Calling all biology majors and bird watchers
Okay, so this is supposed to be an anime blog. Theorectically. But sometimes there are more important things in life than anime, such as finding out the identify of this duck-like bird that has been catching my attention every time I walk past it on the way home for the past few weeks.
So anyway, I’ve been meaning to take a few shots of this bird for a while. It’s the only one of its kind that I’ve seen around my neighbourhood. I don’t think anyone is rearing it but somehow it’s been surviving perfectly fine, even though I’m pretty sure there isn’t much to eat other than grass.
It can been seen strolling leisurely under the MRT train tracks in daytime, doing absolutely nothing. I’m pretty sure it can’t fly.
I happened to have a camera with me today, so I took the opportunity to close it for a few shots. Unfortunately the duck(?) thingy detected my presence almost immediately and broke off running (if you can call it that)!
You can’t really tell from this picture, but I swear it was running!
In fact, it ran across the road in record time and happily settled itself down right between the two traffic directions.
“In your face! Stupid human!”
I could feel its gleeful stare as it mocked me from its safe zone.
I considered setting up an ambush back at this side of the road, but decided that it was a waste of time and the bird probably doesn’t taste good anyway. I kept my camera and left the bird to enjoy its daily stroll in peace. I’ll get you next time, stupid duck thingy!
As you can tell, I fail at biology. Could anyone out there please tell me what kind of bird this is? Is it some kind of duck? If it’s a duck, what kind of duck is it and why are its legs so long? Is it edible and tasty?
Okay, I just wasted five minutes of your life, didn’t I?
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And here’s Haruhi cosplay to make up for it!
See, now this post is anime-related. :)
September 8th, 2006 at 9:43 pm
Hmm… Stork? Long legs, long neck, moderately-long beak. ^^
September 8th, 2006 at 9:46 pm
- The Haruhi cosplay is kinda hot. I like her legs. :3
- The damn bird… I dunno. Maybe a “grulla” or somethng.
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Hehe, FIRST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
September 8th, 2006 at 9:46 pm
Looks like a typical white heron you can see in Singapore….would certainly narrow down the possibilities if you could get a look/glimpse/shot of its feet.
I think the long legs are because they stalk through mud looking for food. Might be a bird from a mangrove that happened to get lost.
And yes, herons can fly. Probably.
*Btw, you can see a lot of em on the flat expanse of grass-land near Jurong East MRT station. And yes, they fly. No, I don’t know why they gather there either.
September 8th, 2006 at 9:46 pm
Damn, I THOUGHT I was first….
September 8th, 2006 at 9:47 pm
I think I might have found it. I went to the “Internet Field Guide for Birds” and searched your criteria. I got 5 results, the best of which is the “Great Egret.”
http://www.bdi.org/Birdkey/…Passed_Species=alba
Fourth photo down looks like your dude.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_egret
You could go and do a search yourself if you want to try it for yourself.
http://www.bdi.org/Birdkey/BirdFrameset.cfm
If I knew where you lived (country, I mean), that might help.
September 8th, 2006 at 9:50 pm
Sorry to double-post, but comments were posted in the meantime while I searched .. I just wanted to clarify that a white heron and a great egret are the same thing.
September 8th, 2006 at 10:15 pm
Hmm… looking at the pictures, I can see the similarities but there’s still something bothering me.
The bird I saw had a very thin body and really not much wing to speak of. I have never seen it fly or attempt to fly. The neck is also significantly shorter.
So… uh… a bady heron? >_>
September 8th, 2006 at 10:36 pm
DM, symphwind is correct. These guys are everywhere in Singapore you know. You can usually catch a flock of these at the Jurong East MRT fields.
September 8th, 2006 at 10:47 pm
It’s a white heron that I see here in the Monterey Bay area of California- they can fly quite well and are always on the lookout for frogs., fish or bugs.
They have made a comeback recently and there are quite alot of them here.
September 8th, 2006 at 11:03 pm
You know, I was kinda wondering if that Haruhi cosplayer is more sexier than the last one I saw. Maybe it’s just me. :3
September 9th, 2006 at 12:16 am
It’s pretty common and a migratory bird. The name escapes me now but it sure can fly.Btw Singapore does have a lot of birds, just you have to pick the right spots to camp at. A lot of my friends are avid bird and wildlife photographers and they are always raving about what they saw.
September 9th, 2006 at 12:39 am
Are you starving or something?
September 9th, 2006 at 1:03 am
Seen those at the large field at Jurong East all the time. I believe they are Herons. And the one that you saw is lost from it’s group. It’s gonna die. MUHAHAHAHAHAHA.
September 9th, 2006 at 1:18 am
Indeed, it’s an Egret/White Heron. Specifically, it looks a lot like an Intermediate Egret to me, but it can be difficult to distinguish between the varieties without getting a close look at their facial features. I used to see them often when I lived in Texas, but no so much here in Colorado.
September 9th, 2006 at 1:41 am
Weird birds always on the West side of Singapore. I suppose which is why the Jurong Bird Park is there too. Reminds me of the time when 10 years ago, there were tons of mynahs and very little crows. Now it’s the other way around. Seems like sparrows and pigeons are rare too.
September 9th, 2006 at 1:47 am
White Herons can be found anywhere in these parts (west Singapore). Especially at the big longkang running through Ghim Moh down to Clementi, and the canal that leads out from there.
September 9th, 2006 at 3:10 am
haruhi cosplayer = HOT.
September 9th, 2006 at 10:10 am
i remember a few years back the news reported that this migratory birds somehow decided that singapore had better conditions and some of them stayed …
September 9th, 2006 at 12:19 pm
LOL take the bus “23″ towards Tampines (Temasek Poly) and you will see a lot of em when nearing bedok and tampines area. I see em everyday when i used to go to school (temasek poly) LOL. This post is kinda amusing in its own way. ^_^
September 9th, 2006 at 3:15 pm
I see these birds occasionally around Sengkang area. They seem to have appeared here since around 2004 or so imo.
September 9th, 2006 at 8:54 pm
lol… I see them everyday on my way to “work” when I walk to JE MRT station… BTW, these birds love it when those bangladeshi workers cut the grass with those grass cutter machines… Apparently it exposes their food, whatever that is…
September 22nd, 2006 at 8:59 pm
i see those in great large groups when i take 72 towards Hougang all the time. They like, conjugate and watch another one of them dive into the long gao for fish. it’s hilarious.
February 12th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
I was wondering what is the name of the bird as well!! I thought it was a migratory bird coz we don’t usually see it in singapore but recently the number has kind of increased and some of them are kind of staying… I see them a lot in NUS and at my old place at Hougang, near the river. They’re really pretty!
and yes they can fly. I’ve seen them fly a lot of times.
so it’s an egret/white heron, huh? well, finally! A name to this species! =D
October 19th, 2007 at 7:13 pm
I thought a large number of these escaped from the bird park years ago? I think it was reported in the news; I remember that I was about Primary 3 then, about 7 years ago then.