Changeable Hawk-eagle attacking colugo

Colugo or flying lemur (Cynocephalus variegates) is a mammal that goes back to ancient times (above). Colugo is a better name as flying lemur can be misleading. Why? True lemurs are primates that are only found in the island of Madagascar. The images below show the Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta), a true lemur, basking in the sun (below, left) and huddling from the cold (below, right).
















Colugo is also a mammal but it is neither a lemur nor a primate. It belongs to a separate order of its own, the Dermoptera (Greek derma = skin; ptera = wing). It does not fly but actually glides. This it does with the help of a special membrane that extends from the neck region to the fore feet and the hind feet and thence to the tip of the tail (below). In Singapore, Colugo is found in the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the Central Catchment Forest.

Hot from the press is a book on this fascinating animal, written by Norman Lim with Morten Strange as editor (left). The book is published by Draco Publishing and Distribution Pte. Ltd. in conjunction with Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research, National University of Singapore. It is currently available at the Botanic Gardens Shop, Nature's Niche.

The diet of this animal is mainly leaves, young shoots and flowers of selected plants. During the day it rest high up in the tree, clinging to a tree trunk or hiding in a tree hole. Comes dusk, it becomes active, gliding from tree trunk to tree trunk. The young is carried clinging to the flight membrane.

Cited in the book is a report by Tan Choo Eng; “On Aug 6, 2006, I was at an uncompleted stretch of the new Baling Gerik highway on the Perak section in Peninsular Malaysia together with two other members of the Malaysian Nature Society. We witnessed a Changeable Hawk-eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus, pale morph) attack a Colugo.

“After the failed attack, the Colugo stayed motionless (11am) on an exposed mid section of a tree trunk for about 40 minutes, even after the threat was gone (11.40am). Then it scampered up the tree trunk and glided into some more leafy trees.”

The image on the left is that of a Changeable Hawk-eagle, pale morph.






Images from top, of Colugo clinging on to tree trunk and palm frond by Johnny Wee, Ring-tailed Lemur by YC; Colugo gliding by YC; book cover by Morten Strange; and Changeable Hawk-eagle by Johnny Wee.

Jerdon's Baza feasting on a lizard

An earlier posting reported the sighting of a pair of Jerdon's Bazas (Aviceda jerdoni) at Lim Chu Kang. This is a rare passage migrant, having been reported only twice before. The current posting reports on the birds catching and feasting on Changeable Lizards (Calotes versicolor).

Chan Yoke Meng just happened to be at the right place at the right time. But of the two feedings, he managed to document only the second when his view was not obstructed by vegetation. The bird flew into the crown of a tree from a nearby perch (above). It then moved on to the lizard nearby, doing a partial somersault in the process and caught it just below the head. Firmly clutched in its talons, it flew back to its original perch (below). Although unable to move, the lizard put up a spirited fight, opening its mouth wide and baring its teeth. But it was no match against the baza's deadly bill (below). A few powerful blows on the head was enough to render the lizard lifeless (below left; below right shows the close-up view).


















The baza then had a meal of the lizard’s head after wrenching it off the body (below). It then began to dismember the rest of the headless lizard. As each piece was torn off it casually swallowed it. In the process it paused a little to defecate (above). After swallowing the last piece, the bird proceeded to clean its bill against the branch (below). The entire process was completed in 20 minutes. There was a sudden high pitch cry of “pee-ow” from the other bird nearby and the baza flew off to join its mate.

These birds feed mostly on large insects, also on lizards and frogs, and sometimes on small snakes. It hunts from a perch, sallying to the ground or into a tree once a prey is sighted.

Input and images by Chan Yoke Meng. Identification confirmation of the baza and identification of the lizard by R. Subaraj.

Peregrine Falcon feasting on a Black-naped Oriole

Cheong Weng Chun was going through some of his old bird images when he came across a composite image of a Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) feasting on a Black-naped Oriole (Oriolus chinensis) (left). The images were taken on 7th March 2004 in Port Dickson when he was just beginning to take an interest in digiscoping birds. He shared the images with like-minded birders then and showed the composite images in the BESG’s e-loop a few days ago.

Through the courtesy of Weng Chun, we are presenting his images highlighting the stages of the falcon's feast, first preparing its catch and then feasting on it…

Peregrine Falcon feeds exclusively on birds like doves, sparrows, waterfowls, feral pigeons and songbirds. It is fast and agile in the air, being the world’s swiftest bird, having the ability to reach a speed exceeding 300 km/h when pursuing a prey. It hunts birds in mid-air, first hitting the prey at great speed with its foot, then swooping back to catch it. The bird has a conspicuous tomial tooth, a sharp triangular-shaped downward pointing projection found at the outer edge of the upper mandible near the curved part of the beak (see above). This sharp “tooth” is thought to serve mainly in the killing of prey by breaking the victim’s neck. In the above image the prey was brought back to its favourite perch to be eaten. The dead bird was first decapitated and then carefully plucked of its feathers (below). With the help of its tomial tooth and powerful bill, the falcon tore through the featherless prey and began its feast (below).








