Raptors at The Reservoir

Black-shouldered Kite

This afternoon there must have been a passage of somewhere in the region of 400 raptors, all in the space of about an hour, at Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi. Passage is probably inaccurate as many of these birds were coming down to roost in the nearby plantations but most of these birds are undoubtedly migratory and are headed south. I was here specifically for this but I did not expect these numbers. This follows yesterday when I observed a first harrier (female pied) and possibly a first aquila eagle (Greater Spotted Eagle?) of the winter. Both were in the distance so I only really feel comfortable with calling the harrier.

Osprey

Now raptors terrify me because I am really useless at identifying them, especially when they are high in the sky; I wouldn't want to suggest either that I am much better at it when they are on the ground. The digiscope rig is not ideal for photographing aerial birds. So I don't have a lot to show for what I saw. First of all a distant kettle of approximately 130 Black Kites. No real surprise as the reservoir is about 50 km from a major winter roost in the Khao Yoi area, Phetchburi province. (There have been reports of up to 5,000 Black Kites at this roost!)  However I have never seen so many kites at the reservoir, usually a solitary bird here at the reservoir, here and there, and once, there were four having a stroll in the launch area; three of those feature as the strap for this blog.

Oriental Honey Buzzord

Then in came a mixed group of raptors from a northerly direction blown in by a helpful wind. The dominant species in this gaggle of about 270 birds were Oriental Honey Buzzards. (Ed: Thanks to Tom Bucklund who kindly corrected my original call of Chinese Sparrowhawk  - I told you I was useless! ) However there were other species in this group. They came in drips and drabs over a period of about 45 minutes and most of these birds headed for the woods. A few crossed over the reservoir and I managed a couple of shots, including the Osprey, who came in with the other birds. I wouldn't want to make any other claims beyond numbers.

Green Bee-eater

Otherwise I love this Green Bee-eater;  this species abounds at the reservoir and the Black-shouldered Kite posed a little for me and allowed me to get closer than I expected.

Now I was planning to take off to Kanchanaburi province tomorrow for a couple of days to do some birding up near the Myanmar border. But I am going to delay that trip and head back to the reservoir and see what else comes in tomorrow.

The Soi List

Olive-backed Sunbird

Soi 11.02.11

ซอย pronounced Soi means street in Thai. It doesn't mean the main drag rather a smaller road, think of Sukhumwit in Bangkok and the hundreds of sois that run off it. We live in a soi and our soi like most sois has soi dogs! We have a lot of stray dogs all over Thailand.  Our soi also has a lot of birds and I think the time has come to start a soi list. I say this because I was amazed by the number of species I saw in the course of an hour while pushing my baby boy about in his pram after work in the late afternoon.

Yellow-vented Bulbul

Soi 11.02.11

Our house is situated in a small estate facing  a golf driving range. There are a couple of little side streets running off the main soi and they abut onto rice paddy but the village does not have a through road so apart from when the soi dogs kick off it is fairly peaceful here. While the area is residential it is not too built up and beyond the golf range it is very much cultivated rice paddy with pockets of trees and scrub and various natural and man made irrigation channels. The driving range is busy late afternoon and early evening so not many birds then but in the mornings there can be several hundred cattle egrets feeding on the grass.

 Green Bee-eater

Soi 11.02.11

The criterion for getting onto the soi list will be that the bird can be seen from the soi. Number one on this new list will be Pied Harrier, a male, which I watched flying over the little bit of rice paddy nearby before flying off in the direction of the main rice paddy area. Next Scaly Breasted Munia, Little Egret, Common Myna, Pied Fantail, Brown Shrike, Red-collared Dove, Spotted Dove, Peaceful Dove, Streak-eared Bulbul, White-vented Myna, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Plain-Backed Sparrow, Yellow-Vented Bulbul, Sooty-headed Bulbul, Asian Pied Starling, Asian Koel (heard), Green Bee-eater, Olive-backed Sunbird and Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker. Excluding the Koel that gives the soi list a kick start of 20 species! I'll not add sightings prior to today and I will try to get photographs of as many of these birds as possible.

Rainy Season Special - Huay Mai Teng Reservoir

Green bee-eater

Merops orientalis

นกจาบคาเล็ก

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

An early start this morning from the comfort of my own bed. On getting up the first thing that hit me was the cool air so off went the fan for the first time in many months. I headed out to the reservoir with memories of almost running over four black kites last year and wondering what might lie in wait. 

