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olours and splendour to my experiences at the fruiting trees but no such privilege on this sunny saturday morning i am not sure if you have noticed but some of the the images in this post appeared to taken from an elevated point and we have the adjacent two storey dormitory to thank for that anyway subtle would be how to i would describe the spectacled bulbul s appearance and every bit of vibrancy is concentrated around the eyes it was a no show for a few bulbul species that have been regularly recorded in the past and on the whole the level of bird activities was lower than usual the inclusion of a moth photo should be able to give a picture of the today s birding pace the adorable flowerpeckers were sorely missed as well only one species was recorded today and thankfully it was the crimson breasted flowerpecker which the male is a true gem of the forest a few juveniles were present as well and should be of the same species the hume s white eyes are not uncommon at this locality but they seldom patronize fruiting trees their energetic visits today provided training for my photographic skills more than anything else if there was one species worthy of recognition today it was the greater green leadbird a female parent bird and her offspring dropped by a few times throughout the morning here is the adult bird although the young female is more than able to fend for herself she was still eager to receive the occasional pampering who wouldn t the male greater green leafbird did not closely interacted with the two females and i cannot determine if they were indeed part of the same family one thing that i can be certain of was his vibrant presence a true stunner with remarkable vocals when feeding activities at the fruiting trees subsided i decided to try my luck along the access road leading up to gunung bintang it was a relief that during my absence the lush habitat remained the same which is not always the case as for the birding there is no denying it has deteriorated through years gone are the days when the calls of trogons broadbills and babblers filled the vicinity i suppose i was lucky to be able to find and photograph this yellow bellied bulbul resting in the dim under storey of the forest during my exploration i do not know if i am alone in this but with each passing year birding just gets harder and harder where i frequently visit this is especially true for forest birding sites like this the far carrying territorial calls of the agile gibbons continue to be provide a sense of intrigue to this locality and that is most fortunate although it is not a bird this graceful primate is elusive enough to hold me in awe whenever our paths crossed the availability of food is the reason behind its confiding behaviour today just like the birds earlier on the temptation is so strong that natural instincts were suppressed this is one of the closest i have ever been with an agile gibbon and this intimate encounter certainly made my day posted by choy wai mun at 11 35 no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels bulbul flowerpecker gibbon kedah leafbird malaysia sungai sedim white eye monday 6 april 2026 a tale of two twitches before my birding tour in central thailand ended it came to my attention that yellow breasted buntings were also seen and photographed at the bluethroat site back in penang to have two mega rarities literally together of which one is critically endangered and a global lifer for me was too good to be true surely but the images surfacing in social media say otherwise well my pending visit to the locality escalated from gradually to urgently i had ample time at the airport when i waited for my flight back to penang normal folks would be homesick and all that but i am a birder and we are a breed apart as i sipped my over priced coffee at one the cafes there was only one mind on my mind yellow breasted buntings a plan was formed before i boarded the plane by the time i climbed onto bed it was midnight at the break of dawn i found myself at the grasslands of kubang semang in mainland penang for my first twitch in years i have not had so much excitement in my birding life for a long time and it was invigorating to say the least it was a monday and the chosen day was also part of the plan a mega like the bluethroat will have any place in peninsular malaysia crowded especially when the bird is stable and regular add another mega into the mix and you do the math it was empty when james and i arrived at the site just as i was about to pat myself on the back other like minded bird people started pouring in and i guess a working monday is not much of a hindrance after all the male bluethroat as expected did not take long to reveal his stunning presence having just experienced a similar encounter less than twenty four hours ago the usual thrill of a successful twitch was a little lacking all my years of birding has taught me quite a number of things and taking birds