25-3-2017 TUIS CARTAGO, COSTA RICA - BLACK THROATED TROGON (MALE) (Trogon rufus)

It is a resident of the lower levels of damp tropical forests, and prefers the deep shade of the understory. Their broad bills and weak legs reflect their diet and arboreal habits. Although their flight is fast, they are reluctant to fly any distance. They typically perch upright and motionless.

Black-throated trogons feed mainly on arthropods as well as some fruit, often taken in flight; they are one of the most insectivorous trogon species of their range. They opportunistically catch arthropods that have been startled by other predators, such as coatis (Nasua spp.).

The black-throated trogon nests 1–6 m (3.3–19.7 ft) high in an unlined shallow cavity, with a typical clutch of two white eggs.

8-2-2018 OLIVA MARJAL, VALENCIA - COMMON CHIFFCHAFF (Phylloscopus collybita)

8-2-2018 OLIVA MARJAL, VALENCIA - EUROPEAN GOLDFINCH (Carduelis carduelis)

8-2-2018 OLIVA MARJAL, VALENCIA - EUROPEAN GREENFINCH (Chloris chloris)

8-2-2018 OLIVA MARJAL, VALENCIA - MEADOW PIPIT (Anthus pratensis)

7-2-2018 ALBUFERA, VALENCIA - EURASIAN KESTREL (Falco tinnunculus)

7-2-2018 EL PALMAR, VALENCIA - GREY HERON (Ardea cinerea)

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - SILVER PHEASANT (Lophura nycthemera)

The silver pheasant (Lophura nycthemera ) is a species of pheasant found in forests, mainly in mountains, of mainland Southeast Asia and eastern and southern China, with an introduced population on Victoria Island in Nahuel Huapi Lake, Neuquén, Argentina. The male is black and white, while the female is mainly brown. Both sexes have a bare red face and red legs (the latter separating it from the greyish-legged kalij pheasant). It is common in aviculture, and overall also remains common in the wild, but some of its subspecies (notably L. n. whiteheadi from Hainan, L. n. engelbachi from southern Laos, and L. n. annamensis from southern Vietnam) are rare and threatened.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - BLUE GREY TANAGER (Thraupis episcopus)

The blue-gray tanager (Thraupis episcopus ) is a medium-sized South American songbird of the tanager family, Thraupidae. Its range is from Mexico south to northeast Bolivia and northern Brazil, all of the Amazon Basin, except the very south. It has been introduced to Lima (Peru). On Trinidad and Tobago, this bird is called blue jean.

The blue-gray tanager is 16–18 cm (6.3–7.1 in) long and weighs 30–40 g (1.1–1.4 oz). Adults have a light bluish head and underparts, with darker blue upperparts and a shoulder patch colored a different hue of blue. The bill is short and quite thick. Sexes are similar, but the immature is much duller in plumage.

The song is a squeaky twittering, interspersed with tseee and tsuup call notes.

The breeding habitat is open woodland, cultivated areas and gardens. The blue-gray tanager lives mainly on fruit, but will also take some nectar and insects. This is a common, restless, noisy and confiding species, usually found in pairs, but sometimes small groups. It thrives around human habitation, and will take some cultivated fruit like papayas (Carica papaya ).

One to three, usually two, dark-marked whitish to gray-green eggs are laid in a deep cup nest in a high tree fork or building crevice. Incubation by the female is 14 days with another 17 to fledging. The nest is sometimes parasitised by Molothrus cowbirds.

Two birds studied in the Parque Nacional de La Macarena of Colombia were infected with microfilariae, an undetermined Trypanosoma species, and another blood parasite that could not be identified. Two other birds, examined near Turbo (also in Colombia), did not have blood parasites.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - VIOLET BACKED STARLING (MALE) (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster)

The violet-backed starling (Cinnyricinclus leucogaster), also known as the plum-coloured starling or amethyst starling, is a relatively small species (17 cm) of starling in the family Sturnidae. It is the only member of the genus Cinnyricinclus. This strongly sexually dimorphic species is found widely in the woodlands and savannah forest edges of mainland sub-Saharan Africa. It is rarely seen on the ground, but instead found in trees and other locations away from the ground.

The violet-backed starling is a sexually dimorphic species with adults reaching a length of about 18 cm (7 in). The male has an iridescent violet head and back and pure white underparts. The female has a thrush-like appearance with brown, boldly-streaked upper parts and white, heavily-streaked underparts. Both sexes have yellow irises and black bills and legs.

The violet-backed starling is a common bird in Sub-Saharan Africa, occurring in most locations with the exception of the dense rainforest of the Congo Basin, and the more arid parts of southwestern Africa. It is found in open woodland, gallery forests, forest verges and clearings. In the Chyulu Hills of Kenya, it occurs at altitudes up to 2,100 m (6,900 ft).

