SHEARWATER 1/4 - Streaked Shearwater (2026 Lifer 599/688) September 2026

 This species is pelagic, but is also found in inshore waters. It occurs in the Pacific ocean, nesting in Japan and the Korean peninsula , predominantly on their offshore island. After breeding, the streaked shearwater migrate south, feeding in the seas off northern New Guinea, the Arafura Sea, and the South China Sea. I am not sure whether they fly over to Strait of Malacca at the narrowest section of Thailand peninsula to Andaman seas then down south. 

The Streaked ( left) is larger than the Wedge-tailed

This shearwater has broad wings with a brown upper side and white underwings. The head and neck are flecked white to almost complete white. The face and underparts are all white. The bill is grey to pink with a dark tip while the feet are pinkish-grey.

Streaked shearwaters have a body length (from tip of bill to end of tail feathers) of 45 to 52 centimetres (18 to 20 in) and a wingspan between 103 and 113 centimetres (41 and 44 in).

The streaked shearwater feeds mainly on fish and squids. It follows fishing boats, attracted to anchovy crawls off Japan and has been known to be taken as by-catch in nets or drowned when ingesting the bait on long-line fishing lines.

The streaked shearwater nests in burrows. It prefers forested hills. This bird is abundant and widespread; however, some mortality occurs through becoming entangled in fishing nets, and from some predation by cats and rats. In addition, it is harvested by some traditional endemic human cultures.

A pair in paler grey head and caudal bottom is white compared to the Wedge-tailed

The rarity of Streaked encountered was 1:50 compared to the sighted Wedge-tailed during our trip. We also sighted a new sighting of a Tropical Shearwater  in Strait of Malacca.

A threesome

SHEARWATER (2/4) - Tropical Shearwater (Pelagic Lifer 600/688) September 2026

Photo courtesy of AT

Photo courtesy of LowKH

This Tropical Shearwater is the first record sighting in the waters of peninsula Malaysia namely Tekun Perak @ Pulau Perak about 130km off the coast of Kedah. It was first sighted by our spotter XianLim saying aloud a Short-tailed which was then reconfirmed a probable Tropical shearwater. With its guidance every one of us manage to shoot the rarity vagrant which have wandered off from the Indian Ocean go the straits of Malacca. 

Our boatman was just fantastic as it chases down the bird for a good 5 minutes without missing a beat at 35-40 knots The boat was bumping up and down as we try to shoot it on the move,. Side by side with the bird gliding over the waves; we hope it will settle down in the water. As it tired out we saw it landed off about 300m away as we move nearer for some better shots. It is easier to shoot it when it start to fly off. Surely it did and we got sharper pictures for that moment. Everyone  were happy to record this lifer!.

Photo courtesy of XL

 

Streaked as compared

Streaked shearwater feeding amongst big fishes chasing up the anchovies

My take,,,,..thought I did not get it! Yahooooo my 600th lifer and a rarity

TERN - Bridled Tern (Sept 2026 Lifer 598/600)

This tropical tern has gray back, black cap, and white forehead. Non-breeding and immatures have a messy dark nape. Most similar to Sooty Tern but paler gray above with more extensive white tail edges, paler undersides of flight feathers, as well as longer and more slender eyebrow. Also compare with the paler Gray-backed Tern. Bridled Tern is found in warm tropical waters worldwide. It breeds on islands, usually concealed by a large rock or bush. Otherwise, usually stays far offshore, often seen perching on floating wood or debris. Rarely seen near land except when blown off course by a hurricane.
 

Bridled Terns are uncommon resident bird of Malaysia. Uncommon because it reside more at high seas than coastal beaches. They are medium sized tern of a footer 34cm. Breeding in April-August and commonly at Redang and Seribuat archipelagos (Tokong Burung-Tioman) .

