The subject of social-feeding of wild birds remains controversial. While it is not an immediate death sentence to birds ingesting processed or contaminated and often unwanted food, it is good fodder to lend your ears to the voice of pro-bird activists and conservationists in the advocacy of discouraging such a practice.
This discussion was had in Perth sometime ago during my visit at fall. Tourists were seen joyfully feeding swans and ducks with breadcrumbs, crisps and crackers in the ever bountiful landscaped ponds and rivers of Perth city.

Theoretically, environmentalists will attest to the fact that as human fingers are not sterile, whatever is handled and fed to birds, especially stale bread mushrooming with fungi, cross-contamination may cause the bird to become infected, sick and eventually death. Yet, the sight of some bird species scavenging in rubbish dumps and bins continues, and seemingly thrive well without any ill consequences (left).
They seem to have the ability to build up body resistance against certain bacteria or develop immunity to these bugs. Species like the House Crow (Corvus splendens) (left top), Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis) and Rock Pigeon (Columba livia) (left bottom) in Malaysia are star examples of such tough, wild birds living off humans’ cast offs in residential quarters.
Conservationists will say, that feeding the wild may cause birds to become too dependant on humans’ handouts and complacent to hunt in their own habitat. But I have seen too when feeding stopped, the birds stopped coming.
Most public Squares and Plazas abroad boast of huge flocks of birds, mainly Rock Pigeons (Columba livia). Symbolically, they add character to some well known tourists’ destinations like Trafalgar Square, St Mark’s Square, Red Square and Plaza Mayor in Madrid.
Tiananmen Square in Beijing was an exception. It looked barren and sterile the last time I visited in 1998. If a page of China’s history is turned to Mao’s era, one could read about a decree being carried out to exterminate all wild birds for devouring food grains in provincial villages.

Villagers were summoned to carry out a continuous bashing of kitchen utensils, clanking up high decibels, sending birds into frenzy and finally collapsing from sheer exhaustion. Dead birds were removed by the lorry loads. A most primitive and cruel execution, I thought.
Well, the story went on …being bird free; a plague of happy, lucky locusts came and finished the rest of the grains and brought on famine and untold human suffering in China.
Birds in tourists’ cities are luckier. They live off tourists who purchase bird seeds from vendors. Their presence contained within specific areas, symbolizes the maturity and establishment of tourism in that country. It is a win, win situation and everyone goes home happy (right).
Despite signboards being placed in designated public areas, giving instructions to abstain from feeding the wild, yet most tourists ignore them.
‘Why?’
‘To give’ is a physical action deriving from the emotional and thought aspect of human beings. Some give freely, others more reserved in whom they choose to give.
A conducive environment that stimulates oneness with nature I believe, plays an important catalytic role to evoke that inner feeling of the art of giving graciously and spontaneously, without expecting anything in return.
I have to confess that I do feed birds when I am a tourist, visiting places abroad, where there are duck ponds or riverside picnic areas. A place where one can find peace, solace and feel the pulse of life in a foreign land. A place, where the breeze is crisp, cool and user friendly to tired souls who are in no hurry go anywhere. While I do observe notice boards abroad, I cannot remember a moment that I’ve ever fed a wild bird under tropical heat like my own country, Malaysia nor have a desire to do so. Isn’t that strange?

I remembered only too well in my Danish escapes at Copenhagen with my spouse. We came out from a Danish delicatessen shop with a packet of delicious, mouth melting, freshly baked Danish cookies. We found a delightful picnic spot to enjoy with our flask of hot coffee. It wasn’t long before ducks sailed to greet us happily beside the river (left).
We found so much joy, just to see them free and be captivated by their gorgeous plumage. Their innocent eyes sparkled like crystal clear water from where they bobbled. Their presence was like filling in the last piece of nature’s jig-saw to complete a picture of impressionistic art works of Monet’s Lilly Ponds. The act of offering wild birds a gift of tit-bit came spontaneous and amalgamated a therapeutic feeling of goodness into each soul contributing to that grand picture.
