Band of "Barasers"

Lately, the town of Baras in Rizal province had become a favorite place for taking pictures of birds. So Cynthia and I decided to go there for our last birding day of the year. Not long after we arrived we met a group of fellow bird photographers. Here is the group photo of the Band of Barasers: Ferdie Llanes, Chris Ferrer, Russel, Elmer Budomo, and Joel Dayao. (Photo courtesy of Atty. Tim Calumpong)

The very first species we encountered were two Turtledoves. But there wasn't a Partridge in a Pear tree.

As the band of Barasers were waiting for the Philippine Cuckoo-Dove to show up, I saw a Red-keeled Flowerpecker feeding on a nearby "aratiles" tree.

Then from behind where we were standing a Balicassiao flew to a branch a below us.

Since the Cuckoo-Dove was a no show, the group moved to the place where a Rough-crested Malkoha was seen. And sure enough, it peeped through the thick foliage.

As if to congratulate us in getting shots of the Malkoha, a Coppersmith Barbet began singing its "pok pok" song.

Having seen the target bird, we all agreed to proceed to the clubhouse where a flowering African Tulip tree attracts several species of birds. Along the way, we came across a White-throated Kingfisher.

As we were about to enter the parking area, a White-eared Brown Dove was on the ground foraging for food. That was an unusual habit for this species.

The expected Philippine Hanging Parrot was at the top of the tulip tree.

During lulls between the appearance of the male and female parrots, I took an obligatory shot at a Golden-bellied Gerygone.

And of the Brown Shrike, of course!

Soon another hoped for bird, the Stripe-headed Rhabdornis, came and fed on the red flowers.

After a while, a Sunbird, which was definitely not an Olive-backed came. Ferdie thought it was a Handsome and I believed it was a Luzon. Chris Ferrer later confirmed that it was a Grey-throated! I think this was the first time that this species was seen here.

We waited for the Naked-faced Spiderhunter but it didn't show up. So we told our friends that we would roam around the area to look for other birds. We went to the "hill"  hoping to see some raptors, the cuckoo-dove and the Blue Rock Thrush. No raptors and no cuckoo dove. There was a bird high up in the tree and I took a shot at it. Later Ferdie came and told us that the Blue Rock Thrush no longer stays near the ground when there are people around and prefers to perch on the tree instead. Looking at the photo I took confirmed that it was indeed our target bird.

At the "subdivision" area, the Paddyfield Pipits were everywhere!

Passing by the bridge, I saw a sandpiper at the canal area. It was confirmed later by Rob Hutchinson (through the photos posted by Ferdie) that it was an uncommon Green Sandpiper!

Of course, Pied Bush Chats, both male and female, were all over the place.

Eastern Cattle Egrets were among the cattle, of course!

I told Cynthia, that we already got a lot of bird photos but none of the Grey Wagtail yet (which we always see on the road). So another obligatory shot was made.

It was already 11 am and we agreed to call it a day. On the way out, we encountered a Blue-throated Bee-eater.

It was another fruitful birding day in Baras made even more enjoyable by some uncommon birds we saw and the company of the Band of Barasers.

Coming Soon to a Branch Near You

It seemed like every other bird photographer in MetroManila had taken photos of quite a number of bird species at the TREES Hostel parking lot in Mt. Makiling the past couple of weeks. Sunbirds and Hornbills, particularly.

Early last week the few of us who still had not been to Makiling yet made inquiries from several friends who had been there as to whether the plants frequented by these birds were still in bloom and/or fruiting. The unanimous advice to us was: Be there not later than Saturday..or be ready to be disappointed.

So plans were made. Early Saturday, my wife, Cynthia, along with friends Peter and Bong decided to try our luck. At the hostel's parking lot there were photographers with their equipments all lined up facing the banana-like plant that the sunbirds patronize. Familiar faces like Alex and Cel greeted us and so did old friend, the Undersecretary of Agriculture Fred Serrano (henceforth referred to as USec). Among them were new birders (and new friends) Becky Santos and her son, Kiko. We were later joined by Irene who had been roaming the botanical garden earlier.

