Blue-throated Bee-eaters (Merops viridis) catch dragonflies on the wing (above), with the latter twisting and turning in the air when chased and the former trying very hard to manoeuvre likewise. The chase sometimes looks like a dogfight between two warring fighter planes – one large and the other small. Frequently the dragonfly escapes. After all, dragonflies usually also hunt on the wing and have the skills to do so.

The dragonfly is usually caught at the thorax, where the insect is thickest (below left, right). It is then brought back to the perch where it is subdued and eaten, a habit very similar to that of the prey. The bird usually tosses the dragonfly in the air to position it for swallowing head first (below middle).

Dragonflies are reasonably large insects with prominent wings that give an audible clatter when flying. They have a large head and two equally large compound eyes. They thus make excellent subjects for photographers, especially when they are captured and manipulated by the long pointed bill of bee-eaters.

Photo credits: Lee Tiah Khee (top); Dr Jonathan Cheah Weng Kwong (bottom left), James Wong (bottom middle); Joseph Yao (bottom right).

This post is a cooperative effort between NaturePixels.org and BESG to bring the study of bird behaviour through photography to a wider audience.

“Pulau Nikoi is a small island off the east coast of Pulau Bintan, within the Riau Archipelago, Indonesia. The island is privately leased by a group of people and a resort has been built there. Much of the island’s remnant natural areas has been preserved, where possible, and a variety of flora and fauna are to be found.

“The two regular coastal raptors, the White-bellied Sea-Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) and the Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus) are both resident on the isle. They roost and nest on the tall coastal trees found on the higher parts of the isle and can regularly be found soaring above or fishing offshore.

“The resort disposes of its wet waste (mainly food waste) by taking it slightly offshore and depositing it in the sea. This is a normal practice of resorts around the region and is perfectly fine as the food waste is completely biodegradable. This food waste initially floats and attracts the coastal raptors to scavenge.

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“During a visit to Nikoi in late August 2008, my wife, Sham, and I observed this taking place. Even while the boat was carrying the waste out to a patch of sea behind some offshore rocks, an eagle and a kite were seen flying out and following the boat. After the waste was disposed of into the water and the boat headed back, the two raptors immediately descended. They hovered over the water and flew down to pick food items with their talons.

“The sea-eagle then flew up onto one of the offshore rocks and proceeded to feed. I managed some shots but they were not great as all this took place a fair distance away and my Panasonic Lumix only had a 12x zoom. I did manage a reasonable flight shot of the eagle as it flew back to the island.

“Both of these birds-of-prey are known to scavenge, especially the kite, and this has been observed regularly in Singapore.”

The Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus) is carnivorous, taking a variety of animal foods like mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, fish and even carrion. It forages by quartering, seizing its prey by gliding down or diving. Sometimes it even gives a short chase at ground level.

Prey is often eaten on the wing. This is thought to cut down on losses to other birds, although the bird themselves are prone to kleptoparasitism – robbing other birds of their food.

The images here show a Brahminy Kite with a bird clutched in its talon (left top) and regularly taking bites when in flight (left bottom). Other raptors usually take the prey to a perch where it is eaten (see related posts below).

All images by Willis.

This post is a cooperative effort between www.naturepixels.org and BESG to bring the study of bird behaviour through photography to a wider audience.

An earlier post gives the non-breeding, breeding (above) and transitional plumages of the White-winged Tern (Chlidonias leucopterus), also known as White-winged Black Tern documented by Dr Jonathan Cheah Weng Kwong at Kranji.

This is a migratory bird that moves down the Malay Peninsula to Singapore and beyond to as far as Australia to winter.

This tern is a generalist feeder, taking aquatic as well as terrestrial insects, small fish and tadpoles. It has a number of feeding techniques: aerial feeding, hawking flying insects, hover-dipping and contact-dipping. However, it does not plunge-dive.

The images provided (above, below) show the bird indulging in contact-dipping. Flying slowly and just above the water, it looks for a fish swimming just below the water surface. Once spotted, the bird turns it head downwards and sideways and plunges its bill into the water to snatch the fish. It simply continues with its flight with the fish securely clamped in its bill.

Reference:
Gochfeld, M. & Burger, J. (1996). Family Sternidae (Terns). Pp. 624-667 in: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. eds. Handbook of the birds of the world. Vol. 3. Hoatzin to Auks. Barcelona: Lynx Editions.

This is another documentation of the Stork-billed Kingfisher (Halcyon capensis) catching a young Common Tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) by Kennie Pan. This fish is not native to the region but introduced for food. This is probably the most successful and widely distributed of the tilapias.

The kingfisher was successful in catching this fish after three tries, diving at intervals of five to 20 minutes. The bird is often around Symphony Lake at the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Sometimes it flies off after a few unsuccessful dives, to return in the evening or the next day.

As Kennie wrote, “I realised that the Stork-billed is a ferocious predator when, instead of picking up the fish from the water by scooping it into it’s beak, it just dived-bombed directly at it’s target. It flapped its wings during the initial dive, to fold them as it gains momentum just before touching the water.

“The speed was so fast that most probably the fish had little chance of escaping. Due to the powerful impact, the beak just pierced right through the fish, probably killing it instantly, though it still whacked the fish against the branch when it returned to its favourite perch. After about three minutes of whacking, it flew off with its catch.