The common types of strangling fig trees are those with red or yellow figs. When some of these trees produce figs, they can be seen along the road. During the fruiting time, the strangling fig tree becomes a stage for the bird enthusiasts.
In December 2022, there were three different productive strangling fig trees inviting the hornbills for free feasts of delicious vitamins and protein packed meals. One of them lasted till early January 2023.
My lucky guests who managed to photograph the hornbills feasting on one of these trees were Swales Family, Meyer Family, Jia Hui family, Dennis family, Ardish, Nasir and Nigel/Lucas Oh, Emily family.
Nasir from Singapore in joy of photographing a Great Hornbill
The photos here with Great Hornbill on a yellow and a red fig tree.
Great Hornbill female with yellow figs
Great Hornbill male with the red figs
Both are auspicious colours for the Chinese New Year. I like to wish everyone here a good year ahead with good health, happiness and prosperity.
Langkawi welcomes a new species member in her list of feathered friends back in 9th November 2019 which is the Asian Openbills Anastomus oscitans. My first sighting of a huge flock flying above us was back in late October 2015 when I was with my birding friends at Khao Dinsor Chumphon, Thailand for raptor watch.
Asian Openbills when they fly in big flock and thermalling. Dont't they look like jet fighters to you?
I was awed but didn't get to see the whole bird until I was in Perlis in
April 2019 with Jane Miller. These gigantic stork is considered a
migrant for Peninsular Malaysia but they have stayed longer.
Asian Openbill in Perlis
When I first saw the E-Bird submission of this species for Langkawi, I couldn't believe it. Upon my request, Esteban Martinez followed up with a record shot of seven individuals perched on a tree and therefore, it is confirmed. Congratulations to Esteban, a foreign visitor, for sighting this new record for Langkawi. What a lucky find for being at the right place at the right time! That tempted me to look for these birds too! As I had a second session of birdwatching tour with Ruth and Simon Smith on the next day, 10th November 2019, it didn't take much effort for me to convince them to search for these birds too! And so we followed the location marked by Esteban, which was close to Langkawi International airport. On a very hot afternoon, we found ourselves walking on a path in between the airport and a scrubby field. After 30 minutes we turned around. No Asian Openbill but we managed to see two Black Drongos which are migrants too. And of course, birds fly! I wanted another chance. Again, it didn't take much effort for me to convince Ruth and Simon to give ourselves another try. We drove around and ended up on this village road close to the airport. Simon was driving and I was scanning. And then some huge birds perched on on a tree caught my eyes. SSSssssssssTTTTtttttOOOOOoooPPPPPPPP! We rushed out of the car with our equipment and click, click, click. There were eight of them!
Photo courtesy from Ruth Smith
I can't describe my feelings on how we were constantly out there looking for any new species and it
takes one tourist to find a rare or new species. To console me, Simon Smith told me it is
Sod's Law. There I learned a new term.
Can you spot the smile on my face? :) Photo credit by Ruth Smith
Posted on my Instagram on 1oth December 2019
In Malay, this bird is known as Upih Paruh Sepit from the awkward looking closed bill with a small slit pincer shape which is adapted to cut open the operculum of snails. The distribution of Asian Openbills covers Indian subcontinent, Central Thailand, Cambodia and Cochinchina (Vietnam), however, it is vagrant to Malay Peninsula at that time it was recorded.
The first official sighting was an adult in a harvested sugar plantation in Chuping, Perlis on 1st and 2nd March 2008. Thanks to Dave Bakewell and Terence Ang for the first record info. I was informed that they can still be seen in Perlis even when it is off the migratory season. Have they decided to stay on due to the right condition that has been provided for them in our Peninsular Malaysia? Singapore has also recorded thousands of Asian Openbills in December 2019. According to Dr Yong Ding Li, an ornithologist at BirdLife International, the drought and the dry weather in countries like Thailand could have reduced the number of snails. You can read the news link here.
