Ian Dugdale reported seeing a large flock of 17 Rosy Starling at the Thai Muang Golf Course in the last days of December 2009. I was in Nakorn Sawan at the time and felt bad that I was unable to get this lifer, as I myself was having a tough birding trip, having missed out on seven potential lifers.

On Children’s Day, my wife and I had contemplated visiting the air force base in Surat Thani so my kids could see some airplanes. Due to a late morning start and a few grumpy kids, we decided to head out a little later and make for the navy base in Thap Lamru which was closer and still enabled my eldest son to see a helicopter in action as well as explore some naval vessels. By the early afternoon the sun was bearing down and my kids wanted to go swimming. I took this as a great opportunity to take the kids to a forest waterfall and get in some birding time as well.

Khao Lampi Waterfall was crowded and noisy and the park staff wanted to charge unreasonable prices for the holidays so we opted to go to the beach.

Thai Muang was the closest beach available and when I was reminded of the starlings at the golf course we decided to try it out.

After settling the kids and my wife on the deserted beach, I started my search for the starlings near the casuarinas near the former carpark. The area was rich in bird life an in little time I had myself 34 species. A tree near the large lake had a group of 30 Orange breasted Pigeons, making this site perhaps the best place to find this rather uncommon specimen. A tree in the far distance had a group of some 20 White shouldered Starlings and three Purple backed Starling, but aside from that, the area was void of any of the rare migrants we were looking for.

Around the old golf track I connected with Hoopoe, Pacific Golden Plover, Blue tailed and Chestnut capped Bee Eater, Common Snipe, Pink necked Pigeon, Little, Intermediate and Great Egret and Lesser Coucal. White throated, Common, Collared and Black capped Kingfisher were all seen in a little creek near the center of the course, making it a good day for kingfishers.

After an hour of birding I had 42 species but still no sign of the starling. It is not uncommon to discover a species of starling in an area only to find they have moved on a few days later and I was beginning to think perhaps I was not going to see anything new on this trip. The area is very large and it would only take a miracle of God to find these little birds in time before the sun set.

I decided to go back to the old spot where I had sighted the first group of starlings to see if they had returned. At the casuarinas I spotted them again but approach was difficult and I ended up using the car as a blind as the birds were very skittish.

Initially I had noticed only 15 or so birds foraging in the tree but closer observation revealed a very large number of roosting birds hidden among the droopy boughs of the casuarinas. While the majority of the birds were full grown White shouldered Starling (30 or so birds), I did find around 10 Chestnut Cheeked Starling and 10 Purple backed Starling. I had my best views yet of the Chestnut cheeked Starling, a beautiful bird which was only discovered to winter here a few years ago by Stijin De Win on one of his birding trips to the area.

Even after seeing those birds I still felt disheartened that I was unable to get a few lifers when suddenly a pair of reddish-colored starlings flew up from the ground, scared off by an egret in low flight. I hardly believed by eyes when I realized they were Brahminy Starling! With this I got out of the car to get a closer look, almost trampling a Barred Buttonquail in the process. The flock of birds, being skittish as ever, took to a looping flight around the tree and it was then I was able to count around 50-60 mixed starlings in the group. After they had landed I called Ian to tell him the good news and ask him the whereabouts of the Rosy Starling.

Ian told me many of the Rosy Starling he’d seen were juvenile, so I began scanning through the many White shouldered Starling and finally found a single juvenile Rosy sitting very still and quietly in a branch. The reason for its inactive behavior was discovered minutes later when a group of mature Chestnut Cheeked Starlings came by and began persecuting it until it was finally chased off of the tree.

The birds were feeding on something on the branches of the tree, what I could not see, but they were systematically making their way through the branches as they picked through the bark, picking up what could have been insects or grubs.

Contented and shaking with excitement, I hopped back into the car and barely made it a few feet down the road when I looked up in a nearby tree to see the Brahminy Starling had taken up roost only 10 feet from the car! I quickly grabbed my camera but the second I rolled down the car window for a shot, the birds took to the air.