In about 30 minutes or so all the flesh had disappeared from the dead bird and the falcon began to pick at the bones (below). Soon even the bones were picked clean...
















...leaving only a satiated falcon (below).
Input and images courtesy of Cheong Weng Chun

A Peregrine Falcon at lunch

James Heng chanced upon an exciting avian event between 12.50-2.00 pm on 30th October 2006. He was going to have his lunch around a transmission tower beside the Woodlands Fire Station when he noticed the presence of a Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus).

The bird was on the fifth platform of the larger transmission tower and was having its lunch. It had a black bird in its talons, limp and obviously dead. James narrowed it down to a possible Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis panayensis), or even a myna.

The falcon was perched on the railing of the tower, with the prey held tightly in its talons. It was furiously tearing away bits of feathers and skin from the belly of the dead bird. Within minutes it got to the meat and was feeding off bits and pieces.

Then it started to rain. As the rain became heavier, the falcon stopped eating and looked around. James wondered: “…if it was because it needed rest, to let the food digest or to cover the prey's innards to prevent the cavity from being flooded over by the heavy rain?”

When the rain got lighter the bird resumed feeding on the carcass. This time it was feeding at a leisurely pace.

In about an hour the bird had completed eating the prey, including the innards. The empty shell of the prey was discarded, and got lodged on the railing one floor below.

Satiated, the falcon began to casually preen itself, looking around as it did so. The rain had by then stopped.

James had only a pair of binoculars with him. No camera, so he missed the chance of recording the action. He did not have his scope with him, thus by the end of the hour his neck, shoulders and forearms were aching.

Tired, aching but exhilarated by the event, he realised that although the falcon finished its lunch, he still had not started on his.

“Like us, this bird takes around an hour for his lunch break. I wonder if it does a siesta?” wondered James.

PS: Our bird specialist R. Subaraj has this to say: "Peregrine Falcons are mainly migrants that turn up during the winter months, sometimes wintering at a site. We also get a few records during the non-migratory season and based on colouration and size, these birds are believed to be visitors of the resident race from some place nearby, like Malaysia. These falcons are often found on transmitter towers, including Bukit Batok, Sentosa, Ubin and even Fort Canning. These structures offer a good vantage point, feeding and roosting perch."

Input by James Heng, images by Chan Yoke Meng.

Changeable Hawk Eagle and the long-tailed macaque

In August 2006 Johnny Wee was at Venus Drive Link seeking out subjects to photograph. There he noticed a Changeable Hawk Eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus) perched on a branch high up a tree. The eagle was quietly scanning the area below for about 10 minutes before it suddenly dived down. It must have been eyeing a young long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) as there was a sudden distress call by the latter as the eagle dived.
Unfortunately the trees blocked his view and he was not able to confirm whether the bird succeeded in catching the monkey. Did the macaque escape?

Input and top image by Johnny Wee, bottom image by YC.

White-bellied Sea Eagle: Not just a fishing expert

"On May 1st, I was at Tekek Village at Pulau Tioman, Malaysia with my collegues, Bridget Hedderman, Chua Sek Chuan and Karen Chen. We were awaiting for our vehicle transfer. Above us, we could see and hear the large colony of Island Flying Foxes (Pteropus hypomelanus) roosting in the various trees, including casuarina (Casuarina equisetifolia) and sea almond (Terminalia catappa), along the river. These fruit bats have a wingspan of about a metre and are offshore island specialists.

"Suddenly, there was a loud commotion from the colony of bats. Karen said a White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) had flown low over our heads and landed on one of the nearby trees. I could see some movement at the top of a sea almond tree across the small river. Then, I saw the eagle fly out and away with something in its talons. Almost immediately, it dawned on me that the eagle had taken one of the bats!

"We looked around and soon observed the White-bellied Sea Eagle flapping toward the central hills with a struggling Island Flying Fox firmly locked in its talons. What a sight and what a surprise! This eagle species specialises on catching fish offshore or over bodies of inland water. Indeed, it is a regular joy to see these majestic raptors flying out to sea and fishing the waters around Tioman. Often, individuals can be seen flying back to the hills with a fish in their talons, heading for a favourite perch. Occasionally, they may be seen carrying an eel, a crab or even a snake.

"A large Island Flying Fox being taken by a White-bellied Sea Eagle is practically unheard of - at least I have not heard of anything like this! Yet, the colony of large bats provides an easy target for a gutsy and suitably sized raptor. In the sea eagle's talons, the flying fox looked relatively small and an ideal meal. Adapting to changing situations is what survival is all about and I feel truly fortunate and humbled to have witnessed this amazing raw spectacle." R. Subaraj

Note: White-bellied Fish-eagle is now known as White-bellied Sea Eagle. We thank Subaraj for the exciting and unusual account and K. C. Tsang for the use of his image.