Raden Soerjo Forest Park is an space of montane evergreen forests and likewise has a reasonably excessive mountain (Gunung Arjuno, 3399 meters). It’s about 3 hours by automobile from Surabaya and about 2 hours from Malang – although as a significant native vacationer spot, it might take longer to get there on weekends. Native sights embrace waterfalls and scorching springs. As a typical birder, I largely ignored these, specializing in the birds as a substitute.
Considered one of my favorites there was the Blue Nuthatch, which is brilliantly described by eBird: “Not the one blue nuthatch, however the bluest nuthatch”.
This blueness can be indicated within the scientific identify – Sitta azurea.
Surprisingly, that doesn’t preserve Cornell from describing it as a “medium-sized nuthatch, often showing strikingly black and white”. Makes you surprise if the workers of eBird and of the HBW/Cornell ever handle to peacefully sit collectively within the canteen of Cornell College.
In line with Cornell, the breeding season of the Blue Nuthatch in West Java is from April to July – but when the hen in my photograph is holding nesting materials, then this data is perhaps unsuitable because the photograph was taken on the finish of October.
Whereas these nuthatches often transfer fairly quick, they could freeze in the event that they discover hazard, as described right here. This could have been relatively helpful in getting higher photographs …
Discovering an honest hyperlink from one hen species to the following might be tough, which is why I often don’t even attempt – or I exploit my favourite hyperlink of Monty Python fame (“And now for one thing utterly totally different”). However on this case, the blue colour of the nuthatch supplies the proper (although admittedly barely boring) hyperlink to the Blue Whistling Thrush.
The Cornell description of the species contains the considerably sexist-sounding sentence “Feminine is comparable however duller”.
The species appears to be relatively eclectic in its alternative of meals – in line with Cornell, regular meals gadgets embrace water beetles, ants dung beetles, slugs, snails, crabs, and earthworms. However there are additionally information of Blue Whistling Thrushes feeding on snakes (supply) or – much more grotesque – on hatchlings of laughingthrushes (paper with photographs).
And whereas I believed by now the mitochondrial genome of all hen species had already been analyzed, for the Blue Whistling Thrush, it was solely revealed in June 2024.
The hyperlink to the following species is simpler as it’s merely one other Whistling Thrush. Being on Java, guess could be that its identify is both Sunda Whistling Thrush (unsuitable, however certainly that was a species identify till it was cut up into three species together with the one talked about subsequent) or Javan Whistling Thrush (appropriate).
It’s considerably smaller than the Blue Whistling Thrush and thus – nature not being a very type place normally – being bullied by its relative when feeding on the identical hen conceal.
As its blue appears fairly intense to me, I don’t absolutely perceive the logic behind its scientific identify Myophonus glaucinus (glaucinus means bluish-grey relatively than intensely blue). My idea is that the identify was imposed on the hen on a very gray day.
As talked about above, the Javan Whistling Thrush obtained its identify out of the ashes of the Sunda Whistling Thrush that obtained cut up (okay, possibly a barely too dramatic approach to put it). Nevertheless it makes for hyperlink to the following three species, whose names all begin with Sunda and finish with Forktail, Cuckooshrike, and Minivet.
The Sunda Forktail seems to be a bit just like the White-crowned Forktail however is way smaller and solely has a white brow, not a correct crown.
The scientific identify Enicurus velatus (velatus means veiled) suggests a barely overactive creativeness – the white on the brow doesn’t appear to be a veil to me in any respect.
Apparently, the feminine has some brown on its crown, making it look extra attention-grabbing than the male – and thus it’s no shock I didn’t see it.
As a substitute, I noticed a Sunda Cuckooshrike – not precisely a hen of thrilling colours. Neither is the scientific identify Coracina larvata notably attention-grabbing – larvata simply means masked.
Effectively, my photographs will not be so good both.
Neither are these of the Sunda Minivet, however not less than it has a way more attention-grabbing colour.
The scientific identify Pericrocotus miniatus by some means sounds prefer it both refers back to the mini in Minivet or the scale of the hen – in actuality, it most likely does neither as miniatus simply means “painted vermilion” – and certainly, the hen is undeniably vivid orange.
With its utterly black head, the male seems to be similar to different minivets whereas the feminine seems to be extra distinctive, with the pinnacle a combination of black and pink.
One of many avian sights of Raden Soerjo apparently is the Javan Hawk-eagle – I noticed it, however solely in flight (which for me is all the time much less satisfying).
It’s listed as Endangered, although thankfully, its numbers have just lately elevated considerably (supply).
One would assume Indonesians ought to spend quite a lot of effort on conserving this species as it’s the nationwide hen of the nation (supply).
However, possibly this can be a threat in itself – to cite from a paper revealed in 2000: “The appointment of the eagle as a flagship species entails severe dangers, because it seems to have put the species on the listing of uncommon birds which can be in nice demand with malevolent aviculturists”. Sounds a bit like “damned should you do, damned should you don’t” to me.
Among the many 161 bulbul species listed by Cornell, about 18% are listed as Close to Threatened (or worse) – the Orange-spotted Bulbul is considered one of them.
The reason being a standard one for Javan hen species – it is without doubt one of the most incessantly traded species in Indonesia’s hen markets (supply) …
… and Cornell states that “the species has just lately apparently change into far scarcer at websites on Sumatra in areas experiencing excessive trapping stress.”
The hazards of being an “engaging” (eBird) bulbul …
In distinction, the adjective given by eBird to the Crescent-chested Babbler is “good-looking”.
It appears to be a bit luckier than the bulbul in some elements – “nonetheless fairly widespread and customary as a consequence of its habitat preferences, in contrast to many much less lucky Javan species.” (eBird)
Additionally it is a really troublesome hen to get first rate photographs of, because it stays within the undergrowth and roughly solely comes out when flying from considered one of these clumps to a different (and I’m approach too sluggish to seize it in flight then).
That makes it a aid to doc species such because the Ruddy Cuckoo-Dove, which don’t transfer round that a lot, although they’re additionally a lot shier.
There’s probably not a lot analysis accessible on this species – it solely options in some papers on species variety in particular places. Essentially the most attention-grabbing of those places is the subject of the paper “Avian variety in geothermal energy plant areas” – although the conclusion ” The presence of some birds was an indicator of ecosystem situation and functioning” sounds relatively lame to me.
Lastly, an interesting-looking reptile encountered whereas searching for birds.
