My Bird Photos of 2023

Last year, I wrote an article here on my bird photos of 2022 (link) in Singapore. It seems to be quite popular, and so I am writing another article on my favourite bird pictures of this year (2023).

Let’s start with this beautiful Blue-Winged Pita:

Someone was providing food to it but we have a huge gang of photographers waiting to snap some pictures when it is out eating. Rightfully, we should not be feeding it but guess what, I’m happy to snap a few nice pics of it.

This is a White Cockatoo (Tanimbar Corrella), not a native bird, but still commonly seen in parks. They are noisy and with their size, they can fight aginst the crows and mynahs that are so common here. I was chasing it in Jurong Lake Garden and although it eats mainly plant-based food, the crows kept chasing it away.

Here is a Golden-Backed Weaver. It is classified as an uncommon introduced resident and I was pretty lucky to find it in Kranji Marshes.

This is an Oriental Magpie-Robin, a common resident and often comes to the ground to feed. Sings a very nice song. This is probably a juvenile bird.

Here is another shot of this bird on the ground with a fly in its beak.

I have been tracking this tree hole for a few weeks, hoping to find a mating pair of kingfishers. Here is a nice shot of one of the parents leaving the hole.

And here is a shot of the pair passing food over. Unfortunately, I was told a hornbill came by and hurt one of the pair and no more mating for them.

When I was a kid, I always fancy to have a baby chick as a pet, the bright yellow type. Unfortunately that did not happen and nowadays, it is no longer allowed for us to rear chicks and chicken in our homes. But it is still nice to see this little Jungle Fowl chick in rustic brown plumage. Don’t be too happy first, as it is in danger of being caught by the raptors in this Pasir Ris Park.

And here is a Goshawk, always looking down from above for little chicks to snatch as a snack.

Found a Scaly-Breasted Munia in this big patch of grass. This is a common resident here and can always be found in grass patches in parks.

This is a White-Bellied Sea Eagle, a common resident in Singapore. But it is quite hard to find it landing. So, I’m happy to take a picture of it flying above me.

Here’s a Dollar Bird calling out at the top of a bare tree.

This is a Pin-Tailed Whydah, a common migrant here and is famous for its dance during its mating. Beautiful long tail.

Here is a picture of its potential mate on a branch. It will keep hopping up and down as a form of mating ritual.

Here is a Buffy Fish Owl, a common resident. The couple of trees here in Hampstead Park is home for this owl (over many generations).

Here is another owl commonly found here, a Spotted Wood Owl. This is a juvenile as you can see its fluffy feathers on its chest. It has a nice grin on its face.

This is a Tiger Shrike, a common migrant. Shrikes are interesting predator birds. They feed on insects, reptiles and even small birds. It is often seen pricking its catch using the sharp tips of fences for it to feed.

Here is a Brown Shrike, a common migrant. Look at the beaks of both birds. Their upper beak points downwards like the raptors.

Here is a Scarlet-Backed Flowerpecker, a little bird that can fly very quickly. It’s hard to find it resting for you to take shots. I was just lucky.

This is a White-Winged tern, an uncommon migrant. Happened to have a group of them flying around the Kallang River bay and I have to shoot hundreds of shots to get a nice picture as it kept flying around and dive to catch fish.

Here is a Brahminy Kite, a common resident. Feeds on fish (diving into sea waters) and its young has a very interesting child like whining call.

Here is a Grey Crowned Crane, a bird that should not be found here (except in Africa). But it was owned by someone with a licence. And it comes to this location to feed every morning.

This is a Banded Woodpecker. I was actually tracking another bird (the next one below) and it just came out of the same tree.

This is the King Bird-Of-Paradise. News about its appearance at Windsor Nature park sends lots of photographers to go there to take pictures. I was actually standing together with roughly another 30 photographers in a space of 3 x 3 metres, waiting for it to appear out of the tree (to feed on the fruits). Only managed to catch this picture as it started to rain after waiting for an hour.

This is my most favourite picture of the year, common kingfisher. This shot is taken in Jurong Eco Garden, and someone planted this pink flower bud at the side of the pond for it to land as it catches prey from the pond (and for us to take pictures). [ I am just being honest here as you would have thought that the flower bud was naturally there ]

Hope you have enjoyed my pictures as much as I have taken them.