“This bird Onychognathus morio, had been noticed for some years back, living in the grounds of the Tang Dynasty Village. It was roosting in the holes and crevices of the much deteriorated buildings, which are now all demolished to make way for another resort, a playground for the rich. With the buildings gone, it can be found flying from tree to tree in the same area, I do not know where it would roost for the night.
“This bird is a native of Africa, from Ethiopia to South Africa, and breeds mainly on rocky cliffs, now it has adapted to living in urban areas, and other man made structures.
“So looks like we will have this bird with us for some years to come, as I have noticed that it is in very good condition, and thus must have adapted well to the fast changing environment of the Jurong Lake area.”
KC Tsang
12th May 2009
2 Responses
I have a pair of red winged starlings roosting in the lipped channels of our lean to garage roof…they make the most beautiful calls, really melodious. We have a pond outside so they may have been attracted to the pond nearby. I only wory that our dogs don’t harass them. I was going bonkers trying to find out what birds they were until i googled this site. I’m terribly excited now as i’ve always had a passion for birds since my earliest youth. Most beautiful birds, at a glance tbey resemble Ravens so i was a little disappointed in the beginning. They’re quite territorial as well and don’t scare off easy. They gave our maid a hard time by flying toward her but i suspect she tried shooing them off and failed. I’m still quite surprised that they picked a location so near to humans…still can’t get over it!!!
Hi Mervyn, are you writing this from Singapore ??? as this will tell us that the birds
are doing well here, or struggling along to survive !!