By then it was 6 PM and getting late. Satisfied, and brimming with joy, I picked up my kids from the beach and drove back to Phuket and celebrate my first two lifers of the year with a dinner at Sizzlers!

Altogether there were 47 species in one hour and two lifers. -God is good!

December was a very busy time for me, with a large number of school projects and traveling, which left little time for birding. However, what I did get what satisfying.

Two Eurasian Kestrel were seen hunting for swiftlets near the Honda showroom on Chao Fah road on the evening of the 12th. On the same evening a Common Buzzard was seen in the vicinity, displaying its characteristic ability to hover while in search of food.

Highlights from a trip to Phang Nga on the 11th included three Lesser Fish Eagles, a pair of Golden Crested Mynas and a male Mugimaki Flycatcher from Sri Phang Nga National Park. A Chinese Egret, a Grey Tailed Tattler and a Nordman’s Greenshank were found at Laem Pakarang and some 200 Orange Breasted Green Pigeons were seen at Thai Muang Golf course in the afternoon. All this and more can be found in the report.

A Great Hornbill was seen in flight over Sirinat National Park Northern Sector near Sarasin bridge in Phuket on the early morning of the 22nd. Its origins are unknown and how it came to the northern part of the island remains a mystery.

Black necked Grebe was present at Beung Boraphet since the 22nd of December, but mysteriously disappeared on the 28th, the day I went out to find it.

Eight Oriental Darter and an Osprey highlighted the trip to Beung Boraphet on the 27th, while a trip to the Chai Nat Bird Park on the same day revealed a large colony of some seven pairs of nesting Painted Stork. The colony no doubt is partly comprised of birds which escaped from the aviary, meaning that this feral population may soon become a thriving colony, giving new life to this uncommon and oft persecuted species. To read the entire report, click here.

A Western Marsh Harrier and a Black Thighed Falconet were seen flying together in the rice fields near Tesco Lotus Singburi on the 23rd.

The most exciting record of the month comes from Ian Dugdale who reported a sighting of a Chestnut cheeked Starling and a Rosy Starling in the presence of a group of Chestnut tailed Starlings at Thai Muang Golf Course in Phang Nga on the 28th.

Happy New Year everyone!

A walk in Chalermprakiat Park on the 12th uncovered a trove of migrants such as Purple backed Starling, Red throated and Asian Brown Flycatcher and Blue tailed Bee Eater. A flock of Chestnut tailed Starling were spotted near Talang on the 14th and one later showed up in a cage for sale at Chatuchak market on the 22nd.

Six Ashy Woodswallow were spotted in Chalermprakiat Park in the afternoon of the 23rd, roosting on electric lines during a very windy day. This marks the second time they have been spotted in Phuket, the first being in Laem Promthep last year by Ian Dugdale. On the same day 3 House Crow was seen in the park mixed in with a flock of some 200 Large billed Crows. Barn Owl was spotted in flight over Muang Chao Fah road late on the night of the 27th. A Peregrine Falcon was seen hunting swifts over Phuket town on the 29th.

Blue tailed Bee Eaters on migration were constant throughout the month with the largest flock numbering almost 40 individuals and seen near Chalong on the 19th. Six Blue throated Bee Eaters were seen roosting on the ground in the afternoon on the 28th on a trail to a waterfall in Muang Chao Fah.

Two Changeable Hawk Eagles were spotted over Muang Chao Fah on the 7th in the company of a Crested Honey Buzzard. (Thanks to Mr. Chaiyan and Dr. Phil for their help on identifying the birds).

With the raptor migration heading towards Phuket, I’ve decided to open a page dedicated to reporting the latest news on what’s coming through. –If you have anything to contribute, please feel free to send them in and we’ll post it, along with your name and the location where the sighting took place.

Note: Unless the report is followed by a name, all sightings were recorded by Ike Suriwong.

