Migration Check 2018-2019: Red-Necked Stint

I felt like someone out there has robbed me the hours that I should have for one day. It doesn't feel like twenty four hours in a day anymore. The last birds migration for Langkawi ended towards the end of April 2018, felt like days ago. Time rocketed too quickly and it is scary. I have yet to complete the summary for the last migration and the new season has started. Just barely three months have past, our migrants, a Barn Swallow and a Grey Wagtail were spotted on 15th July 2018 on my birdwatching tour. Then later towards the third week of July was a Common Sandpiper and Wood Sandpiper in the first week of August. Early arrival?

Our rainy season is now and it didn't feel like our ordinary rainy season. The weather for the past three weeks was sunny, hot, humid and occasionally hazy. Thankful in a way, otherwise our nature tours will be cancelled. After three weeks of hot and humid, a storm came with a big gust on Sunday 19th August 2018 afternoon. This had helped to cool the temperature down. And as well as an opportunity to check out any birds on migration may be possible blown off course during the storm out at sea.

I headed out to my favourite swampy field and reeds to look for any migrants which have checked in. This vast area is a reclaimed land near the airport runway and I would say it is the final habitat in Langkawi for waterbirds. A shelter and feeding ground and as well as hunting ground for the poachers. 

It was back to hot and humid yesterday and a short walkabout had two Brown-Winged Kingfishers calling from a distance. 

Can you spot it?

Yeah! It finally revealed!

One was seen after coming out from its hideout and the other was calling somewhere. This would be my first time encountering two Brown-Winged Kingfishers in this area at the same time. Good news?

A Little Heron attempting to camouflage itself by posing like a stick!

As I walked further towards the sea, I startled a huge raptor. I only managed to capture record shots of it flying away. It came back and settled amongst the trees. 

Oriental Honey Buzzard took off

Bye! 

Flew into the trees to take shelter

An early record of this Oriental Honey Buzzard has arrived. According to Lim Aun Tiah, our senior birdwatcher with vast knowledge and experience on Malaysian raptors, it is very early for this Oriental Honey Buzzard to fly in at this time of the year. It is a good record for Langkawi indeed. Did this buzzard got blown off course during the storm?

I arrived at the patch of swampland and expected my Lesser Sand Plovers to be there. They were there! Not many though, about eight of them scattered around the swampy patch. Do bear in mind that Langkawi is extremely poor with waders life as compared to the mainland.

Plovers and sandpipers parading

Lesser Sand-Plover

Lesser Sand-Plover

Other waders were Little Ringed Plovers, Wood Sandpipers and Common Sandpipers scattered around the area too.

Little Ringed-Plover

Wood Sandpiper

Suddenly, something big flew in. Guess who has checked in?

Grey Heron in flight

It was close to 10am and already starting to get very hot. Twenty minutes after the Grey Heron has flew past above me, I spotted our local raptor, White-Bellied Sea-Eagle drying its wings. 

White-Bellied Sea-Eagle sunning itself after yesterday's heavy rain

While on the last scan of the area, I spotted something else that looked like new to this neighbourhood. From where I was standing while looking at it with my binoculars, I couldn't work out what it was. It was walking in and out of the grass where a Wood Sandpiper was. I gave it a couple of record shots. And then after, I lost it!

A heavily  cropped photo showed a stint-like. I am not familiar with stints and the only stint I have seen here would be the Long-Toed Stint. As this stint was near to a Wood Sandpiper and just to be sure that I am not photographing another Wood Sandpiper, I asked for help from other birders on the mainland who have done a lot more wadering than me. Dave Bakewell, our wader sifu, responded and threw me couple of questions leaving me to figure out. What did I come out with? A Red-Necked Stint! Woohoo!! My lifer and possibly a new record for Langkawi! Thank you for the id confirmation, Dave. Check out Dave's blogs here and then you will know why he is a wader sifu to me.   

A Red-Necked Stint, possibly a new record for Langkawi. 

I probably lost that stint after this big raptor came flying in and distracted me. Ahh...it was just another White-Bellied Sea-Eagle - with a fish in its talons!

White-Bellied Sea-Eagle juvenile with a fish in its talons.

It turned around!

This juvenile White-Bellied Sea-Eagle did a circle above me before it decided to fly past over me.

Looked like it was about to dive!

Then it was pursued by the other White-Bellied Sea-Eagle which was sunning itself earlier. I was ecstatic as my first thought was, it is a courtship? Then I realised it was going for the fish instead. The attacker looked like it is turning to the sub-adult plumage.

The juvenile managed to evade the attacker

This juvenile did not give up easily

Still chasing...

What a stunning performance by these Sea-Eagles before I left the swampy area. And like magic, the Red-Necked Stint disappeared. 