We ended up eating only a piece each of the cookie. The rest and of best quality were enjoyed by the ducks as much as the joy they gave us to share and showed us to give with a generous heart.
This feeling is no different from house owners who live alone in retirement villages, hanging out seed bags and bird feeders in their gardens. The joy of seeing and affectionately providing these chirpy birds, paint rainbows into their somewhat mundane and perhaps, lonely existence.
It is interesting to note that birds from developed nations have the ability to feed freely from bird feeders and seed bags while that of developing countries don’t seemed to know how to tackle them.
Well, I guess while humans evolved at different stages, birds do pick after their habits and require training and time to follow suit.
Bird ecotourism – misconstrued to mean, ‘taking tourists to see wild birds in the jungle’ – seems to be in vogue in my part of the country. Many pages can be written on this subject alone, the misconception it brings with it and the way it is being practiced. Promoting sustainable impact tours, with emphasis on care and conservation of bird environment I believe, would be more appropriate.
The inventor of the word, ‘ecotourism’ is probably in a sorry state of despair now to see his invention, meant originally to be of good intentions, got so twisted by a society that has gone greedy. I can only add, the invented name came too early to our shores. The psyche of our society is not quite ready to efficiently handle profitability with responsibility, within the environmental context.
Let me take you to a hill station in Malaysia and bear witness the impact of social-feeding of wild birds and how bird tourism that is ill understood and handled kicks back.
Subject No: 1

Morgan the pirate – Common Green Magpie (Cissa chinensis) appears at the predictable time of morning from his usual roost – at the far end of a forest edge. He does his rounds, looking for insects, hopping from branch to branch, landing on bougainvillea pots and picking up fresh breadcrumbs scattered generously and purposely by employees of a resort. Morgan settled onto his favourite perch for an early entrée breakfast (above left).
The mascot bird then took to the balcony to survey some biggies, cicadas that had knocked the daylights out of themselves – having executed a kamikaze act onto the glass doors the night before. In his final approach, he craftily took cover under the driveway of the car park to await breakfast leftovers from in-house guests.
When all clear, the avian pirate swooped into the patio breakfast area, perched on the chair for a ‘quick, look and pick’ as shown by the blurry images (above middle and right). One bird may be cute and well tolerated by the management and guests. What happens when birds come by the dozens?
Subject No:2
The Long-tailed Sibia (Heterophasia picaoides) is just about the most numerous amongst the various species seen. While they looked contrastingly charming amongst bottlebrush bushes and mopped up most of the breadcrumbs, their gregarious nature when left unchecked was something else (left).
The minute my breakfast was brought in, a flock of them flew in and perched under the patio canopy. Some were bold enough to close in less than ten feet away and perched on table, others on the back of soiled chairs, to watch me eat my breakfast. I had to eat keeping one eye on them.

Let’s zoom in and be introduced to my breakfast avian pals:
“Mmm… shall I be a bit civilised and choose a plate?” asks Percival Sibia (above: bottom left).
“Oi! Percy, why bother when you can have breakfast off the ladle!” retorted Samseng Sibia (above: top left).
“For what we are about to receive, we give thee thanks oh Lord. Amen!” echoed triple Sibias- Sarah, Sylvia and Sharon (above: top centre).
“Hurry up! My turn next and don’t gobble that entire halal yoke!” screeched Abdullah, the Long-tailed Sibia (above: top right).
In flew BigEyes the Chestnut-capped Laughing Thrush (Garrulax mitratus) and perched on my camera bag. He screamed out, “You guys better clear out quick. I got this 82mm barrel pointing at me (above: bottom right)!”
“Artery blocker or not, eat first. Choose my cardiologist LATER…” says Duke, the black avian Jekyll (above: bottom centre).
Well… any birding pals care to join me for breakfast with the Avian Jekylls and Hydes in the near future?
SUBMITTED BY DAISY O’NEILL (Avian Writer), PENANG, MALAYSIA.
All images by Daisy O’Neill.
