Birds in your garden

[Skeptic7]

7 hours ago, jak2002003 said:

I am in Chiang Mai.

 

Maybe not the snipe

as they were really tiny things, and their wing beats were really fast and sounded almost like a bumblebee.  I am sure they were quails.... but no idea what species.

 

What kind of quails do we get here in Thailand?  

 

Had a look on the net... hard to find info on Chinese Painted Quail distribution but found this from Thailand....

http://orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=131&Bird_Image_ID=62381

Smallest in your area (and some extremely localized) are Blue-breasted Quail, Japanese Quail and Rain Quail. Also...

Small...Barred...Yellow-legged Buttonquail. (3 sp) 

 

Other species of quail and partridge up there but considerably larger. 

 

It's possible that Chinese Painted Q (King Q) and Blue-breasted Q are the same species or subspecies. If so, then yes...possible. More looking into this ASAP. 

Edited December 2, 2018 by Skeptic7

[AjarnNorth]

Skeptic, this may help (attached). It's the updated 2018 Thai checklist. 

 

Jak, it may be just a case of "common name" vs. Scientific name confusion. 

 

That photo from Oriental Bird List is from Bang Pra Non-hunting Area just down the road from me and I bird there from time to time and is the only place I have - I think - seen Blue-breasted Quail but have yet to get a good enough look or photo to put it down for sure. (It was a female so harder to tell)

 

All the books I use - Round and Robson - refer to it as Blue-breasted Quail (common) or Coturnix Chinensis (scientific) yet the updated checklist has the scientific name as Excalfactoria chinensis.

 

It is possible you may have this species occur up where you are, but kind of impossible to make a definitive call based on the description. One thing you could do is go back and try and listen for - or even better , record - calls and make comparisons there. Though a good photo would be best. 

 

Good luck. 

Checklist_ThaiBirds_2018_for_download.xlsx

[Skeptic7]

Hoping this doesn't muddle it up further, but seems to be another extreme case of lumping and splitting over the years. Regardless...based on the info below, it can be reasonably deduced that a subspecies of this quail is found in northern Thailand...despite disagreements in Common, as well as, Scientific names. The 2018 version of "Clements/eBird Checklist of Birds of the World" (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) does not even include Excalfactoria at all, which is confusing to say the least. Perhaps Excalfactoria is an addition that will show on next year's list, as it is only updated once per year, due to it's being so extensive. 

 

This from Wikipedia...

The king quail (Excalfactoria chinensis), also known as the blue-breasted quail, Asian blue quail, Chinese painted quail, or Chung-Chi, is a species of Old World quail in the family Phasianidae. This species is the smallest "true quail", ranging in the wild from southeastern Asia to Oceania with 10 different subspecies.

 

...and from some more bird specific and reputable Ornithology sources in respective order...xeno-canto (range maps clearly showing CMai), HBW, Birdlife Int'l and the latest species/subspecies breakdown from Cornell:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2018 by Skeptic7

[jak2002003]

3 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

Hoping this doesn't muddle it up further, but seems to be another extreme case of lumping and splitting over the years. Regardless...based on the info below, it can be reasonably deduced that a subspecies of this quail is found in northern Thailand...despite disagreements in Common, as well as, Scientific names. The 2018 version of "Clements/eBird Checklist of Birds of the World" (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) does not even include Excalfactoria at all, which is confusing to say the least. Perhaps Excalfactoria is an addition that will show on next year's list, as it is only updated once per year, due to it's being so extensive. 

 

This from Wikipedia...

The king quail (Excalfactoria chinensis), also known as the blue-breasted quail, Asian blue quail, Chinese painted quail, or Chung-Chi, is a species of Old World quail in the family Phasianidae. This species is the smallest "true quail", ranging in the wild from southeastern Asia to Oceania with 10 different subspecies.

 

...and from some more bird specific and reputable Ornithology sources in respective order...xeno-canto (range maps clearly showing CMai), HBW, Birdlife Int'l and the latest species/subspecies breakdown from Cornell:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fantastic information you found!   I looked for ages, but the into was mostly very vague about their distribution... and also lots on into on the domesticated bird as a pet.

 

I have got a recording of the males call and am going to go there again in the evening (without the dogs this time) and play the recording and see any birds reply or show up.  Will keep you posted.

 

 

[Bredbury Blue]

Sundowners on the balcony today

 

 

[tutsiwarrior]

ah, such a relief that this topic has started again...people and their dogs make me wanna uurgh...