Weather on that morning

A fruitful morning indeed and here is my list from that area:
1. Red-Wattled Lapwing  Vanellus indicus
2. Yellow-Vented Bulbul  Pycnonotus goiavier
3. Lesser-Whistling Duck  Dendrocygna javanica
4. Black-Naped Oriole  Oriolus chinensis
5. Paddyfield Pipit  Anthus rufulus
6. Little Heron  Butorides striata
7. Brown-Winged Kingfisher  Pelargopsis amauroptera
8. Collared Kingfisher  Todiramphus chloris
9. White-Throated Kingfisher  Halcyon smyrnensis
10. White-Bellied Sea-Eagle  Haliaeetus leucogaster
11. Oriental Honey Buzzard  Pernis sp.
12. Wood Sandpiper  Tringa glareola
13. Lesser Sand-Plover  Charadrius mongolus
14. Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
15. Grey Heron Ardea cinerea 
16. White-Headed Munia  Lonchura maja
17. Cattle Egret  Bubulcus ibis
18. Little Egret  Egretta garzetta
19. Barn Swallow  Hirundo rustica
20. Spotted Dove  Spilopelia chinensis
21. Pied Fantail  Rhipidura javanica
22. Brahminy Kite  Haliastur indus
23. Common Myna  Acridotheres tristis
24. Greater Coucal  Centropus sinensis
25. Grey-Headed Swamphen  Porphyrio poliocephalus

26. Purple Heron  Ardea purpurea 

27. Red-Necked Stint  Calidris ruficollis
28. Snipe sp  Gallinago sp.

Looking forward to more interesting migrants this season!

Langkawi Birdwatching: Recent Highlights Part 3 From Taiwan

Mr and Mrs Minter Yang, my first Taiwanese guests for our Bird Photography tour in the early April 2018. For a banana like me, I am very grateful that both of them can write and communicate with me in English. They have worked and lived in Malaysia for many years and have birded on Peninsular Malaysia a few times. This is their second visit to Langkawi and their first time here for the purpose of birding. Both of them had two and half days of Bird Photography tour with me.

This time, the Brown-Winged Kingfisher presented some difficult challenges for me. We went back and forth a few times to a couple of locations and it was playing hard to catch. No Brown-Winged wanted to come close to their cameras for a decent shot until the very last moment on the evening of their second day before the rain came pouring down hard on us. Alas! It was a moment of triumph for me to see it perched quietly as we drove snail pace into the mangrove.  They had some shots before we were washed out of the area!

While moving between locations, I was very delighted to see a Javan Pond-Heron Ardeola speciosa and two Grey-Headed Lapwings Vanellus cinereus feeding on the same field. This two species will be my first sighting for this season. The Javan Pond Heron was in breeding plumage which made it easier for us to identify.

Javan Pond-Heron Ardeola speciosa

Javan Pond-Heron in breeding with white head-plumes

Guess the bird behind this Grey Lapwing Vanellus cinereus

Grey Lapwing Vanellus cinereus

A beautiful Blue Budgie came along very close for a pose while we were looking for the Brown-Winged Kingfisher at Kilim. An escapee from the nearby zoo.

Mr and Mrs Yang are my also my first guests to photograph a pair of Orange-Breasted Trogon Harpactes oreskios. The only species of trogon in Langkawi, this resident bird is considered as an uncommon and elusive. Their calls can be heard echoing through the dense of our forest and not often can be seen. Thank you trogons for being so obliging! 

Orange-Breasted Trogon Harpactes oreskios female

Orange-Breasted Trogon Harpactes oreskios male

Another nice bird while we were up on Gunung Raya was a pair of Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki.

Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki female

Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki male which was constantly flitting about

Amongst the locations I have shown to them, I would say that their favourite bird photography location would be the pond inside Bon Ton resort. Mrs Yang was overly excited when I pointed out the Watercock. I vividly remember her eyes were wide open while she slowly uttered the word, "Tung chi" to her husband. "Tung chi" refers to Watercock in Mandarin.

Watercock Gallicrex cinerea or Burung Ayam-Ayam in Malay is unfortunately one of the species of waterfowls in Langkawi often being poached to be eaten

According to them, Watercock is rare and extremely difficult to be seen in Taiwan. They had lunch meals two times at the Bon Ton, simply to photograph birds. Grace and Lindsay did the same thing too like Mr & Mrs Yang!

Mrs and Mr Yang shooting in the comfort of this posh hut

A must visit posh hut for birdwatchers at the Bon Ton 

They still had the energy to bird before catching their flight home. While having their lunch at the Bon Ton before leaving to the airport, Mr Yang let me had a go with his light-weight 300mm prime lens attached to Olympus mirrorless camera body. Here's what I got:

An overexposed image of Oriental Reed Warbler Acrocephalus orientalis

A Grey-Headed Swamphen Porphyrio poliocephalus having a splash

Mr and Mrs Yang have proven their love for our Malaysian food. They dearly miss our good old Roti Canai and I gladly took them to my favourite Mamak stall in Kuah town where we had Roti Canai meals twice.