NODDY - Brown Noddy (Lifer 597/688) September 2026

There is a colony of this bird in Pulau Perak. I would count as about 50-60 pairs. They like the other resident there the Brown Booby like the rocky surface of the island There are already record nesting and breeding there. So the long 5-7 hours boat ride to Tekun Perak is sort of  worth it. 

The brown noddy is 38–45 cm (15–18 in) in length with a wingspan of 75–86 cm (30–34 in). The plumage is a dark chocolate-brown with a pale-grey or white crown and forehead. It has a narrow incomplete white eye-ring. The tail is long and wedge-shaped, and the feet and legs are dark.

The brown noddy is a colonial bird, usually nesting on cliffs, trees, or bushes. It occasionally lays its eggs on the bare ground. The nest itself is usually a platform, made of sticks and twigs.

In their nuptial displays, the female and male bow and nod to each other. Courtship feeding and flights accompany this, in addition to the transfer of a small, freshly caught fish from the male to the female. This bird lays a clutch of one pink cream egg with lilac and chestnut maculation. The egg usually measures around 52 by 35 millimetres (2.0 by 1.4 in). This egg is incubated by both sexes for 33 to 36 days, with each parent incubating for one or two days while their mate is feeding at sea. After the chick hatches, it grows quickly; usually reaching the weight of the parents in three weeks. When it fledges, about six to seven weeks after hatching, it can sometimes weigh more than the parents, although this weight is lost quickly once it starts to fly. At this point, the fledgling is starting to rely on its parents less and less as it learns how to provide for itself.

The brown noddy forages by swooping over the water and dipping down to catch small squid, other molluscs, aquatic insects and fish (such as sardine, anchovies, etc.). It will also feed on fruit, mostly the Screw pine fruit. (Wiki)

Pelagic Birding - Pulau Perak Kedah September 2026

This my inaugural pelagic birding excursion in the month of September 2026. This I hope I will be abled to chalk up my photographed lifers to 600s ....  Yahoo! Pulau Perak here we come. The trip was organised by Lili and XianLim and my gang of 4 signed up immediately. Sadly one of my team member have family issue in the last days and cannot make it. The seat was taken immediately by fellow member.

Photo extract from fellow Blogspot blogger@ JL CyberCapt

Perak Island (Malay: Pulau Perak, Jawi ڤولاو ڤيراق) is a small rocky island which constitutes the western most of Peninsula Malaysia. Its diameter is around 200 meters. The island is a sandstone rock that rises from the Strait of Melaka. It has a steep cliff with a height of more than 100m. This is now the new reference viewing hill point for Islamic Calendar calculation, replacing Tanjung Chinchin in Langkawi. The rock outcrop is protected as an army radar station. Unmanned apparently but remotely monitored from Langkawi. 

Perak Island is part of the Malaysian state of Kedah, administered under Yan district. It is expected to be designated as a marine protected sanctuary. The island is 158 km northwest of Penang, the nearest metropolitan area. From the Jetty Nosh, Sg Petani to Pulau Perak may take 5-8 hours depending on your speedboat detour looking for birds. Apparently it is also good diving & fishing spot.

Now the target  lifer list are many as listed here:-

1.Species of migrant Storm-petrel (Swinhoe's & Wilson's)

2.Species of  migrant Shearwater (Wedge-tailed, Streaked,Short-tailed, Tropical Sighted Sept 2026 )

3. Brown Booby (resident)

4. Red-footed Booby (vagrant migrant sighted Sept 2026)

5. Terns & Gulls (Bridled lifer)

6. Frigatebirds

Nosh cater to overnight group excursion for a fees of about RM 3000-8000.00 for overnight depending size of boat and  how you bargain or return customer rate. Our  boat seats 10 pax maximum More than that is too crowded. We booked the 50 feet long Battuta boat which is quite new and properly maintained. The boat is fast 35-40knots per hour; powered by twin   250hp Yamaha rotor. For high sea birding it is better to have a bigger size boat. If not it will too rocky to shoot the flying birds.

