Can Do Candaba

I nodded vigorously when my wife asked me if I was really up to it. When we were having breakfast at Jollibee's at the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) our friend, Bong, was amused that my voice sounded very enthusiastic when we talked over the phone the other day when I told him that we would go birding at Candaba. I assured them that I can do Candaba without any problem as far as my health was concerned.

For one thing Candaba is an easy place to bird - no long walks involved while carrying my heavy photography gear. Actually, most of the birding could be done while inside the vehicle - even better that way, as a matter of fact, because the birds were less spooked.

As we slowly drove in towards the wetlands, the photographs we took of the birds that early morning were taken while were inside our cars.

female Pied Bush Chat

Common Kingfisher

Blue-tailed Bee-eater

As we turned a bend we saw the ducks, mostly Philippine and a few Wandering Whistlings.

Philippine Duck

Wandering Whistling Duck

About an hour later, we came upon the highlight of the day. To our surprise, an immature Lesser Coucal flew from right in front of our car and perched on a branch not that far from us and gave plenty of opportunities to take its picture.

Past the mayor's house, we met fellow birders Melanie and Nicky who informed us that the ducks were just beyond the tower. We got off our vehicles when we got to the tower and viewed in awe the hundreds of ducks in front of us - albeit a bit too far to photograph even with our long lenses. At one point the flock took flight and Cynthia was able to capture that spectacle. Reviewing the photo later I was able to identify the various species in that group: Philippine Ducks were the most plentiful, then there were Wandering Whistling Ducks, Garganeys, a few Northern Shovelers, a number of Tufted Ducks and a single Northern Pintail. Unfortunately, the hoped for and would-be lifer Common Pochard was not among them.

At ten in the morning,we bade our friend Bong farewell because he needed to be home by noon for some family matters. Cynthia and I lingered for another thirty minutes trying to get a decent shot of the various White-breasted Waterhens foraging by the roadside. I said "trying" because everytime we could focus our camera on one a vehicle would come roaring by thus sending our quarry hiding behind the bushes. Patience prevailed and I finally got my chance.

Various egrets were also feeding on a fallow field near the road so we also grabbed that opportunity.

Intermediate or Great Egret?

Little Egret

After that as the heat became unbearable we called it a day. As we were having a leisurely lunch at KFC, my wife asked how I was feeling. I replied that I felt great and reminded her that I vowed that I can do Candaba - and I did.

Peeps Avenue

It was quite unexpected. Seeing so many peeps on the fallow fields as we were about to leave the Candaba Wetlands. However, as fate would have it, the light was so harsh from the noonday sun that our resulting photos were all "documentary" in quality. Still it was such a pleasant surprise to see these tiny brown birds, some of which were already donning their breeding plumages, in a tiny patch of muddy field.

Little Ringed Plover

Long-toed Stint

Kentish Plover

But then it was a day of unexpected encounters. While Peter and Irene were photographing the Chestnut Munias and Striated Grassbirds, Cynthia and I were treated to a "show" by a nonchalant Clamorous Reed Warbler. We called our friends and pointed to them the friendly bird. 

From there we moved on towards the Mayor's house. As we were negotiating a corner, Peter asked, "what is that on the tree?" We all looked at the tall trees beside us and saw nothing. "That tree!" Peter pointed to a skinny branch protruding from an equally frail growth. We all looked and saw an incongruous brown thing perched near the top of the "tree". It couldn't be a bittern I thought to myself, for no self-respecting bittern would expose so much of itself at so high a place. And this bird is not big enough to be a Grey or Purple Heron. 

We all alit from the car to get a better look. Then exclamation points popped above my head! Of course, it had to be a Pond Heron! Javan, most likely, for isn't it that one was found here at just about the same time two years ago? Eventually the bird flew off and we saw it again later at the "Mayor's pond" busily hunting for food.

As were about to board the car to continue on our way, I noticed another bird sticking its neck and upper body out of a huge bush. I walked towards and was surprised to have a "first sighting" here in Candaba - it was a juvenile Woodcock! 

On the way to the "Mayor's pond" we stopped by the haunts of the Dusky Warbler. It wasn't long when Irene heard the distinct "tschack, tschack". Unexpectedly, the tiny Warbler stopped its skulking and posed for a few seconds, preening under the densest of shrubs.

Also, for the first time in Candaba, we saw a Lesser Coucal bask in the early morning sun. 

As the midday sun beat mercilessly on us, we decided to call it a day. That was when we had that fateful encounter with the SSPs (Sandpipers, Stints and Plovers). Because of that I thought of naming that road Peeps Avenue. Quite appropriate if I may say so myself.

The Candaba Trilogy, Part II - Far 'n' Near

Never have opposites been more pronounced than that morning at the Candaba Bird Sanctuary. Cynthia and I were standing on a berm gazing at tiny flecks floating on the huge pond seemingly a thousand miles away. These flecks are actually ducks. Thousands of them. Mostly Philippine Ducks, as best as we could tell, not benefitting from the aid of a spotting scope. A smaller group of darker spots were on the right side. My binoculars tell me, even insisted upon me, that they were Tufted Ducks. I, after much persuading from my mesmerized eyes, finally admitted that I got a lifer. I even managed to convince Cynthia that yes, we have an addition to our lifelist.

Trust me those are ducks out there.

Tufted Ducks! Tufted Ducks!

Compare that with our teasingly close encounters with the bird kind - those of the Zebra Doves and Red Turtle Doves. They were so unaffected by our presence that at various times our vehicle almost run over them. They would be inches away from our car before they would take off, land a few meters ahead and repeat their almost suicidal actions.


What was absolutely surprising and really took the cake was that very same derring do routine done by those nonchalant doves was done by, get this, an immature Lesser Coucal! It was casually walking ahead of us that I thought a Roadrunner miraculously appeared in the Philippines. We were so entranced by this impossibility that I barely had time to take its picture  - through the windshield at that - resulting in a frustrating extremely bad photo.

The Philippine version of a Roadrunner :)

Near or far, birding was quite electrifying that cloudy morning in Candaba