 

recently there have been lotsa little fellas around with cream colored feathers and a cri-cri-cricking call...I'm wondering if they are migratory as I don't see them often, sorta finch like...

 

is there a lot of migratory activity this time of year? seems quite late...

 

 

[AjarnNorth]

Yard bird of the day, yesterday, as I rarely leave the yard on NY's Eve. Black-winged Cuckooshrike. Resident in north Thailand but winter visitor to central. I get a few sightings a year, and nearly always from my yard.

[AjarnNorth]

6 hours ago, tutsiwarrior said:

ah, such a relief that this topic has started again...people and their dogs make me wanna uurgh...

 

recently there have been lotsa little fellas around with cream colored feathers and a cri-cri-cricking call...I'm wondering if they are migratory as I don't see them often, sorta finch like...

 

is there a lot of migratory activity this time of year? seems quite late...

 

 

There are a lot of winter visitors around between September and April, but that doesn't mean that what you are seeing are necessarily winter visitors. Can you get a photo? Even a phone photo can go a long way towards an ID. 

[tutsiwarrior]

hard to get photos as most sightings are outside my kitchen window that overlooks undeveloped land (back end of a shop house) but I'll keep it in mind and see what I can do...

[Briggsy]

17 minutes ago, tutsiwarrior said:

hard to get photos as most sightings are outside my kitchen window that overlooks undeveloped land (back end of a shop house) but I'll keep it in mind and see what I can do...

Plain Prinia?

 

They tend to like areas with long grass.

 

http://orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=2042&Bird_Image_ID=37212&Bird_Family_ID=&p=48

 

Where are you in Thailand?

[tutsiwarrior]

9 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

Plain Prinia?

 

They tend to like areas with long grass.

 

http://orientalbirdimages.org/search.php?Bird_ID=2042&Bird_Image_ID=37212&Bird_Family_ID=&p=48

 

Where are you in Thailand?

 

yeah, that sorta looks like them...would need to hear the bird call which is a cric. cric. cric...plenty of long grass behind the house, a canal/klong wall collapsed and the area is perpetually flooded...tons of birds around and plenty of well fed monitor lizards...

 

I'm in the Songphinong district in south Suphanburi...

 

 

Edited January 1, 2019 by tutsiwarrior

[AjarnNorth]

7 minutes ago, tutsiwarrior said:

 

yeah, that sorta looks like them...would need to hear the bird call which is a cric. cric. cric...plenty of long grass behind the house, a canal/klong wall collapsed and the area is perpetually flooded...tons of birds around and plenty of well fed monitor lizards...

 

I'm in the Songphinong district in south Suphanburi...

 

 

Your call description matches Dusky Warbler, which is a winter visitor that likes wet areas such as you describe above. You can listen here. https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Phylloscopus-fuscatus

 

Click the files that list "call" rather than "song." The top one s a good example of the call. 

 

Your "finch like" description suggests Munia, but they're not exactly cream colored and don't match the call. 

 

Though it's also sometimes the case that one sees a bird and hears a call and the call can actually be from another bird in close proximity that is not being seen. 

[Briggsy]

23 minutes ago, tutsiwarrior said:

 

yeah, that sorta looks like them...would need to hear the bird call which is a cric. cric. cric...plenty of long grass behind the house, a canal/klong wall collapsed and the area is perpetually flooded...tons of birds around and plenty of well fed monitor lizards...

 

I'm in the Songphinong district in south Suphanburi...

 

 

That would certainly be a perfect habitat for plain prinias (and for many other species!) and they are present in Suphanburi all year round. The call is repetitive. Here are some samples.

 

https://www.xeno-canto.org/explore?query=Plain+prinia

 

If you can see it through binoculars (usually when it is singing from the top of a reed or grass stalk) look for the red/orange eye and distinctive undertail pattern.

 

https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/plain-prinia-inornata-beautiful-grey-bird-592636760

 

 

[tutsiwarrior]

5 minutes ago, AjarnNorth said:

Your call description matches Dusky Warbler, which is a winter visitor that likes wet areas such as you describe above. You can listen here. https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Phylloscopus-fuscatus

 

Click the files that list "call" rather than "song." The top one s a good example of the call. 

 

Your "finch like" description suggests Munia, but they're not exactly cream colored and don't match the call. 

 

Though it's also sometimes the case that one sees a bird and hears a call and the call can actually be from another bird in close proximity that is not being seen. 