- 2/11: A large group of raptors moved through in a southwesterly direction, with over 80+ individuals counted. Of the birds seen, those identified included Black Baza (28), Japanese Sparrowhawk (22), Grey faced Buzzard (12), Oriental Honey Buzzard (7) and Booted Eagle (3). A possible juvenile Imperial Eagle was also spotted trailing the group. Many birds were too high to be identified with a normal 8×40 pair of bins, so have patience with me.
Thrown in for good measure was a single White bellied Sea Eagle and six Brahminy Kite. All sightings were recorded from Muang Chao Fah.
- 3/11: Black Baza (4) and Grey Faced Buzzard (2) were seen catching an updraft around 10 AM near Bang Waad Dam.
- 4/11: A single Black Baza flew over Muang Chao Fah around 8 AM. Another one was seen in the evening over Central Festival around 5 PM.
- 7/11: An Oriental Honey Buzzard was seen over Muang Chao Fah around 6 PM. Three Japanese Sparrowhawk were seen heading northeast a few minutes later.
- 8/11: Eight Grey Faced Buzzards were seen over Laem Gaa, Rawai, around 5 PM, and later a mixed flock of 14 Black Baza, 12 Japanese Sparrowhawk and a few larger unidentified raptors (Oriental Honey Buzzard perhaps?) were seen gathering over Rawai beach. Thrown in for good measure were two White bellied Sea Eagle, three Brahminy Kite and a single Eurasian Kestrel.
- 10/11: Five Black Baza and two Chinese Sparrowhawk were spotted near Chalong in the evening.
- 11/11: Seven Oriental Honey Buzzards were seen around 3 PM over the Muang Chao Fah area, not in a group but scattered throughout the area.
- 13/11: The first positive ID of a Common Buzzard for the winter was recorded near Sapam at 4 PM.
- 15/11: Four Black Baza were seen in flight over Laem Panwa near the deep sea port in the late afternoon.
- 16/11: A Crested Goshawk stirred up a flock of 400+ Rock Dove which took to the skies and eventually chased off the would-be predator, along with three Brahminy Kite and a single Japanese Sparrowhawk.

Major news for the month would have to be the raptors moving through the island, all of which can be read in this report posted a few days ago. I’ll repost it here for good measure:

Four Japanese Sparrowhawk, tailed by a pair of Booted Eagle were spotted near Baan Nam Kem, Phang Nga on the 18th, while three Grey Faced Buzzards were seen over open fields north of British International School, Sapam, on the afternoon of the 23rd.

Two more Japanese Sparrowhawk were sighted in the Muang Chao Fah area on the 27th but other than that, all raptor sightings have been Brahminy Kites or White belled Sea Eagle, both of which are resident.

15 Grey faced Buzzards were seen circling over the municipal park in Phuket town on the 29th and later headed off in a northeastern direction.

Blue Tailed Bee Eater has arrived in small numbers throughout the island, and so far no major migration group has been encountered. Three are regulars in a field near my home.

The first Tiger Shrike of the year was seen on the 18th near the airport. Blue tailed and Blue throated Bee Eaters have made their presence known in Phuket and are now regulars in many open-country sites.

No flycatchers have been reported yet.

A White bellied Sea Eagle was seen circling around Phuket town, coming from the direction of Bang Waad Dam (29th) and a Changeable Hawk-Eagle was seen over Muang Chao Fah (31st) during a routine check for migrating raptors. Two Barn Owls were seen near Thai Naan restaurant (22nd) and a Chestnut tailed Starling was found on sale in a local market, reportedly trapped in the Talang area by a local farmer (27th).

The raptor migration in Chumporn seems to be going very well this year.

Thousands of raptors are moving through the province this month, at astonishing rates. So far no vultures have come through, but a few Aquila eagles (Greater Spotted) have come through, according to Dr. Robert DeCandino, a visiting professor from New York who is monitoring the migration at Radar Hill.

My contribution is to watch for raptor movement in Phuket, and so far it’s been quite … dull. No movements have been seen, although the small groups I’ve encountered give credence that the birds are passing through. Four Japanese Sparrowhawk, tailed by a pair of Booted Eagle were spotted near Baan Nam Kem, Phang Nga on the 18th, while three Grey Faced Buzzards were seen over open fields north of British International School, Sapam, on the afternoon of the 23rd.

