Orioles of the Philippines

Orioles of the Philippines by Adrian Constantino, www.birdingphilippines.com
Orioles of the Philippines by Adrian Constantino, www.birdingphilippines.com

This #mondaymotivation, we have here another infographic for you! We present the Orioles of the Philippines!!! This whole week will be #orioleweek at Birding Philippines!!!

Orioles are a large family of songbirds that can be found in the "Old World" from Africa, Asia and Australia. Most species from this family are brightly-colored having patches of yellow, green or occasionally red contrasting with black or brown. This songbird family is also characterized by having very rich, whistle-like, melodious calls, another characteristic that makes them one of the most appreciated families in the bird world.

The Philippines has 5 species of Orioles, with 3 species endemic and 2 species resident to our country. The most widespread is the Black-naped Oriole, Oriolus chinensis, a resident urban garden bird that we share with other countries in Southeast Asia. The most rare among the orioles of the Philippines is the Isabela Oriole, endemic and found only in Luzon and is classified as Critically Endangered.

Orioles in the Philippines are called by many local names: Ki-yaw, Kikiyaw, KIlyawan, Kulyawan, Antolihao, Tulihao, among others. Join us this week as we take a closer look at these often bright and colorful orioles of the Philippines!

You know the drill, if you want a printer-friendly version, kindly click this link to download: Orioles of the Philippines A4

This poster is the 2nd in our series of bird families of the Philippines. The first one we did was on kingfishers, check it out here in case you missed it: Kingfishers of the Philippines.

Kingfishers of the Philippines

Kingfishers of the Philippines

During the lockdown, one of our more successful posts is our series about kingfishers. For two weeks, we highlighted our endemic and non endemic Philippine kingfishers: their distribution, population status as well as some tidbits of trivia about their behavior.

Today, we are sharing with you a poster summarizing all the recorded kingfishers of the Philippines. Feel free to download or share away the poster. If you want a printer-friendly version: kindly click here to download: Kingfishers of the Philippines

The Kingfisher family (Alcedinidae) is one of the most well loved families in the avian world probably due to their bright and boldly patterned plumage. Their colors are usually dominated with blues, greens and orange-y browns. Their massive, pointy beaks are effective weapons in catching their prey. Contrary to their name, not all kingfishers feed on fish; they have a wide variety of diet ranging from small crabs, lizards & geckoes, snails, even small mammals and small birds. Several species of kingfishers live in habitats quite close to water, but there are kingfishers who prefer forest and woodland habitats.

In the Philippines, we have 19 species of kingfishers, with 11 species found only to to our country. If you want to revisit our previous, individual, detailed posts about our Philippine kingfishers, kindly just search for our hashtag #kingfisherweek at our Birding Philippines Facebook page.

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Copyright Text and Photos: Adrian M. Constantino / www.birdingphilippines.com
South Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, Dimorphic Dwarf Kingfisher and Blue-capped Wood Kingfisher: Photo by Nicky Icarangal. Jr. / www.birdingphilippines.com
North Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, Sacred Kingfisher: Photo by Sylvia T. Ramos / www.tonjiandsylviasbirdlist.com
Black-capped Kingfisher (from Hong Kong): Photo by Clemn Macasiano

References:
1) A Naturalist Guide to the Birds of the Philippines by Tanedo, Hutchinson, Constantino and Constantino. John Beaufoy Publishing. https://amzn.to/3iVwVDr

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Flowerpeckers of the Philippines 2.0

A few years back, we have made a blog post about the amazing biodiversity of the flowerpeckers of the Philippines. This time, we are updating some of the photos and we are including an infographic summarizing them all!

We present to you the Flowerpeckers of the Philippines!

Flowerpeckers of the Philippines

There are 15 species of flowerpeckers in the Philippines, 13 of which are endemic to our country and found nowhere else in the world!!! One species, the Cebu Flowerpecker, unfortunately is critically endangered, while 2 species (Whiskered Flowerpecker and Flame-crowned Flowerpecker) are classified as Near-threatened. How many of these tiny, active, fruit and flower-loving, birds have you seen?

