Birds in your garden

[AjarnNorth]

19 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

Nice shots of Zebra Doves (Geopelia striata), which until fairly recently were considered the same species as the Peaceful Dove (Geopelia placida), but have since been split and are now classed as separate species. Obviously, they are quite similar and closely related. However, the correct name here in Thailand and SE Asia is Zebra Dove, as the Peaceful Dove is found in Australia and New Guinea.

 

Of course I don't care what anyone calls them and this is technical and FYI only, but the science is in...for the time being anyway. It is not unheard of in Ornithology for split species to be lumped back together again as more data is gathered...same as any branch of science.

 

The obvious differences...

Peaceful Doves have barring extending all the way across the breast, while Zebra Doves have barring confined to the sides of the breast. Check out Google Images to see the diff. The two species also have different vocalizations. 

Interesting. I always like the name "Zebra Dove" better. I don't know a lot about all the splits. I do know that there are groups of folks who consider themselves "splitters" and others who consider themselves "lumpers." And there are even well respected ornithologists who ID themselves as "lumpers." Something I need to learn more about. I recently started reading "The Wisdom of Birds" an Illustrated History of Ornithology by Tim Birkhead. Picked it up in BKK at Kinokuneya. Very interesting start - and great illustrations throughout - but I imagine I am far off from any discussion of splitting vs. lumping. 

[Skeptic7]

1 hour ago, AjarnNorth said:

Interesting. I always like the name "Zebra Dove" better. I don't know a lot about all the splits. I do know that there are groups of folks who consider themselves "splitters" and others who consider themselves "lumpers." And there are even well respected ornithologists who ID themselves as "lumpers." Something I need to learn more about. I recently started reading "The Wisdom of Birds" an Illustrated History of Ornithology by Tim Birkhead. Picked it up in BKK at Kinokuneya. Very interesting start - and great illustrations throughout - but I imagine I am far off from any discussion of splitting vs. lumping. 

To my knowledge, The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World  is the go to for official ornithological changes...specifically species lumps and splits. The list is maintained and updated annually by the world's foremost Ornithology department...The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, part of Cornell University, in Ithaca, NY.

 

The checklist is downloadable free here:

http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/

[thetefldon]

This is specially for Skeptic7 who sent me a message wondering why I hadn't posted anything lately.  To be honest I thought this thread was dying! Anyway here are a few recent snaps from sunny old Phetchabun.

 

1. Shikra with prey(looks like Indo Chinese Forest Lizard)

2. Grey-faced Buzzard

3. Female Red Jungle Fowl in the jungle(Tat  Mok NP)

 

[Skeptic7]

51 minutes ago, thetefldon said:

This is specially for Skeptic7 who sent me a message wondering why I hadn't posted anything lately.  To be honest I thought this thread was dying! Anyway here are a few recent snaps from sunny old Phetchabun.

 

1. Shikra with prey(looks like Indo Chinese Forest Lizard)

2. Grey-faced Buzzard

3. Female Red Jungle Fowl in the jungle(Tat  Mok NP)

 

 

 

 

Threads go dead 'cause ppl stop posting!  WELCOME BACK! Great pix, as usual. Pls keep 'em coming. 

Edited March 27, 2018 by Skeptic7

[tutsiwarrior]

On 3/23/2018 at 12:06 PM, Bredbury Blue said:

Cute but ugly at the same time.

 

The 2 Yellow vented eggs in my cycling helmet are now 6 and 7 days old. Mother seems very used to our coming and goings - helmet is 2m fron our front door. Daytime she'll fly off in to a nearby tree until we pass then will return.  Nighttime either will sleep deeply and we don't disturb her or will just look at us but doesn't fly off. Read that these birds partner for life and as we had a nest in the helmet last year I'm guessing it's the same pair. Still only see one bird (female) but read they take turns on the nest once there's chicks. Here's the proud mum allowing us to look:

 

 

a pair of these guys showed up on our front porch this afternoon, very attached and they followed each other closely...first time I've seen them but I hear their call everyday...nice lookin' birds, the ones I saw had the face markings in the photo but yellow/grey otherwise...

 

 

[thetefldon]

Here is one from my garden. One of a pair, believe they keep same partner for life. Interestingly the Yellow-vented Bulbul is moving it's range further north in Thailand. Round here...Phetchabun.... not so common(yet)

[Bredbury Blue]

On ‎3‎/‎23‎/‎2018 at 12:06 PM, Bredbury Blue said:

Cute but ugly at the same time.

