In November 2006 Allan Teo, together with other photographers, were at Changi, when suddenly, there appeared a large eagle that hopped on to the ground nearby.

As Allan continues, “It was a sudden surprise encounter that froze all the photographers. Most of us got very bad photos but we knew eventually that it probably was a juvenile Steppe Eagle (Aquila nipalensis) after looking at what photos we had. The element of surprised really had an effect on us.”

“The eagle then flew into a low-built nest of a Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus caeruleus) and in a flash ate up either the chick or the egg.

“The parent kite was totally helpless. It circled around the shrub where the nest was, giving off very loud and continuous alarm calls but that did not stop the eagle. The eagle eventually it flew off, chased by the angry kite. The image above (top) shows it climbing into the air about 3 metres from the ground, flapping furiously while the kite gave pursuit.

“The morning was hot and the thermals had already began to rage. The eagle flew in circles whilst the kite followed (above bottom).

The eagle flew up to join a marsh harrier that was in the vicinity and eventually to join another large eagle high in the sky (above).”

There is disagreement on the identity of the eagle. Allan himself later concluded that it could not be a Steppe Eagle, which is a rare winter visitor/vagrant. On the other hand it could be another rare vagrant, the Greater Spotted Eagle (Aquila clanga). Or even a female Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus).

Many raptors are extremely difficult to identify, especially from long-range photographs. So any opinion from viewers would be appreciated.

Input and images by Allan Teo.

There have been several sightings of a pair of Oriental Pied Hornbill checking on tree cavities at Changi (1, 2 and 3). So far there have been no reports of breeding.

On 8th January 2007, Emily Kang reported another sighting of the hornbills prospecting a cavity in an old tree in Changi (left).

“We saw this same pair on 8th Jan 07. We had wanted to visit the parakeets and cockatoos of Changi village, but this pair dominated the cockatoos’ hangout. I guess size matters.

“They were very loving indeed. So that’s what they were doing… looking for a nest site. Do they actually carve out the tree cavity?

“Still can hardly believe it, hornbills now getting common on the mainland when it was “extinct” in Singapore just a couple of years ago. First they were sighted in Ubin and now in Changi.”

Emily later added, “The male and female birds took turns to check out the two tree holes. While we were there, neither went in completely into the hole. We were not sure if there was courtship feeding… perhaps we didn’t or couldn’t see it. The female didn’t go far from the tree hole while the male flew across the road a couple of times but he always came back to her.”

If this pair breeds, then it will be the first reported case of breeding in Changi. We shall wait and see.

This account has now been published as:
Y. M. Chan, M. Chan and Y. C. Wee (2008).
Aberrant behaviour of a female Great Hornbill and a female Rhinoceros Hornbill.
Nature in Singapore. 1:31–34.
A PDF copy is available HERE.

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Between February and May 2006, a pair of mixed Great (Buceros bicronis) and Rhinoceros Hornbills (Buceros rhinoceros), both female, was seen regularly at a patch of secondary growth at Eng Neo (1, 2). They were prospecting a tree cavity along the trunk of an old albezia tree (Paraserianthes falcataria).

The Great would regularly feed the Rhinoceros and lure the latter to the cavity. It would also check the cavity as if placing regurgitated food into it. This had the effect of getting the Rhinoceros flying over to also check the cavity.

It would appear that the Great was playing the role of a male while the Rhinoceros that of a female.

Although there was talk of one of the birds entering the cavity, most birders and photographers who were monitoring the hornbills have yet to see any image of this.

Recently the hornbills have been visiting the tree again. And as before, they regularly checked on the cavity.

Meng and Melinda Chan were around the area one day when they heard the honking of hornbills. Rushing to the tree, they noticed something inside the cavity. Soon a yellowish structure poked out – it was the casque of the Great Hornbill. The head followed and then the right side of the body.

Once the right wing emerged totally from the cavity, it unfolded completely with the head of the bird held high (above). Then the bird turned downwards while the left wing was still not completely out. Once both wings were free of the cavity, the bird dived down with the wings folded back before unfolding the wings fully and flying in a downward direction.

The Great Hornbill was in the cavity for a short while and emerged when she heard the Rhinoceros calling. When the pair was together, there was courtship feeding.

The good news is that the pair is still prospecting for a nesting cavity. It has gone one step further in that one of the birds actually entered the cavity. It is possible that one or the other had previously entered the cavity but not observed and documented.

The birds are regularly seen at the nearby Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. In January 2007 when a large fig tree was fruiting, both hornbills were regularly seen feeding there. Again, they regularly indulged in courtship feeding.

Now where do the birds end up at night? It was earlier reported that the Great spent most nights in a rain tree (Samanea saman) around a condominium along Adam Road. The Rhinoceros was never seen there. Obviously the two spent the night separately, meeting only during the day. What happened next is anybody’s guess…

Joseph M. Forshaw, one of Australia’s foremost ornithologists and a world renown expert on parrots, was in town last month on a private visit. While here, he had time to go bird watch and meet up with old birding friends. And a possible visit to the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research at the National University of Singapore.

Joseph has always been fascinated with parrots. After all, there are more than 50 species of parrots in Australia alone and about a sixth of all the world’s parrots are endemic to this island-continent. However, his passion for these birds took a turn when he was awarded a fellowship by the American Museum of Natural History in New York to study specimens of Australian parrots in its Mathews Collection in 1964. This led to the publication in 1969, of his immensely successful book, Australian Parrots (Lansdowne Press).

His next major work was in 1973 when he brought out Parrots of the World (Lansdowne Editions). These were followed by a series of bird book monographs on Birds of Paradise and Bowerbirds, Kingfishers and Related Birds, Turacos, Cockatoos…

Many of Joseph’s books are lavishly illustrated by his long-standing artist friend, William T. Cooper, the pictures of which are now collectors’ items.

There are slightly more than a dozen Oriental Pied Hornbills (Anthracoceros albirostris) in Singapore’s offshore island of Pulau Ubin. There they breed regularly, nesting in cavities found high up along the trunks of old trees.

Prior to breeding, a pair would indulge in courtship feeding and they would go prospecting for a suitable nesting cavity. The male bird would lure the female to the cavity, flying back and forth between the perch and the cavity. He would need to convince his mate that he is capable of feeding her once she is sealed up inside. He needs to demonstrate feeding at the cavity, sometimes placing food inside.

He would even enter the cavity in an effort to convince her that it is alright. This may go on for a number of days. But once she is convinced, she will fly over and inspect it. She would even clean up the inside of the cavity.

Then the birds would mate and the female would be sealed inside leaving only a narrow slit for the male to pass her food. She lays her eggs and sheds her feathers.

In the images above, the male is bringing an egg (left) and probably a fig (right) to his mate and chicks sealed inside the nest.

Detials of feeding is shown in the image on the left where the male is passing on food to the chicks sealed inside a cavity high up an old durian tree (Durio zibethinus) growing within the compound of a house in Pulau Ubin. The bird flew in several times a day, bringing food for the imprisoned occupants. Food includes figs, eggs, insects and reptiles.

After 29 incubation days and almost 2 months of living together in a confined space, the female reopens the cavity entrance and free the young birds. The parents will accompany them as they discover their new environment.

Input by YC, images by YC (top, middle right) and Dr Jonathan Cheah Weng Kwong (middle left, bottom).