Sky and Water

Ulu Trengganu, 22nd October 2010

 

After Pergau, my next assignment was in the Ulu Trengganu Project area. It was a pleasant drive from Jeli to Kuala Brang, passing through some of the most spectacular sights near Gua Musang and those along Kenyir Lake. Unfortunately, the weather condition does not allow for much photographic opportunities. Anyway, I’d like to share some the images I captured during my earlier trip along this route.

 

Early morning along the East-West Highway near Pergau.

 

 

Mid-afternoon on the K. Brang – Gua Musang road.

 

 

And you can even have a cool and refreshing break at one of these beautiful streams located along the road.

Tok Janggut – Red-Bearded Bee-eater

Renyok Intake Road, Jeli 20th October 2010

 

Even with their loud, hoarse, gruff ‘chachachacha’, you’ll have to carefully search the location in order to locate them. Their habit of sitting motionless and leaf-green color of their plumage make them difficult to spot.  From my observation, their behavior and colorations actually helped them in catching their prey.

See how well this female RB Bee-eater ( more red, less purple on crown) blends with the green background.

 

From a distance, bees and other insects are lured by the bright red, pinkish purple color of the head, which resemble a pretty flower full of nectar. As the bees get within range, all she has to do is just grab them or sometimes make a short dash to catch the prey – pretty clever trick!

A female RB Bee-eater swirling her head while trying to catch some insect from her perch.

 

Returning to her perch after a short dash to grab her prey.

 

The female RB Bee-eater above was shot in Kg. Lawar 4 days earlier. This male RB Bee-Eater (all pinkish-purple crown) was shot near Renyok Intake on the 20th Oct. 2010. I noticed that he was not hunting hence the preference for a more open area.

 

Even in open area, I think bees and other insects will still be attracted by the color….

 

 

They attract not only bees and insects, but photographers too !

Temminck’s Sunbird

Pergau, 20th October 2010

I was driving along the road to Renyok Intake when I saw this bright red little bird flew across the road about 50m in front of me. I quickly grabbed my gear and shot a few frames through the car window. I knew very well that without a suitable support, getting good photographs of this little bird is next to impossible but since this is a lifer for me, I wouldn’t want to miss the opportunity without trying. Something is always better than nothing! Don’t you think so?

Getting a clean shot of this ‘super-active’ little bird was made even more difficult by the dense leaves and branches of the tree that he chose to land on. Here are some of the photos that I managed to capture.

 

 

Looking at the white spots on the breast and the shorter than expected tail, I believe this is a young male.

Is this a Finch’s Bulbul?

Kg. Lawar, Jeli, 16 October 2010

 

I’m not really sure of it’s ID but based on Craig Robson’s book, the closest match is a Finch’s Bulbul or is it Olive Bulbul or could it be an Olive-Winged Bulbul? Hope those experts out there could help me with the ID.

 

Just couldn’t get clear shots of the back because the bird appeared right above me and I couldn’t back off on time …..

  

 

Looking for some variations to their normal diet of fruits and berries, I supposed….

Blue-Winged Leafbird

Kuala Yong Dam, Pergau, 17th October 2010

 

To the naked eye, this female Blue-Winged Leafbird looked a little plain but with a little help from the camera, she certainly looks quite attractive.

 

Off course the male looks much more attractive but I just couldn’t get any shots of him even though he appeared not far from the female.

 

A week later I managed to capture a few images of the same Blue-Winged Leafbird in Ulu Trengganu near Kenyir Reservoir.

 

Shrike Season

Kg. Lawar, Jeli, 16th October 2010

 

Looks like the Shrikes season has started. They seem to be everywhere!

It was almost noon when I spotted this black and white colored bird. From a distant it looked almost like the Oriental Magpie Robin but as I moved closer I realized that it was a Bar-Winged Flycatcher Shrike.

It’s always tough to get good exposures under such a harsh lighting condition.

 

Shooting against bright sky makes it even tougher…

 

As I walked further down the track, I spotted another Shrike and it was a Brown Shrike. Unfortunately, I could not get a clean shot of the bird.

Velvet-Fronted Nuthatch

Kuala Yong Dam, Pergau, 17th October 2010

 

A truly remarkable bird with the ability to climb up and down tree-trunks and branches while foraging for food.  Note that all photos below were cropped but no rotations were applied.

 

It’s just amazing to watch them move effortlessly up and down the tree-trunks.

 

Unfortunately, the range and lighting was not in my favor to allow better shots of this amazing bird.