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Plant-Bird relationship: 16. Addendum – Plasticaceae

on 9th December 2012

All the plant families have now been dealt with in a total of 15 posts, the links of which are as follows: 1. Need for a Catalogue LINK; 2. Moraceae LINK; 3. Euphorbiaceae LINK; 4. Poaceae LINK; 5. Fabaceae LINK; 6. Palmae LINK; 7. Loranthaceae LINK; 8. Meliaceae LINK; 9. Myrtaceae LINK, 10. Anacardiaceae, Annonaceae and Apocynaceae LINK; 11. Non-flowering plants LINK; 12. Agavaceae, Amaranthaceae, Araceae, Araliaceae and Avicenniaceae LINK; 13. Bignoniaceae, Bombacaceae Bromeliaceae, Caricaceae, Casuarinaceae and Combretaceae LINK; 14. Miscellaneous families of trees and shrubs LINK and 15. Miscellaneous herbs and their families LINK.

This post is an addendum to the series. For convenience, the list is divided into two parts: unusual nesting materials and unusual nesting sites. Details of the different species of birds under each heading are as follows:
1. Common name of bird.
2. Detail of material.
3. Author of the post.
4. Date of posting
5. Habitat if in Singapore, otherwise reporting country.
6. Link to the actual post on the website.

Plasticaceae is a family of “plants” with only a handful of genera first described in the 1960s. Metallicus johorensis was first discovered growing along the coastal fringe of Johor in Peninsular Malaysia. Years later, Cocos lucifera was reported growing in urban Selangor (above left). M. johorensis is closely related to the Hongkong’s M. hongkorensis, another urban species growing along the wayside (above right). In the Philippines, there is Dendro-iloilo condomensis that flowers mainly during the Christmas season of December (above centre). Unfortunately, many of the Metallicus spp. were subsequently attacked by the rust fungus Puccinia sp. that first appeared in mid-1990s, killing most of these trees.

Nesting Materials
Bulbuls
Yellow-vented Bulbul: toilet-paper_LenaChow_210210_urban-Singapore – LINK
Yellow-vented Bulbul: tissue-paper_LenaChow_200310_balcony – LINK
Yellow-vented Bulbul: plastic-bag_LenaChow_261012_urban-garden – LINK
Yellow-vented Bulbul: styrofoam_TanTeoSeng-YCWee_180808_Johor-Malaysia – LINK
Yellow-vented Bulbul: styrofoam_AmarSingh_210210_Perak-Malaysia – LINK
Crows
House Crow: wire_YCWee_290307_urban-home – LINK
Crow: clothes-hangers_SunChongHong_280612_Bishan-Singapore – LINK
House Crow: clothes-hanger_”straycat”__290507_??? Japan – LINK
House Crow: grass-cutter-plastic-strips_TangHungBun_290507_roadisde – LINK
Jungle Crow: coat-hangers_“badaunt”_290507_Japan – LINK
Sunbirds
Olive-backed Sunbird: blue-synthetic-fibre_JeanHo_110510_balcony – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: cotton-wool_JudyQuah_310511_apartment – LINK
Tailorbirds
Common Tailorbird: cloth_DavidTanJianXiong_280712_urban – LINK
Wren
Carolina Wren: hanging-flower-pot_PingLau_030607_stairwell_Washington-USA – LINK

Nesting Sites
Bulbuls
Yellow-vented Bulbul: plastic-plant_LenaChow_130407_private-garden – LINK
Yellow-vented Bulbul: rattan-basket_JeanHo-friend_130411_home – LINK
Fish-eagle
White-bellied Fish-eagle: communication-tower_SamsonTan_300509_rural – LINK
White-bellied Fish-eagle: transmission-tower_WilliamIp_110211_rural – LINK
Hornbills
Oriental Pied Hornbill: earthern-pot_LimChiaYing_070310_Selangor-Malaysia – LINK
Magpie-robin
Oriental Magpie-robin: mailbox_AmarSingh_050711_Perak-Malaysia – LINK
Mynas
Common Myna: box-roadside-powerline_AmarSingh_230912_Perak-Malaysia – LINK
Sunbirds
Sunbird: dangling-wire_RobertBreinl_151110_home – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: LimTingHan: underwear_LimTingHan_170312_backyard – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: bicycle_KwongWaiChong_260811_balcony – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: light-bulb_AmarSingh_260811_Perak-Malaysia – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: wind-chime_JeanHo_110510_balcony – LINK
Olive-backed Sunbird: clothes-line_Tingfang_170506_hostel – LINK

YC Wee
Singapore
December 2012

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.

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