“While at Kota Tinggi, Malaysia, my friends and I came across this female flowerpecker (most likely the Orange-bellied Flowerpecker) in her nest. It was really an architectural master piece. It was small – not larger than my palm, and was hanging way up about 4 metres off the ground (left).
“Not only did it look cute, reminding me very much of the American Indian’s carrying pouch for their papoose, it also looked soft and comfortable (besides the twigs it looks like cotton or kapok was also being used) and above all take note of the natural ‘canopy’.
“At first I was irritated by the ‘canopy’ as it prevented me from having a clear shot of the mother. But as the day’s sun rose you can see from the 2nd shot attached (below left), how it gave the nest the much needed shade. Indeed, the 3rd shot (below right) shows clearly how the mother bird had to keep herself cool by gaping the whole time.”
Lim Poh Bee
9th June 2009
Singapore
Note: The tree where the nest is built is the wild cinnamon (Cinnamomum iners), a common wayside tree.