Mangrove pitta 红树八色鸫 Burung pacat bakau

What impressed me was the parent (photo below) which was seen looking dull and haggard with mud over its head, face and plumage, a result of working hard hunting for insects in the mangrove mudflats for the fledgling. Before breeding, the parents were fresh, clean and bright.

That’s what all parents would do to make sure their children get the best food to grow up.

The fledgling is clean and fresh, waiting for the parent to feed.

A parent feeding a hungry fledgling

A beautiful young fledgling.

To feed two fledglings the size of the parent is really not an easy job.

The parent which never says tired.

Front view of the parent.

The hard part of the parent is that it has to continue to feed the chick until it is on its own even though the latter is about the size of the parent.

Lesser Sand Plover 蒙古沙鸻 Rapang Mongolia

Lesser Sand Plover
蒙古沙鸻

Rapang Mongolia

It’s time we are going to see more and more winter migrants, and this plover is one of them.

Many shorebirds actively search for food on the mudflats with a “run-and-pause” approach.

This plover had good hunting skill.  Every 10 mins or so, it was able to find and pull a worm out of the mud during a receding tide. 

To get the shots, patience and concentration are important ingredients.  

(Sep. 2018, Balik Pulau)