Thailand early in the morning is always interesting. The monks, bare-footed and dressed in saffron or brown robes are out collecting alms and the faithful are out waiting for them to pass. It's called pindabat and it always serves to remind me what a remarkable place Thailand is because this is happening everywhere in Thailand, from the centre of Bangkok to the more remote parts of the Kingdom.

Green bee-eaters

Merops orientalis

นกจาบคาเล็ก

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

Huay Mai Teng reservoir took me by complete surprise. Due to the volume of rain over the last four weeks the reservoir is virtually full, almost overflowing. You have to see it to believe it and so I can understand how severe the flooding must have been elsewhere in Thailand. So there was no possibility of running over kites or any other bird because there was so much water that the slip roads into the reservoir were virtually covered. Four weeks ago the reservoir was really low. It covers an extensive area so for the water to reach its current level, the highest I have ever seen it, there must have been a truly almighty deluge. 

Houses on the edge of the reservoir

Huay Mai Teng Rerservoir

30.10.10

The water is basically metres from these houses where once it was about 0.75 km. If there is much more rain this area will be covered by water.

There was not shortage of birds and almost immediately I managed a lifer in a Richard's pipit. I claim this simply on the basis that there were so many Paddyfield pipits around and this one looked bigger and had a much clearer breast markings. I was looking for the extra long rear toe but it was not visible in the grass. It had to be a Richard's and I feel confident now that I have checked the guide book. So it gets a tick but no photographs.

Green bee-eater

Merops orientalis

นกจาบคาเล็ก

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

There were plenty of green bee-eaters around looking quite magnificent.  I managed a few shots of these fellows as they were perched and not quite as manic as the the other birds. As you can see they are moulting but they are envertheless beautiful,striking birds.All I can say is I am grateful I am not a bee; I really wouldn't want to be speared by that frightening looking bill! 

Great Egret

Casmerodius albus

นกยางโทนใฆญ่

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

 A great egret, a little egret, a white-throated kingfisher, a glimpse of an unmistakable pied kingfisher, common sandpiper, little cormorant, black drongo, chinese pond heron, plain-backed sparrow, sooty-headed bulbul, streak-eared bulbul, a first asian flycatcher of the "winter", a black-naped oriole and a juvenile, hundreds of barn swallows and then a magnificent female pied harrier. So pleasing to know the harriers are back. I couldn't get a decent shot of the harrier but there is one coming. This bird had the diagnostic white uppertail covert. A few minutes later a black kite appeared on the scene and took a little interest in my presence. I would say this one was milvus migrans as there was a lot of white on the underwings and the main underside from the head down to the belly was heavily streaked. There were some very obliging little ringed plover, one still sporting his breeding plumes and the other non-breeding.Also a yellow wagtail, motacilla flava thunbergi, but the photograph leaves a lot to be desired. Abundant red-wattled lapwing too.

Little Ringed Plover

Charadrius dubius

Top - breeding

Bottom - non-breeding

นกหัวโตเล็กขาเหลีอง

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

I then drove over to my normal patch and not only was the road across completely covered but the water has virtually encroached on peoples' houses. See above photo. I then proceeded to another favourite spot and here access was barred because the road has crumbled as water rises on both sides. Rain indeed but fantastic to see this water is being saved especially when in six months time it will be so badly needed. 

Pied Harrier - male

Circus melanoleucos

เหยี่ยวด่างดำขาว

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10

What a lovely way to spend a few hours in the morning! I had some business to take care of mid-morning but I managed to persuade Luna to come back with me in the afternoon. We almost ran over a male pied harrier. What a stunning bird! With my EOS Kiss X3 and humble EFS 55-250 mm lens zoom I managed to snap it. I really want to get the digiscope onto this fellow to do him justice. Looks like I will be investing in a portable hide and trapping mice to tempt these fellows into range. I also saw two quail which got me thinking but  they really were a flash in the pan and no sooner had I seen them than they had disappeared. 


I offer this common kingfisher shot as an indicator of the improvement in my shooting skills. This was taken in poor light at a distance and nearby a very elegant common moorhen was paddling around -  too far away and too gloomy to take a shot of it. What a great day!

Common Kingfisher

Alcedo athis bengalensis

นกกะเต็นน้อยธรรมดา

Huay Mai Teng Reservoir, Ratchaburi

30.10.10