for granted is not one of them i continued to shower the bluethroat with attention while james and a few others who have spent enough time with the bluethroat last week were on the lookout for the yellow breasted buntings an oriental reed warbler wandered into view and this common but at times elusive migrant warranted some attention as well when anxiety set in i set everything aside and focused all my attention in finding the main reason behind this rare weekday excursion it was a hive of bird activities at this patch of grasslands as fate would have it i have the baya weavers to thank for this bustling atmosphere and i do not mean it in a good way the similarities between a female baya weaver and the buntings were undeniable inevitably every movement by the former will have my bins locked onto them and there were about a dozen of them around the munias can never to be mistaken for the buntings but their movement will occasionally distract me from my quest the majority of these adorable birds were white headed munias on any other day i would have invested some time and effort to document them but today is not the day the same can be said about the black headed munias as the day grew hotter fatigue and frustration heightened i was distracted by the baya weavers so often that i can now recognise their jizz in an instance and a lone bird foraging at a short distance do not strike me as one of them before i could switch to my camera my lifer took off but i alerted the rest of its presence nevertheless soon after a yellow breasted bunting popped into view and there was no denying its identity now however there was no icing to the cake i can blame it on my gear or even old age but it will not change the fact that this horrible image was all i have to show at the end of the encounter the outcome of the twitch was a bitter pill to swallow i am well aware i could have just as easily missed the yellow breasted bunting altogether i refuse to believe that my experience with this species will be nothing more than a case of so close and yet so far no there has got to be more and i have to make sure of that four gruelling work days had to pass before a re visit was possible the resident bronze winged jacana which used to be a rarity was the first to greet me during my second attempt at the critically endangered yellow breasted buntings the present status of this vagrant is a sad tale indeed it used to be common where it naturally occurs but common does not mean invincible if share your home with humans rampant trapping and hunting have driven the yellow breasted bunting to the brink of extinction the world does not need another example like the passenger pigeon to show just how fragile the wellbeing of wildlife can be and now there are at least three individuals wintering in my neck of woods it will be a shame if i do not give it my all to connect with this species before it is too late minutes turned to hours and still no signs of the celebrity birds despite the number of eyes looking for them naturally i was not alone as it was the weekend after all nothing is ever a sure thing when it comes to birding it does not matter how skilled you are or how meticulous is your planning and strategies if the bird does not want to be seen or photographed there is nothing you can do about it fortunately luck was on my side and a yellow breasted bunting suddenly decided to alight in front of me there is a god after all from the images posted on social media one of the birds was an adult male and the other two were either first winter or female birds in different stages of moult the individual that i was staring was not the adult male and that was the only thing i can be sure of at that time opinions from knowledgeable friends and resources online indicated that it was a female although not as striking as a male bird she has more than enough captivation to leave a lasting impressive best of all she was obliging enough to allow all those present to obtain photographic memories of the encounter and all the earlier ill feelings she and her kin caused was forgiven almost immediately after she retreated a second bird was spotted however it could not live up to the first encounter due to the distance the second bird also turned out to be a female but her underparts are more heavily streaked and lacking the colour intensity when she took flight another individual followed and i can only assume was the first female and that concluded my observation of the yellow breasted buntings i found my closure in the end and the world is a beautiful place once again just in case you are wondering the handsome male bluethroat was still around and performing for a number of admirers since morning however it was the female bluethroat that caught my eye today it is common knowledge that the duller female was the shyer of the two at this location anyway it was a record shot more than anything else but completed my observation of the rare bluethroats as well a surprisingly