A Weaver and its magic

It was just a Baya Weaver I thought.  Then its lonesome figure weaves (leaving up to its name, what else) a little magic, which I always find in this taman because of the light and space that could frame any bird in any mood.

  
This little bird simply exudes quietness and confidence, definitely not loneliness.

A raptor foster relationship?

I could not believe it when I saw this smaller bird flying after the bigger one which I could make out immediately to be a Crested Serpent-eagle.  It took awhile to locate the birds which I was hoping desperately would still be around.  I spotted the Serpent-eagle first.

And then the smaller one came into sight.

And just as I had guessed, it's the sub-adult Crested Goshawk.  

And strange enough, it kept flying around the big one as if trying to get its attention although it did keep its distance.

The Goshawk flew and perched from one spot to another but there was no response from the other.

And the Serpent-eagle remained at its spot all the while.

The Goshawk's behaviour was difficult to decipher.  It looked like this bird is now left to fend for itself as I've not seen any of its parents anymore.  Could it therefore be trying to seek a foster parent, if at all juvenile raptors do that, and of another species?
Why would this Goshawk try to get close to the Serpent-eagle?

The Serpent-eagle was totally unperturbed by the presence and movements of the smaller bird.

Again the smaller bird looked like it was trying to get close.

And this was the closest the Goshawk got to the Serpent-eagle before the bigger one flew off followed after by the smaller one.

Taman Malkoha

The taman is a favourite foraging ground of another of the cuckoo family, the Green-billed Malkoha.  It's not an easy bird to photograph simply because of its long tail which one could easy miss out because of its white tip.

A pair came along but unfortunately there was no opportunity to have a two-in-one shot so I had to be contented with close-ups.

Even with different lighting conditions, one cannot deny the beauty of this bird.

Three Koels

The Asian Koel's calls were most loudly heard from December to February, and thereafter hardly, which led me to believe that this was a migrant bird.  Then I came across it in May through to July too so it looked like this bird could be a resident in the taman, definitely so now, as I  just saw it again.

This female suddenly emerged from the undergrowth because of an unnatural call which shocked me as I didn't expect it to be down there.

This led me in search for the male which I was pretty sure was somewhere around, and so it was, up a tree, a few metres away.

And surprise, surprise, another one came into sight, on the same tree.  I waited for the two to confront one another as I thought it could be two males vying for the female, unfortunately it never happened as the two were contented to stay where they were for the duration I observed them.  However, this one seemed to be searching and although looked like it was calling, no call actually could be heard.

Heron, plus

There is always something to learn and this time I do blame myself for not taking the effort to find out earlier the reason for the difference between these two conditions of the Little Heron, which I have noticed before.

It's only when I noticed, again, the orange-red legs and skin by the eye tip and bill corner that were so striking, more so this this time, that it had me doing a little search as to the reason.
So, as I learn this indicates that this Heron is in prime breeding condition.
A little colour sure adds to its beauty!

Sunbathing Lizard

And there we have it - the Monitor Lizard always striding like a monarch in this area of the river.  However this is a young one.

I thought initially it was stalking something.

And to my surprise it just lied flat-out, basking in the sunniest part of the sand bar.  And how it sprawled!

And the sunbathing was too soon over as it took to the water and disappeared.

First migrant sighted

Down by the river, as I was lamenting the poor bird show in the taman and by the river, what did I see as I turned to get back to the taman?  The first one had landed, I thought.  From the distance I quickly took a shot and I was right.  The Grey Wagtail is the very first migrant to have flown in here.

Once again, it is proven how strategic the taman is located.  It does provide a transit or stay-over point for many migrant birds.  The migratory period is just beginning and wintering birds from the north will arrive here soon and what a time to look forward to!
(Last year there was a record of almost 50 migrant birds sighted in this small urban taman, many for the first time).
1/2018

Back to the Wagtail, all I could manage subsequently were the following blurred images.  As I hurried up the ramp to get closer shots, the bird suddenly took off, and I kicked myself because I thought it was my sudden movements to get closer.

Then I found out what was the culprit because this one suddenly came into sight (more on this one in the next article).

Growing bulbul population

Seeing this family of Stripe-throated Bulbuls was most uplifting as it meant that the population of this bird will grow.  It is not common to spot these bulbuls in any urban park so it does make this taman special.
It was this foraging adult that alerted me to its presence and a movement by this clump of flowers next alerted me to  two young ones perching right there.

The immatures and adult were truly well camouflaged amidst the common colours.  It was thus not a surprise that this Bulbul loved to reside in this part of the taman.

On spotting me, the birds fled.

But this one was obviously slower than the rest.

On sensing other presence it's common for both parents to get together, protective instinct, even though I was on the other side of the river, not at all close by.

Still eyeing me from afar.