My neighbours: A pair of Red-whiskered Bulbuls---a success story

Last year, the pair of Red-whiskered Bulbuls living in my garden lost their chicks. But it is a different story this year! 

Back in May, I saw the pair build a nest in a big pine tree. I was very excited  but the nest was very well hidden and it was difficult to photograph. So I decided to leave them alone. Then one day in June, I accidentally saw 4 chicks sitting in a small tree! 

After last year’s tragedy, the parents were really careful and as soon as they realized that I  had spotted the chicks, they moved them further inside the tree. 

The chicks were growing very fast. A week later, they were able to fly around the garden.

Since these birds love cooked rice, I often left some rice on the balcony and managed to get some close-up photos of the chicks. 

Unlike the adults, the juvenile Red-whiskered Bulbuls have a greyish-black crown but do not have the red whisker mark below the eyes.  Soon, the brothers and sisters were regulars on my balcony for rice. 

In the last few weeks, the ripening papayas have been the main source of their diet. 

 

I often heard them singing on the papaya trees and sometimes, it looked that the youngsters were arguing with the parents.

Last week, I noticed that the “red whiskers” were beginning to appear under the eyes of the young birds. 

Hopefully, the happy family will live in my garden for sometime.

A Barn Swallow family (3)

   The little swallows became much quieter while they were getting bigger everyday. By now, just over a week after I first saw them, they only “screamed” when they heard their parents coming back (rather than the constant screaming of the first week).  They looked more and more like adult swallows and very cute too.

Now the biggest nestling was often seen flashing its wings. I guess it was getting ready to take its first flight.

One of them was much smaller than its siblings (Below on the left).

This was the last time I saw four of them together, 10 days after I first saw them. The nest seemed too crowded for them.

The following day, there was only one left in the nest. I guess the 3 bigger siblings must have flown away leaving the youngest behind.

  

However, the parents still came back regularly to feed it. But the little thing looked so frightened being alone, so I did not stay for long to take more photos. Next day, the nest was empty. I guess it must have flown away to join its brothers and sisters.  

In the following days, when I went out for walks in the evening, I noticed several young swallows flying around my neighbourhood catching insects. I wonder if they were the same family.  I wish them all the best and a safe journey back home somewhere in South Asia.   Hopefully I will see them again next year.

 These were the last few feeding photos before the little ones flew away. I am missing them already!

A Barn Swallow family (2)

The little swallows grew very fast. I went to see them every couple of days. Within a few days,  their feathers were beginning to sprout, actually they were starting to show the appearance of the adult swallow by the end of the week.  

But they were as noisy as ever. I guess the competition for food made them aggressively loud. It was so fascinating to watch.

Feeding a family of 4 swallows was no easy task. The parents came back and forth with delicious insects every few minutes in the summer heat (usually over 30 degree C) . Unlike the Red-whiskered Bulbul, the swallow is one of the very few birds which is able to feed in mid air. So the feeding is very quick and usually takes a few seconds. It is ever so difficult  to capture especially when the lighting is not ideal. Anyway, I managed to get several poor quality photos.

A Barn Swallow family (1)

Barn swallows are summer migratory birds in Hong Kong.  Every spring, they travel to Hong Kong from their homes in South Asia to raise their children. In autumn, the chicks are old enough to fly back home together with the parents. Every year, we see several swallow nests in my neighbourhood. This year, I saw a nest just below a neighbour’s first floor balcony, which was very handy for photographing.

By the time I noticed the nest, the eggs were already hatched and the little chicks must have been several days old.

They were making very loud noises whenever there was a slight movement near the nest. That is how I noticed them.  

The adult swallows fed their chicks mainly on small flies and insects. Sometimes, they brought back bigger insects, such as butterflies.

One day, a parent caught a big cicada! Of course, the cicada was too big for the little chicks to swallow. 

In the end, she (he) had to give up.