Belated BY - 6th year! Herman&Kit

[Kitsafari]

488. Brown-rumped Minivet, Cat Tien

 

[Kitsafari]

489. Black-hooded Oriole, Cat Tien

 

found in Indian sub-continent to Southeast Asia

very backlit

 

[Kitsafari]

490. Collared Scops Owl, Tan Phu

 

Managed to score 3 owl species. We walked through the forest in the darkness of the light to pursue the mountain bay owl - whcih would have been my lifer - and got close to it, but failed to get a sighting let alone a chance to photograph it as it kept flying off each time.

 

 

Edited December 25, 2023 by Kitsafari

[Kitsafari]

491. Collared Owlet, Tan Phu

 

Corrected from Oriental scops owl. 

 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Kitsafari

[Kitsafari]

492. Brown Hawk Owl, Tan Phu hot springs

 

[Kitsafari]

493. Rufescent Prinia, Cat Tien

 

Geographical distribution confined only to from Myanmar through Indochina down to Malaysia.

 

 

[Kitsafari]

494. Siberian Blue Robin, Tan Phu

 

Almost like a wagtail, the female old world flycatcher was actively wagging its tail while the breeding male was a shy one. Distribution in East Asian and Southeast Asian regions

 

Non-breeding male

 

Breeding male

 

female

 

[Kitsafari]

495. Indochinese Roller, Cat Tien

 

[Kitsafari]

496. White-throated Rock Thrush, Tan Phu

 

A lifer. The male is gorgeous but unfortunately it didn't turn up. The female that did was just as attractive. Range is limited to east Asia and Southeast Asia

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

497. Grey-headed Woodpecker, Tan Phu

 

Another lifer.

 

[Kitsafari]

498. Laced Woodpecker, Tan Phu

 

[Kitsafari]

499. Large Woodshrike, Cat Tien

 

[Kitsafari]

I had dipped on this species twice - in Cambodia and in Thailand. But third time is the charm!

 

500. Siamese Fireback, Tan Phu

 

A very skittish and nervous species, the spectacular bird is listed as least concern in the IUCN but the males are on every birder's target list. eBird says : "A terrestrial bird of lowland and foothill broadleaf forests, most often encountered on trails and roadsides in the early morning. Male blue-gray with a bright red face and long, glossy black tail. Namesake “fire back”, a splotch of bright iridescent coloration on the rump, is difficult to see." that splotch can be seen clearly in the second video. The family of two males and at least 3 females appeared 3x during my two days at the hide. I seemed to have taken better photos of the males than the females!

 

 

 

 

 

the next clip shows the bright patch on its rump - i only noticed this after watching this clip!

 

 

[Peter Connan]

Congratulations!

What a bird to get there with!

[Tdgraves]

Well done on breaking the 500 mark

[xelas]

Birding from the hide, to my surprise, is indeed one exciting experience ... as long as the birds are coming. They surely were coming for you. Congratulations on breaking the #500 barrier, with a spectacular bird!

[TonyQ]

A brilliant bird for your 500, well done.

Your photo in this last section are really good

[Galana]

For a belated BY one wonders what the result may have been for a prompt one. Congratulations on the 500.

[PeterHG]

Congratulations on reaching a spectacular #500! That is one I would definitely love to see in Thailand.

[Kitsafari]

Thank you @Peter Connan @Tdgraves @xelas @TonyQ @Galana @PeterHG 

10 hours ago, Galana said:

For a belated BY one wonders what the result may have been for a prompt one. Congratulations on the 500.

 

probably no difference. The photos were all sitting in the folder, waiting to be counted. 

Edited December 27, 2023 by Kitsafari

[Kitsafari]

Just finishing up the Tan Phu/Cat Tien section. 

 

501. Indochinese Green-Magpie, Tan Phu

 

As Dat's house is just on the edge of the Tan Phu forest, it attracts a lot of wildlife. Including this juvenile, which he thought was an escapee and was looking for its kind to hook up with. But as it was a juvenile, Dat decided he would help with some food. The juvenile is free to fly wherever it wants, but it often returns for some food and play with the pups at the house. sometimes it flies deep into the forest and hopefully it will join the flocks when it reaches full maturity. 

Although juvenile Indochinese green-magpies are usually duller in colour, this youngster was already a riot of bright colours typical of the magpie - a bright vivid green with a black mask, the adults have bright cinnamon flight feathers with a red bill. Magpies in Southeast Asia have a distinct yellow breast while those in China have completely green underparts. 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

502. Ashy-headed Green-pIgeon, Cat Tien

 

This pigeon was high up in the tree in the thick of the forest and resolutely refused to turn around. So just an EBC shot. It is on the Near Threatened IUCN Redlist status. 

 

Edited December 27, 2023 by Kitsafari

[Kitsafari]

503. Black-backed Dwarf-Kingfisher, Tan Phu

 

I liked its previous name Oriental Dwarf-Kingfisher better! not a lifer, this tiny gem kept appearing at the hide but was very discreet about where it perched, observing the area before swooping down to catch a prey. Tried as I might for bird in flight shot, this KF flew like a bullet across my views! so no BIFs. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

504. Banded Kingfisher, Tan Phu

 

We returned to Tan Phu on my last morning as I hadn't gotten one of my targets - Banded Kingfisher which would be a lifer species. Both the male and females are stunners if they appear. I had heard it calling a few times when I was in the hide but it just didn't want to come into the open. On the last morning, just outside of Dat's home, Dat heard the kingfisher, so we walked  into the forest, and found the female way above our heads. The male appeared for a split second before both flew off deeper into the forest.   No good opportunities for a good photograph but finally my first sighting. 

 

 

 

[Kitsafari]

505. Green Peafowl, Cat Tien

 

There are quite a few of them at Cat Tien National Park, several of which appear on the grasslands. We took the safari truck which gives you an elevated but very distant view of the grasslands. Without the elevation, you can't see the open areas as they are bordered by tall bushes to stop people from wandering in. We have the peafowl in the resort island of Sentosa but Singapore is not a native home for it. Its geographical range is Southeast Asia and China with IUCN Redlist having put the species on the Endangered status on an estimated population of up to 20,000 adults on a declining trend due to hunting, poaching and steep habitat loss. 

The first we saw in Cat Tien had a long full beautiful tail; the other male adults seen did not have as long a tail as this handsome dude. 

 

 

a family of one male and at least four females

Edited December 27, 2023 by Kitsafari