Two more Japanese Sparrowhawk were sighted in the Muang Chao Fah area on the 27th but other than that, all raptor sightings have been Brahminy Kites or White belled Sea Eagle, both of which are resident.

15 Grey faced Buzzards were seen circling over the municipal park in Phuket town on the 29th and later headed off in a northeastern direction.

Blue Tailed Bee Eater has arrived in small numbers throughout the island, and so far no major migration group has been encountered. Three are regulars in a field near my home.

Last year the migration hit Phuket in November, so we’re anticipating that the time will be coming soon. According to data from the past two years, the migration should come from the northwest, come over Muang Chao Fah and head off in the direction of Khao Khat and Laem Panwa before heading off over the sea enroute (presumably?) towards Phi Phi and Krabi.

Khao Khat seems to be the best place to observe the migration and hopefully we’ll be able to cash in on it this year.

The roosting sites for the last two years have been Muang Chao Fah, Bang Waad Dam, (2008) and Klong Mudong (2007), which seem to be the prime places to keep an eye on when the birds come through.

(Following is a report from Ian Dugdale and Games (a Thai guide) who visited Koh Pratong for three days on a survey trip to test the potential of the site. Koh Pratong has gotten rave reviews from many birders in Bangkok who have spent countless hours exploring this still untamed wilderness island. The island is still mired in a legal battle between the RFD (Royal Forestry Department) and local villagers who insist they want to keep the land from becoming a National Park. Many depend on fishing for their livelihood and declaring it a national park will put stipulations on the future of their income.)

-By Ian Dugdale

We had heard that the following had been seen on the island:

White-bellied Woodpecker: Of the five or so residents we spoke to, only one had thought he had seen them at the southern end of the island. We did not see any.

Grey-headed Fish-Eagle: One adult seen in the central part of the island, an area of shallow ponds, flooded grassland and open forest.

Lesser Adjutant: Local knowledge is that there are 100 birds on the island but during the wet season they stay in the landward side of the mangroves in an inaccessible area. In the dry season (Jan-Apr) they frequent the central open areas and are easily seen. We did not see any.

Cinnamon-headed Green-Pigeon: A few locals thought they had seen them but no reliable information. We did not see any.

Pale-capped Pigeon: No local information. We did not see any.

Birding in the open areas was very enjoyable and provides a nice contrast to the usual forest birding in Southern Thailand. The island is beautiful and well looked after by the locals. Very little of the island has been cultivated and we saw no signs of hunting. Apparently some mainlanders do come over to hunt but the locals stop it when they can. We also learnt that the government wants to make it a National Park but the locals are against it because their livelihood depends on fishing.

Our conclusion was that it is an excellent place to visit for one or two days as part of a birding trip in Southern Thailand.

Following is the list of birds we saw between 17/10 and 20/10.

Lesser Whistling-duck, Barred Buttonquail, Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker, Common Goldenback, Rufous Woodpecker, Coppersmith Barbet, Oriental Pied Hornbill, Eurasian Hoopoe, Burmese Roller, Oriental Dollarbird, Common Kingfisher, White-throated Kingfisher, Black-capped Kingfisher, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Indian Cuckoo, Himalayan Cuckoo, Greater Coucal, Lesser Coucal, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Red-breasted Parakeet, Germain’s Swiftlet, Grey-rumped Treeswift, Brown Hawk-owl (heard only), Great Eared Nightjar, Red Turtle Dove, Zebra Dove, Pink-necked Green-pigeon, Spotted Dove, Slaty-breasted Rail, Pin-tailed Snipe, Common Sandpiper, Pacific Golden-plover, Red-wattled Lapwing, Crested Honey Buzzard, White-bellied Sea-eagle, Brahminy Kite, Grey-headed Fish Eagle, Crested Serpent-eagle, Peregrine Falcon, Common Kestrel, Little Grebe, Little Egret, Purple Heron, Chinese Pond-heron, Striated Heron, Cinnamon Bittern, Brown Shrike, Large-billed Crow, Black-naped Oriole, Lesser Cuckooshrike, Black Drongo, Ashy Drongo, Common Iora , Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Oriental Magpie Robin, Common Myna, Common Hill Myna, Barn Swallow, Pacific Swallow, Black-headed Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Olive-winged Bulbul, Streak-eared Bulbul, Dark-necked Tailorbird, White-chested Babbler (heard only), Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Brown-throated Sunbird, Van Hasselt’s Sunbird, Olive-backed Sunbird, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Eastern Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, Forest Wagtail, Paddyfield Pipit, White-rumped Munia.

