Oyumi-Ike

It was such a beautiful autumnal day that I couldn't help making a detour to walk around Omiyu-ike on my shopping trip:)

The surface of the pond was covered thickly with aquatic plants.

Spot-billed Ducks (Karugamoカルガモ) and 

 A Moorhen (Banバン) were making the most of it.

I'm not sure what sort of plant they are...  homework!

A cormorant was sitting quietly on the edge of the concrete wier.

I had a closer look at his lovely green eyes and webbed feet:)

Two Kingfishers (Kawasemiカワセミ) were chasing each other and this female perched just a few yards away from where I was standing.

While I was attracted to the Kingfishers, a Great Egret landed in the water and immediately started hunting.

with two Moorhens

No wintering ducks have arrived yet (again!) but there were many signs of autumn and one of them was this.

A Bull-headed Shrike (Mozuモズ) was singing on top of a telegraph pole.
Mozu is written in Kanji as 百舌鳥 and each symbol means 'hundred', 'tongue', and 'bird', respectively.
He was mimicking many other birds songs and calls as his Japanese name suggests:) 

Chiba Port Park

On a sunny autumnal day, I cycled to Chiba Port Park, expecting some waders and wintering birds. BUT when I got there, it was at the lowest tide of the day and loads of people were on the beach cockling...

Well, I decided to sit down on the concrete bank and look out over the water.

not a beautiful sight of Chiba-minato but when I zoomed in...

Black-tailed Gulls (Uminekoウミネコ) were resting or floating on the water, which saved me from the disappointment.

On the concrete breakwater, a few Cormorants (Kawauカワウ) and two Grey Herons (Aosagiアオサギ) were preening/having a rest.

A pair of Carrion Crows (Hashibosogarasuハシボソガラス) landed just a few yards away from me. They seemed to have found something to eat on the concrete block.  Seaweed, molluscs or insects?

In the park, there were hundreds of Oriental Greenfinches (Kawarahiwaカワラヒワ), many of which were juveniles, feeding on the autumn harvest.

The usual park residents - Tree Sparrows (Suzumeスズメ)

A few dozen swifts were flying around the tower building but I was too far away to identify them. When eventually I got to the tower, they were gathered, flying very high and headed over the sea. Were they about to migrate south?


There were no waders but I spent a lovely hour in the park after all:)

Miyakogawa Mizunosato Koen

I didn't see any wintering birds in the Ecology Park so I cycled down to the Miyako stream to see if any shrikes had arrived - and Yes!

I heard their shrieking calls on tops of the trees, in which they were claiming their wintering territories.


Some Cormorants (Kawauカワウ) were resting on top of some telegraph poles and I had never seen them do so around this park before.

There were more than 300 Tree Sparrows in the paddie fields and in the trees around the fields. The sky was getting too dark so I didn't get a good picture of them but I had them on almost the same day of last year.

http://birdinginjapan.blogspot.jp/2014/09/miyakogawa-mizunosato-koen.html


Just like last year, there were grasshoppers and dragonflies everywhere!

Ecology Park

Back in Chiba, back to normal.
I spent a day in the hide in the Ecology Park.

It was a very quiet day as only 14 bird species were recorded for the whole day.

I was a bit expecting to see some migratory birds in the woods but no luck.
Instead, I spotted this juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron (Goisagiゴイサギ), who was just about to hide deep in the reedbeds.  

I didn't see him later on so I presume he rested in there? Who knows!

The only surviving Little Grebe chick, which hatched in the first half of August, has grown dramatically but he was still begging for food.

As I was observing, I noticed the parent(s?) sometimes gave him a crayfish or small fish but other time the parent(s) was very harsh on him, trying to shoo him away by pecking violently or even forcing him underwater. I got the feeling that the day he becomes independent is very close.

It was nice to see two young kingfishers, fishing and perching on the poles.

I'm looking forward to the arrival of the wintering birds in the park very much and I know I don't have to wait long now:)

Birding in Borneo X

Day 5 Poring Hot Springs 


In the bamboo garden by the lodge, our morning walk began with a lovely White-crowned Shama.

He noticed me getting closer on tiptoe.

massive Bornean Bamboo

bamboo shoots

a fallen leaf-like moth (sadly dead...)













a huge butterfly (I thought it was a bird!)

We walked on a path through the jungle, the kind of 'proper' jungle I had imagined:)

Canopy Walk - It was higher than I thought it'd be. You'd feel giddy if you don't like heights.

Raffle's Malkoha

its grey-ish head, white eye-ring, long orange-brown tail feathers with black and white tips
a rather elegant looking bird (difficult to see it in the photos...)


Crimson-winged Woodpecker - Argh!!!

I can tell you he was colourful and gorgeous!!



a bat cave

I didn't dare go in the cave of course! 

When I zoomed in, I was able to see many bats dangling from the ceiling and ones flying below them.

We saw a bat or two flying in the restaurant where we had dinner the previous night, attracted to the insects which were attracted to the lights in the restaurant. They may be resting now there:)

Sighting List: Crested Serpent Eagle, Chestnut-bellied Malkoha, Raffle's Malkoha, Bornean Banded (Oriental Dwarf) Kingfisher, Gorden-whiskdered Barbet, Red-crowned Barbet, Crimson-winged Woodpecker, Buff-necked Woodpecker, Black and Yellow Broadbill, Common Iora, Greater Racquet-tailed Drongo, White-breasted Woodswallow, Barn Swallow, Spectacled Bulbul, Hairy-backed Bulbul, Grey-cheeked Bulbul, Scaly-breasted Bulbul, Black-capped Babbler, Sooty-capped Babbler, Rufous-crowned Babbler, Oriental Magpie-robin, White-crowned Shama, Hill Blue Flycatcher, Pied Fantail, Orange-bellied Flowerpecker, Olive-backed Sunbird, Dusky Munia, Tree Sparrow
Banded Kingfisher (heard), Blue-eared Barbet (heard)

Osman and Julius kindly drove us back to Kinabalu Park, just in case the weather there got better and so that we might see some birds we would've missed. They were right again! We were able to see new birds even towards the end of our trip.

Sighiting List: Glossy Swiftlet, Checker-throated Woodpecker, Hair-crested Drongo, Bornean Green Magpie, Mountain Tailorbird, Mountain Leaf Warbler, Yellow-breasted Warbler, Sunda Laughingthrush, Chestnut-hooded Laughingthrush, Black-capped White-eye, Little Pied Flycatcher, Indigo Flycatcher, Temminck's Sunbird

Sighting from car back to Kota Kinabalu: Little Egret, Great Egret, Pacific Reef Egret, Brahminy Kite, Spotted Dove, Asian Glossy Starling, House Swift, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Chestnut Munia, Scaly-breasted Munia

That's the end of our birding trip with Osman and Julius from Borneo Eco Tours.
We had a great time with them and we would like to recommend them as your guide to you all who wish to have a special time in Sabah, Malaysia.



the tallest tropical tree species - shorea

We would like to go back to Borneo some time in the future, maybe on the eastern side of Sabah.