 

yeah...the third dusky warbler listed on the xeno website sounds like it and I saw that one clearly from my bedroom window on the front terrace...and not finch like but with an extended beak and I saw it calling...cute little fellers...

 

what can anyone recommend about bird feeders? it's easy enough to hang some around, kitchen window and front terrace but what about the bird feed and etc? I got my area cleared of feral cats and etc...most of them mysteriously disappeared over a few days but one tomcat remained and now all the remaining females are pregnant again but they all remain outside of my 'perimeter'...

 

lotsa activity on the front terrace around sunrise and sometimes their nattering wakes me up...the nicest way to awake from slumber...

 

 

[rumak]

outside my window......near chomtong (way to Intanon).   a young one....only seen that one time.

Miss my old camera now........ only had time for one species of bird till i settled down.

[AjarnNorth]

4 minutes ago, rumak said:

outside my window......near chomtong (way to Intanon).   a young one....only seen that one time.

Miss my old camera now........ only had time for one species of bird till i settled down.

Shikra. Or most definitely a Shikra, anyway... The default Accipiter in Thailand and fairly common, but always a cool bird to see. 

[Skeptic7]

12 hours ago, tutsiwarrior said:

recently there have been lotsa little fellas around with cream colored feathers and a cri-cri-cricking call

The verdict is definitely still out! A pic is worth a thousand chips, so do either of these pix match your bird?

 

Top is Dusky Warbler...short bill, short tail. Lower is Plain Prinia...long bill, long tail. In the right light, both can appear creamy colored on their under parts, so focus mainly on bill and tail if you get good views.

 

 

 

[tutsiwarrior]

4 hours ago, Skeptic7 said:

The verdict is definitely still out! A pic is worth a thousand chips, so do either of these pix match your bird?

 

Top is Dusky Warbler...short bill, short tail. Lower is Plain Prinia...long bill, long tail. In the right light, both can appear creamy colored on their under parts, so focus mainly on bill and tail if you get good views.

 

 

 

 

it's definitely the plain prinia that I saw on my front terrace outside my bedroom window also by the call that I heard/saw him emit...not very musical but he let you know that he was hanging around...there's usually a gang of sparrows that cluster there at that hour in the am and they were flustered...

 

https://www.xeno-canto.org/species/Prinia-inornata?view=3

 

flustered, clustering birds...I like that...very Gerard Manley Hopkins...

 

 

[AjarnNorth]

Plain Prinia are common residents and much easier to see than Dusky Warblers. They like to take to the top of reeds or small trees and show themselves. 

 

Dusky Warblers are winter visitors and very skulking. They flit around in under brush and bushes and reeds, almost always close to water, and will only occasionally come out for a brief few seconds here and there to allow a decent look (or photo). Not the most skulking of the warblers by any means - those prizes would have to go to Lanceolated and Pallas's Grasshopper. In many years of birding, I have had only one good look at a Lancey (and an OK, IDable photo) and because I was familiar with the call of the PGW, I spent nearly an entire day next to a reed bed listening to it before it popped up once and I grabbed a look and a photo. 

 

Keep an eye - and an ear - out for Yellow-bellied Prinia as well. One of their calls almost sounds like a crying kitten. 

 

[Skeptic7]

So always fun to start a new yard/patch list, so here I am 3 days at my new getaway house in Nakhon Nowhere (aka Nong Prue, Kanchanaburi).???? Newly built and almost finished, but still being painted and furnished...with tons of cleanup and landscaping yet to do.

 

Taking every opportunity to shirk the work and peruse the beautiful view (lake and mountains) and every feathery flyby. Here's the best of what I've managed of the 32 species so far. 4 Life birds! 

 

Red-wattled Lapwing 

Ashy Woodswallow 

Red-rumped Swallow 

Richard's or Pattyfield Pipit (got good pix, just haven't nailed it down yet. Nearly identical and indistinguishable, especially when zero prior experience with these sp. Size is a major factor, but only for those with familiar with both, for perspective. Will post when time permits) 

 

Will post the full (hopefully longer) list when back in BKK in another week or so. 

 

[tutsiwarrior]

saw a bright yellow little guy out on the front terrace this morning that I hadn't seen before...is there more migration in these parts (central Thailand) during the cold weather than other times of the year?

 

 

[jak2002003]

2 hours ago, tutsiwarrior said:

saw a bright yellow little guy out on the front terrace this morning that I hadn't seen before...is there more migration in these parts (central Thailand) during the cold weather than other times of the year?

 

 

I think there are more birds arriving this time of year as they come from China where the weather is getting cold.

