Crested Myna

The Crested Myna is another resident bird in Hong Kong.  Unlike most of the Hong Kong birds, the Crested Myna is only native to Southeast Asia. 

The Crested Myna is a relative of the Starling family. It was introduced to North America in the 1800’s but it died out by the mid-twentieth century. So you will have to come to Asia to see them nowadays.

The small crest on its forehead and the red eyes make its appearance unique. 

Although  its upper body is black, there is a white patch underneath each wing. 

The Crested Mynas are not shy birds. Very often they can be seen in small flocks almost everywhere, from the top of buildings,

 

to houses,

and trees,

 

even the lamp posts。

They like to keep themselves clean and often enjoy taking a bath in the river even in the cold winter days.

They are extremely noisy and are often seen singing loudly in the trees.  

The Crested Myna is a very good mimic too. It is famous for mimicking human language and is a popular cage bird in China.

Portraits of my garden Birds (2)

If you happen to be in Hong Kong,  one bird you are most likely to see is the  Red-whiskered Bulbul. The size of Red-whiskered Bulbul is similar to the Chinese Bulbul, but its calls are much more musical and pleasant.  Very often they can be seen standing on the top of small trees singing happily, it is a joy to watch.

Unlike the Chinese Bulbuls, the Red-whiskered Bulbuls are generally shy. However, because of the food shortage in the winter, they can not afford to refuse my offer.  My feeding station provides me the opportunity to get close and personal with these interesting looking birds.

Portraits of My Garden Birds (1)

 

This winter has been longer and colder than usual in Hong Kong. To help the birds through the tough winter, I have been putting bird food on my balcony regularly in the last few months. The birds showed their appreciation by letting me get very close and take some close-up photos. 

 

The most frequent visitors are the Chinese Bulbuls.

The Chinese Bulbuls are common residents in Hong Kong which are about 19cm long and very noisy. They mainly feed on fruit and insects. Because of the lack of food in the winter, these birds came to my balcony regularly to enjoy the fruit and cooked rice everyday.

Fishing Heron

I always admire the the patience of herons. When they are fishing, they often wait patiently for their preys to come, sometimes it can take a couple of hours.  Although a large number of herons are often around Hong Kong in the winter, they seem to be standing by the river forever motionless. I often wished that  I could witness a successful hunt.

My luck changed a few days ago when I saw a juvenile Black-capped Night Heron fishing in a river.

 

The tide was going out that day and the Heron was standing on a shallow dam waiting for the passing fish.

Suddenly, it saw a fish

Within seconds, the fish was down the heron’s throat!

The efficiency was amazing!

Popular Coral trees

 

The Coral trees are not only popular with the Hair-Crested Drongos, the local birds love them too.  This is because the Coral tree flowers have a very high sugar content which are favourites of the nectar eating birds. The Japanese White-eye is one of them. 

Because of the unusual shape of the Coral tree flowers, the birds have to peck through the base of the petals to get the nectar. 

The Fork-tailed Sunbirds mainly feed on nectar and never miss such opportunities. The combination of the colourful little bird and the bright Coral tree flowers makes for perfect picturesque photos.