PS: In Southeast Asia there is no tradition of setting up garden bird feeders as is common in the west. The practice of feeding feral pigeons is actively discouraged in Singapore. At the Singapore Botanic Gardens visitors are feeding fishes in the lakes, and seeing that mynas, sparrows and doves are attracted to the bread thrown into the water, are beginning to also feed these birds. Whether this practice is good or bad for the long term has yet to be debated. The above article provides food for thought.
kris
I just found a young dollarbird in the garden.. It seems to have left the nest too early and cannot fly yet. How am i to keep and feed it for a few days untill it can fly.???
Raja
March 20 is world sparrow day!
CHIRP FOR SPARROWS!
TWEET FOR SPARROWS!
TEXT FOR SPARROWS!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?client=mv-google&hl=en-GB&v=MQiq8FHrG_0&gl=US&nomobile=1
Iwan
We have a small pond in our garden surrounded by trees and steep bedrock. The other day we saw a heron flying over and attempting to land – I guess to try to eat our small stock of fish. We managed to frighten it away before it landed, and have since installed trip wires around the pond in order to dissuade the bird. The amount of shelter around the pond means that a heron would have to land practically vertically. Does anyone know whether these birds have the agility to hover and land in this way, or do they always need a “glidepath” in order to land successfully?
Khng Eu Meng
Today, at the former Bidadari Cemetery, there was a buzz about a sighting of a Grey Nightjar (Caprimulgus jotaka). I heard some birders say this nightjar isn’t commonly seen in Singapore. After some hunting, we spotted it asleep on a tree branch, some 15 m above ground. This was rather interesting as my previous encounters with nightjars have been on either terra firma or on low branches.
Is this perching so high up the tree normal or is it unusual? I have posted a photo of it on my Facebook Timeline: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151125012234135&set=a.108191464134.96538.617499134&type=1&theater
Jess
Bird Sanctuary At Former Bidadari Cementry
1)Which is the best spot in Bidadari cemetery for bird watch?
2)Where this bird usually resident at?
3)What are some of the rare bird species that can be found at Bidadari?
4)Where is the particular hot spot for the hornbills, eagles, kingfishers and some of the rare migratory bird?
5)Which part of Bidadari are richest in it wildlife?
6)Can you name me the 59 migratory bird species found?
YC
Why not search the website using the word ‘Bidadari’ to obtain the information you need. There should be sufficient info in past postings to satisfy you.
Firdaus Razak
Hai, I just want to ask did anybody had an experience bring bird from oversea via MasKargo? Did the bird will stress at high altitude?
Arjun
I heard this interesting bird call in a forest, and recorded it. Could anyone help me identify it?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uubzo1wdbU&feature=youtu.be
Chung Wah
Hi, I am new to bird photography! Could anyone advise a good pair of binoculars to get for this hobby?
YC
Try this Facebook… https://www.facebook.com/groups/394479540610099/
I am sure there would be someone willing to advise.
Geam Liang
I ‘acquired’ a female Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot 5 days ago – was in a public place when the bird flew overhead hit the wall and dropped right in front of me dazed. I picked it up, it appeared unhurt but could not sustain it’s flight. I have since constructed a fairly large ‘cage’ for it, about 4ft x 2fx x 2ft and placed it there last night. I temporarily placed her in a normal bird cage until I had completed the build.
From what I have read up, it’s a fruit, seed and insect feeder and also nectar, flower buds. It’s doing as well as it can on bananas, papaya, jack-fruit (didn’t touch the grape) and seeds (black and white sunflower and other smaller ones). It loves to bathe so I’ve gotten it a tray and from what I read it’s important to keep things clean as it easily succumbs to infection.
Does anyone else have any useful experience and sharing on it’s upkeep? I suspect this bird is an escapee – as far as I can read up, it’s not common, if at all, found in Georgetown, Penang where I am. I’m also not optimistic that it can survive if I were to set it free – assuming it can sustain it’s flight and not go crashing down and if there were dogs/cats around that would be the end of it.
