Jeremiah Looei’s video clip of the Greater racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus) was documented at Dairy Farm. Perched along the nest’s rim with insects between its mandibles, it was mimicking the call of the Changeable Hawk-eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus). After all, this drongo is a great mimic, with a wide repertoire of different birds’ calls including urban sounds like those of the chain saws and bells – see also HERE.
Being mainly insectivorous, the adults brought insects like dragonflies and bees.
Like many other birds, the chicks will, after feeding, excrete its waste matter enclosed in a whitish faecal sac. In this instance the adult missed picking it from the chick’s posterior, as can be seen towards the end of the video at 1:10 minute.
Jeremiah Loei & Johnny Wee
Singapore
15th April 2019
This post is a cooperative effort between Birds, Insects N Creatures Of Asia and BESG to bring the study of birds and their behaviour through photography and videography to a wider audience.
