The Red Jungle Fowl (Gallus gallus) M 65-78 cm; F 41-46 cm

My encounter with this pair of male and female Red Jungle Fowls was totally unexpected but a most pleasant surprise. Whilst on a  'routine' birding trip I could hear the male crowing at regular intervals inside the thicket of the forest. I did not think too much about it as under normal circumstances this 'shy' specie will not show itself if they detect human presence. I continued what I was doing per normal when to my surprise and delight out strolled the male and the female hen followed a short while later! My estimation is I was just under 40-50 meters from both of them. It is most unusual that both fowls upon seeing me did not try to run back to the forest (which they would normally do) but instead stayed calm and continued to forage in the small clearing at the edge of the forest!  

I directed my camera their way and started shooting the 'bonus' shots of the day! The usual habitat of Red Jungle Fowls are around the forest edge or open woodland, up to approx 1800 meters above sea level.

Here are 2 photos for sharing.

Cheers and have a nice day!

The Blue-winged Minla (Minla cyanouroptera) 14 - 15.5 cm

Usually forage for food in a flock of 6-8 , sometimes more. At times would be part of a bird wave foraging together and moving in a group from one feeding ground to another with other avian species. My personal observation of this specie is they are never stay put on one feeding spot for long, always skipping or walking from branch to branch. Another nature photographer's nightmare. :-)  

Regular habitat range from 900 - 2500 meters above sea level in broadleaved evergreen and coniferous forest. This specie could also be found in a few other SEA countries eg Thailand, Myanmar & Singapore.

Here are a few photos for sharing.

Have a nice day! Cheers!

The Streak Spiderhunter (Anthreptes magna) 17 - 20.5 cm)

The Streaked Spiderhunter is incredibly agile, always in a hurry, on the move. To photograph this bird one has to be stealthy and fast on the 'draw'. It does not stay on the same spot for long, hence the camera has to catch it in split seconds as it stops to suck the sweet flower nectar with it's long and curvy bill.

Favorite habitat is some 1850 meters above sea level, essentially with sub-montane to montane weather conditions. Fraser's Hill or Bkt. Tinggi in Malaysia are good examples where this species could be found.

Here are 3 photos for sharing.

Thanks for dropping by. Have a nice day!

The Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela) 56 - 74 cm

The early morning drive uphill along the winding road was pleasant enough. No city bumper-to-bumper traffic and the cool country air was most refreshing and a welcome change! Whilst my eyes were on the road to ensure that the car stay on the right lane moving forward I occasionally steal a quick glance at the many lamp posts that dotted the way up the hill. Raptors out hunting in the morning or to just to get some warmth from the morning sun have been reported to perch on top of the concrete lamp posts. I was counting that luck would be on my side today to have a chance to sight a raptor, well any raptor will do just fine, so long as it's a raptor. :-)

As I negotiated my car gingerly around a fairly sharp bend to the right as I came out of the bend what came into my view above me got my heart rate up and I instinctively slammed on the brakes and pulled the car to a stop approximately 30 meters away. A raptor was perched on top of the lamp post!

Now looking back I wished I had kept my camera on the front passenger seat, all set and ready to shoot. But no it was in the bag and on the back seat! I opened the car door as quietly as I could, made a dash to open the back door, grabbed hold of my camera and quickly set the correct metering for the shoot. I then anchored my shoulder to the side of the car and 'pulled the trigger'! On hearing the shutter the big bird jumped from it's perched and made a dash for the forest just off the road shoulder. I managed to 'punch' 3 frames. The 1st frame captured the whole bird, the 2nd just half the bird and the 3rd nothing! :-)

Below is the one and only photo recorded on the 1st frame! Lucky, just plain lucky or there would have been nothing to share from the interesting experience. LOL

 

Cheers guys and have a great day!