Pulau Ubin

Today, I will write about my trip to Pulau Ubin in July.

July 3, 2016

Pulau Ubin is about a 10 minute ride on the jetty from Changi Point Ferry Terminal. As soon as I reached the island, I took a taxi to Chek Jawa Wetlands. Note that the taxi costs S$24 round trip regardless of number of passengers, so make sure you go with a group. (It’s also possible to rent a bike to go there.)

Chek Jawa is a mangrove forest along the east coast of the island. There, I saw wild boars, mud-skippers, and sea anemone.

This time the tide was too high, but when the tide is below 0.5 m (Tide Information), they say you can see a lot of marine life like corals. I’m definitely going to visit again when the tide is lower.

Unfortunately, I didn’t see any birds at Chek Jawa, so I returned towards the port and headed for the sensory trail. Then, I heard a very distinctive bird call. I rushed towards the call and there I saw the Oriental Pied Hornbill. 4 of them! I was very lucky this time, as I was able to see them really up close.

I actually went to Pulau Ubin in August, and I also saw Hornbills along the sensory trail, so it seems this is their territory. If you want to see Hornbills, I highly recommend the sensory trail of Pulau Ubin. Listen carefully for its call

I took pictures of the Asain Glossy Starling and Brahminy Kite, and left for the main island.

When I reached Changi Point Ferry Terminal, I saw a flock of Red-Breasted Parakeets perched on a nearby tree. I couldn’t take a picture, but I saw a Hornbill here as well!

That’s all for today!

Singapore Botanic Gardens

After living an year and looking for birds, I realized that the timing of when and where to look is very important. I thought a web site with that kind of information would be helpful for people going bird-watching, so hence I have decided to start this blog. And now, here is a report of yesterday.

August 28, 2016

I went to the Singapore Botanic Gardens mainly to do bird watching, and I was not let down.

Entering from the Bukit Timah Gate, I headed for the visitor center. I was first greeted by the usual monitor lizard. The monitor lizards I have seen here are smaller than the ones in other parts of Singapore.

When I reached the visitor center, I caught a glimpse of a Crimson Sunbird in a small patch of shrubs right by the visitor center. As it was my first time seeing this beautiful bird, this alone made it worth the trip. By the way, it is the unofficial national bird of Singapore.

Also at the visitor center, I saw the Red Junglefowl. It looks like chicken, but this is actually a wild bird.

I went down to the Symphony Lake, and saw this female Olive-backed Sunbird feeding on a Heliconia.

From there, I headed back to Bukit Timah gate via the Evolution Garden Walk. Along the way, I saw a Common Tailorbird, Yelllow-vented Bulbul, and a Black-naped Oriole.

That wrapped up my day. I also plan on writing reports about bird watching trips I made in the past year.