The Philippines is home to a number of flowerpeckers, small, stout passerine birds, with short thick decurved bills designed for eating small fruits as well as to sip nectar from flowers. They are really small and very active birds and is usually found in a mixed feeding flock together with other birds such as sunbirds, white-eyes, tits and fantails. Here in the Philippines, most flowerpeckers can be seen in the forests , from lowland up to montane areas, while the common ones can sometimes be found in secondary growth and some backyard gardens. They are one of the primary seed dispersal agents for small berries as well as mistletoes, parasitic plants that grow on the crowns of other plant species and depend on birds for propagation. This one here is a Palawan Flowerpecker carrying a small berry. This one ranges in Palawan only. It is one of the more common flowerpeckers and sometimes it can be seen in the gardens in the capital city of Puerto Princesa.

Palawan Flowerpecker

This is a high elevation Mindanao endemic - Olive-capped Flowerpecker and can be found only in forests above 900 meters. The most reliable site for this flowerpecker is in Mt. Kitanglad Mountain Range, home of the mighty Philippine Eagle.

Olive-capped Flowerpecker

Then this is probably the most common endemic flowerpecker - Red-keeled Flowerpecker. It ranges all over the country except Palawan and is believed by field biologists to bully the ultra-rare Cebu Flowerpecker in Cebu. 

Red-keeled Flowerpecker



Then, this is a Buzzing Flowerpecker, a fairly drab-looking frugivore that gives a continuous high-pitched buzzing call. It ranges Luzon, Mindanao, Samar and Leyte and Bohol. This picture is from Mindanao ...

Buzzing Flowerpecker

while this video is from Mt. Polis in Luzon. Notice the difference. 

 Then, there is this Pygmy Flowerpecker, the smallest flowerpecker in the Philippines. It is characterized by its very thin bill, narrow white throat and can be found all throughout the Philippines except in the island of Panay. 

Pygmy Flowerpecker

There are a few more endemic flowerpeckers like this Flame-crowned Flowerpecker and this Bicolored Flowerpecker. The Flame-crowned Flowerpecker ranges in the high elevation mountains of Luzon and Mindanao. The Bicolored Flowerpecker can thrive both in lowland and high elevation forests. The following photos were both from Mt. Polis, Mountain Province, in the Philippine Cordilleras.

Flame-crowned FlowerpeckerBicolored Flowerpecker

Other endemic flowerpeckers include the Striped Flowerpecker - similar to a Grey-streaked Flycatcher but this one wags its tail sideways - found in most islands through the Philippines; the uncommon lowland fruigivore Olive-backed Flowerpecker - found in Luzon, Mindanao, Samar and Leyte; the ultra rare Cebu Flowerpecker, which do not have a photo of  - found only in the remaining forests of Cebu, a small island in Central Philippines.

Striped Flowerpecker

Olive-backed Flowerpecker

Then, there is this highly localized Whiskered Flowerpecker found only in the highlands of Mindanao:
Whiskered Flowerpecker

Then there is this Scarlet-collared Flowerpecker, endemic to Mindoro and Visayan or Black-belted Flowerpecker, a split from Red-keeled Flowerpecker, found in Negros.
Scarlet-collared Flowerpecker

Visayan (Black-belted) Flowerpecker

There are two non-endemic flowerpeckers: this gorgeous Orange-bellied Flowerpecker ranging from most Philippine islands

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker

And this Fire-breasted Flowerpecker from high elevation mountains of Luzon and Mindanao. 

So next time you go out birding, make sure you pay attention to these small flowerpeckers, they maybe your next tick! 🙂

Copyright Text and Photos: Adrian Constantino/www.birdingphilippines.com
Additional photos and video Nicky Icarangal, Jr/ www.birdingphilippines.com
Scarlet-collared Flowerpecker Photo by Sylvia T. Ramos / https://www.tonjiandsylviasbirdlist.com/

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Feeding Luzon Flamebacks

A female Luzon Flameback feeding a young one. Luzon Flamebacks use their sharp, very robust beaks to drill holes into tree trunks and then extend their very long tongues (you can see in the video at around 0:40) to extract grubs. These woodpeckers are endemic to the Philippines and can only be found in Luzon and nowhere else.

