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Mountain Shrike from the Cordilleras [HD]

The Mountain Shrike is a high elevation endemic found only in the islands of Luzon, Mindoro and Mindanao. It prefers clearings and open areas adjacent to montane forest and is a prolific hunter, preying on lizards, small mammals like rodents and shrews and frogs. It likes to perch on branches near clearings as these provide good vantage points while looking for prey. These are recent videos of a nice pair from Mt. Polis taken during our recently concluded 2015 Tours. An older video from 2010 showing an immature Mountain Shrike can be seen here. Mountain Shrike, Lanius validirostris March 2015, Mt. Polis, Mountain Province, the Cordilleras, Luzon, Philippines Video by Adrian Constantino Digiscoped with a Swarovski 80 ATM HD, Panasonic G3, Panasonic 20 mm F1.7 lens, Swarovski UCA (Universal Camera Adapter)

Luzon Water Redstart (take 2)

This is another video of a Luzon Water Redstart, a Luzon endemic restricted to clean and flowing streams and rivers near forest , 300 meters and above. It is usually seen singly or in pairs and perches on rocks, foraging for insects and small invertebrates. This indivifual was videoscoped in the upland montane streams in Mt. Polis, Cordilerras of Northern Luzon, also the site for the UNESCO World Heritage Site Banaue Rice Terraces. The video showcases some advantages of digiscoping showing the relative distance of the bird and how close one can get with the spotting scope's zoom eyepiece and the optical zoom of a point and shoot camera. Check out the other video of the Luzon Water Redstart here. Luzon Water Redstart, Rhyacornis bicolor June 2012, Mt. Polis, Mountain Province, Cordilleras, Luzon, Philippines

Flame-crowned Flowerpecker

Here is a Flame-crowned Flowerpecker, one of the endemic flowerpeckers of the Philippines (check related story here). This is strictly a montane species occurring only in mossy forests in mountains above 800 meters. This is from the subspecies anthonyi ranging only in Northern Luzon. The other subspecies of Flame-crowned Flowerpecker has no yellowish breast and flanks and can be found in the high-elevation mountains of Mindanao. Flowerpeckers are mostly fruit and flower eaters and they are one of the best dispersal agents for semi-parasitic mistletoes (yes, we have mistletoes in the Philippines! Check out related stories here) This is a video clip from Mt. Polis, Mountain Province, the Cordilleras, Northern Luzon, Philippines. You can hear the calls of a Mountain Tailorbird in the background. 🙂 Flame-crowned Flowerpecker, Dicaeum anthonyi Mt. Polis, Mountain Province, Luzon, Philippines

Dung-on-a-twig: Mistletoe and Birds
[Part 1]

Yes, we have mistletoes here in the Philippines. Mistletoes are botanically interesting plants as they are hemiparasites (or partial parasites). They usually grow on trunks or branches of trees and send out roots that penetrate the host tree's branches. They can generate their own food through photosynthesis but they can also extract some nutrients from their host tree. Mistletoe comes from two Anglo-Saxon words: "Mistel" meaning dung and "tan" which is a word for twig. So, mistletoe means "dung-on-a-twig." This name came about when early botanists observed mistletoe would often appear on a branch or twig where birds had left droppings. And this is how mistletoes are spread: A bird (like this immature Buzzing Flowerpecker) eats the very sticky berry fruits of the mistletoe and then poops and wipes it off another branch. This flowerpecker, by the way is a common, widespread Philippine endemic found in most islands except Palawan. Next week: another bird showing this interesting behavior. Happy birding! **Update: Check the rest of this series here: Part 2: Pygmy Flowerpecker Part 3: Fire-breasted Flowerpecker Buzzing Flowerpecker (immature), Dicaeum hypoleucum July 2010, Mt. Polis, the Cordilleras, Northern Luzon, Philippines