A Matter of Thrush

I recently turned 65. Such a milestone age should have been reason enough for some grand celebration but sadly, it didn't turn out that way. For the simple reason that I got sick. Somehow my digestive organs picked this day to stage a revolt against my internal constitution. And made me an unwilling participant in the occupy the bathroom movement. Repeatedly. For several days.


By Saturday, October 29th, things were all quiet on the digestive front. Everything seemed as normal as can be. Time to go birding. Inasmuch as I was still leery about my health, I thought it prudent to just go to nearby University of the Philippines' campus.


As I was parking our car at the MSI (Marine Science Institute) grounds, I was thinking aloud whether the annual visitor, the Blue Rock Thrush, would already be there. 


"What's that bird on the ground?" Cynthia asked.


I looked. 


"Blue Rock Thrush", I replied in the calmest, most insouciant way.


Unfortunately, it flew away even before I could get my camera gears out of the trunk. Hoping that it would return in the not too distant future, I whiled away my time by photographing the antics of a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker.

"Do you think the Thrush would come back?" my wife was curious.


"I trust it would"


"What's that bird perched on the palm tree?"


"Blue Rock Thrush", I replied in the calmest, most insouciant way.


Unfortunately, it flew away before I could focus on it.


This time a Pied Triller provided me the much appreciated entertainment as we waited for the Thrush to reappear. 

Cynthia, on the other hand, was losing in the game of hide-and-seek with a Yellow Wagtail. Several attempts at locating it turned out futile. Soon she gave up and as she approached the tall acacia tree, she started to ask,  


"What bird....."


"Blue Rock Thrush!" I excitedly interrupted her. And began taking pictures of the bird lest it decide to take a leave once again. Thankfully, it didn't. It was one of those what my wife aptly termed "modeling sessions" where our subject just stood there - facing left, facing right, turning around, moving to an area with a different background, etc.

Having had our fill of the Blue Rock Thrush, I thought I'd push our luck and go for the Philippine Hanging Parrot that hangs out in a nearby gated community. Having obtained our permission from friend Jv Noriega (who lives in that subdivision), we sought the tiny green bird. And found nothing. Unfortunately, some men were clearing the tall grass nearby which probably spooked our target bird.


As in any birding trip, we had some good sightings and there were disappointments. One thing that came out from my sick days was that I had time to reflect on many things. Turning 65 and being under the weather put me in a cogitative state. I resolved that at this age, I need to enjoy life even more. I will not allow disappointments, envy, and other petty stuff to ruin my day. I am blessed with a wife who loves me and shares the same passion I have for birding. Simply being with her as we look at the beautiful feathered creatures, whether common or a lifer, is something that I treasure with all my heart.


Postscript: As I write this, I have once again fallen ill, albeit not as insufferable as the one I had a week ago. Still it cost us a trip to Los Banos. The way my body is behaving right now could affect future birding trips. But I put my health and my life in the hands of God. I know He will be there for me. It's a matter of faith and trust in Him.

Dusk unto Dusk

The light was fading fast. It had been a gloomy day to begin with. Looking up at the branches of a tall acacia tree, Cynthia and I were searching for the source of the twittering sound emanating from somewhere up there.

We were at the campus grounds of the University of the Philippines in Quezon City. It had been 10 days since we arrived in the Philippines and we've never gone out birding yet. Trying to settle down and getting started again in our native country wasn't as easy as we thought it would be. But my birding itch had to be satisfied. We had finally bought a Nissan X-Trail from a birder-photographer friend that morning and I begged my wife to come with me to UP despite the fact that it was already late in the afternoon. I needed her because she's the one who knows the directions on how to get there. It's been a long while since I drove in the streets of MetroManila and a lot of changes had occurred since then.

There we were listening when suddenly we saw a brownish bird alight and began tapping on the branch. A Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker! A lifer for both us. I managed to get off a few shots of the bird silhouetted against the darkening skies. The photographs turned out to be of "documentary" quality only. As we continued to scour the tree branches for hopefully other species, a young man approached us. He turned out to be Bert Madrigal, another birder-photographer and a co-member of the Philippine Bird Photographers (PBP) group. When asked if he had seen the Scops Owl that was photographed in this area recently, he said that it had not been observed in the last 3 days. As dusk fell, we bade him goodbye and we went home happy that we have gotten a lifer.



Early the following morning, we were at Loyola Grand Villas at the invitation of JV Noriega, another member of the PBP. This time our target bird was the Philippine Hawk-Cuckoo that had been frequenting this area lately. We were soon joined by Ralf Nabong, another PBP member (and the guy who sold me his SUV). Two hours of vigilance but the bird was a no-show. A sumptuous breakfast at JV's home concluded our morning's sortie and erased the disappointment of not seeing the bird we came to look for.

Light was fading fast. It had been another gloomy day to begin with. This time we are in the company of Tonji and Sylvia Ramos and Tina Mallari (all of whom are also members of the PBP) as we staked out an open field in the Ayala Alabang Country Club. Camera gears all set-up we waited for the sun to set. Our target bird this time was the Savannah Nightjar. Three of them actually. 7 pm and the birds started flying in. The unmistakable white stripes in their underwings confirmed that Cynthia and I have seen another lifer. At 7 pm the area was just too dark for my camera to capture the nightjars. We dared not use flashes so as not to spook these intriguing creatures. After about 30 minutes, the nightjars flew off towards the trees. We gathered our gears and thanked our gracious hosts not only for showing us the Savannah Nightjars but also for their generous hospitality.

It was a long drive back home and although a part of me was a bit frustrated for not being able to photograph the birds, the birder in me was quite happy to add another lifer to my list.



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