These huge storks are indeed a sight to behold especially when hundreds of them thermal in the sky and looking for suitable perches. They are particularly more active flying around in the hot afternoon and late afternoon due to the rising thermals.
This is how they look like close up in flight.
Can you see the opening when the bill is closed?
When I was with Dr Ken Ng and family on their birdwatching tour, we saw a bigger flock in the second week of January 2020.
Are you able to count them?
As at my blog post now, they are still here in Langkawi. I bet they are very happy to conquer the skies with much lesser air traffic, planes flying in and out of Langkawi due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Birds migratory check with Mandy and we saw Asian Openbills on 18th May 2020 with Gunung MatChincang as a backdrop
On 18th May 2020, we headed out to check on any remaining migratory birds. The Oriental Pratincoles, Blue-Tailed Beeeaters were around and surprisingly, Whiskered Terns in breeding plumage. We counted at least 70 individuals of Asian Openbills and will they continue to stay on this island for good?
Here's a video compiled during our separate days of observations:
(If you are unable to view the video on the phone, you can click on this link)
References:
1. Jeyarajasingam, A. (2012). A Field Guide to The Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. New York, NY: Oxford University Press
Most of the bird enthusiasts here are always on a lookout for any rare species or even better, a new record for Langkawi especially during the migratory season. If only I can split myself into a few of me and look for birds in a few locations at the same time, that would be awesome. That's impossible, of course, and thankfully I have updates from others who had either informed me directly or submitted to E-Bird or even via social media. I have not been much luck lately in spotting a lifer for myself or photographing a rare migrant in Langkawi. Like I have always said, it is all about being at the right place at the right time.
For the past two months, there are reports of rare migrants seen on Langkawi. These are Ferruginous Flycatcher Muscicapa ferruginea, Siberian Blue Robin Larvivora cyane, Chinese Goshawk Accipiter soloensis and Oriental Darter Anhinga melanogaster. These species have been listed and compiled to a journal by Yeap Chin Aik which was published under Malaysian Nature Sociey in Malayan Nature Journal 57 (1) 91-144 (2005). This journal is one of my primary source of reference for birds record in Langkawi Archipelago. And yet, I have not come across any of these birds myself or any photographs published. Therefore, I was doubtful until now.
These are the following status based on Yeap's journal:
1. Ferruginous Flycatcher was reported seen on Pulau Payar on 26 April without any date given.
2. Siberian Blue Robin was only recorded as seen in the lowland and hill forests but no date given. 3. Chinese Goshawk was reported seen in Gunung Raya on 18 May 2002. 4. Oriental Darter was reported as locally extinct and one recorded in late November or early December 1907 on Dayang Bunting Lake (Wells 1999; Medway and Wells 1976). According to Wells from The Birds of Thai-Malay Peninsula Volume One Non-Passerine, it is possible that Oriental Darter a former resident, local and apparently sparse; now vagrant. Darters vanished from the Peninsula where some still breed in South Vietnam and probably Cambodia. Oriental Darter is now considered as migrant or vagrant for Peninsular Malaysia.
The followings below are the recent sightings:
1. Ferruginous Flycatcher was photographed by Sofian on 24th September 2019 in the secondary forest of Eastern Langkawi.
2. Siberian Blue Robin male was photographed by a guide who was on morning walk at a resort on 9th October 2019. According to a reliable source, this male Robin hit the glass window panel and then he was seen by the guide. It was circulated on the guide's Facebook but not shared publicly. I was alerted by a friend and I later found out how this male Robin was spotted. This Robin was still alive when the photographed was taken. It is unknown as what has happened to this Robin after the crash ordeal. No picture posted here as I did not ask for the guide's permission to share his photo but I have seen it.
3. Chinese Goshawk was spotted and photographed by another birder around the area of Gunung Raya foothill on 24th October 2019.
4. Oriental Darter was spotted and photographed by my English guest, David Bradshaw on 27th November 2019. Congratulations for spotting this, David! Thanks for sharing the location and I got to see one myself.
A record shot of possibly an Immature Oriental Darter perched in the middle of a rice paddy field. Thank you for this, David Bradshaw!
