Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore, June 2014

It is hard to resist the lure of Singapore’s Botanic Gardens and in particular the Heliconia Walk. I am supposed to be exploring pastures new, but it’s hot and the gardens are cool. Why make life difficult?

The Metro station is just outside the gate at Google Earth ref; 1 19 19.22N 103 48 55.20E. From here, the gardens open out into the Ecopond area. Javan Mynas and Asian Glossy Starlings were seen immediately with a small group of Oriental White-eye shortly after passing through the gate.

A park worker was walking through the shallows of the ecopond which may have spoiled my chances of rails or Yellow Bitterns, but the Lesser Whistling Ducks still made good subjects. 

In the spirit of exploration, I took a path less travelled and found myself looking over a tiny pond with mosquito fish in the open water and a White-breasted Waterhen skulking around the edges keeping an eye on her chick.

Heliconia Walk was as delightful as ever. For a little while the sun stubbornly refused to cast any light on them, but the Olive-backed Sunbirds didn’t seem to mind. 

Once the sun cleared the trees though, it became too hot to stand still and my glasses steamed up for lack of a breeze.

No bitterns could be found in the Symphony Lake either, but a large Water Monitor Lizard was on the prowl for something to eat.

The remnant forest and the Ginger garden were similarly quiet as the day became unbearably hot. A Plain-throated Sunbird came to feed at a Cannia Lily near Swan Lake, but I had to call it a day after that.

On the way home a fine looking Red Junglefowl crossed the lawn ahead and an Ashy Tailorbird responded to a half-hearted “pish”.

Bird list for Singapore Botanic Gardens; 22

Lesser Whistling-Duck 18, Red Junglefowl 4, White-breasted Waterhen 5, Spotted Dove 8, Pink-necked Pigeon 15, Blue-crowned Hanging-Parrot 1, Germain’s Swiftlet 30, Common Flameback 2, Common Iora 1, Black-naped Oriole 2, Pacific Swallow 5, Yellow-vented Bulbul 15, Dark-necked Tailorbird 2, Ashy Tailorbird 3, Oriental White-eye 5, Oriental Magpie Robin 5, Asian Glossy Starling 60, Common Hill Myna 5, Javan Myna 80, Plain-throated Sunbird 2, Olive-backed Sunbird 8, Eurasian Tree Swallow 6.

The park has two main access points. The gate at the northwest corner is served by the Botanic Garden Metro Station and buses 7 and 77 pass the gate in the southeast on their way to and from Somerset. Gates open from dawn to dusk and there is no charge for admission.

For previous posts from Singapore Botanic Gardens, follow the links below;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanical-gardens.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/07/singapore-botanical-gardens-paser-ris.html
http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanic-gardens.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/botanic-gardens-in-singapore-june-2012.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/singapore-botanic-gardens-singapore.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/singapore-botanic-gardens-singapore-may.html

Visit the dedicated Asia page for more posts from Singapore, including; Paser Ris, Sungei Buloh and Fort Canning.
Birding, Birdwatching in Singapore

Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore, May 2013

Singapore Botanic Gardens is a must-visit for anyone with a few hours to spare in Singapore. Eco Pond can be circled in less than 15 mins and is likely to bring Lesser Whistling Duck, White-breasted Waterhen, Pink-necked Green Pigeon and Yellow-vented Bulbul. 

This morning Black-naped Orioles and Blue-rumped Hanging Parrots were also seen. A few exotics include Black Swan which was sitting on a nest today.

A visit to Heliconia Walk always fills me with anticipation. Sunbirds come down to feed from the showy flowers and make for a great photo opportunity. Today they seemed reluctant, so I took a walk beyond the Ginger Garden where a Jacaranda Tree was in bloom attracting Brown-throated Sunbirds.

A formal water garden often has water lilies in bloom and odonata like to use them as perches. On this occasion, one of Singapore’s most common damselflies, the Blue Sprite, Pseudagrion microcephalum was seen.

I came across a great book “Dragonflies of our Parks and Gardens”, a National Parks publication describing Singapore’s odonata and where to go looking for them. The Botanic Gardens are considered to be one of the best places on the island.

The forest was very quiet, but the path brought me back to Heliconia Walk where the sunbird action had picked up with male and female Olive-backed Sunbirds working the flowers.

