See Some, Miss Some

It felt kinda strange that some birds we saw one week ago in Baras were now missing, and on the other hand we saw a few species that were not seen then. 

Our day started by seeing an Ashy Minivet perched on a tree branch not that far from where we had our breakfast along Jerez Street. It had been a while since we saw this bird here.

We proceeded to the area near the water tank and were surprised by some bird activities. Here we spotted several species that we didn't see the week before: Arctic Warbler, Black-naped Monarch, Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker and Elegant Tit.

Arctic Warbler

Black-naped Monarch

Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker

el

Elegant Tit

What we missed were the Savanna Nightjar, the Little Ringed Plover and the Philippine Cuckoo Dove.

Thankfully we still saw quite a number of the resident birds here. The highlights of which were the Blue Rock Thrush (which we saw after three tries). The Stripe-headed Rhabdornis and the Philippine Hanging Parrot were both feeding on the red flowers near the clubhouse.

Blue Rock Thrush

Stripe-headed Rhabdornis

Philippine Hanging Parrot

Target Acquired

Thankfully LA Mesa Ecopark (LMEP) is now open to seniors over 65 years old. That was good news to us because recently a Common Kingfisher had been seen (and photographed) there. Not that it would be a lifer for us but it had been quite a while since we've seen one.

Saturday morning we purposed to go to LMEP to see the kingfisher of course! But first we birded along the way, beginning at the Greenmeadows Avenue. Our first stop was by the small waterway where a Little Egret is almost always a sure sighting. We were not disappointed.

 

Just above us a Philippine Pied Fantail was frolicking.

 

From there we proceeded to the parking area of the Christ the King Parish church. The first bird we saw was a Brown Shrike.

 

Surprisingly an immature Black-naped Oriole was singing out loud on top of a bare tree.

 

Another bare tree has a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker basking in the rising sun.

 

Of course we had to take the obligatory shot of the resident Zebra Dove.

 

Another surprise was a Spotted Dove.

 

Our next stop was at Rodic's in U.P. Diliman for our breakfast. After our morning repast we went to the Astronomy area and got the Long-tailed Shrike.

 

We made another round and this time it was the Crested Mynas that posed for us.

 

We also got a good enough shot of the migrant Arctic Warbler.

 

Then off to LMEP we went. The guards were so nice and very helpful in getting us through the entrance protocols. By the pond where the Common Kingfisher had been seen, we met fellow bird photographers Nelson and Benjie. They had gotten a shot of the kingfisher early in the morning and they were both waiting for it to show up again. Almost an hour passed and the kingfisher was still a no show. Cynthia and I were both considering to give up when I saw a bluish bird fly by and landed on a bare branch on the pond. We hurried to where we could get a better look at it and after some waiting it perched out in the open. We were surprised that there were actually two of them - an adult and an immature!

Immature

 

 

Adult

 

We were so happy that we finally got what we came here for. Target Acquired!

Birding Itch Satisfied

Because of the ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine) due the Corona virus, my wife and I, being senior citizens, were not allowed to leave the compound of the condo where we are residing. Thankfully, there are spaces here where we can do our daily morning and afternoon walking exercise. One area is called the great lawn which is an open space on the fourth story level between the six condominium towers. That place has a wide grassy area (hence the name) and another area with huge swimming pools. Along the borders are some trees and flowering shrubs. 
At the ground level is a road surrounding the towers and the pavillions. The back side of this road abuts the Marikina River while the left and right areas are next to huge vacant lots that are filled with trees. Because of the vegetation in these places, there are birds, albeit the more common ones such as Eurasian Tree Sparrows and Yellow-vented Bulbuls. During migration period, Brown Shrikes are also seen here.

In our recent walks while we were checking up on a Brown Shrike whom we named "haggard" because of its looks, we were surprised to see an immature Blue Rock Thrush. I thought it was just passing through on its way back north, but for two consecutive days it was still at its usual hang-out. Yesterday before we went to sleep, Cynthia suggested that we bring our cameras with us on our scheduled morning walk.

So we did. At the Great Lawn, a Brown Shrike (definitely not haggard, as this was quite chubby and had better colors) dove into the grass and grabbed a prey. It flew to a nearby tree and gave us some good photo ops. 

Surprisingly the very common Eurasian Tree Sparrows were quite sparse this morning and we were not able to take passable shot.

At the ground as we were getting to the place where the Thrush stays, we were greeted by a pair of Philippine Pied Fantails.

The Blue Rock Thrush didn't fail us. It was as if was actually waiting for our appearance. When it saw that we had arrived it gave us different poses.

After a while it flew off. Perhaps so that we could focus on the other birds in the area. True enough the Zebra Dove couple was on the ground not far from where the thrush was.

Then came "haggard". We were happy to notice that he was no longer as haggard as he used to be perhaps prepping up for the long journey that he would soon take.

High above an Olive-backed Sunbird was searching for its breakfast.

Not far from it, another surprise was an Arctic Warbler.

Round the corner, we finally were able to get pictures of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow.

After making our round, we returned to thrush site and voila! it was back, this time perched on a tree branch.

Having met our "quota" we walked back to our tower. Along the way Cynthia was distracted by some chirping coming from the tree near the wall. Unfortunately, the Lowland White-eyes were too active that we only got some documentary shots.

