patchwork”.
It has one of many extra stupid-sounding genus names – Reinwardtipicus, which is made up of the title of Dutch naturalist Prof. Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt and picus, which implies woodpecker, with the ti that connects the 2 elements probably additionally having some type of that means. That is solely partly compensated by the species title validus (robust), of which presumably the species is sort of pleased with.
Maybe not fascinating to anyone besides me, the HBW profile of the chicken has a short part on the creator, Chuenchom Hansasuta, who acquired a Physician of Dental Surgical procedure from Chulalongkorn College in Bangkok. I keep in mind that after I was nonetheless a analysis chemist growing dental supplies, I as soon as gave a presentation at that college, which was adopted by my receiving a hideous and really colourful plate as a present afterward. With an image of the then-queen of Thailand on it, if I keep in mind appropriately. So, fairly probably that made me commit lese majeste after I conveniently “forgot” the plate in my resort room when leaving Bangkok – a room in a resort that was considerably distinguished by all vaguely engaging younger females coming into the resort having to go away their ID playing cards on the reception. Looking back, it type of makes me surprise what picture the organizers who booked the resort for me had of German tutorial guests …
A lot for my quasi-madeleine second, although in fact much less emotionally engaging than the one described by Mr. Proust. Again to birds.
The Oriental Darter is classed as Close to Threatened – the explanations are the same old ones: habitat loss, searching, and air pollution. Humankind, you probably did it once more, congratulations.
The Latin species title melanogaster highlights the black stomach of the chicken (melanos = black, gastros = stomach). A buddy of mine who’s a bit petrified of snakes thinks of it because the snakebird although, which isn’t unreasonable given the snake-like neck of the chicken.
The Pacific Swallow is the resident swallow right here – in winter, it’s apparently joined by an abundance of barn swallows that don’t benefit from the coldish winter in locations reminiscent of Shanghai.
In line with eBird, the barn swallow has longer outer tail feathers and a darkish line separating the throat and breast that are missing within the Pacific Swallow. Nonetheless, it’s best to not name a Pacific Swallow short-tailed as they may regard this as insulting, notably the males.
Purple Herons aren’t quite common and fairly shy in Shanghai whereas right here, they behave like they personal the place.
The species title of the Scarlet-rumped Trogon, duvaucelii, makes it sound a bit like it’s sponsored by a battery producer but it surely actually simply commemorates Alfred Duvaucel (1796-1824), a French naturalist who probably was killed by a tiger in Madras (supply), although one other supply has him killed by a rhinoceros (in these areas, there are various such selections accessible). I suppose he ought to have caught with the considerably much less harmful trogons.
Male (pink breast) and feminine (orange)
The Scarlet-rumped Trogon is classed as Close to Threatened regardless of being apparently nonetheless pretty widespread on Borneo. It’s the smallest of all trogons.
Its blue eyebrow makes it appear like it both is consistently uncertain about one factor or different, or a long-time participant in some type of cosplay.
The Frequent Iora (species title tiphia) apparently will get its title from Tiphys of Greek mythology, the pilot of the Argonauts. And the Argonauts have been a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who within the years earlier than the Trojan Warfare accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to search out the Golden Fleece (please search for for your self who Jason was, the place Colchis is and what the Golden Fleece was).
Tiphys died both of a snakebite or of a mysterious sickness however he was not killed by both a tiger or a rhinoceros. Fortunate him, proper? Although he ended up useless anyway.
My unfounded guess is that there could be a hyperlink between the Golden Fleece and the yellow colour of the Iora – goldenfleecii would sound type of silly as a species title, and why not exhibit together with your classical training when there’s a likelihood to take action?
Then, there are raptors. The Bat Hawk primarily eats bats, because the title suggests – in a curiously exact assertion, Wikipedia claims that 49.3% of its hunts are profitable. Different helpful info within the Wikipedia article contains the factoid that it reveals very speedy ingestion charges, taking up common 6 seconds for the prey to achieve the abdomen after seize (motto of this weblog: We learn Wikipedia for you so that you should not have to).
A Crested Serpent Eagle, wanting a bit ridiculous after a rain.
It is a juvenile Gray-headed Fish Eagle, until it’s one other fish eagle just like the Lesser (the dearth of any gray head makes me doubt the identification a bit, but it surely appears juveniles can’t afford a gray head but).
A paper on the Gray-headed Fish Eagle states that it “most popular nesting nearer to everlasting water than anticipated” – which makes me surprise who on earth has particular expectations about the popular nesting distance of the eagle from water. Nicely, it appears such individuals exist.
This can be a Jerdon’s Baza – the HBW warns that it could simply be confused with a number of different raptors, and I’m not that good a birder.
The e-book “Raptors of the World” describes it as a “sluggish-looking” chicken, which strikes me as a bit bizarre for a raptor.
The baza is called after British zoologist Thomas Caverhill Jerdon (1811 – 1872). His Wikipedia entry has its fair proportion of ineffective however amusing info on him: “In his private issues he was mentioned to be careless and forgetful. He usually had bother along with his collectors and throughout the time of his loss of life, he was discovered to be bancrupt. Jerdon has additionally been famous as being rash. On one event, he tried catching a cobra by the tail and received bitten on the tip of finger which he slashed with a pocket knife. He was additionally almost strangled by a pet python that he stored.
One other “perhaps that is” species: a potential Wallaces Hawk-eagle. I’ll write extra about it in a later put up, as I noticed it nesting at Sepilok.
The ultimate chicken of this put up is the White-bellied Sea-eagle, a species that the HBW fortuitously describes as unmistakable. The creator of the HBW entry is identical feminine Thai dentist named within the Woodpecker part – she appears to have an virtually scary obsession with plumages, going to nice lengths to explain the totally different ones. I believed this type of obsession was restricted to gull fans, but it surely appears I used to be unsuitable.
Lastly, I’m joyful to share some helpful hints for photographers with you. Right here is one: when taking pictures of elephants, an 800 mm tele lens will not be the most effective gear. Even when – as in Borneo – the elephants are comparatively small (they’re truly known as Borneo pygmy elephants).
If that triggers you to look your mind for long-lost data and give you the time period “insular dwarfism“, congratulations – you as soon as discovered one thing, regardless that it was most likely a very long time in the past and doesn’t have any sensible use for you now as it’s not even steadily requested for in crossword puzzles.
If not understanding this info any longer and thus suspecting you could be affected by dementia, there are at all times another animals round to facilitate assisted suicide.
Alternatively, it’s possible you’ll take consolation from the truth that you’ll by no means be as ugly as this distant relative of yours.
