A Kite and its fish

It's definitely no sharing between these two Brahminy Kites, even as mates.  I first saw one perching (and look like it spotted me too), then the mate came although I didn't realise there was a fish at claw.  Then it looked like the earlier one had to give way to the one with the prize.

It took me a while to realise there were two Kites here until the earlier one flew off.

Then the feasting began and this Kite seemed to take longer to finish off a fish compared to being with a rodent (as my earlier encounter with the Kite with a rodent showed the Kite finishing off the rodent within minutes as at http://rimbakiara.blogspot.my/2017/08/a-kite-and-its-feast.html).

The Kite preparing to fly off with an unfinished fish, the fish still in its claw.

It looked like an aborted flight but it did take off eventually and too sudden and unexpected for me to photograph its flight.

A natural time out

What does one do while waiting for the target bird to appear?  Take shots of whatever come around naturally!

A lesson learnt with the Waterhen

When I saw this White-breasted Waterhen it was busy calling out.  When I came round again it looked like one leg was hooked on to something in the water which had me rather worried.  So I approached it thinking that I could perhaps try to release it, and then I believed I made a terrible mistake, as it suddenly took off, to my relief though.  It could have been fishing or trying to fool the fishes to come close to it by standing still and I had to butt in!
     It was so busy calling out that it did not mind me walking past and stopping to take shots at it, which is rare.  But it's a rare occasion I treasure as it enabled me to get sharper images.

It was in this awkward pose for a few minutes which fooled me, and did not even move when I stopped to take these photos.  Ah well, another lesson learned!

Common but not so common here

It's a triumph when rare birds, especially migratory ones like this Common Kingfisher is seen in the taman, but it's a birder's nightmare when the only images you manage to get are blurry to say the least.  And in my case, I literally saw my target fly off (pun intended).
     Here's desperately hoping that it could still be around and be sighted again.  This bird could be from north Africa, Eurasia, the Indian subcontinent, China, Taiwan, Korea or Japan.  It feeds mainly on fish but will also go for frogs, insects and lizards.

Closer now, Flycatcher-shrike

This Black-winged Flycatcher-shrike decided to oblige me with a closer look at it today as it flew right above where I was seated.  In fact there was a pair of them but as usual it's always tricky to get them in a single frame.  It is a beautiful bird indeed, with its varied feather shades.

Is it or it not that Flycatcher-shrike?

I thought it was good to see this Black-winged Flycatcher-shrike again as I saw it a few months back and has been wanting to sight it again, hoping that it's not just a transit bird.  But on re-examining I might be mistaken because the best images of a bird would be one that leaves no doubt in the mind about its identity.
     Therefore when one gets shots like the following that create doubt, it's most frustrating because it means another chase to track this bird to ascertain its ID.
     These two shots definitely leave much to be desired, having to determine whether these are of the Black-winged or Bar-winged FC.  Ah well, that's a birder's obsession, an ideal shot need not be the most beautiful one, just one that clearly defines the ID of the bird.

Frog find

Found this little fella on a leaf.  Need to find out more about frogs but this one is too cute to delay posting, and it's not easy to find a nice one like this in the taman.  In fact, I think it's my first find of a frog.

Migrant Warbler

Another wonderful sighting for the taman, the latest migrant visitor being the Arctic Warbler.  This tiny bird of about 13cm can come from Siberia, north-eastern China, Japan or even Alaska to escape winter there.
     It can be found in parks, forest and forest edge and mangroves.  It tends to stay at middle to top canopy level of trees, and is continuously active so not too easy to take shots of this one.

Not just a Lizard

I first saw this Monitor Lizard a few months back and I did wonder how long it would last here before it perhaps landed up in some cooking pot!

It has managed to survive after all, and was seen out hunting.  This reptile could be out looking for frogs, snakes, rodents, eggs, even insects and birds.  The forked tongue was most busy, flicking constantly, being after all its navigator to guide it to its preys.