10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 18, 2012

Yellow Bitterns ( Ixobrychus sinensis ) showed strongly during a recent trip to Singapore and on occasion it would have been impossible to pose them any better than they were already doing themselves. The Yellow Bittern is a tiny heron, substantially smaller than the Butoroides (Green and Striated) species and slimmer too.

Singapore 169

Singapore Indonesia Asia Guinea 169

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 27, 2022

When you think of the best birding in the south of Asia, it is Malaysia that comes to mind, although you are likely not to even think of the country as such: you are dreaming of the (Malaysian) province of Sabah, in the north of the island of Borneo. And yet, it easily fits the largest pocket of my reporter’s vest.

Malaysia 232

Malaysia Singapore Asia Birds 232

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 10, 2019

The 125 Best Bird Watching Sites in Southeast Asia, edited by Yong Ding Li & Low Bing Wen. And now I am holding the “The 125 Best Bird Watching Sites in Southeast Asia” – an expanded and fully updated second edition of “The 100 Best Birdwatching Sites in Southeast Asia”. As a rule, I like second editions better.

Asia 221

Asia Laos Myanmar Indonesia 221

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 4, 2013

SINGAPORE, DECEMBER 2012 – Ask any birder where you should go birding in Singapore and the short list will always include Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve , this city-state’s finest wetlands. Since I was in Singapore in winter, Sungei Buloh seemed like the best place to kick off my introduction to Southeast Asian avifauna.

Singapore 134

Singapore Zebras Zoos Owls 134

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2013

JOHOR, MALAYSIA, DECEMBER 2012 – If you’re traveling to Singapore for birding, you might want to think outside the box or, in this case, the island. Asia is home to all kinds of cuckoos, but none are as elaborately colorful as malkohas with those gaudy faces and painted bills. All in all, a memorable Malaysian experience.

Malaysia 171

Malaysia Singapore Monkeys Birds 171

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2017

Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago covers 1,417 species, 601 endemics, 98 vagrants, 8 introduced and 18 undescribed species. Only one bird species has become extinct (Javan Lapwing), but many others are endangered, with some considered close to extinction (not surprising in an area with species restricted to one or two small islands).

Indonesia 122

Indonesia Brunei Birds Malaysia 122

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 19, 2012

The flowerpecker, an attractive species, was actually responsible for Peter becoming a birder in the first place! Our next species was decidedly uncommon, a Black-headed Ibis circled overhead for a minute before flying off. I’m a big fan of babblers, and this was a particularly special species.

Thailand 153

Thailand New Zealand Terrapins Asia 153

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 13, 2012

While planning a much-needed escape from the Western Hemisphere to Singapore, I had to explore the layover birding potential of Narita International Airport, one of two airports serving Tokyo. I was pleased to have added three species with “Japanese” in their names to my lifelist, but figured I’d maxed out the possibities.

Japan 119

Japan Birds Stud Ducks 119

10,000 Birds

APRIL 6, 2019

9 countries were visited during March by your tireless beats ( 11 of them); India, UK, USA, Serbia, Costa Rica, Japan, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia. With so much thrashing around in SE Asia, it is interesting to compare east and west hemispheres. 978 species were tallied this month from 163 checklists. 12 Jan 2019.

2019 113

2019 Ghana Australia Woodpeckers 113

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2011

The world of birding is filled with challenging groups well known to all, birds like gulls , Empidonax flycatchers or cisticolas that require attention to the tiniest details in order to assign an individual to a specific species (if it can be done at all). Above we have an example of the species. Subspecies humii , Thailand.

Samoa 167

Samoa Vanuatu United Arab Emirates Tonga 167

10,000 Birds

APRIL 2, 2014

Contrast this in Asia to, say, Singapore, Hong Kong or Bangkok, all of which have great birding nearby but are destinations people go to for reasons other than wildlife. Between the 22 of December and the 31st I managed to see 171 species of bird, this had climbed to 219 by the time I had left of the 11th of January.

Birds 180

Birds Bats Elephants Family 180