Missing In Action

Well, haven't done much shooting lately, was out of town also. The only thing I did(rather sinfully) was to get myself a new handphone. Was pretty frustrated with my old one as the volume was rather soft...not to mention the ringtone too!! Many a times, I wanted to move my butt and do some shooting, but the "pig" in me just refuses to move.

Am now also looking at purchasing another lens....guess I got the "lens bug", not satisfied with my current one......sigh, my pockets are going to be burnt pretty soon...

What has happened to this month? Seems to be raining almost every afternoon.....rain seems to be rather a mild word...should be more like a thunderstorm! With the rain goes all the animals into hiding........

My other pets

Wild Boar

Ubin's very own tame & trained Wild Boar

Dragonfly - Rhyothemis phyllis

Dragonfly - Rhyothemis severini

Dragonfly - Trithemis aurora

Dragonfly - Vestalis amethystina

Dragonfly - Trithemis festiva

Coppersmith Barbet

Lunch Break! Thought I'll take a walk along a small path looking for some subjects to shoot.....what a big mistake! Ended up being food for the mosquitos instead...so beat a hasty retreat back to my safe haven. As I was walking past the nursery towards my classroom, a movement above me caught my eye....a male Olivebacked Sunbird was having lunch but alas before I could focus on it, IT FLEW AWAY!!! So there I was standing under the tree in frustration. Just as I was about to walk away, another movement directly above me brought me back...as I strained my eyes at the branches, I finally saw this little bird "poking" it's head inside a small hole. I focused and when it's head finally appeared, I took my first shot but ended up with the bird's bum instead! Trust me, this bird shows more of it's bum than it's head!!!! Then I remembered my Sifu's advice "patience my young apprentice...patience".....so I remained in my spot for almost 45mins aiming my camera at the bird with my finger ready on the shutter before I managed to shoot this beautiful bird with it's head INTACT! Otherwise, I may have to post a headless bird! Well, at least it was worth waiting for 45mins otherwise I would not have managed to shoot these pictures of my first Coppersmith Barbet!.................SATISFACTION!!!!

Tanjong Piai

Unknown species....hahaha actually my boi boi
Male Olive-backed Sunbird having his dinner
God forbid....I don't know what species is this mudskipper
Striated Heron
Another god-bless-me....I also don't know what species is this mud-skipper

Just thought I share these photos with you....there were a lot more but all looked as blur as me....hahaha.....pictures taken with my Nikon Coolpix S4.

Great-billed Heron

Landing......Landed! Rather ungraceful for a heron though..thought all Herons land gracefully....heheh

Well, my 1st day at Ubin and I had the honour of being brought to Chek Jawa for a look-see. Actually, me & my fellow ranger Mark Lim(ubin chief) went there to check out the place for any intruders when we chanced upon a group of visitors sitting on the rocks looking out to sea and enjoying the evening breeze. So we went over the seaweeds & rocks(me half slipping & half crawling my way through...thank god I didn't land on my bum, sure to be embrassing, ranger somemore!) and had a chat with them when suddenly someone shouted " big bird, big bird", I immediately looked at his direction, half expecting "Big Bird" from Sesame Street to appear when I saw this Heron flying past. All words were shut out(Mike was actually explaining to us what this bird was) and everyone suddenly stood up and cameras(3 Nikons & 1 Canon) went flashing! Luckily this Heron was quite far away or else the flashes would have blinded it and it would have landed even more ungraciously!

I understand from my bird Guru that this bird is an endangered bird...can anyone verify this?

Anyway, this is what little information that I have:
Habitat: Mangroves, islets, undisturbed beaches(Singapore where got undisturbed beaches??), sometimes upstream along large rivers. Normally solitary or in pairs.
Voice: Loud harsh croaks(frog???). Unnerving loud deep guttural roars during breeding season(reminds me of Tigers)...

Magpie Robin

This bird commonly known as Magpie Robin or Oriental Magpie Robin was a rare visitor to our Reserves. As far as I know, only in Ubin is this species flourishing very well. So I was very glad when I managed to shoot a photo of this bird personally here in our forest. You may wonder why....read on & you'll understand..

This bird is very common in all kampongs, plantations, gardens and parks throughout Pen. Malaysia, including the offshore islands. Although not a forest bird it turns up as soon as a forest camp is established, even at lower montane elevations. It often feeds on insects found in garden lawns and can become quite approachable. Because it is quite approachable, it was much sought after by bird traders for it's delightful whistle. A popular cage bird in Singapore, it has suffered from illegal poaching thus becoming very rare and almost extinct. Thankfully, over at Ubin, we still have this species flourishing and thus preventing it's extinction. If you ever have a chance to listen to its whistling tune, you'll understand why bird traders are poaching this bird......sigh! When will poaching ever stop???

Give The Man A Tiger!

Haha...Got You! I am not promoting Tiger Beer but promoting a different Tiger.....Tiger Shrike to be precise. This photo was actually taken last year but thought I'll just share with you as lately no special birds appeared.

I was actually trying to shoot the Orange-bellied Flowerpecker when I caught this Shrike perching very silently on a branch at eye-level just beside me! Not to startle it, I just pretend to aim at the Flowerpecker and slowly turned my camera onto it. I managed just a couple of shots before it realised that it was my center of attention and shrieked off in alarm! In doing so, it also shrieked off my Flowerpecker! Sheesh, so much for being quiet, next time I'll just move like a hippo....maybe it will be more at ease???? Oh ya..this a non-breeding male.

I have added it's information for those of you who wish to know:
Voice: Scolding chatter in alarm. Subdued tchick...
Habitat: Forest edge, secondary growth up to 1,220m
Range: PM(Prime Minister) E Myanmar.....haha shld be Passage Migrant. Winter visitor in Malaysia & Singapore.

White-throated Kingfisher

"What huge beak you have, Mr Kingfisher". That's my first thought when I took this shot. Was so bored to death that I had to resort to hunting for something to shoot after I finished my work yesterday (To Pandai Chief, I know what you are going to say, I may not have a social life but I have a cyber-life & am still waiting for you to "appear". I hope I won't have to wait until the cow flies up to the moon for your grand appearance....I gurantee to "pengz")

Anyway, back to Mr Kingfisher. He was rather calm & did not fly away when I approached (maybe he knows am very bored & decided to humor me...hahahah). So I used him as my "guinea pig" to test out my camera settings. Can you believe it??? Out of almost 15 shots taken, only 2 shots looked OK.........stressed man! Luckily, Mr Kingfisher was very patient but not my "chaeuffeur"......sitting on the grass, smoking away and asking me to hurry up......tsk tsk...adding to my stress...heheh By the time, I was satisfied, it was dark and I had to pack up so only 1 miserable bird shot for the whole day....boo hoo hoo.....