Panti :: 23rd Jan 2011

Another Diard's Trogon was sighted last Sunday! I have no clue why it seems so often to see them this year compared to last two years! I was hoping that the female was around but unfortunately it wasn't.

A huge bird wave of of Cream-vented Bulbuls caught my attention and this time I was lucky to spot  a male Grey-and-buff Woodpecker, a species rarely seen along the main bunker trail compared to other woodpecker species.

Grey-and-buff Woodpecker (Hemicircus concretus)

Belatok Kecil Berjambul * 灰黄啄木鸟 * カンムリコゲラ

Pic trapu * datlík krátkochvostý * นกหัวขวานแคระอกเทา

Cream-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus simplex)

Merbah Mata Puti * 白眼褐鹎 * メジロチャイロヒヨドリ

Bulbul aux yeux blancs *  bylbyl okán *  นกปรอดสีน้ำตาลตาขาว

Blyth's Hawk Eagle 

I spent most of the time walking along the trail (after the first stream) in the afternoon with my gear and interestingly I sighted more species than the usual habit of driving along. Perhaps walking makes one more alert looking for birds, or perhaps the birds are less concern with human on foot!

  

Banded Broadbill (Eurylaimus javanicus)

Takau Rimba * 斑阔嘴鸟 * アズキヒロハシ * Mỏ rộng hồng

Eurylaime de Horsfield *  loboš pestrý  * นกพญาปากกว้างลายเหลือง

Lesser Green Leafbird (Chloropsis cyanopogon)

Burung Daun Kecil * 小绿叶鹎 * コノハドリ

Verdin barbe-bleue *  zelenácik modrofúzy * นกเขียวก้านตองเล็ก

 This cute little dinosaur was just right above my head when I was 

shooting the Leafbird! Glad it did not land on my back!

Lifer, Orange-backed woodpecker.

Orange-backed Woodpecker (Reinwardtipicus validus); female

Belatok Dada Merah * 橙背啄木鸟 * アカハラコガネゲラ

Pic vigoureux * zlatoš tmavokrídly * นกหัวขวานหลังสีส้ม

And I hope I have not bored you with too many pics of the Duskys in my blog! :)

As I was packing up ready to go home near the carpark exit, three Red-crowned Barbets with 6-8 Black-winged Flycatcher-shrike came to the tree just across the road..... 

Black-winged Flycatcher-Shrike (Hempius hirundinaceus)

Rembah Sayap Hitam * 暗灰鹃䴗 * アサクラサンショウクイ * 

 Échenilleur véloce * strakárik ciernochrbtý * Чернокрылый личинкоед * นกเขนน้อยปีกดำ

Red-crowned Barbet.

Panti :: 16th Jan 2011

Rhinoceros Hornbills were not seen or heard last Sunday despite 5 hours of waiting at their usual spot from as early as 7:30 in the morning! :( 

But fortunately quite a number of species turned up to cheer me up and it was quite a special day indeed as 5 Trogons were sighted along the main bunker trail, two pairs of Scarlet-rumped Trogons and a male Diard's Trogon.

Diard's Trogon (Harpactes diardii)

Kesumba Bukit * バラエリキヌバネドリ * Rosenringtrogon

Trogon de Diard * dravcík obojkový * Трогон Диарда * นกขุนแผนหัวดำ

Spectacled Bulbul (Pycnonotus erythrophthalmos)

Merbah Mata Merah Kecil * 小褐鹎  *  コアカメチャイロヒヨドリ * ông lau nâu nhỏ

Bulbul oeil-de-feu *  bylbyl hájový * นกปรอดเล็กท้องเทา

Chestnut-bellied Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus sumatranus)

Cenuk Kecil * 棕腹地鹃 * オニグロバンケンモドキ * Phướn

Malcoha à ventre roux * malkoha hnedobruchá * นกบั้งรอกเล็กท้องแดง

A female Philentoma made a 5sec appearance here but it was not seen again, and it actually led us into this trail to search for it and luckily the Scarlet-rumped Trogons were sighted perching quietly ~20' from my setup.

male

Scarlet-rumped Trogon

Kesumba Puteri* 红腰咬鹃 * コシアカキヌバネドリ

Trogon de Duvaucel *  dravcík malý * 

Красноспинный Трогон * 

นกขุนแผนตะโพกแดง

Female

The Red-crowned Barbets are probably the most common and friendly among all the barbet species in Panti. If you play calls and they don't show up it is probably your wrong choice of mp3 player and speaker!

Five of them came feeding on a fruiting three and I must admit it was my first sighting of 5 RCBs in Panti. Often you get to see them as an individual. Calling other species tends to attract them as well, so it is that easy!

