Hadada Ibis

 Shrieking and screaming, and criss-crossing at one end of the taman, the pair of Hadada Ibises announced their presence in the taman, yet not, as they kept to the taman edge, refusing to land inside.

As I was passing by

Thanks for for the pose, again.

Capturing the Ibis's sheen

Every photographer would dream of shooting the Hadada Ibis at its iridescent best!  The bird by and large has a greyish brownish body but it's the iridescent purplish greenish sheen that makes all the difference in this bird.
This was the only window of opportunity to capture this bird and its gorgeous plumage as sunlight falls spot on on its feathers. 

In contrast, and ironically the sheen is lost when the bird is seen in brighter light.

Just a couple of hours ago, this Ibis was making its presence known, flying about with its blaring calls, before it ventured down to perch for a considerable period of time and finally down to strut.  It pretty much dominated this part of the taman, and was caught even chasing off the sub-adult Brahminy Kite that had also flown down to drink.

 

'Big' display by Ibis

It's so lovely to see these big birds preening one another.  These Hadada Ibises certainly are no different from any other birds, displaying affectionate-like gestures.

Before that they were much absorbed in their own preening.
This one didn't look too happy to see me but ignored that and walked away to return, the birds would continue to do what they were doing.

Ibis visitors

Many thanks to an alert from another birding enthusiast I hurried to the taman for this pair of Hadada Ibis, still foraging by the pond.  I last sighted these birds in the taman in 2015.
These birds are common wading birds of Africa, found in grasslands, rainforests and urban parks.  They seek mainly earthworms, and as we could observe from afar, they continuously poked their long bills into the ground in search of food but not even once did they venture into the water to seek.  However the birds are also known to feed on insects, small lizards, snails, spiders and beetles.

I believe these birds would make repeat visits to the taman in view of the numerous long fat worms they managed to dig up. 

This handsome pair seemed unfazed by our presence and continued with their foraging.

However they were disturbed by one walking past them talking loudly on the mobile, and their piercing raucous cries could be heard as they flew off in different directions.  
This was indeed a striking pair and one would assume that the less attractive one, the browner one would be the female.
It's interesting to observe that the browner one spots a more striking red on its upper bill compared to its partner, the one with the more beautiful glossy green on its wings.

One flew right up to the top of the tallest palm tree and continued to cry out.

An hour later when I came up to the same spot, the pair was already down on the ground again.  It was another photo opportunity of this gorgeous creature.

This time despite spotting me they continued foraging, as I was just a quiet observer.

Another loud intrusion from a taman worker and the birds flew up together this time into the upper canopy of nearby trees, and seemed pretty comfortable and contented to remain there, even as I left.

The art of flying

Sometimes you fly down
Sometimes you fly up
There are also times you fly beside
Everyone wants to fly high
It simply depends on where you want to go

It's up and away 

It's just going to be across

It's taking off, not sure how high it'll go

It can be over and about, and off

Thats' how everyone wants to fly, up and high

Plunge or dive, it's still a flight

A visitor to the park

I have come from far
I have made my home here
But today I wander
away from home

This is me, glad to meet you

And this is my other half