Blue-throated Bee-eater

Corasiformes - Meropidae - Merops viridis (Beberek Leher Biru/Berek-berek Rengkung Biru)

A bright green insect hunter with a long bill and triangular starling-like wings. Adult has a bright blue throat, orange-brown crown and nape, and long trailing central tail feathers. Sexes are alike. Juveniles have a paler blue throat, no orange-brown coloration, and no long tail extensions. Often hunts from exposed perches such as telephone lines or snags, on which it rubs its venomous quarry so as to disarm it. Call is a bright, inflected “chileep.”

(eBird)

"We don't see things as they are, we see them as we are."

Greater Coucal

Cuculiformes - Cuculidae - Centropus sinensis (Bubut Besar Asia)

A large bird that resembles a cross between a crow and a pheasant. Largely black with distinctive rusty wings, glossy underparts, a long and heavy black tail, and deep red eyes. Juveniles are much duller with white bars on the tail and underparts and variable amounts of black streaks on the wings and upperparts. Common across a range of habitats except very dense forests. Similar to Lesser Coucal, but Greater Coucal is larger with a longer bill and red eyes. Adult Greater Coucals also lack the white streaks on the wings seen on Lesser Coucal. The call is a series of deep, resonant “oop-oop-oop” notes.

What is lost to the eyes can always be regained with an open heart.

White-rumped Shama

 Passeriformes - Muscicapidae - Copsychus malabaricus (Murai-Hutan Biasa)

A thrushlike bird with a long, graduated tail. Males are glossy black above and rich chestnut below. Females are similar but paler. Juveniles are reddish brown with rusty wingbars. Occurs in dense lowland and hill forests, forest edge, and overgrown orchards and plantations; widely poached for the cagebird trade in much of its native range, and declining severely or extirpated from certain areas as a result. The song is a varied series of loud whistles and flutelike notes, often involving mimicry of other birds; does not repeat phrases. Call is a sharp “tsick.” Introduced to the Hawaiian Islands and Taiwan.

(eBird)

When the heart and soul see and hear, the song lingers on.

Lesser Fish-Eagle

Accipitriformes - Accipitridae - Icthyophaga ichethyaetus (Helang-Kanguk Kecil) 

Gray-brown eagle with piercing yellow eyes and an immaculate white belly. Juvenile paler and browner than adult, with weakly streaked underparts. Most easily separated from larger Gray-headed Fish-Eagle in flight: note Lesser’s “dirtier” tail with a less contrasting black band and more mottled underwings in adult; note overall paler underside patterning in juvenile. White belly also tends to have a more poorly-defined and jagged shape than the sharp “V” of Gray-headed. Favors faster-flowing foothill streams and rivers, but can also be found in lowland lakes and wetlands.

(eBird)

Do you see what I see, and do I see what you see?  How does it matter?

Blue-winged Leafbird

Passeriformes - Chloropseidae -  Chloropsis moluccensis (Burung-Daun Biasa)

Medium-sized forest-dweller that is often seen in pairs or with mixed flocks. Male has a yellow tinge to the head and a triangular black patch with a deep blue center extending down from between the eye and the base of the bill. Female is green all over with a small blue throat smudge. Both sexes have vivid blue highlights on the wings, which help to distinguish it from other similar leafbirds in its range such as Greater Green and Lesser Green Leafbirds, both of which have plain green wings. Vocalizations very varied, including a rather slow, simple song consisting of whistles and warbles, a repetitive and strident “weet weet weet”, and a sweet “wi’weep.”

(eBird)

Beauty is always beheld only when one truly opens up to see.

Blue-winged Leafbird

Passeriformes - Chloropseidae -  Chloropsis moluccensis (Burung-Daun Biasa)

Medium-sized forest-dweller that is often seen in pairs or with mixed flocks. Male has a yellow tinge to the head and a triangular black patch with a deep blue center extending down from between the eye and the base of the bill. Female is green all over with a small blue throat smudge. Both sexes have vivid blue highlights on the wings, which help to distinguish it from other similar leafbirds in its range such as Greater Green and Lesser Green Leafbirds, both of which have plain green wings. Vocalizations very varied, including a rather slow, simple song consisting of whistles and warbles, a repetitive and strident “weet weet weet”, and a sweet “wi’weep.”

(eBird)

It can't be faith if it's seeing only after you have seen.

Large Cuckooshrike

 Passeriformes - Camphagidae - Coracina larutensis (Selancang-Punai Besar Biasa)

A large gray cuckooshrike endemic to the hill and montane forests of peninsular Malaysia. Gray above with black primaries; also note strong, slightly hooked bill. Male has a darker face, while female generally has more apparent pale barring on the lower belly. Both sexes have a dark patch from the bill to slightly behind the eye, giving a masked impression. Call is a two-noted, rather nasal squeal-screech: “gii-yaak,” uttered in flight as well as from a perch. Formerly treated as a subspecies of “Large Cuckooshrike”, along with Oriental Cuckooshrike and Indian Cuckooshrike.

What the eyes see may not please for reality need not please.

Malayan Crested Fireback

 Galliformes - Phasianidae - Lophura rufa (Pegar Tatera)

Flamboyant dark pheasant of tropical lowland rainforest, typically in wetter areas. Male is glossy blue-black with a tufted crest, electric blue facial skin, blood-red back and white tail. Female is warm chocolate brown with pale-edged feathers on the underparts. Forages singly or in small groups on the forest floor. Shy but has become habituated in some places. Larger than Malayan Crestless Fireback and Salvadori’s Pheasant with blue rather than red facial skin and red rather than gray legs. Gives guttural “chuckit!” or soft ”weep” calls. Males also give a wing-whirring display.

(eBird)

"I see no more than you but I have trained myself to notice what I see."

Silver-rumped Spinetail

 Apodiformes - Apodidae - Rhaphidura leucopygialis (Layang-layang Ekor-Pendek Melayu)

Small, bullet-shaped swift with rather broad-based wings. Dark (glossy blue in optimal light) with extensive silvery rump patch. Named for thin protrusions from the tail, only sometimes visible at close range. Forages aerially over forest and edge habitat, often near water, sometimes in large numbers and among other swift species. Gives a rapid-fire, chattering trill.

(eBird)

The eyes see what is seen as is seen.

Gray-and-buff Woodpecker

 Piciformes - Picidae - Hemicircus concretus (Belatuk-Daun Dahi Merah)

Small stout woodpecker with an oversized crested head and black-and-white scaling on the back. Males have a brilliant red front to the crest that females lack. Agile and active, frequently foraging in the upper canopy or on exposed snags. Crawls along trunks, sometimes descending headfirst like a nuthatch. Found in lowland and hill forests. Gives high-pitched squeaks, descending “peer” notes, and rattles.

(eBird)

Small, almost tiny

Unceasing squeaks.

Too tantalising

Knowingly futile

yet irresistible

Appeasing the heart

not the mind.