What's U.P.?

The weather did not look promising Saturday morning so we decided to do our birding at nearby U.P. Diliman. Surprisingly there weren't any birds along Temple Drive. So off to Hardin ng Rosas we went. The Black-winged Stilts appeared to be increasing in number.

 

And the Common Moorhens were even bolder as they swam closer to us than our previous visits here.

 

Even the Yellow-vented Bulbuls were frolicking just a few feet from us.

 

On the way out at the exact same spot where we always see them was the pair of Zebra Doves.

 

As we approached University Avenue, we were shocked at the number of cyclists and joggers! And not just there, they all over the place! Some families even enjoyed their picnics at the parking areas. And I thought "what's up with U.P. today?" Thankfully, as we turned left on E. Jacinto St, a pair of Cattle Egrets seemed unperturbed by the abundance of human activity near them.

 

After a delicious breakfast at Rodic's (which was teeming with cyclists) we went to our usual first stop - the area around MSI building. Finally, after several sightings but not photos, this time we got the Crested Myna perched on a wire.

 

The small creek behind the building had a Grey Wagtail but it was too skittish and we never got a good shot. At the parking area, a pair of Olive-backed Sunbirds were more obliging.

 

Even more friendly was the Brown Shrike.

 

From there we went to say hello to the ever present Long-tailed Shrike at the Observatory area.

 

On our way back, we heard the familiar call of an Oriole. We parked our car and waited. After the awaited Black-naped Oriole showed up.

 

A quick trip to pond yielded only a Grey Wagtail and still quite uncooperative.

 

On our way back to where we parked our car, we saw a small bird perched on a wire. When I focused my camera on it, I excitedly told Cynthia, "Grey-streaked Flycatcher!" It had been more than a year since we last saw this species!

 

That I would say was the highlight of our birding day. As we were about to exit, we decided to do a quick drive by along Balagtas St. And there at eye level, were some White-breasted Woodswallows!

 

On our way home, my wife suggested we take a look at the Marikina River behind SM to see if there were Terns and Egrets. There was one Little Egret but albeit a bit too far. 

 

There were a lot of Terns though and it was a challenge for us to get a good BIF (Bird In Flight) shot.

 

Despite the unbelievable number of people in U.P. that Saturday morning, we were glad that we were still able to get some good photos of the local birds.

Start U.P.

Cynthia and I decided to start our birding year at U.P. Diliman. Start U.P. - that brought to mind a Korean drama that I watched recently (and was actually very popular). So I sort of played around with the idea of my wife and I posing as the lead characters of that drama. So here is Seo Dal Mi and Nam Do San in their 70s.

Now back to birding. On the way to U.P.  we decided to pass by Temple Drive because we've seen a number of birds just a week ago when we passed by this road. True enough, the bare trees hosted some avian visitors. There was a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker and a Coppersmith Barbet. 

A pair of Black-naped Orioles was a surprise.

Another surprise was a huge flock of Scaly-breasted Munias feeding on the grass right beside the road.

From there we went to the Hardin ng Rosas. By the roadside was a nonchalant Zebra Dove.

At the pond, there were even more Black-winged Stilts than the last time we were here.

Even the Common Moorhens were out and about.

Perched on the electric wires behind us a group of White-breasted Woodswallows were basking in the morning sun. It had been a while since we last saw this species and I was so happy to be able to get good photos of them.

From Hardin our next stop was at Rodic's to enjoy the best tapsilog in town. Happy with a very delicious breakfast, we then proceeded to the front of the MSI building. A Brown Shrike was right in front of the parking lot.

After some waiting we were able to get shots at the pair of Olive-backed Sunbirds.

Next stop was by the Astronomy building for the Long-tailed Shrike. Of course, it was there, as if waiting for us.

What we didn't expect was a very friendly Pied Triller who even flew close to us.

At past ten and with the sweltering heat, we ended our first birding trip of the year. We are hoping that 2021 would be a better year and that this was just the start of something good.

Rain Cut

It was a holiday which meant traffic would be minimal. That was a very strong incentive for us to go birding. Off to Antipolo we went. The last time we birded this place was in November of last year. I thought it would be good to visit it once again.

