Bangladesh Birds

I did have half an idea about visiting the Dhaka Botanical Gardens but time was my greatest enemy. That and a nutjob drive who understood only accelerate and use that horn baby...

Lumpinee Park, Bangkok

Note to self - never go to Lumpinee Park on a Sunday morning!

Birding in and around Siem Reap

I recently had an article published in the Bangkok Airways inflight magazine, Fah Thai, about bird watching in Cambodia. Find it here...

Taken from Jakarta Post

Triwik Kurniasari , THE JAKARTA POST , JAKARTA Tue, 05/26/2009 12:36 PM City
Do you see what I see: Visitors are watching birds using binoculars at the Muara Angke Wild Reserve in North Jakarta. The reserve is one of the few places left in Jakarta to do some bird spotting. JP/Triwik Kurniasari
Jakarta might be a promising city for human beings as it offers a number of housing options, but not for the city's birds.
The mushrooming of high-rise buildings in the last few decades has led to a declining number of green areas, which also happen to be the birds' habitat.
Most of the birds now live in several green areas in the city, such as the National Monument (Monas) park, Senayan's Krida Loka park, Suropati park, all in Central Jakarta; Srengseng urban forest in West Jakarta; the Ragunan zoo in South Jakarta; the University of Indonesia in Depok; the Muara Angke Wildlife Reserve in North Jakarta and Rambut Island in the Thousands Islands.
Ady Kristanto, a member of Jakarta Green Monster (JGM), an environmentally friendly NGO focusing on saving wetlands, said the current number of bird species in Muara Angke had dropped severely compared to eight years ago.
"In 2001, there were about 100 species. Now, there are only about 83 kinds," Ady told The Jakarta Post.
"The missing species in the area are elang bondol *Brahminy kite*, which is an endangered species, and some water birds," he said, adding there were two rare birds left in the wetlands, jalak putih (Bali Starling) and bubut Jawa (Javan Coucal).
"Besides, there are many hunters out there, trying to catch the birds, especially the rare ones, like jalak putih, despite the restrictions on bird catching in conservation areas."
He said the hunters, which were mostly residents living in the area, usually used fake jalak putih as bait to catch the real birds.
"We often remind them not to hunt birds, but they never listen. We can't do anything about it because we have no authority to stop them," said Ady.
"We just hope the city administration can monitor the area more closely to prevent people from hunting and punish those who violate the law. If not, I'm afraid some birds will disappear in the near future."
The only thing the JGM can do, he added, is regularly pick up garbage from wetlands to give birds a better living environment.
Another bird lover, Gugum Prayoga, 21, also expressed concern, saying birds needed more trees to survive.
"Birds eat insects, seeds, fruits and flowers they find on the trees and ground. The trees are their homes. How can they survive with so few trees in the city?" he said.
Although he could not cite the exact population size, he admitted the number of bird species in the city had decreased, since it was now more difficult to find certain species.
Besides external factors, Ady went on, some birds also moved from Muara Angke because they could not compete with other birds.
"There is intense competition between birds," said Ady, who has been actively monitoring birds since 2002.
In 1946, Jakarta still had more than 250 bird species. The number decreased after the government erected many buildings, houses and roads.
Muara Angke Wildlife Reserve is home to many kinds of waterbirds, like koak, prenjak Jawa or Prinia familiaris and Kareo padi or white-breasted waterhen.
Koak are the main species in the reserve, with about 50 birds, followed by kareo padi with 40 and prenjak Jawa with 30, said Ady.
Every month, members of the JGM walk around Muara Angke Wildlife Reserve to watch birds and study their daily activities.
The best time for monitoring birds is in the morning, from 6 to 9 a.m., before sunrise or at dusk.
"We use binoculars or a monocular. If we find any new species, we will try to identify them," said Ady.
He said it took about two years for him to recognize the sounds of various birds.
"It's like recognizing a human being, you know. Each bird has a unique chirp. If you get used to its sound, you will know it by heart," he added.
Gugum first learned to recognize bird species by drawing pictures of the birds he had seen, so he could spot the differences between species.
"I don't rely only on my memory. The most important thing is practicing. I used to monitor birds five times a week to get to know them."
Muara Angke is currently the only remaining mangrove forest along Jakarta's coastal area.
The 25-hectare area has 42 plant species, of which 11 are from the mangrove family.
A diverse variety of insects and several kinds of mammals can also be found in the area, including dozens of long-tailed macaques.

Singapore Botanical Gardens

Mute Swan - probably imported sometime

Malaysan Monitor Lizard. Seen these beauties at Pulau Dua, Muara Angke, Penang's Kebun Raya and Bogor's Kebun Raya previously

Pink necked Green Pigeon

Magpie Robin with lunch

Yellow-vented Bulbul

A duck enjoying some quality zzzz's

Red-eared Slider trying to keep a low profile

Is it a nest of sorts?

White breasted Waterhen

Flock off - to Pulau Dua

White-headed Murnia