I can attach some pictures but not sure how to do this…
thanks.
Lee Chiu San
The blue-crowned hanging parrot, even though very closely related to the lovebirds, is a nectar feeder. You would raise it the way you raise a lorikeet – which is a messy process. And because you are mixing batches of food for just one little bird, whereas I used to do it for about half a dozen pigeon-sized lorikeets each morning, I don’t know how you are going to get the portions down to manageable sizes. Anyway, here goes, with my recipe for feeding big lories. You can adjust the proportions down accordingly for your little bird.
The staple diet would be a couple of slices of soft fruit (papaya, apple, grapes, even though I am surprised that you said the bird would not eat any) and a mixture of cooked rice sweetened with nectar mix.
How to make nectar mix? Go to a pharmacy and get a can of food for invalids or infants. I use Complan, but I am sure any good baby formula would do. I usually make up enough to fill a beer mug, but there is no way you need that amount for a day’s feeding. If in doubt, make the mixture thinner, not thicker. Birds cannot digest baby formula that is too thick. If it is too thin, they simply have to consume more to get the required amount of energy. Then to this mug, add half a teaspoonful of rose syrup. Also stir in about a cup of cooked rice, well mashed up.
In the case of your bird, I suggest that you pour this lot into an ice-cube tray, freeze the mixture, and defrost one cube to feed it each day.
Now, you said that this bird eats sunflower seeds. This is most unusual for a blue-crowned hanging parrot. Are you sure that this is actually the species you have? Could it be possible that you have actually got a pet lovebird that escaped? There are so many different artificially-created breeds of lovebirds in so many colours that you might have been mistaken.
If you actually have a lovebird, feeding is much simpler. Just go to the nearest pet shop, buy a packet of budgerigar or cockatiel seed of a reputable international brand, and offer it to the bird. You can supplement this with a couple of slices of fruit each day, and that will be all. Plus of course fresh water and a piece of cuttlefish bone to nibble on.
Lee Chiu San
About nectar feeding birds. I forgot to add that feeding nectar is messy, and it goes rancid very quickly in our tropical weather. Feeding containers have to be removed and thoroughly cleaned at the end of each day. The birds also splatter the mixture and wipe their beaks on perches and the bars of the cage. All my lories and lorikeets used to be housed in outdoor aviaries which were hosed down daily.
If Geam Liang does not think the bird will survive if released, I really hope that it is a case of mistaken identity, and that you have a lovebird, rather than a blue-crowned hanging parrot. In our part of the world, all available lovebirds are domestically bred, take to captivity readily, and are easy to feed with commercially available seed mixtures. Yes, and being domestic pets, they would not survive if released.
Geam Liang
Thank you Chiu San for your inputs. Thus far, bananas and papayas work well. I’m not sure why it did not take to grapes – will try again. Am I supposed to peel it? I didn’t the last time, basically skewered a couple of grapes to a satay stick and positioned it as I did for the sliced and skinned papaya and peeled bananas.
I have yet to try rice and certainly not nectar but will try out your concoction – have half a mind to go to a pet shop to see if they carry nectar for birds. The ice-cube freeze method is a good one, will try that. I might be mistaken on the sunflower seeds… not touched but it did eat the much smaller roundish, mixed colored seeds. Will remove the sunflower seeds.
I’m sure it’s a female blue crowned hanging parrot.. it sleeps like a bat every night.
Lee Chiu San
When feeding local birds which are unfamiliar with imported fruits such as grapes, it helps to split the fruits to expose the edible parts. As to your remark that the bird sleeps hanging upside down like a bat, yes, that is the way blue-crowned hanging parrots sleep.
Geam Liang
Thanks… I need to think like a bird – yup. She has probably not seen a grape much less know that it’s edible, unless the previous owner has fed her with grapes… even then… Today she’s done pretty well making the most of the banana and all of the papaya plus quite a bit of seeds. Will try the baby food + mashed rise + rose syrup.
Will regular honey do instead of rose syrup?
Thanks.