Total species seen: 78 species

I am a happy soul!

A trip down to Fortune Town in Rachada to visit an old friend seemed pretty mundane with little or no camera hardware available at 2nd hand prices. Seems like Canon is having a heyday in Thailand as more and more people switch from point-and-shoot cameras to digital SLRs. The youth of Bangkok are not settling for the lazy road in photography and I am happy to see that. Even petite teenage girls can be seen whipping out their Canon 40Ds armed with 70-200 “white” lenses. –Wow.

All that to say, nothing stays put on the second hand market for long. It takes a few days (sometimes only a few hours) before the item is snatched up by a budget-conscience student or teenager. So my hopes of finding a long range telephoto at a friendly price were pretty dead in the water.

Or so I thought.

One shop had the very budget friendly Tokina 80-400 lens which, despite its record for being the smallest telephoto zoom available on the market, didn’t quite appeal to my tastes or the fact that it had no fast aperture, no IS and no fast focusing capabilities. –Looked like a big NO for many people too, as the retailer told me no one had even asked about it in the eight months he has had it on display.

An obscure camera shop wedged between a row of computer shops caught my attention with what seemed to be a 70-200 Sigma going for 24,900 baht. On inspection, it turned out to be a 100-300 F4 Sigma. Since I was not familiar with the lens, I took a few test shots and headed home to check out the quality.

After some research I found I may have stumbled upon a deal, so the next day, I went back, cashed in my last reserve of dollars and bought myself my first real telephoto lens. –Interestingly, I got there only a few minutes before another would-be customer walked in, looking for the same deal.

After a few days of working with the lens, I’ve learned that this lens is not easy to deal with (like almost any other tele lens) and requires a bit of a learning curve. Lack of IS means it demands a lot of light, or a stable tripod. The weight is somewhat of an issue, but has not proven to be problematic for me. –Photo quality? You decide for yourself:

All photos are taken handheld and none were fixed up; these are straight, fresh out of the camera.

First things first; a little cropping would be nice, and so would a little more range. 1.4 converter is needed, check.

I think it could use some sharpening and perhaps the lens could be checked for sharpness once (standard procedure for all lenses) but I think it’s got a lot of great potential. It’s a fraction of the price of a 100-400 Canon and takes the TC very well (giving it a maximum range of 470mm) so there are a lot of upsides. -Would I have been happier with the 100-400 Canon? -Sure! –But would I have been happy with the bank account afterwards? –Definitely NOT!

Nothing beats a Canon L lens in my book but if one is price conscience, I think this is a very good deal. I doubt there will be another available at this price (the owner was getting rid of all his lenses) and with a genuine warranty, so I am very thankful that God led me to this good deal. Perhaps in the future I’ll be posting more of my own photos.

A trip to Koh Kor Kao (business, not birds) on the eastern tip of Baan Nam Kem showed the island, though targeted for future business endeavors, is still in pristine condition and well stocked with plenty of birds and other animal life.

Koh Kor Khao is situation south of Koh Pratong, an island gazetted for National Park status but currently mired in legal disputes due to protests by the locals living there. While Koh Pratong is well known by many birders as one of the only places in the south which is home to such rare species as Lesser Adjutant, White bellied Woodpecker, Cinamon capped Pigeon and Grey headed Fish Eagle, Koh Kor Khao is seldom visited and still relatively unknown. Both are largely deserted with little infrastructure to speak of. The difference between the two is that Koh Kor Kao has been targeted by major hotels as the new “Phuket”, with talk of an airport being constructed on the north end, where a former WWII Japanese runway was cleared from the forest.