Because I had to answer the call of nature and still had to set-up my gear, I almost missed the Grey-throated Sunbird. Thankfully it stayed long enough for me to be able to fire off a few shots. This particular species never returned after that early morning encounter. Cynthia, of course, was there at the onset and had some good photos of this endemic.

During a lull after the Grey-throated had left, my wife, as is her habit, wandered around the premises. She saw a bird, took a picture and showed it to me, albeit a bit reluctantly, thinking it was just a Rhabdornis or even a Grey-streaked Flycatcher. I looked and congratulated her for getting the rather uncommon Striped Flowerpecker!

Suddenly, a bit of a commotion when someone shouted "hornbills!" Indeed, a female perched on a branched and…posed! It was still a bit far though for some in our group who didn't have long lenses.

"Don't worry," USec Fred assured us, "they will be coming soon to a branch near you." He had been watching these big birds for quite some time and since the balete tree in front of us was still fruiting, he was confident that the hornbills (there's a whole group of them, he said) would return to feed.

While we were building up our hopes from that assurance, the Flaming Sunbird decided to make an appearance. The sounds of camera shutters clicking filled the humid air as we all took advantage of the sunbird's insouciance.

There was another lull after the male Flaming Sunbird had its fill. Only to be broken once again by Usec's announcement of the arrival of the hornbill clan. Our friend was right, these birds fed on the berries from branches that were closer than those they were earlier on in our first encounter this morning.

Then it was over. That was one of the most exhilarating hour-and-a-half birding that we had in quite a while. Becky and family bade their goodbyes and those of us left behind were invited by USec Fred to visit the agricultural upland. We followed him as we convoyed over grassy paths. Perhaps it was because of the suffocating heat that there weren't that many birds seen. We thanked our friend and agreed to call it a day.

Bong, Peter, Cynthia and myself talked about where we are going to have lunch. KFC was the restaurant of choice. Come to the branch nearest you was the thought I had but as fate would have it, we ended up at the Caltex rest stop along SLEX. Just like this morning's hornbills having a feast on the tree branch near us we also had a feast at the KFC branch near where we parked our cars.

I Got Handsome

Not that I was ugly before but I did get handsome. Let me put it another way: what my wife had before wasn't really good looking, but now I've gotten handsome. Before I start getting any movie offers, let me explain that further: Around this time about a year ago we were at the Makiling Botanic Garden. The lipote tree was in full bloom and birds were a-plenty. One such bird was the Handsome Sunbird -at that time a lifer for me and my wife. Cynthia managed to get an awfully blurred shot (I can't blame her, the tiny bird was hyperactive and preferred the darker parts of the tall tree). I did not even get a single shot.

When news that the same lipote tree was back in bloom and once again birds were a-plenty, we returned with high hopes of getting better photos of the Handsome Sunbird.

We did. After almost four hours of looking up - literally - and suffering stiff necks, we did.

Bob's version

Cynthia's version

There were other birds, of course. Thanks to the sharp eyes of our friends, Prof. Tirso Paris and Steve Albano, we were able to see four species of Sunbirds (Handsome, Grey-throated, Purple-throated and Flaming), three kinds of Flowerpeckers (Orange-bellied, Red-keeled and Buzzing) and Balicassiaos. We kept hearing the teasing shrieks of Colasisis but not a single one came out in the open frustrating Steve who came particularly for this tiny green parrot.

Grey-throated Sunbird

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker

Red-keeled Flowerpecker

Buzzing Flowerpecker

Balicassiao

Back home and looking at our photos I kept murmuring "I got handsome! I got handsome!" like some egotistical mantra. To which my wife commented, "But you've always been!" 

That's why I love her so.

Outpourings

The text message from USec Fred Serrano was very encouraging: We're having clear skies now. My wife and I looked at each other then at the clock. It was not yet ten in the morning. Just like the characters in a fast forward video, we showered, dressed up, packed our gears and jumped into our car.