Red-crowned Barbet (Megalaima rafflesii)

Takur Kepala Merah * 花彩拟䴕 * ニシキゴシキドリ

Barbu bigarré * barbet cervenohlavý *  นกโพระดกหลากสี

By noon another pair of SRTs were sighted just by the side of the dirt road at low level 50m before the White-crowned Forktail's Corner! And this pair were more friendly than the earlier ones as they stay put despite we set up our gear barely 15' away in front of them. I believe they were just waiting for the right moment to mate! 

A birder from USA must be glad and excited to have met us while we were photographing the SRTs and our conversation attracted the attention of a female Banded Kingfisher, whom perched right above us for a brief moment before disappearing into the forest. The male BKF was calling nearby but was not sighted.

Banded Kingfisher (Lacedo pulchella)

Pekaka Rimba  *  横斑翠鸟 * カザリショウビン * Sả vằn

 Martin-chasseur mignon * rybárikovec jarabý * Полосатый зимородок * นกกะเต็นลาย

@White-crowned Forktail Corner! Waiting anxiously for the male BKF to show up! :(

As usual, a trip to Panti without checking out the First Stream is a "no no" for me! 8 Duskys were already waiting on my arrival and this time they perched lower, they made less noise and I was waiting patiently for them to surprise me....

Dusky Broadbill (Corydon sumatranus)

Takau Besar *  暗阔嘴鸟 * ガマヒロハシ * Mỏ rộng đen

Eurylaime corydon * loboš tmavý * Суматранский ширококлюв * นกพญาปากกว้างสีดำ

And eventually, this particular Dusky made the unusual low pass and perched barely 5' above my head! Unbelievable!

Panti :: 9th Jan 2011

Weather was extremely gloomy last weekend, so before i set out my journey to Panti i hesitated for a while if i should make the trip at all.


But i wanted the Rhinoceros Hornbill, at least for some improvement shots....


By 8:30am, 8 of them came to the same tree as sighted previously, but i had just walked almost 200m away a few mins ago! By the time i rushed back, they were starting to leave one by one! :(

5 Chestnut-bellied Malkohas came to entertain me just as i was pondering if the hornbills would change their mind and fly right back to the same tree again. Interestingly the Malkohas were busy mating and hopping around non-stop, and i was only allowed two shots, without the mating scene of course!

Chestnut-bellied Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus sumatranus)

Cenuk Kecil * 棕腹地鹃 * オニグロバンケンモドキ * Phướn

Malcoha à ventre roux * malkoha hnedobruchá * นกบั้งรอกเล็กท้องแดง

Two Asian Brown flycatchers were near the scene as well, but they were extremely skittish.....

@ the first stream....

The Dusky Broadbills, Chequer-throated Woodpeckers and Racket-tailed Drongos were already waiting by the side by the time i reached the first stream, which is ~5km into the main bunker trail. 

Dusky Broadbill (Corydon sumatranus)

Takau Besar *  暗阔嘴鸟 * ガマヒロハシ * Mỏ rộng đen

Eurylaime corydon * loboš tmavý * Суматранский ширококлюв * นกพญาปากกว้างสีดำ

Chequer-throated Woodpecker (Picus mentalis)

Belatuk Ranting *  斑喉绿啄木鸟 * チャバネアオゲラ

Pic gorgeret * žlna ozdobná * นกหัวขวานคอลาย

@100m after the first stream.......


The calls of white-rumped Shama is probably the most frequently heard in Panti forest, but they are not always seen though. 

White-rumped Shama (Copsychus malabaricus)

Murai Rimba * 白腰鹊鸲 * アカハラシキチョウ * Chích chòe lửa

 Shama à croupion blanc * šáma trojfarebná * นกกางเขนดง

So when a WR Shama was seen singing in the open, I setup my gear quickly, took some shots, then walk a round leisurely to enjoy some fresh air leaving the Shama singling on its own, and I suddenly saw this Red-naped Trogon just 10' in front of me.

Unfortunately just one quick shot it flew into the forest....guess it must be mad at me for not taking its picture earlier!

i made several attempts later to lure the RNT out again, but instead I got a flock of Tailorbirds and Pin-striped Tit-babblers came begging for some portraits...these are small and active birds and getting them in frame alone is a real challenge.

Striped Tit Babbler (Macronous gularis)

Rimba Berjalur * 纹胸鹛 * ムナフムシクイチメドリ * Chích chạch má vàng

Timalie à gorge striée *  timália žltobruchá * นกกินแมลงอกเหลือง

 Dark-necked Tailorbird (Orthotomus atrogularis)

Perenjak Leher Hitam *  黑喉缝叶莺 * ノドグロサイホウチョウ * Chích bông cánh vàng

 Couturière à col noir * krajcírik ciernohrdlý *  นกกระจิบคอดำ

And on my way out the trail, i was hoping to catch a glimpse of the hornbills again but i got these instead,  around 100m after the Elephant Trail.

 Yellow-bellied bulbul

 Chequer-throated woodpecker

Greater Racquet-tailed Drongo