I did not have a lot of time to look for birds but from the terrain and available habitat, it looks like there could be a good number of birds here. Back in 2002 I was able to do some birding on the north end of the island and it proved to be very good for many species of forest and open-country birds. The beach was also uninhabited, making good feeding sites for waders, which flock in to feed during low tide. Marshlands are a familiar sight in the island and are home to a large number of waders, egrets and herons. I wouldn’t be surprised of from time to time one could find the Lesser Adjutant here as well.

King Cobra as seen crossing the road and a Water Monitor was spotted sunning itself on the road as we drove by. Both prove there are plenty of other animals about on the island.

Off on the horizon we spotted a large stretch of boulders and rocks which form a natural boundary, protecting the shores from the strong tidal currents. These islands were formed during the tsunami of 2004 and may be prime resting spots for ocean-going birds, much like the famous sand spit in Laem Pak Bia on the inner gulf.

Again, there is much to be explored around here, an hopefully one day someone (or I) will find the time to seriously assess the potential here.

Two adult Barn Owls with two young were seen around Kajonkiat Primary School on Chao Fah Road on the evening of the 12th. A juvenile White bellied Sea Eagle was seen in flight over Chao Fah City project on the 25th and is believed to be offspring from the pair nesting at Bang Wad lake.

The first Brown Shrikes of the year were recorded from Koh Yao Noi on the 24th and three more were seen near British International School on the afternoon of the same day, along with the year’s first Grey Headed Lapwing.

A flock of wintering Eurasian Curlews was seen in Sapam on the 6th along with plenty of other waders such as Ruddy Turnstone, Great and Lesser Sand Plovers, Common Redshank, Black winged Stilts and a single Terek Sandpiper.

More wintering records can be seen in the posted report of the trip to Koh Yao.

August was a month drenched in the rains of the monsoon and little birding was done, although many attempts were made to get out in the field.

A beach trip to Nai Yang with the kids produced a pair of Alexandrine Parakeets, assumed to be a feral population. The pair were seen in the vicinity of the beach forest on the 12th and were not seen again on later trips to the same area. On Lesser Frigatebird was seen flying over the beach in the late evening of the same day.

Two more wintering wagtails were seen this month, the first sighting for the Forest Wagtail and Yellow Wagtails this year were recorded on the 4th and 9th respectively, both around Talang area.

A trip to Ao Maprao on the 18th was eventful, with the winters’ first Ashy Drongo showing well. A small flock of Ashy Minivet also filtered through the trees, numbering only three or four birds.

The first Common Kingfisher of the year arrived near my home on the morning of the 27th.

The migrant season is coming up soon, and what better way to prepare than to read up on what’s been coming through in the past years.

Two documents were sent to me from Dr. Robert DiCandido, a professor in New York who has been involved with the Chumporn Raptor Festival for a number of years, along with Mr. Chukiat Nulsiri and Mr. Chaiyan Kasorndokbua, the two Thai coordinators of the annual event. The first is a document taken from this years edition of Forktail describing the Spring 2008 migration, and the second documents the migration from December last year.

The Chumporn Birding Club has been making waves in the local birding front for quite some time now, from migrating raptors to wintering starlings in the municipal football stadium. Not only that, but their ongoing efforts to educate the locals and youth regarding this topic is worth commenting on.

Dr. Robert has requested if any birders happen to see any movements of raptors or bee eaters during this period, to please report their findings to the Chumporn Birding Club or to him so that they can study the movement pattern of these birds. Phuket does experience at least one afternoon of mass raptor migration at least once a year and so far the event has been poorly documented.

Those interested should contact Dr. Robert about joining in on the raptor festival on Radar Hill (Promsri Hill) as it looks to be an exciting and enjoyable event for birders.

Dr. Robert can be reached at this address: rdcny@earthlink.net

July is usually a very quiet month for me on the birding front, and the little interest I had in going out to see something was dampened by the rising price of fuel.