With
the advancement of digital technology which has created affordable
optics equipment, birdwatchers these days will carry along some form
of camera to have record shots besides a pair of binoculars, pen and notebook. I would say that in this era, it
is a necessity to have some evidence of rare sightings besides the traditional notes taking.
References: 1. Yeap C.A (2005). Report on Birds of Langkawi Archipelago. Malayan Nature Journal 2005, 57(1),107 2. Wells, D.R. (1999). The Birds of the Thai-Malay Peninsula. Volume One: Non-passerines. New York: Academic Press.
Langkawi generally lacks big mixed flock of migratory waders even though we have some coastal mudflats, reeds and mangroves. It has a very low variety of wader species and not a great place to study varieties of migratory waders. Having said that, the island occasionally does have a couple of individual waders that are either rare or vagrant. My wader highlight on the previous bird migration was the Red-Necked Stint and as far as I know, this stint has not been previously recorded for Langkawi. It was a delight to find a rare among the common ones.
On the third week of February 2019, I noticed a solo dainty wader walking up and down along tide line of a sandy beach at the Four Seasons Langkawi, Tanjung Rhu at midday. That was not my first time noticing this sort of lone plover along this beach. I have seen one a couple of times on different migratory seasons years ago. At that time, it was either I did not have my binoculars or my camera with me and that bird didn't give me a chance for a decent record shot. Until that day.
These images have been sitting in my SD card of my Panasonic bridge camera for months until I recall this dainty plover now as I am currently updating the bird list of Langkawi.
After some cropping and editing of these two record shots, my first impression was a Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus. A comparison with my field guide has raised some doubts. The noticeable differences were: 1) The bill of this dainty plover is slightly longer and heavier
2) Broader white lore and brow than the Kentish plover (I have yet to see a Kentish plover)
3) Lighter or paler legs colour
And so it is not a Kentish. Or it is a Malaysian Plover Charadrius peronii?
My image did have some resemblance to a Malaysian Plover but I am still doubtful especially on the colouration on the upperparts. And so I needed some help. I turned to Choy Wai Mun for help. Wai Mun is a passionate Penang birder/bird photographer/guide and also the E-bird reviewer for our Northern states of Peninsular Malaysia. And so, it is a White-faced or Swinhoe's Plover Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus, a subspecies of Kentish Plover. My lifer! Yeah!
Wai Mun also pointed out that a Malaysian Plover has "scales" on the upperpart or variegated upperpart. That was my initial doubt. Thank you for this, Wai Mun.
White-Faced or Swinhoe's Plover Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus. Note the legs colour, size of the bill and broad lore as compared to a Kentish plover
Based
on the old records, Kentish Plover was recorded at an unknown location
with the mudflats and sandy shores on unknown date. (Gregory-Smith 1995;
Medway and Wells 1976). While Malaysian Plover nesting was recorded on
19 March 1995 on an unknown location here. An adult male was collected
on 23 April 1911 (Robinson and Chasen 1936). At that time when Yeap's journal was published, the status of our Malaysian Plover was reported as Rare and Threaten. For the past decades, there isn't any report on the sighting of Malaysian Plover on Langkawi. Could this species has extinct due to development on our beaches or the
increased of predators such as feral animals like dogs, cats or even crows? Malaysian Plovers are considered as rare resident and their eggs are laid on the ground.
Armed with the species identification of this plover, I went on to dig further because this subspecies of Kentish Plover is not found on my field guide that I am currently using. The search based on the species keyword has led me to this blog on Swinhoe's Plovers in Beijing and subsequently to an article which is more than a decade ago by David Bakewell and Peter Kennerly on Surfbird's Malaysia's Mystery Plover
Initially, I was ecstatic about this plover being another new record for Langkawi but when I stumbled on Thaibirding.com which posted an article on Rediscovery of a long-lost Charadrius plover from South-East Asia, obtained from Forktail journal of Oriental Bird Club (OBC), my excitement was diminished instantly. Surprisingly, there were samples taken as far back as in 1899. Holy! That was after the period of our Legendary Mahsuri and the last Siam invasion.
