Yellow-vented Bulbul nesting in a potted plant

A pair of Yellow-vented Bulbul (Pyconnotus goiavier) arrived in Debby Ng’s home grounds in Singapore around April 2011. They announced their presence with “a barrage of morning and dusk calls.” When the calls suddenly stopped, Debbie thought that the bulbuls had left the area. Well, they were still around, but busy building a nest in one of the potted plants outside her apartment home. The time-lapse video consisting of one frame every 60 seconds over a period of three hours, making a total of 191 frames, can be can be viewed HERE

According to Debby, “…why some birds choose to nest in areas close to human habitats is that there is safety from predators (snakes, and other nest raiders like civets, monkeys, squirrels, rodents, even ants!) that they normally encounter in the forest. Human environments also offer safety from natural disasters like storms (baby birds drown and nests can flood or simply break apart). Although human habitat may appear inhospitable, the human traffic, some people believe, make the birds feel safe because no one actually bothers the birds but it keeps other creatures at bay…”

Debby Ng
Singapore
May 2011