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Common Iora feeding Banded-bay Cuckoo fledgling

on 15th June 2011

In mid-March 2011, Francis Yap a.k.a. fryap encountered a male Banded-bay Cuckoo (Cacomantis sonneratii) perched in a tree calling out for its mate. The cuckoo has a distinctive call, most often heard than seen during mating seasons. The fact that the tree where it was perching was leafless, made it easy to locate it.

Two months later, at the same site in Singapore’s Lorong Halus, Francis came across a juvenile calling out incessantly for food. Knowing that its foster parent would be the Common Iora (Aegithina tiphia), he had no difficulty locating the feeding of the fledgling. However, photographing the feeding was a challenge as the birds were high up in the leafy canopy of the tree. Persistence paid off and the above composite image shows the juvenile cuckoo adopting a begging posture, with wings fluttering. “Although it may seem at first glance that the cuckoo was aggressively lurching towards the iora, the sequence shows clearly that it was the iora that bent forward towards the cuckoo’s mouth,” wrote Francis.

Francis Yap
Singapore
June 2011

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

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

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