Here are two screen shots from the article:
Specimens of Swinhoe's (White-Faced) Plover collected from Langkawi
Specimens collected in months 1899 and 1963 which is the migratory season for Langkawi
My mysterious dainty lone plover on the beach has finally been identified and I have entered into our E-bird for Langkawi's record keeping. We had Kentish Plovers in Langkawi's E-bird submissions from foreign birdwatchers previously. Could those be the dealbatus species? For future E-bird submission, it is best to attach a record shot so we know exactly which type of Kentish Plover. At input, you can click on the "Change Species" tab to obtain the Kentish Plover (White-Faced) Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus.
Even though this species isn't a new record for Langkawi, it is a still lifer for me. I look forward to seeing this species here again and the next time with the Kentish Plover together one day.
A White-Faced Plover foraging. Notice the broad brow and supercillium giving him a "white face" look. The black band on the forehead denotes a male in breeding
References: 1. Gregory-Smith, R. 1995. Birds of Perlis and Kedah, Including Langkawi. An Annotated Checklist. Sarawak: Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. 2.Yeap C.A (2005), Report on Birds of Langkawi Archipelago. Malayan Nature Journal 2005, 57(1),107 3. Robson, C. (2011), A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia,New Holland 4. Bakewell, D. N. and Kennerley, P.R (2007) Malaysisa's mystery plover, http://www.surfbirds.com/Features/plovers1108/malayplovers.html 5. http://www.thaibirding.com/ornithology/lostplover.htm 6. (2012) https://birdingbeijing.com/2012/08/07/swinhoes-white-faced-plovers/
Being an island detached from the Peninsula, Langkawi currently have two species of Pitta belonging to Pittidae and can be seen especially on their breeding season. These two species are the Blue-Winged Pitta Pitta moluccensis and Mangrove Pitta Pitta megarhyncha. The first one can be both a migrant breeder and resident. While the latter is the island's resident bird. Click here for my story on Blue-Winged Pitta's newly fledged.
There is another species of Pitta that have yet to be properly recorded or photographed which is the Hooded Pitta Pitta sordida. I have yet to come across any documentation of its confirmed sighting on Langkawi. There were a couple of sources that I have received claiming on the sighting and hearing the call of Hooded Pitta but these have not been confirmed or properly recorded. Hooded Pitta is like the Blue-Winged Pitta, which is both resident and migrant breeder.
Earlier this year, an occupant of a residence at Kedawang area, Ms Neoh send me this image taken from a hard copy photograph found in a file.
Hooded Pitta Pitta sordida - I want this pitta!!
Upon receiving this image, I thought it was a joke and at the same time, I was stupefied especially when this source came from a non-birder. After Ms Neoh explained how this bird was photographed then only I am convinced with the visitation of this pitta. Though Ms Neoh is not a birder, she was interested to know the species of bird and she got a bird book too! A general nature lover, Ms Neoh often videoed and photographed some of the spiders around the property and shared them with me.
This pitta caught the attention of the owner of this property back in 2011 while they were having a drink at sundown. Madeleine managed to photograph before this pitta took off. Pittas are usually skittish especially if they have not been tamed through feeding. Some areas on the mainland, the Blue-winged Pittas are often baited for the bird photography tours. From the look of this picture, this pitta looks lost and unfazed with the presence of the people nearby. Could it have flown in and hit the glass window without causing much damage to the bird? According to Ms Neoh, it flew away after that. Meaning, it must have survived. As at now, this sighting is considered as confirmed and vagrant as per my record. I will be keeping a lookout for this pitta and will be my lifer soon. I sincerely thank Ms Neoh for being interested and sharing this image with me for Langkawi's record. Reference: 1. Yeap, CA (2005), Report on Birds of Langkawi Archipelago. Malayan Nature Journal 2005, 57(1), 124 2. Robson, C (2011), A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia. UK: New Holland