The diet of the violet-backed starling includes fruits, seeds and arthropods. It sometimes hawks for insects in a manner similar to flycatchers. It largely feeds in the canopy, seldom foraging on the ground. The nest is usually located in a crevice in a tree within a few metres of the ground. Nesting material includes green leaves and dung. The female will incubate the clutch of two to four eggs, which are pale blue with reddish/brown spots, for 12–14 days. The male will help feed chicks until they fledge after about 21 days.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - RED WHISKERED BULBUL (Pycnonotus jocosus)

The red-whiskered bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus), or crested bulbul, is a passerine bird native to Asia. It is a member of the bulbul family. It is a resident frugivore found mainly in tropical Asia. It has been introduced in many tropical areas of the world where populations have established themselves. It has a loud three or four note call, feeds on fruits and small insects and perches conspicuously on trees. It is common in hill forests and urban gardens.

The red-whiskered bulbul is about 20 centimetres (7.9 in) in length. It has brown upper-parts and whitish underparts with buff flanks and a dark spur running onto the breast at shoulder level. It has a tall pointed black crest, red face patch and thin black moustachial line. The tail is long and brown with white terminal feather tips, but the vent area is red. Juveniles lack the red patch behind the eye, and the vent area is rufous-orange.

The loud and evocative call is a sharp kink-a-joo (also transcribed as pettigrew or kick-pettigrew or pleased to meet you and the song is a scolding chatter. They are more often heard than seen, but will often perch conspicuously especially in the mornings when they call from the tops of trees. The life span is about 11 years.

28-11-2016 SINGAPORE - SPOTTED DOVE (Streptopelia chinensis)

The Spotted dove (Spilopelia chinensis) is a small pigeon that is a common across its native range on the Indian subcontinent and in Southeast Asia. These birds are also called the Mountain dove, Pearl-necked dove, Lace-necked dove, and Spotted turtle-dove.

The ground color of this long and slim dove is rosy buff below shading into grey on the head and belly. There is a half collar on the back and sides of the neck made of black feathers that bifurcate and have white spots at the two tips. The median coverts have brown feathers tipped with rufous spots in the Indian and Sri Lankan subspecies which are divided at the tip by a widening grey shaft streak. The wing feathers are dark brown with grey edges. The center of the abdomen and vent are white. The outer tail feathers are tipped in white and become visible when the bird takes off. The male and the female are similar, but juveniles are duller than adults and do not acquire the neck spots until they are mature.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - ROSE RINGED PARAKEET (Psittacula krameri)

The Rose-ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri) is one of the few parrot species that have successfully adapted to living in disturbed habitats. As a popular pet species, escaped birds have colonized a number of cities around the world, including Northern and Western Europe. These parakeets are also capable of living in a variety of climates outside their native range and are able to survive low winter temperatures in Northern Europe. The species is not threatened, but its popularity as a pet and unpopularity with farmers have reduced its numbers in some parts of its native range.

The Rose-ringed parakeet is a medium-sized parrot. The adult male sports a red and black neck ring, and the hen and immature birds of both sexes either show no neck rings or display shadow-like pale to dark grey neck rings. Both sexes have a distinctive green color in the wild, and captive-bred ringnecks have multiple color mutations including blue, violet, and yellow.

Rose-ringed parakeets are native to Africa and South Asia. They don't migrate and live in a wide variety of habitats. They can be found in grasslands, savanna, shrubland, rainforests, mangroves, and wetlands. These birds also occur in rural gardens and agricultural areas.

Rose-ringed parakeets are social birds. They are active during the day spending their time, foraging, flying about, and resting in the shades of tree canopy during midday hours. They often gather in flocks that fly several miles to forage in farmlands and orchards. Rose-ringed parakeets are very noisy and have an unmistakable squawking call.

Rose-ringed parakeets are herbivores and usually feed on buds, fruits, vegetables, nuts, berries, and seeds. In India, they eat cereal grains, and during winter also pigeon peas. In Egypt during the spring, they feed on mulberry, and in summer they feed on dates and eat from sunflower and corn fields.

Rose-ringed parakeets are serially monogamous; they do not have life mates and often breed with another partner during the following breeding season. In northwest India, Rose-ringed parakeets form pairs from September to December. During this cold season, they select and defend nest sites, thus avoiding competition for sites with other birds. The female lays 1 to 7 eggs and incubates them alone for about 3 weeks. The chick hatch altricial meaning they are helpless and depend on their parents for feeding and protection. The young fledge at 7 weeks of age and become independent when they are 2 years old. Reproductive maturity is usually reached at the age of 3 years.

28-11-2016 SINGAPORE - HAIRY WATER LILY (Nymphaea pubescens)

This plant is common in shallow lakes and ponds throughout temperate and tropical Asia: Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Yunnan, Taiwan, Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia. It is the national flower of Bangladesh.

It is also found in northeastern Australia and Papua New Guinea.

