Saturday, April 24, 2010

The Not So Common Paradise Flycatcher

The Common Paradise Flycatcher or the Asian Paradise Flycatcher dwells in thick forests and well-wooded habitats and is a winter visitor to Singapore. During the migratory season, a number of birders here were searching for the elusive adult male Asian Paradise Flycatcher (not so common paradise flycatcher). I have seen the females during this year’s season but the adult male proved to be impossible to locate.
My next encounter with the Asian Paradise Flycatcher was at Periyar Tiger Reserve, Thekkady, India. Where I finally caught a glimpse of the adult male but sadly I didn’t have time to sit and wait for the bird. It was the most beautiful bird I’ve seen.
Imagine my excitement when our guide in Sarawak briefed us on the birds to expect and this species was included. There is a resident population of Asian Paradise Flycatchers in Kubah National Park.
Next came, the dilemma of which bird to follow and which to give up for the next trip. Hard choices but one has only so little time. I finally caught the adult male Asian Paradise Flycatcher in pixels.

2 comments:

Shawn said...

Congrats Shirls, you finally got to photograph the bird you loved the most. Guess you're really lucky to have managed to shoot another one after missing the first one in Kerala.

Shirls said...

Hi Shawn, guess perseverance does pay off, and having luck on your side makes it even better.