Lee Chiu San
About making nectar to feed birds. Most aviculturalists do not use honey for two reasons: 1. It is expensive and does not seem to give any added benefits. 2. Honey is made by bees, and the composition varies wildly. Some honeys are also known to cause fungal infection in birds.
If you do not want to buy a huge bottle of rose syrup just for one tiny bird, there are cheaper alternatives. The first is plain table sugar, though most don’t seem to like it very much.
What many birds will accept quite readily as a sweetener is condensed milk – the type with sugar that coffee shop owners use.
Many, many birds have a sweet tooth (or should I say sweet beak?) Besides the usual suspects of lories, lorikeets, sunbirds and hummingbirds, for whom it is an essential part of the diet, nectar mixture is readily consumed by mynahs, leafbirds, fairy bluebirds, barbets, doves, parrots of all kinds, and a whole host of other species.
Geam Liang
I tried the condensed mild, placed in in a small bottle cap.. only the ants showed interest. Am I supposed to dilute it? I didn’t =( I took you advice and refrained from honey. Have yet to find Rose Syrup from the shelves of TESCO… will try to mix the baby food + mashed rise + rose syrup/sugar syrup this week…
David Thackray
Can anyone help me identify a bird I saw in Singapore last week. Size of a smakll dove or thrush. Dark metallic back. Grey breast with red throat, chest.
BESG
Any images?
Emily Koh
Lately I bought a bird feeder which I fill with 4parts water n 1 part white sugar. Sunbirds come regularly to drink and they are really lovely to watch. May I know if it is bad for them to feed on this? Previously they would sometimes pierce and drink from my potted flowers
Emily Koh
Lately I bought a bird feeder which I fill with 4parts water n 1 part white sugar. Sunbirds come regularly to drink and they are really lovely to watch. May I know if it is bad for them to feed on this? Previously they would sometimes pierce and drink from my potted flowers.
Ken Sng
Hi Friends,
I need help in identifying these 13 birds which i’ve published in a public album on Flickr.
https://www.flickr.com/gp/81819728@N00/y8ws5B
They are numbered 1-13 so if you know what they are please reply with number and name .
I’m doing a personal project to shoot 100 different birds in SG.
Thanks very Much !
Mahadevi Bhuti
One of best souce for the bird watcher’s enjoying knowledge about ornithology
Martin Nyffeler (PhD)
Dear Sir / Dear Madame,
I am a Senior Lecturer in Zoology at a University in Switzerland and I urgently need to get in touch with photographer Chan Yoke Meng, who takes beautiful photographs of birds near Singapore. Would you please mail me the email address of this photographer!
Thanks,
Martin
Wee Ming
Hello Besgroup,
Trust this email finds you well. We chance upon your photograph on your website and found the amazing image of the Laced Woodpecker and durians. We would like to explore the possibility of getting permission to use them for a new Bird Park in Singapore.
Spacelogic is a company based in Singapore and we have been contracted by Mandai Park Development to carry out design and build works relating to the exhibition interpretive displays in this new Bird Park.
Some background of the new Mandai Bird Park project; it will build upon the legacy of the Jurong Bird Park – https://www.wrs.com.sg/en/jurong-bird-park.html by retaining and building upon a world-reference bird collection and creating a place of colour and joy for all visitors. The new Bird Park will have a world-reference ornithological collection displayed in a highly immersive way with large walk-through habitats. To enhance visitors’ experience with storyline and narrative of the bird park, transition spaces are added to display exhibits that provide a varied type of fun, intuitive, interactive and educational experiences for all visitors. One of the habitats features the Laced Woodpecker on a flora panel It is in this flora panel that we are seeking your permission to feature the Laced Woodpecker. We are looking to use the first image on the link here.
Link can be found here: https://besgroup.org/2012/06/28/laced-woodpecker-and-durians/
We would like to ask if this is something that we can explore further and if yes, how can we go about with putting through a formal permission request. Thank you so much for considering our request and we look forward to hearing from you.
Warmest Regards,
Wee Ming
SPACElogic Pte Ltd