There was quite a downpour that morning when we texted our dear friend who resides in Los Banos asking him of the weather situation in his neck of the woods. We had been constantly monitoring the weather reports in the internet the whole day Friday. When all the websites we consulted were unanimous in saying that it would definitely rain in Los Banos on Saturday we scrapped our plans of visiting the Makiling Botanical Garden.

The sun was shining brightly while we were having lunch at Burger King in Calamba. Another text from USec Fred: Sun shining here. We informed him that we were already nearby and will be there soon.

When we entered the campus of the University of the Philippines in Los Banos (UPLB) where the Botanic Garden was located, it began to rain. Not a mere drizzle but hard, pouring rain.

"Let's go to APEC first," I told Cynthia, "at least we can do some 'dude' birding there."

(Dude birding = birding while inside a car).

The rice had been recently harvested and the fields were fallow. A bunch of Wood Sandpipers and a solitary Little Ringed Plover, later joined by a Yellow Wagtail, were forlornly enduring the raindrops mercilessly beating on their bodies. The rain eventually eased into a slight drizzle. The Buff-banded Rails popped out from the grasslands while the Pied Bush Chats suddenly burst into insect-hunting activity.

When the first streaks of emerging sunlight appeared, my wife suggested we go to the Botanical Garden. Asap.

The mischievous weather thought it would be fun to drop some more rain at us as I eased our car into the Garden's parking lot. Undaunted and armed with an umbrella and a raincoat we proceeded to the fruiting "lipote" tree. Not an easy task because the road going there was uphill and quite slippery. Add to this the fact that I was  lugging my 500mm lens mounted on a tripod. After several stops to catch our breath we saw the fabled tree. I was still setting up my equipment and wiping the endless sweat off my brow, when my wife approached and showed me a picture she had just taken.

"What bird is this?"

The image was a bit blurred perhaps due to Cynthia's excitement at seeing something she hadn't seen before.

"Handsome Sunbird," was my reply in a most insouciant manner as if this bird was just one of those you see at every tree in your urban neighborhood.

We were actually overjoyed at having seen a lifer and the very reason we came to this place. The skies celebrated with us by clearing up once again. Sunlight brightened the trees around us. And cranked up the humidity a thousandfold it seemed. Bathed in fresh sweat we took up different positions beneath the "lipote" tree. While my wife was trying to figure out what those tiny feathered creatures lurking in the shadows were, I saw a big bird alit on a relatively open branch. As I peered through my lens, the first thought that came to my mind was: What was an American Robin doing here?

A flurry of shots and it finally dawned on me: Of course it has to be a Brown-headed Thrush! I couldn't believe we got lifer number two in a span of about an hour!

This time Cynthia focused her attention to the bunch of Torch Ginger plants across the road. Soon she was signaling to me and pointing to a particular bloom. On top was a Sunbird. As I took several photos I dismissed the bird as one of those ho-hum Olive-backed Sunbirds. But then why is there orange on its breast? It couldn't be the aurorae subspecies which is only found in Palawan, could it? That night as I reviewed the results of our photographic endeavors I learned that that bird on the flower was a Flaming Sunbird! Not really a lifer but this was the first time we saw it in Luzon.

Back at the "lipote" tree, the activity somehow dwindled. Mostly the small but bullying Orange-bellied Flowerpeckers remained, chasing away any unwary newcomer. Except for one species. A kind of Sunbird which I initially thought as an immature Handsome. Again, after reviewing the pictures that night, this unfazed-by-flowerpeckers bird was a Grey-throated Sunbird - a recent split from the Brown/Plain-throated of Palawan and the Visayas-Mindanao areas. A third lifer for us.

Around three in the afternoon the onset of dehydration resulting from an ocean of perspiration was felt. We packed our gears and plodded back to our car.

There was another pluvial outpouring as we entered the Expressway. Despite that, Cynthia and I were happy and thankful at the outpouring of blessings in getting three lifers in a relatively short span of time. This was a redemption from the disappointments at not seeing the Scaly Thrush in spite of several attempts last year. Was it a coincidence that we just finished our prayer and fasting regimen last week?