The very first bird we saw was a rail. However, by the time I got our gear out, it already disappeared inside a clump of tall grass. Next, three Zebra Dove walked nonchalantly in front of our car. Cynthia got a photo of one of them.

Surprisingly the local birds seemed to be more skittish now than the previous times we were here. And fewer. A Golden-headed Cisticola was calling but it was perched at quite a distance from us. Not only that it was even backlit (backlighted?). So I managed only a couple of documentary shots.

The usual horde of Scaly-breasted Munias feeding by the roadside were replaced by a few individuals munching the grass seeds about a stone's throw away. 

Even the Spotted Doves that usually meander along the sidewalks were now perched high up on the tree branches.

As I mentioned earlier, birds were more skittish now, and that included the White-breasted Swallows. Common birds that used to pose for us on electric wires before sallying off in pursuit of prey.

Having circled the subdivision for about three times, we finally encountered a Barred Rail preening behind a clump of grass.

"You know we haven't gotten a picture of a Long-tailed Shrike yet" my wife reminded me. As if on cue one of them posed long enough for me to take its picture. On a branch even, instead of the usual electric wire.

Then it started to drizzle. Ominous dark clouds told us that soon rain will come pouring. Since we didn't bring any raincoats, we decided to cut short our birding sortie. I guess it wasn't really that bad for an hour's worth of bird photography.

Humid My Day

As I mentioned in my earlier blog, summer arrived late in the Philippines. It brought not only extreme heat but also excessive humidity. It was only 7:30 in the morning and my wife and I were already drenched in sweat as we birded the campus of the University of the Philippines in Diliman.

Our first stop at the pond near Beta Way was somewhat disappointing. Perhaps due to the high temperatures that the pond was almost dried up. The remaining body of water was covered by plants, mostly water lilies. In such a situation, no self-respecting kingfisher would bother to stay. The only birds we saw was the uber common migrant, the Brown Shrike.

the beautiful Pied Triller.

We also had some good views of a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker.

From there we moved to the area in front of the MSI (Marine Science Institute) building. Cynthia's sharp eyes got her a female Olive-backed Sunbird.

We heard the hammering sound of a Coppersmith Barbet. Again, it was my wife's patience and diligence that enabled her to see the said species.

I was not able to see the barbet because as Cynthia was photographing it, I was focusing my attention on a Black-naped Oriole picking some red berries..

Not seeing any other birds, we  drove around, first along Magsaysay Avenue. We saw the expected White-breasted Woodswallows and got photos of them. 

Then we went to the place where Long-tailed Shrikes were supposed to be sure sightings. Our first endeavour failed so my wife suggested we make one more round to the area. Of course, she was right. This time we got the shrike.

At the Biology building where we hoped to see the Philippine Nightjar yielded nothing but a Philippine Pied Fantail.

Near the faculty building which now had been razed to the ground was another place for a possible nightjar sighting. As we walked towards the place a pair of Zebra Doves flew down right in front of us. 

That turned out to be our last bird for the day. With the heat and humidity becoming more and more unbearable, we agreed to call it quits and head back to the comfort of our air-conditioned condo unit.

Whether or Weather

Inasmuch as we have not done any birding for the past couple months mainly due to almost non-stop rains, we were resolute that we would go to Antipolo whether the weather was good or not. Unfortunately, the skies were gloomy when we arrived Saturday morning and it even had some short downpours the couple of hours we spent there. Despite that we had some good encounters with the local avifauna. The pictures were not that good though considering we had to deal with dark backgrounds.

Quite common were the Spotted Doves. Most were feeding on the streets and would fly off to a nearby tree when we approached them.

The most plentiful species were the Scaly-breasted Munias. Flocks would gather and feed on the tall grass in the neighborhood.

During the lulls between the showers, both Long-tailed Shrikes, Collared Kingfishers and White-breasted Woodswallows were taking opportunities to hunt for prey.

Sometimes associating with the Spotted Doves were the smaller Zebra Doves which preferred to just move down the street instead of flying off when we approached them.

Our hunt for the Pied Bush Chats ended up with only a female.

Finally, Cynthia was able to get a shot at our target bird, the Tawny Grassbird, albeit a fleeting one.

Even though we didn't see as many birds as we had expected, it was sufficient to satisfy the birding itch we've been having.