Everyone is smiling gayfully as everyone got at least a lifer 

Seawaves condition in September-October should be calmer unless thunderstorm  is forecast then we will be in choppy water. Sometime it is good to hunt for Storm-petrels along the edge of the storm.

Our birding modus operandi on the high sea was to approach fishing boats which can  attracts many birds especially terns but alas no gulls. These pelagics hunt for fishes on the surface of the sea unlike the shearwater noody and booby which dive into the water to chase fishes. We are grateful to have 2 good spotter WaiL and XianL to  seach of birds in the vast waters as we move eastward to Pulau Perak. 

Pulau Perak is not in the birding map but of recent news. We hope that more birders will do more  pelagic birding  here to record new vagrants and rare visitors like the Red-footed, Sooty tern and first record of Tropical Shearwater.

Wader - Broad-billed Sandpiper (Lifer 596/688) September 2026

 To chalk more lifers I am spending more effort to go "wadering" in the early migratory period of September 2026 but the birds are still  not aplenty but in hundreds which is good enough still.

I was very sure to have this bird in photo but checking thru my wader list I must  have  left out this lifer posting. My buddy ML also manage to shoot it on the mudflat of Morib southern side of Klang whilst I got in Kapar-Jeram side.

Broad-billed sandpipers are small waders, 16–18 cm long, slightly smaller than the dunlin which reaches 22cm or taller curlew sandpiper 23cm see picture background bird, but larger than the little stint; it has a long, straighter bill with the tip distinctly kinked down, and shorter legs than dunlin. See my picture above you can compare the size of the broad-billed against the curlew sandpiper.

The breeding adult has dark brown upperparts patterned with narrow, pale feather fringes, and white underparts with blackish markings on the breast. It has a pale crown stripe, and a distinctive double (split) supercilium. The bill is slightly broader than in most other Calidris species, with a tip kinked beak. The two subspecies differ in the summer plumage feather fringing, narrow and white in C. f. falcinellus, brighter and rufous-toned in C. f. sibirica. (wiki)

The winter plumage is much paler and greyer above and white below, like a winter dunlin, but retains the distinct head pattern. Juveniles have backs similar to a young dunlin or little stint with pale "tramlines" down the mantle, but the white flanks and belly and brown-streaked breast are distinctive.

The contact call is a dry, whistling dree-it, dree-it and a clicking dik dik, similar to the little stint.

Sighting by ML in Morib September 2026

Avian Sighting July 2026 - Brown-chested Jungle flycatcher

In the late morning a very sedated Brown-chested was sighted perched  in the open was a surprise sighting in Panti in the Y junction off trail. We spend a good ten minutes with the bird shooting from a distance of 30-4o ft away, After shooting enough we tried to move closer but alas it flew away.

It supposedly a rare winter migrant I guess some may stayed on here. Usually they are alone on its own. The Grey-chested on the other hand is a resident bird.

 

Wader- Tibetan sand Plover (Lifer 2026 595/688) August 2026

In August went to Jeram Kapar side   to hunt for wader lifers. We checked the High tide time but  when we reach the bund the tide has already in at its highest. Instead of  low tide to rush in we in steady have to wait for 2 hours for the water line to subside for part of the mudflats to be exposed. Luckily the birds flew in maybe just a hundred or 2 but mostly Redshanks. My gang manage to get flight shots of the Grey Plover  which I missed. Paiseh my BIF shooting is hopeless but still hoping to improve with practice.

 

In the month of late August - September there already early migrants to our peninsula shores There are great finds here for rarity but can be quite an eye-opening scanning every wader for lifers. There are good chance of seeing  breeding plummage bird  for easy id.

 

I will definately return in September to add more lifers to may target 600 lifers for the year 2026. My target lifer birds  are :-

Sanderling (sighted)

Grey Plover (sighted by AT)

Tibetan Sand Plower (sighted)

Great Knot

Gull-billed Tern ( there are plenty of vertical stumps placed here so terns can perch)

Kentish Plover

Little Ringed Plover

Malaysian Plover

Oriental Plover

Black-tailed Godwit 

Clam and Crab Beachcomber in their flat sampan are common sight here which do not really disturb the birds as they blend well.

