Bird-Watching my new hobby

After seeing plenty of beautiful bird photos in forum's made me to move into this new hobby of birdwatching. It is a healthy, cherished and positive hobby. A pastime that enhances your life in so many ways. It give you a sense of fulfillment by watching the birds move around you singing, dancing and search for food. Its not an easy for birds to get food...some even wait for hours or days to get a good catch.

I had many opportunities to go for a bird watching walk during my MCC (College) days but I never participated as I need to get up early in the morning. My recent participation in Borneo mini bird watching competition really excited me to go for this hobby. I like to share some of my photos of colourful Kingfisher recently taken in Kuching. I will share more photos in this blog as I move deeper into this hobby.

Stock Billed Kingfisher

Vedanthangal Birds Sanctuary Chennai

Vedanthangal Birds Sanctuary is about 90 Minutes from Chennai (Off the GST road between Chingelput and Madurantagam). Ideal for bird watchers and Photographers. The sanctuary comprises of a grove of Barringtonia Acacia nilotica trees in a large tank.

Once you enter the santury the sight of numerous trees flocked by birds busy in their chirping and chatting catches your attention. The birds here are accustomed to the visitors and are not afraid to venture quite close to them and give you a good pose for your photos.

Prominent among the birds found in the sanctuary are Painted Stork, Cormorant, Egret, Spoonbill, Oriental Darter, White Ibis, Grey Pelican, Grebe, Sandpiper, Shoveller, Tern, Open Billed Stork and Pin Tailed Duck. The migratory birds which include Brahminy Kite, Booted and Short Toed Snake Eagle, Montagu's and Eurasian Marsh Harriers.

Proboscis Monkey Bako n.p.

Bako is probably the best place in Sarawak for wildlife experiences and a place to find proboscis monkey. Quite lucky to see few Proboscis monkey during my recent visit to Bako. The Proboscis Monkey is evaluated as Endangerd on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This monkey is only found on the islands of Borneo and South East Asia. It is really a funny-looking monkey with big nose and belly. It is thought that the oversized nose on this male monkey may have something to do with a mating ritual. It may be a form of sexual selection with females preferring males with large noses which enhance their vocalizations. However, the nose does more than attract potential mates; it also swells with blood when the animal is angry or upset and makes warning calls louder and much more intense than other species. (Rakow, 2007)

Best place to see the monkey is Bako National Park. It is a home to approximately 150 rare proboscis monkey, found only in Borneo. Ulu Assam is the good place to find this monkey as they come to eat leaves during early morning or afternoon.

An Indonesian nickname for this monkey is “monyet belanda” which means “Dutch monkey.” The reason: the Dutch were among the first to colonize Indonesia and many of the Dutch plantation owners were large men with large red noses and big potbellies.