Almost nondescript, the Great Myna could easily be dismissed for any of the more common mynas.
However, look again, its crest does holler for attention, one rather chic looking one too, a feature that lifts it off its otherwise drab outlook - now spunky, jaunty, strutting like John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever!
The Great Myna or White-vented Myna (Acridotheres grandis) may be a common bird but it's not so regularly sighted, at least in the taman. It stands out because its gorgeous chunk of black glossy and spiky crest.
And these birds go by the local names of Tiong Berjambul/Jambul or Tiong Tongkeng Putih which reflect appropriately their most distinct features of the spiky crest and white lower or underpart respectively.
The birds were busy foraging and being very successful with the insects it picked up from the grass which was why they didn't mind my presence.
And these birds do not fly off but merely scurried away if you attempt to go nearer. And as far as I know there are merely a handful of these mynas here, compared to the other myna species, since a pair was first sighted here a few years back so it looks like these mynas do not breed as fast as the other mynas.