Avian sighting July 2026 - Temminck's Sunbird

This is a much sort after sunbird in low land swampy forest like Panti KotaTinggi or at hill plains forest commonly Relau-Poring. It can be enticed to come out by calling of rowdy bird call. It is less common than the Crimson sunbird 

Wanting to get the Van Hasselt's Sunbird of  coastal Endau Rompin side. That is another story to tell ....... 

 

Wader - Sanderling (Lifer 594/688)

Spot the bird ....shooting with Fuji XF100-400mm from a distance of 50-60m away

Sanderling are gregarious in winter; flocking in numbers on mudflats or sandy beaches. In peninsula Malaysia like Jeram, Sg Serdang Kapar side. We only see them in smaller group or joining other waders in flight in late August 2026. We managed to see a single bird. News was there are more to see in Morib side. They may be on passage further to Australasia and Borneo seafronts. They breed at the extreme northern  artic tundra in July. Those which are not breeding may migrate down south  earlier. 

Sandeling from 60m away by MingLee Nikon 800mm 

It is somewhat unlike other small sandpipers in appearance, in particular in lacking a hind toe, which has led to the suggestion that it should be placed into a monotypic  genus Crocethia. More recent reviews indicate that the sanderling is a fairly typical "stint" or small sandpiper and should be retained along with the knots and other relatives in the genus Calidris.(wiki) It definitely larger than stints at 20cm in size of many plovers. Always look for their pale grey to white body (winter plumage) with short broad black bill and black legs. 

This bird is similar in size to a dunlin, but stouter, with a thick bill. It shows a strong white wingbar in flight. Feeding habits; it will  runs along the sandy beaches it prefers with a characteristic "bicycling" action of its legs, stopping frequently to pick small food items. It eats small crabs and other small invertebrates. .The birds appear to rush madly around at the edge of the surf, but in reality they are maximising their chances of catching as many prey animals as possible when they are at their most vulnerable near the surface.

Lifer 593 - BULBUL 26 /29 : Black & White Bulbul (August 2026)

Finally after more than 20 years of birding my gang got  news of the re-appearance of this rarity bulbul down south of Peninsula Malaysia. We missed the June-July sighting report by other birders;  that case it was nesting and too sensitive to divulge . This time  my gang made the effort to drive 4.5 hours to Kota Tinggi  to try our luck with our Johor gang. Thanks AT and ML ; JB John and Lim for their company.

Photo courtesy of MingLee@2026

It was not an easy bird to see as they are arboreal canopy bird   and feed in the clearstory of 50-100 feet fruiting trees. They have a wide range where there are fruiting trees.  They may stay a week or two here and then moving to the next fruiting spot. So whenever there are sighting it is best to take the trip soonest to the spot. The best time to chance on them is during the mating and breeding season from May - July of the year. Popular places to see them are at Merapoh, Taman Negara Tahan, Panti, Endau Rompin in Peninsula Malaysia. It is recorded as a visitor to Singapore in Pulau Ubin.

Don't mistake them for a OMR or Philentoma if you chance on them in the lower storey from afar. Its body is dark or brownish black with a obvoius splayed white patch on its upper covert of its wing. Supposedly red-eyed. Its rather small upto tp 6-7 inches.

Listen for its  metallic chweet call and hope they response to you. If there other birds around they may take their turn to feed as they tend to be bullied or harassed because of its small size.

When they are breeding they make their nest at low lying tree as low as 2-3 feet high. Here is a photo of a previous nest which surprising in the open without  undercover which is unusually tidy.

Photo courtesy of JB birders

We found a gem of a place to eat  here in Kota Tinggi for seafood dinner popular amongst  the locals- I would rate it 3.5/5 pulled down by its pricing which equal KL rates. Total damage RM162 for 3 dishes as shown.