Birds seen;

Lesser Whistling Duck 19, Yellow Bittern 1, White-breasted Waterhen 8, Spotted Dove 5, Zebra Dove 2, Pink-necked Pigeon 20, Long-tailed Parakeet 2, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot 6, Asian Koel 1, White-throated Kingfisher 1, Common Iora 5, Black-naped Oriole 6, Pacific Swallow 5, Yellow-vented Bulbul 12, Common Tailorbird 2, Oriental Magpie-robin 5, Asian Glossy Starling 20, Javan Myna 40, Plain-throated Sunbird 6, Olive-backed Sunbird 4, Crimson Sunbird 2, Eurasian Tree Sparrow 15.

There is an SMRT Station called Botanic Garden. This is sited at the Eco Pond Gate at Google Earth ref; 1 19 19.47N 103 48 55.08E.

For more posts from the Botanic Gardens in Singapore, follow the links below;

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanical-gardens.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/07/singapore-botanical-gardens-paser-ris.html

http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanic-gardens.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/singapore-botanic-gardens-february-2012.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/botanic-gardens-in-singapore-june-2012.html

Visit the dedicated Oriental Page for more posts from Singapore including Central Catchment Area and Paser Ris.

Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore, March 2013

Mike from10,000 Birds visited Panti Bird Sanctuary during a recent trip to Singapore. I confess that I had never even heard of Panti before and Mike’s trail-blazing example left me feeling quite the stay-a-bed. Amends must be made. But this is a Redgannet post and regular readers will know that things do not always go to plan. Sometimes it does, but then it transpires that the plan was actually the problem. I had been warned that the border crossing could be busy today (Easter Sunday), so I took a quick look at Singapore’s Botanic Gardens to while away the golden hours.

A walk around Eco Pond brought Black-naped Oriole, Lesser Whistling Duck, White-breasted Waterhen and Yellow-vented Bulbul. I had made the conscious decision to ignore swiflets this morning.

Heliconia Walk is becoming a firm favourite of mine. An Oriental Magpie Robin sang from his perch there. It is difficult to pass it without stopping for a short while to see if any sunbirds come down to feed. This morning a male Olive-backed Sunbird did the honours.

The bank overlooks the symphony stage with tall palm trees growing from behind it. These palms are often rich with birds and this morning they hosted Asian Glossy Starlings, Blue-rumped Hanging Parrots and Pink-necked Green Pigeons.

On Symphony Lake a Yellow Bittern was poised in the reeds looking for a meal. A large Water Monitor looked hungry too. It was tasting the water and was obviously on the prowl. The bittern looked nervous as it approached and took the prudent option of flight.

Here, I met Mr Che and his friend Peter. They had not seen many birds this morning and Easter Sunday crowds were already making the paths through the gardens very busy. They invited me to join them at Fairway Drive on Eng Neo Avenue, a site that I had not heard of before.

Birds seen;

Lesser Whistling Duck 24, Yellow Bittern 1, Gray Heron 1, White-breasted Waterhen 10, Spotted Dove 10, Zebra Dove 1, Pink-necked Pigeon 20, Long-tailed Parakeet 6, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot 2, Black-naped Oriole 3, House Crow 2, Yellow-vented Bulbul 6, Oriental Magpie Robin 3, Asian Glossy Starling 25, Javan Myna 45, Olive-backed Sunbird 2, Eurasian Tree Sparrow 30.

Spotted Dove

For more posts from Singapore Botanic Gardens, follow the links below;

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanical-gardens.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/07/singapore-botanical-gardens-paser-ris.html

http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanic-gardens.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/singapore-botanic-gardens-february-2012.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/botanic-gardens-in-singapore-june-2012.html

Visit the dedicated Oriental Page for more posts from Singapore including Paser Ris and Sungei Buloh.



Singapore taster

I am beginning to feel like the reluctant schoolboy who is getting behind with his homework. While we wait for a trip to Singapore to be written up, here are a couple of tasters.

 

Any regular readers may find that the Heliconia Walk in Singapore Botanic Gardens is becoming a bit repetitive, but the Olive-backed Sunbirds make it hard to stay away.

A new site at Fairway Drive with Mr Che and his friend Peter, showed me a pastoral side of Singapore that I had not previously encountered.

Following in Mike’s footsteps I took a trip to Panti in Malaysia. Don’t go on Easter Sunday!

Singapore Botanic Gardens, February 2012

This post is written in homage to the Singapore Botanic Gardens whose previous post has proved, by far, to have been the most popular on this blog. My pilgrimage began from the new Botanic Gardens MRT station at the north end of the gardens. 

A male Asian Koel showed brilliantly in the low dawn light but flew before I could get the camera trained on him. Luckily, a female replaced him almost immediately and sat for a moment. Eco Pond can be found at this end of the gardens and has matured greatly since my first visit. It used to be possible to get a close look at the birds on the island from a short boardwalk that reached out into the lake.