Before I end this blog post, the last highlight for me is photographing a Ochraceous Bulbul Alophoixus ochraceus on a birdwatching tour with Richard Heaver. Noisy type of bulbul that don't seem to perch for long and with their annoying calls, they are definitely not fit to be caged birds. 

Ochraceous Bulbul Alophoixus ochraceus

Good for them unlike the other poor species of bulbuls like Striped-Throated Bulbul and Red-Whiskered Bulbul which often a target for bird poachers. 

I would also like to document here that in the month of April, there were three fig trees close to the road fruiting at the same time. Despite that, it was difficult to see a big flock of Great Hornbills on Gunung Raya. I am wondering if the poachers were around as I have seen a suspicious motorbike parked beside the road and heard a human mimicking the sound of a Wreathed Hornbill. Only a suspicion.

Thank you Mr & Mrs Yang for choosing a banana like me, your meals and they were kind company to be with. My experience with them for those three days have given me some positive perspective on birdwatchers or photographers from the East Asia.

Their birds list:
1. Collared Kingfisher
2. Brahminy Kite
3. Red-Wattled Lapwing
4. Grey-Headed Lapwing
5. Greater Racket-Tailed Drongo
6. Common Myna
7. Yellow-Vented Bulbul
8. Oriental Pied Hornbill
9. Pied Fantail
10. Dark-Sided Flycatcher
11. White-Breasted Waterhen
12. Javan Pond-Heron
13. Common Sandpiper
14. Brown Shrike
15. Little Heron
16. Pin-Striped Tit Babbler
17. White-Throated Kingfisher
18. Brown-Throated Sunbird
19. Black-Headed Bulbul
20. Red-Eyed Bulbul
21. Asian-Brown Flycatcher
22. Wreathed Hornbill
23. Great Hornbill
24. Wood Sandpiper
25. Pacific Golden Plover
26. Purple Heron
27. Grey-Headed Swamphen
28. Common Kingfisher
29. Watercock
30. Chestnut-Headed Beeeater
31. Blue-Throated Beeeater
32. Cinnamon Bittern
33. Yellow Bittern
34. Baya Weaver
35. Eurasian Tree Sparrow
36. Asian Glossy Starling
37. Scaly-Breasted Munia
38. White-Headed Munia
39. Great Egret
40. Little Egret
41. Intermediate Egret
42. Rock Pigeon
43. White-Bellied Sea-Eagle
44. Copper-Throated Sunbird
45. Brown-Winged Kingfisher
46. Laced Woodpecker
47. Zebra Dove
48. Spotted Dove
49. Ruddy Kingfisher
50. Common Tailorbird
51. Greater Coucal
52. Ashy Drongo
53. Mugimaki Flycatcher
54. Crested Goshawk
55. Pink-Necked Green-Pigeon
56. Ochraceous Bulbul
57. Asian Fairy Bluebird
58. Orange-Breasted Trogon
59. Forest Wagtail
60. Yellow-Rumped Flycatcher
61. Orange-Breasted Trogon
62. Black-Headed Bulbul
63. Crimson Sunbird
64. Oriental Reeds-Warbler
65. House Swallow

Langkawi Birdwatching on Recent Highlights Part 2 Jane Miller

Welcoming back Jane Miller from the UK for the third time with me and twice in April 2018. A keen birdwatcher and bird photographer with a telephoto 600mm lens! 

With Jane, we usually have a much earlier start - before the sunrise which is always refreshing! We did a predawn birdwatching on her third tour with me, simply to catch any luck on nocturnal birds going to roost!

I was stalked too! Photo credit: Jane Miller

Jane's wishlist in April were Pittas and any birds that are lifers for her. She is an easy going person and so were her lifers too! Jane is my first guest to observe a pair of Banded Kingfisher with the male passing the food to the female and  clear view of a pair of Puff-Throated Babblers hopping out of the bush and on the ground for more than five minutes (Jane is very pleased to spot this babbler), 

A usually elusive Puff-Throated Babbler Pellorneum ruficeps

a Black-Naped Monarch, 

A Black-Naped Monarch Hypothymis azurea male wanting some attention 

a Ruddy Kingfisher, 

A shy Ruddy Kingfisher Halcyon coromanda  who is usually not revealing

Jane and I had to squat, sit on the dirt road and whatever pose to get a gap for a shot!

a Mangrove Pitta 

Another elusive fella, Mangrove Pitta Pitta megarhyncha finally showed up

and a Mangrove Whistler, all on the same day! Especially with the Ruddy Kingfisher and Mangrove Pitta, she is very lucky to see them on both of our birding tours. Jane is definitely a magnet to these species!

Our first attempt to find a Blue-Winged Pitta which was unfruitful...."Pitta! Where are you!?" 

I am guessing Jane's next wishlist is to properly see a Black-Capped Kingfisher on her next stay in Langkawi.  Fingers-crossed, Jane! Look forward to seeing you back on the next birds migratory season.

A collection of Jane's thank you cards at the end of our birdwatching tours and my furkid came in as a photobomb!