Grey Throated Babblers

31st  December 2010, Old Gombak Road , Selangor

Decided to try a new location, along the old Gombak road. Spotted  a pair of Grey Throated Babblers  making their way in the bamboo trees (managed to shoot only one)

Female Yellow-Rumped Flycatcher

5th December 2010, Kemensah , Selangor

Any ideas what this is. Looks like some kind of Shrike Babbler. Update 24/12/2010: This turns out to be a Yellow-Rumped  Flycatcher. The  thick bill in the photo made it looked like something else. Thanks all for contributing ideas on the possible ID.

Lesser Coucal

5th December 2010, Kemensah , Selangor

Distant shots of a Lesser Coucal which flew to the other side of a pond when I unintentionally encroached into her comfort zone.

Young Ferruginous Flycatcher

5th December 2010, Kemensah , Selangor

Back in Kemensah. Tried a different patch , near the ATV park. Found this young migrant flycatcher busy sallying  for insects. The streaks on the head and back indicate that she’s a young bird. ( click here for pics of the adult bird)

Great one Little one: Egrets

28th November 2010,  Pantai Remis, Kuala Selangor.

Two  Egrets  were  in the area ; one non-breeding  Great Egret (yellow billed)  and   a  Little Egret . They looked nervous and very wary of human presence , almost impossible to get closer for any good  shots. I think there’s a saying ‘ it comes easy when you’re not trying’: definitely the case here. The Great Egret flew onto a nearby tree: don’t know whether she realized that I wasn’t  too far away. The Little one  made a fly-by in front of my camera!

Common Sandpiper

28th November 2010,  Pantai Remis, Kuala Selangor.

I spotted only two Common Sandpipers during the  entire trip; not so common after all!

Little Herons of Pantai Remis

28th November 2010,  Pantai Remis, Kuala Selangor.

The sun came out during the earlier part of my trip to Pantai Remis/Jeram. The Little Herons  had me  by the shoreline looking at their  hunting techniques.   Nice little catfish as  reward for her perseverance.

Common Redshanks & Terek Sandpipers

28th November 2010,  Jeram, Kuala Selangor.

It has been a while since my last outing. Got my Nikon D7000 on Saturday night so I just had to get out and  give it a real test. Drove to Jeram beach to see if the shore birds were around.  It was still high tide  and not much of the mud flats was exposed. They were the only group in the area consisting of Common Redshanks and Terek Sandpipers ( smaller with upturned bill). Lighting was poor and it had started to drizzle when I began shooting. The D7000 is definitely a vast improvement over my trusted D90. Improved  High ISO performance, 16.2mp and faster continuous auto focussing just made it a lot easier to obtain sharp images.  In my opinion,  it’s well worth the investment.

Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Local Name: Rembah Bukit.  Scientific Name: (Hemipus picatus)  It’s not a good picture but I don’t have many of this species.

Grey-Chinned Minivets

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Local Name: Mas Dagu Kelabu.  Scientific Name: ((Pericrocotus solaris)  Somehow you will always bump into this species when you’re in the highlands. Normally they would forage in a small group and often in a bird wave consisting of other  montane species. The male The female

Rhinocerous Hornbill

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Local Name: Enggang Badak.  Scientific Name: (Buceros rhinoceros)  My head was in auto mode, searching for the source of the loud  ‘whooshing’ sound. Then I saw this female Rhinocerous Hornbill stopping on a nearby tree.- a truly magnificent sight.

Spectacled Laughingthrush

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Local Name:.  Scientific Name: (Rhinocichla mitrata)  Used to be called  the Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush, this particular bird seemed really curious as to what I was up to!

Today’s Highlight : Tiger Shrike

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Local Name: Tirjup Rimau.  Scientific Name: (Lanius tigrinus)  A vertical ray of light was shining though the leaves, directly onto this bird producing very dramatic light  & shadows. These images were shot  without the use of flash so  as to capture/ retain  the highlights on the feathers. Tough but very satisfying in the end.

Mountain Fulvetta

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

Although quite  common in the  highlands capturing decent photos of this quick moving bird poses a great challenge.

Lesser Yellownape

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

I was taking a break below this tree when my eyes was attracted to some movements  from behind the giant ferns; It was this female Woodpecker (Picus chlorolophus) pecking away . A lifer My only decent shot .

2nd Time Lucky: Black-Thighed Falconet

31st October 2010, Old Pump House Road, Genting Highland, Pahang

I looked from my  bedroom  window and saw that  the hills of Genting was very clear, no fog and no signs of possible rain. OK Genting it is for today, It’s been more than a year since my last trip  to this location. Yes it was a bright and clear day when I arrived at the gates around 7.40am,  Pretty quiet, I just hoped that it wouldn’t be a day of many NOs …… No fog No mist No rain No joggers and……. No birds!  About 1 km along the road I  saw her, high up on a dead tree trunk, a lone Black-Thighed Falconet. She’s one of the smallest raptors in the world. Just too high for any good photos. Then proceeded along the track to shoot other birds in a bird wave. I saw her again on my way back, about 150m from the entrance gate. This time I was in luck, she was only about 30 ft away and just slightly above my eye level!  Shot a few frames but I wasn’t too happy , too many obstructions. In case you’re wondering why check out the video! Managed to find a location with cleaner foreground & background.