Of course, we have to take an obligatory shot of the Yellow-vented Bulbul

Despite the quarantine, we were glad that we were able to satisfy our birding itch. And even got an uncommon migrant at that.

Tuba Rich

We attended a wedding in Tuba, Benguet last Saturday. Prior to the ceremony Cynthia and I had ample time to go birding around the premises of the place where we were staying (Green Valley Village). Inasmuch as that place was a subdivision, we didn't expect to see a lot of birds. After a few minutes of walking we saw a patch of greenery. As we rounded a corner we spotted the migrant Blue Rock Thrush perched below a water tank.

As soon as we reached the patch of greenery, we noticed some bird activity on some bare branches. To my surprise, it was a female Red Crossbill with some fledglings.

After a while the crossbill family left. This time the activity was on a small tree across where the crossbills were. A small flock of Warbling White-eyes were busy hunting for food.

At the opposite corner a Turquoise Flycatcher perched almost at eye level.

We needed to get ready for the wedding ceremony so we started to walk back to our lodge. That was when we encountered a Long-tailed Shrike basking in the morning sun.

My wife heard some twittering and looking back to where we saw the Turquoise Flycatcher, there was a male Olive-backed Sunbird on an electric wire, singing loudly.

Along the way, I did the obligatory shot of the common Eurasian Tree Sparrow. I even thought of posting that picture in Facebook and jokingly labelling it as the Benguet Tree Sparrow.

Not far from our lodge there was a house that was still under construction. On it we saw a pair of Pied Bush Chats.

The wedding was held at a different place where we were staying. It was at the Picmar Heritage Lodge also in Tuba. The place had some greeneries as well and even had a vegetable garden nearby. Before the ceremony started we did a quick look at the said garden and saw a flock of Crested Mynas.

After the ceremony, we once again went to the garden area. This time it was a flock of Large-billed Crows that showed up.

The following morning, we again tried the area near our lodge. Somehow the birds were sparse. So I took a shot at the Yellow-vented Bulbul.

Some activity on a low tree attracted our attention. It was a very active tiny brown bird and it was quite a challenge to get a good shot at it. Reviewing my photos after we got back to our home in Pasig, I asked my friends to help me ID that bird. The answer I got was that it was an Arctic Warbler.

It was a really short time birding in Tuba, but I'm glad that despite being in a subdivision, the place was rich with birds - more than we expected.

Contrast that with our birding foray at the Camp John Hay Eco-trail the following day. The only bird we saw was a Sulphur-billed Nuthatch and it was just too far to be photographed even with my long lens.

Come Before the Storm

We woke up late Saturday morning. We did not make any plans to go birding because we thought that the incoming super typhoon named "Hagupit" would bring torrential rains this weekend. However as we looked out our window, we saw blue skies and the sun shining gloriously! 

"Do you still want to go birding?" my wife asked, knowing what my answer will be.

"Since it's already late, let's just go somewhere relatively near. How about Antipolo?"

Antipolo it was. We skipped our regular breakfast and just had coffee and "ensaymada" on the go so that we could catch up with the morning activity of the birds.

As we entered our favorite birding place, I was surprised to see four, yes, four! Coppersmith Barbets in one tree. I always thought that this species was the loner type.

While we were taking shots at the Barbet community, a Long-tailed Shrike flew near to where we were and looked at us as if saying, "What about me?" So I humored the poor bird.

The rest of the morning had been rewarding even if we only saw the usual avian inhabitants of this still forested subdivision.

Three species in particular gave us quite a challenge albeit in different ways. The Arctic Warbler (or Kamchatka or Japanese Leaf Warbler - it was relatively silent during its foraging) was popping in and out of the dense leaves and never stopped moving even for a second.

The Grey Wagtail, on the other hand, restricted its movement at ground level, and like its arboreal counterpart, was always on the move. What made photographing the wagtail more difficult was that we were inside our car thus restricting our coverage area.

The third bird that posed a challenge was a Grey-streaked Flycatcher. We were already driving on our way out when I caught a glimpse of this tiny bird perched atop a leafless tree. As soon as I stepped out of the car it flew away.

"Wait for it, it will come back," Cynthia assured me.

So I did. It did come back and then flew off again even before I was able to lift my camera to take its picture. This happened several times pushing my patience to its limit. My wife, meanwhile, was off searching for other subjects to photograph. Well, she did get a more cooperative one, a Large-billed Crow.

Eventually, when I was at the edge of my patience, the flycatcher perched once again at the leafless tree and stayed long enough for me to get off a few shots.

"That's it!" I told my wife, "we can now leave."

Cruising down Sumulong Highway, Cynthia suggested we go to the Holy Garden Memorial Park located along the way. This was the second time she made this suggestion. The first time was several months ago and I refused to go then. She stopped talking to me the rest of the trip home. Learning from that experience, I now happily obliged. Good thing I did, too. We added two more species in the short time we stayed at the cemetery grounds - a Paddyfield Pipit and a pair of Pied Bush Chats.

Paddyfield Pipit

male Pied Bush Chat

female Pied Bush Chat

As were enjoying lunch at Wendy's (the Baconator with Mushroom melt was fabulous!) we talked about our birding adventure. We both agreed that we were glad we came before the storm.