The hairy water lily is found both as a cultivated plant as well as in the wild. It prefers non-acidic waters and it does not tolerate temperatures below 15 °C.

The hairy water lily is known kokaa in Hindi and Kumuda in Sanskrit. The leaves of this plant have fuzzy or hairy undersides and the stems are covered by the same hairs as well, hence the name "pubescens" or "hairy" of the species. This is not a characteristic that is apparent when looking at the plant from above the water though.

This species of water lily has quite a few artificially raised varieties, in addition to many natural hybrids.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - EURASIAN BULLFINCH (Pyrrhula pyrrhula)

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - BLUE RUMPED PARROT (Psittinus cyanurus)

The blue-rumped parrot (Psittinus cyanurus) is a parrot found in the very southern tip of Myanmar, peninsular Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo, Sumatra and nearby islands. It is a small parrot (18 cm) and is primarily green with bright red underwing coverts, a reddish shoulder patch, and yellowish margins on the wing coverts. It is sexually dimorphic. The female has a grey-brown head. The male has a black mantle, red upper mandible, and blue head and rump.

It was formerly considered the only member of the genus Psittinus, but BirdLife International recognised the subspecies abbottii as a separate species, the Simeulue parrot, and the IOC later followed suit, supporting it as a distinct species.

There are two subspecies:

P. c. cyanurus: Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Borneo, Sumatra.

P. c. pontius: Mentawi Islands southwards from Siberut. Larger than the nominate subspecies.

It is found in lowland forests, generally below 700 m, in forest, open woodland, orchards and plantations, mangroves, dense scrub, and coconut groves. It occurs in flocks up to 20 birds. They eat seeds, fruit and blossoms.

5-2-2018 ADOR CAMPO, VALENCIA - EURASIAN KESTREL (Falco tinnunculus)

23-3-2017 TARCOLES RIVER, COSTA RICA - LONG TAILED MANAKIN (Chiroxiphia linearis)

The long-tailed manakin (Chiroxiphia linearis) is a species of bird in the family Pipridae native to Central America where it inhabits both wet and dry tropical and subtropical forests. It is a small, plump bird about 10 centimetres (4 in) long. Males have black plumage with a blue back and a red crown, and the two central tail feathers are greatly elongated. Females and juveniles are olive-green with paler underparts. At breeding time, males are involved in a cooperative lekking behaviour with a complex coordinated courtship dance. This is a fairly common species with a wide range, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - RED VENTED BULBUL (Pycnonotus cafer)

The red-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer ) is a member of the bulbul family of passerines. It is a resident breeder across the Indian subcontinent, including Sri Lanka extending east to Burma and parts of Bhutan and Nepal. It has been introduced in many other parts of the world and has established itself in New Zealand, Argentina, Tonga and Fiji, as well as parts of Samoa, Australia, USA and Cook Islands. It is included in the list of the world's 100 worst invasive alien species.

The Red-vented bulbul is a medium-sized songbird that can be found across the Indian subcontinent. It can be easily identified by its short crest giving the head a squarish appearance. The body of this bird is dark brown with a scaly pattern while the head is darker or black. The rump is white while the vent is red. It has a long black tail, tipped in white. The males and the females of this species look similar, but young birds are duller than adults.

Red-vented bulbuls occur across Sri Lanka extending east to Burma and parts of Bhutan and Nepal. These birds don’t migrate and inhabit dry scrub, open forests, plains, cultivated areas, parks, and gardens. 

Red-vented bulbuls are diurnal social birds. Outside of the breeding season, they like to form large flocks and gather together in communal roosts. The typical call of Red-vented bulbuls has been transcribed as ginger beer, but they also produce a number of sharp single-note calls sounding like a pick. Their alarm calls are usually responded to and heeded by many other species of bird.

Red-vented bulbuls have an omnivorous diet. They feed on fruits, petals of flowers, nectar, and insects and occasionally will even hunt house geckos.

28-11-2016 JURONG, SINGAPORE - NICOBAR PIGEON (Caloenas nicobarica)

The Nicobar pigeon (Caloenas nicobarica) is a large beautiful bird found mainly in South East Asia and Oceania. It is the only living member of the genus Caloenas alongside the extinct Spotted green pigeon and is the closest living relative of the extinct dodo and Rodrigues solitaire.

Nicobar pigeons have developed a bright plumage; their head is grey, like the upper neck plumage, which turns into green and copper hackles. The tail is very short and pure white. The rest of their plumage is metallic green. The cere of the dark bill forms a small blackish knob; the strong legs and feet are dull red. Females are slightly smaller than males; they have a smaller bill knob, shorter hackles, and browner underparts. Immature birds have a black tail and lack almost all iridescence.

Nicobar pigeons are found on small islands and in coastal regions from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India, east through the Malay Archipelago, to the Solomons and Palau. They inhabit rainforests, dry forests, mangroves, and shrubland.