Luzon Flameback, Chrysocolaptes haematribon
Digiscoped with a Swarovski Optik spotting scope and a Panasonic G85.

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Happy Holidays from Birding Adventure Philippines!

Happy Holidays from your friends at Birding Philippines! Wishing everyone good birding wherever you are! #birdingphilippines
South Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher
South Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher
 

Happy Holidays from Birding Adventure Philippines!

Happy Holidays from your friends at Birding Philippines! Wishing everyone good birding wherever you are! #birdingphilippines
 Happy Holidays from Birding Philippines

Part 3: Tailorbirds of the Philippines

To finish off our "Tailorbird Series" we show showcase the other tailorbirds found in other islands besides Luzon and Mindanao. This is the Rufous-tailed Tailorbird, probably the easiest tailorbird to see and photograph in the Philippines. It is also a non-endemic and can be seen in other Asian countries, but in the Philippines, it is confined only to Palawan.
Rufous-tailed Tailorbird
Rufous-tailed Tailorbird from Puerto Princesa City, Palawan
Then we have this very nice looking skulker, the Yellow-breasted Tailorbird endemic to the islands of Bohol , Leyte and Samar. It is quite similar to Mindanao endemics White-eared and Black-headed Tailorbird
Yellow-breasted Tailorbird
Yellow-breasted Tailorbird from Rajah Sikatuna NP, Bohol
Then we have the Philippine Tailorbird that ranges only in Negros and Panay and Guimaras Islands and then the highly restricted Ashy Tailorbird from the small islands in Cagayancillo in the Sulu Sea. That is it! All the tailorbirds of the Philippines. Indeed, the Philippines is one of centers of tailorbird biodiversity. Part 1 here: Tailorbirds of Luzon Part 2 here: Tailorbirds of Mindanao Happy birding!

Part 2: Tailorbirds of the Philippines: Mindanao

This is part 2 of a three part series. See part 1 here.  The island of Mindanao is the second largest island in the Philippines (after Luzon) and has several species of endemic tailorbirds. The tailorbirds here are quite diversified and are restricted to certain parts of the island as well as altitudinal range restrictions. First off the list is Rufous-fronted Tailorbird. This used to belong to the Philippine Tailorbird complex and was split 4-ways following the  Clements' checklist. This tailorbird is confined the lowland forests of Mindanao and can also be found in neighboring Samar, Leyte and Bohol.
Rufous-fronted Tailorbird
Rufous-fronted Tailorbird
And then we have the Black-headed Tailorbird, a lowland species found in the eastern parts of Mindanao in Agusan, Surigao and Eastern Davao provinces. The most reliable place to see this bird is in PICOP, Surigao del Sur.
Black-headed Tailorbird
Black-headed Tailorbird from Siargao
Then there is the White-headed Tailorbird that is confined to the lowland to middle elevation forests of Western, Central and Southern Mindanao. This tailorbird is very similar to Black-headed Tailorbird as well as the Bohol-only Yellow-breasted Tailorbird when it comes to plumage and call.
White-eared Tailorbird
White-eared Tailorbird from Zamboanga
Lastly, we have the Rufous-headed Tailorbird. This is a Phyllergates tailorbird meaning they are not true tailorbirds and are more related to Cettia bush warblers like the Mountain Tailorbirds of Luzon. The Rufous-headed Tailorbird is endemic to high elevation mountains of Mindanao like Mt. Kitanglad in Bukidnon, Mt. Apo in Davao and other mountains above 800 meters.
Rufous-headed Tailorbird
Rufous-headed Tailorbird from Mt. Kitanglad, Bukidnon
Next part: Tailorbirds from other Philippine Islands