 

The 2 Yellow vented eggs in my cycling helmet are now 6 and 7 days old. Mother seems very used to our coming and goings - helmet is 2m fron our front door. Daytime she'll fly off in to a nearby tree until we pass then will return.  Nighttime either will sleep deeply and we don't disturb her or will just look at us but doesn't fly off. Read that these birds partner for life and as we had a nest in the helmet last year I'm guessing it's the same pair. Still only see one bird (female) but read they take turns on the nest once there's chicks. Here's the proud mum allowing us to look:

 

 

 

 

So when I left for work this morning there were 2 eggs, when I returned at 6pm there's now 1 chick and 1 egg. Incubation period is therefore about 13 days. Haven't seen the two parents together until tonight when they are now both very vocal and visible metres from the nest when we walk past the nest (when it was just the female, she would fly out of sight when we walked past the nest); one and only one of them got upset when we were stood near the nest - the wife tells me last year one of the parents would feign being injured on the ground to try to distract her away from the nest. Chick is very small (I'll add photo later) and no sound - in a few days when hearing noise it'll pop up and be very noisy for a few seconds to attract food.

[Bredbury Blue]

Taken at dusk

 

 

[thetefldon]

Had three of these beauties over the house at Na Ngua, Phetchabun this morning two adults and a juvenile. This sort of confirms my suspicions they were breeding nearby.  Very easy to identify raptor.  Rufous-winged Buzzard.

 

[Bredbury Blue]

Video of Yellow vented parents, 1 in the bush and 1 on the nest (now sits more to the edge of the nest presumably on the unhatched egg). 

 

 

 

20180331_113325.mp4

[thetefldon]

Little Cormorant hangs out on a nearby pond  while the Lesser Coucal hides in the long grass at the back of the house, seldom ventures out in the open.

[Skeptic7]

2 hours ago, thetefldon said:

Little Cormorant hangs out on a nearby pond  while the Lesser Coucal hides in the long grass at the back of the house, seldom ventures out in the open.

Great snaps! Been thinking about Lesser C lately. When first moved to this apt and it's great property in BKK 2 years ago, immediately had Greater C and thought I'd heard Lesser. Put it on the list as "heard" and counted it. Never heard again, nor ever seen...hear and/or see Greater near daily. Officially pulling Lesser Coucal off the patch list!  

[AjarnNorth]

Great shot of the Lesser C. I used to see them fairly often in Surin, always in reed bed areas near water. Greater of course I saw constantly there and see constantly here in Chonburi. Don't recall having seen a lesser here in Chon as yet, so if I have it would have only been once or twice and definitely not from my yard. 

[Bredbury Blue]

Sadly the 4 day old bulbul chick died yesterday. Saw at 6am one bird on the nest and the other next to it on the helmet which I'd never seen before so suspected something. Had a look at 6.30am on my way out and the chick was on its back dead with two swellings: one in its neck area and a bigger one belly area. At 8am the wife had a look on her way out and the birds had removed the chick from the nest. The birds hung around for a while on the unhatched egg but have now moved on: unsuccessful for the 2nd time with chicks.

[Skeptic7]

On a lighter note...speaking of Coucals, got my best shots of Greater this morn. He's been lighting atop the tallest tree (about 50m off) each morning and proclaiming his territory. Calling in the pic with head "bowed". 

 

 

[AjarnNorth]

 

21 hours ago, Bredbury Blue said:

Sadly the 4 day old bulbul chick died yesterday. Saw at 6am one bird on the nest and the other next to it on the helmet which I'd never seen before so suspected something. Had a look at 6.30am on my way out and the chick was on its back dead with two swellings: one in its neck area and a bigger one belly area. At 8am the wife had a look on her way out and the birds had removed the chick from the nest. The birds hung around for a while on the unhatched egg but have now moved on: unsuccessful for the 2nd time with chicks.

I wonder what the survival rate is. Last time I had YVBB nesting in my garden, both chicks died as well. 

[Skeptic7]

It is bizarre that we have 3 or 4 complete YVBB nest failures, of the 3 or 4 reported, for.such an abundant species. There certainly is no shortage of them. Saw a couple young birds with parents here recently. 

[AjarnNorth]

Does anyone else hear Plaintive Cuckoo every single day no matter where they are. I am in Bangsaen, Chonburi listening to one right now. I hear one every day. Last year i lived in Bangkok all year. I heard one every day. Everywhere i go, every day. I feel like I am being followed. 

