Juvenile Snowy-browed Flycatcher Ficedula hyperythra and Feeding Behaviour

On 18th May 2023 I was at approximately 1,800m ASL at Cameron Highlands, Pahang, Malaysia when I saw a family unit of Snowy-browed Flycatcher (Ficedula hyperythra). Both adults were collecting prey, to feed one or two juveniles (unsure if 1 or 2 juveniles).

Once I arrived, the adults became very confiding. Although they ‘stashed’ their juvenile(s) in the undergrowth, out of my view, they approached me at close range. Often, they were too close for the long lens to focus on, and at times they were at my feet. Very often they dashed past my body or face.

I then realised they were using me as their ‘feeding station’. I had been walking up slopes quite a bit that morning and was hot and sweaty. A number of insects were attracted to the salt on my body and the heat. These crafty Snowy-browed Flycatchers used this ‘captive’ opportunity over the next 20 minutes to feed their juvenile(s).

Fortunately for me, the juvenile(s) were not content to wait for feeds and they also joined the feeding activity and I was able to see them well. One juvenile, that was imaged well from the back, had a slate-bluish tail, suggesting it was a male.

Food items given to juvenile(s) were the many different small flying insects buzzing around me; ID unknown. The only clear prey I saw in an adult’s beak was a small caterpillar.

Needless to say, I took many images of the birds. Images of juveniles and one each of the adults shown.