This has sadly been removed and I had to check off the Pink-necked Green Pigeons, Yellow-vented Bulbuls and Yellow Bittern from a distance. Australian Black Swans grace the lake with their presence, but are there as exotics. The approachability of the Lesser Whistling Ducks always makes me wonder about their provenance.

Another birder was circling the lake in the opposite direction and we joined up for the morning. Bob, from Birding 5s, works on the basis of only knowing 5 birds well at any one time. He was in Singapore for even less time than I was. A flock of Tanimbar Corellas flew over. Tanimbar Corellas were only described properly in 2004 after the original Goffin’s Cockatoo was found to have been described from 2 unrelated birds. Again the provenance of these birds disqualifies them from the list below.

We walked along the lower path parallel to Cluny Park Road in the hope that we might come across the Red-breasted Crake, but no luck there. The path slopes up to where the visitors centre sits atop a ridge. From the ridge we were able to look out over the Symphony Lake and check the palms on the small island. A couple of tiny Blue-crowned Hanging Parrots were seen on the gently bending fronds. In the far distance, a White-breasted Kingfisher was perched high in a tree and a Blue-tailed Bee-eater flew high, fast and direct across the open area. The rainforest area was very quiet today with a few calls heard, but only one Asian Brown Flycatcher seen high on a snag. Bob had a flight to catch, so we took a quick amble around the lake before he had to head back to the airport.

A Laced Woodpecker stopped on an overhanging branch ahead of us. This action shot was the result of a fluke as all my settings were wrong.

The Yellow Bittern however gave us all the time in the world to get some shots. After Bob left, I took another look in the forest as I was sure that it must have more to offer today.

A Black Drongo was calling madly but was perched deep in the gloom. The Live View on Canon’s DSLRs allows the mirror to be locked up and vibration reduced. Luckily the drongo sat very still for the long exposures.

In the Ginger Garden, one of the workers took me by the hand and led me to a tiny pond watched over by a Stork-billed Kingfisher.

Heliconia Walk passes between beds of the Bird of Paradise flowers. A Crimson Sunbird came to feed from the nectar and an Olive-backed Sunbird followed shortly afterwards.

I began to think that this would make a good place to wait for a while during my next visit. The gardens are rich dragonflies as well as birds and the heat of midday had stirred many into life.

A selection is included below as well as a link to a previous odonata-heavy post from the gardens.

Ictinogomphus decoratus

Crocothemis servilia

 

Brachydiplex chalybea

The odonata watching took me for another tour of the Symphony Lake and I enjoyed another close encounter with a Yellow Bittern (before the blackmail begins, I must confess to having called it a Cinnamon Bittern when anybody stooped to ask).

A photographer with a big 500mm lens joined me and had to stand back on the path to achieve his minimum focusing distance. A Banded Woodpecker and a Stork-billed Kingfisher stopped into the tree above us as we watched the Bittern. On my way back to Eco Pond as I was leaving the gardens, three Black Bazas flew over.

They landed in a distant tree, but would not settle and this was the best look that I had. It was here that I met a couple who spared my blushes by correcting my Cinnamon Bittern error. I had some nice pictures and was already planning a 10,000 Birds post and I would never have lived it down if the post had gone live with a mis-ID.

They also saved me a lot of trouble identifying a Paddyfield Pipit, which has replaced the old Richards Pipit.

Birds seen; 28

Yellow Bittern 6, Lesser Whistling Duck 14, Black Baza 3, Brahminy Kite 1, White-bellied Sea Eagle 2, White-breasted Waterhen 12, Spotted Dove 8, Zebra Dove 1, Pink-necked Green Pigeon 35, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot 2, Asian Koel 4, Stork-billed Kingfisher 2, White-throated Kingfisher 3, Blue-tailed Bee-eater 2, Banded Woodpecker 1, Laced Woodpecker 1, Pacific Swallow 15, Paddyfield Pipit 1, Yellow-vented Bulbul 6, Oriental Magpie Robin 1, Asian Brown Flycatcher 1, Plain-throated Sunbird 2, Crimson Sunbird 2, Olive-backed Sunbird 1, Black-naped Oriole 8, Black Drongo 1, Javan Myna 300, Eurasian Tree Sparrow 30.
For other posts from Singapore Botanical Gardens, follow the link in the post above or us ethe URLs below;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanical-gardens.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/07/singapore-botanical-gardens-paser-ris.html
http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2009/12/singapore-botanic-gardens.html

Visit the dedicated Asia Page for more posts from Singapore, including; Sungei Buloh, Central Catchment Area and Paser Ris.