 

[Skeptic7]

40 minutes ago, AjarnNorth said:

 

I wonder what the survival rate is. Last time I had YVBB nesting in my garden, both chicks died as well. 

Just read in The Birds of the Bangkok Area that of 10 nests that details are available...5 failed! 2 during egg stage and 3 sometime after hatching. Interesting.

[Skeptic7]

24 minutes ago, AjarnNorth said:

Does anyone else hear Plaintive Cuckoo every single day no matter where they are. I am in Bangsaen, Chonburi listening to one right now. I hear one every day. Last year i lived in Bangkok all year. I heard one every day. Everywhere i go, every day. I feel like I am being followed. 

 

Haha...yes! Was literally watching one sing both songs when you posted. 

 

Friend of mine...not into birds...lives in Chantanaburi...whistled a tune and asked if I knew what bird? Plaintive Cuckoo I responded. He said...they sure love to sing!

[jack2964]

Here's a success story; fledgling and presumably mom stopped by my backyard recently.

 

[Skeptic7]

7 minutes ago, jack2964 said:

Here's a success story; fledgling and presumably mom stopped by my backyard recently.

 

Awesome snaps! ?

[jack2964]

Thanks Skeptic7.....err any tips in  uploading photos so they don't get too 'in-your-face'?

I resized these to 800x600 with Irfanview. Guess I need to drop dimensions more?

[jak2002003]

2 hours ago, jack2964 said:

Here's a success story; fledgling and presumably mom stopped by my backyard recently.

 

Beautiful... these are my all time favourite birds here.  They remind me of the cartoon character Woody Woodpecker.  

 

I have seem a few on the dry rice fields behind my house, but never seen a fledgling.  

 

 

[jak2002003]

4 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

It is bizarre that we have 3 or 4 complete YVBB nest failures, of the 3 or 4 reported, for.such an abundant species. There certainly is no shortage of them. Saw a couple young birds with parents here recently. 

We have them nesting every year in a small shrub on our patio.  For 4 years they reared all their young successfully.  Only one time did the young get spooked  and left the nest too early, and then sadly my dog saw them and ate one in a split second before I could catch it.. the other one managed to escape unharmed into the bushes at the back of the garden.  

 

 

[Skeptic7]

2 hours ago, jack2964 said:

Thanks Skeptic7.....err any tips in  uploading photos so they don't get too 'in-your-face'?

I resized these to 800x600 with Irfanview. Guess I need to drop dimensions more?

These pix look normal on my Android smartphone and HIGH quality. Haven't looked on my laptop, but surely they're fine there too.

 

I too resize my pix with a photo resizer for Windows on my laptop and an app on my Android devices.

[tutsiwarrior]

5 hours ago, AjarnNorth said:

Does anyone else hear Plaintive Cuckoo every single day no matter where they are. I am in Bangsaen, Chonburi listening to one right now. I hear one every day. Last year i lived in Bangkok all year. I heard one every day. Everywhere i go, every day. I feel like I am being followed. 

 

 

I hear plenty of these guys around...never seen one, though...

 

a 'plaintive cuckoo'?...wonder what a raucous one sounds like...

 

 

[thetefldon]

Crested Serpent Eagle. This is NOT from my garden but posted here because the other birds thread is in terminal decline. Taken yesterday in Tat Mok NP which is about 20km from home.

 

BTW AjarnNorth plenty of Plaintive Cuckoos heard here at home and in the park yesterday.....cracking video.

 

 

[thetefldon]

2 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

These pix look normal on my Android smartphone and HIGH quality. Haven't looked on my laptop, but surely they're fine there too.

 

I too resize my pix with a photo resizer for Windows on my laptop and an app on my Android devices.

I resize in lightroom on export, always make long edge 1024 pix since it works well on Twitter, I post same here. Think it's a good idea to make multi image a similar size when posting on here.  Not sure what TV does with them, just compression I guess, not resizing?

[thetefldon]

4 hours ago, jack2964 said:

Thanks Skeptic7.....err any tips in  uploading photos so they don't get too 'in-your-face'?

I resized these to 800x600 with Irfanview. Guess I need to drop dimensions more?

If you right click on your images and look for "view image info" you will see that they are much larger than 800 x 600.

 

Top one is:2,048px × 1,366px (scaled to 1,284px × 856px)

Bottom one : 769px × 1,152px

Not familiar with software you are using.

I export from Lightroom, long edge 1024 pix which seems to work quite well on the web.