confiding yellow bellied prinia held me back from my making my journey home like what i mentioned earlier nothing in birding should ever be taken for granted and even the commonest species deserve some attention especially if they are performing well like this posted by choy wai mun at 12 25 no comments email this blogthis share to x share to facebook share to pinterest labels bluethroat bunting jacana kubang semang malaysia munia penang prinia warbler weaver older posts home subscribe to posts atom translator profile choy wai mun georgetown penang malaysia view my complete profile blog archive 2026 12 april 4 searching for a miracle a tale of two twitches the golden hour mesmerizes like no other home of wildlife part 2 march 7 january 1 2025 1 may 1 2024 1 march 1 2023 9 december 3 august 1 march 3 february 1 january 1 2022 10 december 1 october 1 august 2 july 2 may 1 april 1 march 1 february 1 2021 13 december 3 november 1 october 2 july 1 may 1 april 1 march 3 january 1 2020 26 december 2 october 1 september 3 july 1 june 2 may 1 april 1 march 6 february 5 january 4 2019 32 december 4 november 1 october 4 september 2 august 2 july 1 april 2 march 6 february 3 january 7 2018 42 december 4 november 5 october 5 september 2 august 3 july 3 june 1 may 3 april 9 march 2 february 2 january 3 2017 43 december 6 november 4 october 5 september 2 august 5 july 3 june 3 may 2 april 4 march 4 february 3 january 2 2016 45 december 5 november 4 october 7 september 2 august 1 july 4 june 2 may 3 april 3 march 5 february 5 january 4 2015 54 december 8 november 3 october 4 september 5 august 4 july 1 june 5 may 3 april 4 march 7 february 4 january 6 2014 43 december 7 november 5 october 6 september 4 august 4 july 3 june 3 may 5 april 1 march 3 february 1 january 1 2013 19 december 1 november 1 october 1 september 1 june 1 may 1 april 1 march 3 february 4 january 5 2012 27 december 4 november 3 october 2 august 2 july 1 june 2 april 1 march 2 february 3 january 7 2011 42 december 8 november 5 october 4 september 2 august 3 july 1 june 3 may 3 april 4 march 3 february 4 january 2 2010 49 december 2 november 8 october 5 september 3 august 5 july 1 june 2 may 4 april 2 march 3 february 7 january 7 2009 31 december 8 november 7 october 3 september 1 august 7 july 1 june 3 may 1 labels adjutant 10 air hitam dalam 109 australia 3 avadavat 1 avocet 1 awc 2 babbler 98 bagan belat 21 bandar perda 11 barbet 50 batu kawan 21 batu maung 1 baza 9 bedong 4 bee eater 58 belum 2 bird race 1 bittern 21 blackbird 1 bluebird 5 bluethroat 2 boar 4 booby 1 broadbill 49 buffalo 5 bukit ayer 1 bukit do 9 bukit gambir 4 bukit hijau 1 bukit larut 10 bukit palong 8 bukit panchor 6 bukit penara 4 bukit tinggi 4 bukit wang 36 bulbul 144 bunting 2 bushchat 2 butcherbird 1 butterfly 4 buttonquail 4 buzzard 3 cambodia 5 cameron highlands 5 chuping 32 cisticola 13 civet 2 colugo 1 coot 4 corella 1 cormorant 22 coucal 21 crake 17 crane 1 crow 21 cuckoo 45 cuckoo dove 1 cuckoo shrike 9 curlew 8 cutia 1 darter 5 dollarbird 8 dove 41 dowitcher 4 dragonfly 4 drongo 42 duck 35 eagle 35 earth lodge 1 egret 64 falcon 12 falconet 18 fantail 18 fish eagle 7 florican 1 flowerpecker 47 flycatcher 163 flycather shrike 8 forktail 10 fox 1 fraser s hill 10 frim kepong 1 frog 3 frogmouth 8 fulvetta 7 garganey 9 gecko 4 gelugor 1 genting highlands 2 georgetown 1 germany 1 gerygone 8 gibbon 8 godwit 6 goose 3 goshawk 12 grassbird 1 grebe 24 greenfinch 1 greenshank 5 gull 13 gunung keriang 2 harrier 26 hawk 8 hawk eagle 30 heron 66 honey buzzard 28 honeyeater 2 honeyguide 2 hoopoe 2 hornbill 46 ibis 5 iora 18 jacana 16 jaeger 2 japan 5 jay 3 jelutong expressway 4 junglefowl 8 juru 9 kaeng krachan 3 kampung pertama 5 kamunting 1 kangaroo 1 kedah 172 kek loke tong temple 5 kestrel 12 khao yai 1 kinabalu park 2 kingfisher 101 kinta nature park 1 kite 79 knot 3 koala 1 koel 10 kookaburra 1 kota kinabalu wetland center 1 kuala gula 8 kuala muda 6 kuala selangor 2 kubang semang 29 kulim hi tech park 18 kupang gerik 4 lanchang 2 langkawi 1 lapwing 56 laughingthrush 13 leaf monkey 12 leafbird 28 lenggong 1 lizard 22 lorikeet 1 macaque 13 magpie 9 magpie robin 15 magpie lark 1 malaysia 420 malim nawar 7 malkoha 46 marten 1 martin 4 matang 1 mesia 5 millipede 4 minivet 14 minla 3 mongoose 2 moorhen 14 moth 3 mousedeer 1 mudskipper 1 munia 26 my garden birdwatch 3 myna 51 night heron 9 nightjar 15 niltava 4 noddy 1 nuthatch 4 openbill 59 oriole 17 osprey 8 otter 4 owl 71 owlet 5 pahang 21 pantai jeram 1 parakeet 5 parrot 7 parrotfinch 2 partridge 14 pedu 27 pelagic 7 pelican 2 penang 280 penang botanic gardens 13 penanti 12 perak 42 perlis 30 perlis state park 5 permatang nibong 26 permatang pauh 21 phalarope 2 pheasant 4 philentoma 13 piculet 1 pigeon 24 pipit 29 pitta 61 plover 36 pond heron 38 pondok tanjung 2 pratincole 10 prinia 26 pulau burung 50 quail 2 rabbit 1 rafflesia forest reserve 1 rail 1 raptor count 4 raven 3 redshank 15 redstart 1 relau 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