 

Have you a photo of the yellow bird?  Maybe an escaped canary lol.

 

Actually, I quite fancy a pet canary again.... anyone know if they sell them in Chiang Mai?

 

 

[tutsiwarrior]

51 minutes ago, jak2002003 said:

I think there are more birds arriving this time of year as they come from China where the weather is getting cold.

 

Have you a photo of the yellow bird?  Maybe an escaped canary lol.

 

Actually, I quite fancy a pet canary again.... anyone know if they sell them in Chiang Mai?

 

 

 

yeah, I thought about the escaped canary thing but where I live most folks are poor and don't keep birds in cages as pets...lively little bugger, he saw me intruding then shot off like a rocket with a flash of yellow plumage before I could say hello...

 

 

[jak2002003]

1 hour ago, tutsiwarrior said:

 

yeah, I thought about the escaped canary thing but where I live most folks are poor and don't keep birds in cages as pets...lively little bugger, he saw me intruding then shot off like a rocket with a flash of yellow plumage before I could say hello...

 

 

If it was running / hopping about on the ground quickly, and had a long tail, with a yellow rump I guess is it was a wagtail.  Have a search on the net and see images for 'grey wagtails' and 'yellow wagtails'.

[tutsiwarrior]

On 1/20/2019 at 6:27 PM, jak2002003 said:

If it was running / hopping about on the ground quickly, and had a long tail, with a yellow rump I guess is it was a wagtail.  Have a search on the net and see images for 'grey wagtails' and 'yellow wagtails'.

 

the rump feathers were not pronounced so don't think that it was a wag tail...out the back kitchen window saw another yellow bird but not the same one, flitting about on the ground...a niece had been out the back turning over the soil and harvesting some green papayas and a stalk of bananas which were nice and ripe...the birds had been gettin' at 'em...

 

 

[Skeptic7]

Up to 42 sp after 6 days the new patch in Nong Prue, Kanchanaburi. Also 2 more Lifers! 

Green-billed Malkoha

Purple Heron 

[Briggsy]

So, not strictly in my garden (I am in a condo).

 

I found lots of feathers together in Khao Khieow forest, typical of evidence of a raptor, probably an accipiter, having devoured some prey.

 

I took 4 of the feathers as they were distinctive but I couldn't be sure what bird had the misfortune to be eaten.

 

The 2 feathers on the left look like they come from the body or the wing. I suspect the 2 on the right are tail feathers. The feather on the far left is 19 cm from the base of the shaft to the tip, i.e. the full length. All the feathers on the scene, except the tail feathers, had this grey-brown and white barring to some extent. There were no other colours. The tail feathers have wider barring in dark brown and lighter brown.

 

Any idea what bird was killed. I can only think of a hawk-cuckoo but it is not really common there.

[jak2002003]

21 hours ago, Briggsy said:

So, not strictly in my garden (I am in a condo).

 

I found lots of feathers together in Khao Khieow forest, typical of evidence of a raptor, probably an accipiter, having devoured some prey.

 

I took 4 of the feathers as they were distinctive but I couldn't be sure what bird had the misfortune to be eaten.

 

The 2 feathers on the left look like they come from the body or the wing. I suspect the 2 on the right are tail feathers. The feather on the far left is 19 cm from the base of the shaft to the tip, i.e. the full length. All the feathers on the scene, except the tail feathers, had this grey-brown and white barring to some extent. There were no other colours. The tail feathers have wider barring in dark brown and lighter brown.

 

Any idea what bird was killed. I can only think of a hawk-cuckoo but it is not really common there.

My guess is a female or young Asian koel.   

 

 

 

[Briggsy]

That would be more likely and also follow the cuckoo family theme. I tend to think of female / juvenile koels as spotted but, of course, that is an overall picture made up of many feathers. So, individual feathers would appear barred rather than spotted. This probably explains my confusion.

[Skeptic7]

So after nearly 2 weeks at the new patch in Nong Prue, Kanchanaburi...45 is the current yard list total. Best birds were, of course, the 7 lifers. Also got another lifer about 2km down the soi...Little Ringed Plover...sadly not on the yard list (yet), but nice addition to the Thailand list (last pic below).

 

Green-billed Malkoha (pic #1)

Purple Heron 

Red-wattled Lapwing (#2)

Black-headed Bulbul

Ashy Woodswallow (#3 & 4)

Red-rumped Swallow 

Richard's or Paddyfield Pipit (possibly both. more on these and pix in a future post)