A Little Cormorant (assumed juvenile overstaying the summer) was seen around the airport marsh area on the 14th evening.

Breeding records for the month include Spotted Dove (two chicks), Glossy Starling (four chicks), Coppersmith Barbet (two chicks), Grey capped Woodpecker (nest known but no chicks seen although parents were observed bringing food to the nest) and White breasted Waterhen (two chicks). All these birds were observed in the Chao Fah area near PSU University. These sightings are records of the birds emerging from the nest; the date of eggs being laid and incubation periods were not observed.

An explosion in Brahminy Kite population numbers was observed on the 25th when I counted 22 juvenile birds along with 12 full-plumaged adults soaring low around a forested area near PSU University. They are believed to be nesting in the area, and the sight of many locals parading through the area with homemade weapons and slingshots makes me very worried.

A White headed Munia was seen on sale at a local bird shop, caught by a trapper and sold as a “merit making” bird. Despite an improvement in its condition, it died from exhaustion three days after I had purchased it.

Gray Wagtail was the first winter visitor for our list, showing on Rang Hill outside of channel 11 TV station on the afternoon of the 31st.

Looks like Stijn’s bulbuls finally got themselves a new name.

The bulbul is bald. -That is a fact. -So what did they name it? “Bald Headed Bulbul.”

-I never would have guessed that …

The following article showed up in Yahoo’s Science section. Read it here.

As it turns out, the bird has been under observation by several scientists for a number of years. Apparently the project has been underway for almost 10 years and yet there was no mention of it until Stijn “accidentally” discovered the birds and annoced his find on the web. 

Like Stijn mentioned, it’s sad that there are some ornithologists (or ornithological bodies) which prefer to keep their discoveries under wraps for such extended periods of time. I understand that it takes time to research and properly file the paperwork, but I also  agree that more birders would be visiting Laos today had the discovery been announced earlier. 

Birdwatching usually helps the local population as well as creates a level of awareness among locals to protect their national heritage. I think many people will agree with me when I say the Laotian people could use a helping hand.

The scientific data has been released and was made available in this year’s edition of forktail. See it here.

Congradualtions to Stijn De Win for uncovering this bird and sharing his find with us and to all those who worked so hard to glean all the needed information to classify the specimen.

In the end, it was just too much temptation.

The Red Whiskered Bulbul nest in the house down the road was completely destroyed scarcely a week after the eggs had hatched. The owner left for a few days and the workers ran off with their booty. I doubt the parents were spared the same fate as the youngsters. I had hoped they would nest in my yard and the decision to nest elsewhere was their doom.

It seems like to matter what these birds do, they are doomed as long as they live in the south. It’s sad, as they are beautiful birds, and since the cagebird trade is so lucrative here, the workers were only doing the destructive deed for the dollars, so to speak.

Sad, sad story.

Muang Chao Fah has been average for birding recently, and two afternoon walks on the bike trails offered good exercise and good looks at a few not-too-common species such as Yellow bellied Prinia and Blue throated Bee Eater.

Today was special as I managed to call out a Blue winged Pitta (using the call of a Mangrove Pitta) in the forest on the foothills near the bike trail. This was my first migrant Blue winged Pitta for the year! A babbler of some sort was also calling but not seen.

Three migrants were still present: Black Drongo, Brown Shrike and Asian Brown Flycatcher.

Birds seen today included Olive backed Sunbird, Brown throated Sunbird, Common Myna, White Vented Myna, Dollarbird, Asian Koel, Large Hawk Cuckoo, Blue tailed Bee Eater, Chestnut capped Bee Eater, Yellow Bittern, Little Egret, Chinese Pond Heron, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Plain backed Sparrow, Brahminy Kite, Yellow Vented Bulbul, Streak eared Bulbul, Stripe throated Bulbul, Black headed Bulbul, Spotted Dove, Zebra Dove, Scaly breasted Munia, Glossy Starling, Scarlet backed Flowerpecker, Large billed Crow and Common Iora.

The search for Reddish Scops Owl continues. It was heard once last month but not seen.