Steve Happ Photography Ramblings and dissertations

Sungai Petani – Kedah

I caught the bus from Teluk Bahang to the ferry terminal in Georgetown. Then caught a bus to Sungai Petani from Penang Sentral bus station. I found my hotel easily, then late in the afternoon went for a walk along the river called, funnily, Sungai Petani.

Striated Heron (Butorides striata)

This is to show the difference between the Striated Heron and the Black-crowned Night-heron. The Striated Heron has a yellow eye.

Black-crowned Night-heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)

And the Black-crowned Night-heron has got a red eye. Plus a few other things.

Black-naped Oriole (Oriolus chinensis)

Malaysian Pied-Fantail (Rhipidura javanica)

I have a suspicion that this one is a juvenile.

Asian Glossy Starling

Having a bath in a gutter on a roof.

Water Monitor

I have never seen so many Water Monitors. And they were huge. Some of them were two meters long at least and some had huge fat guts of possibly one meter round.

Water Monitor

I was walking very carefully, because they were laying across the track.

Sungai Petani bird list

Striated Heron (Butorides striata)
Black-crowned Night-heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)
Asian Glossy Starling
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Black-naped Oriole
Brown-throated Sunbird (Anthreptes malacensis)
Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis)
Malaysian Pied-Fantail (Rhipidura javanica)
Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris)

Water Monitor

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Malaysia Tourist Photos June

Here are some of my tourist photos off my phone. I had a shocking time getting them off my phone as the usb cable was malfunctioning. I had to use the Bluetooth to download the files and it took ages.

Penang Harbour

Coming across from Butterworth on the ferry. There are a lot of ships out in the harbour.

Coming down the Funicular railway

This is the funicular railway which goes up to Penang Hill, about a thousand meters. You can walk around up top and go to a few tourist attractions.

Batu Ferringhi

The beach at Batu Ferringhi. Lots of local tourists sitting on the beach and sometimes even swimming. The water was filthy, so I never went in.

Batu Ferringhi

Fishing Boats

This the fishing boat harbour at Teluk Bahang, near the Penang National Park.

Beach at Teluk Bahang

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Penang Island National Park

This morning I sauntered up to the Taman Nasional Pulau Penang. They did not open until 8.30am. Another dud morning with very few birds. I walked all the way to Sungai Tukun and went up the track to the canopy walkway, which is out of commission.

Oriental Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)

Stork-billed Kingfisher (Pelargopsis capensis)

House Crow (Corvus splendens)

Square-tailed Drongo-cuckoo (Surniculus lugubris)

“The square-tailed drongo-cuckoo (Surniculus lugubris) is a species of cuckoo that resembles a black drongo. It is found in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia and is a summer visitor to the Himalayas from Kashmir to eastern Bangladesh.”(wiki)

Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)

Penang National Park bird list

Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
Stork-billed Kingfisher (Pelargopsis capensis)
House Crow (Corvus splendens)
White-bellied Sea-eagle ( Haliaeetus leucogaster)
Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica)
Crimson Sunbird
Square-tailed Drongo-cuckoo
Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)
Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)
House Martin

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Telok Bahang Taman Rimba

Well, here I am in teluk Bahang, a small village in the north-west of Penang Island. This morning I got up and went for a ride on the pushbike to Hutan Simpanan Dara , Taman Rimba. It was pretty disappointing, but the forest walk was very good.

Striated Heron (Butorides striata)

Common Iora (Aegithina tiphia)

Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)

Penang bird list

Striated Heron (Butorides striata)
Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)
Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)
Common Iora (Aegithina tiphia)
Asian Glossy Starling
White-bellied Sea-eagle (Haliaetus leucogaster)

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Batu Ferringhi Waterfall Track, Day Two

I woke up early at 7am and went down to the Indian restaurant, but they had not finished cooking yet, so I had a kopi-o and went up the waterfall track. It was very quiet. There was nothing around at all real early. Very disappointing. Later, it got a bit more lively, but still pretty lame.

Dark-necked Tailorbird (Orthotomus atrogularis)

Thick-billed Green-pigeon ( Treron curvirostra)

Zebra Dove (Geopelia striata)

Dusky Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus)

Black Giant Squirrel (Ratufa bicolor)

Batu Ferringhi bird list

Van Hasselt’s Sunbird (Leptocoma brasiliana)
Dark-necked Tailorbird (Orthotomus atrogularis)
White-bellied Sea-eagle (Haliastur leucogaster)
Asian Glossy Starling
common myna (Acridotheres tristis)
Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)
Black-naped Oriole
Zebra Dove (Geopelia striata)
Asian Fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)
Thick-billed Green-pigeon ( Treron curvirostra)
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus)

Mammals

Dusky Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus)
Black Giant Squirrel

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Batu Ferringhi Waterfall Track

I caught the bus from Georgetown and arrived at Batu Ferringhi. I got off opposite the Hard Rock Cafe and walked around looking for my high-rise apartment Airbnb. I found it and settled in, then went for some Indian lunch – rice, chicken and vegetables. Later in the afternoon, I wandered along the creek below the apartment, then went up the track to the waterfall.

White-rumped Munia (Lonchura striata)

White-rumped Munia (Lonchura striata)

Chestnut-headed Bee-eater (Merops leschenaulti)

Malaysian Pied Fantail (Rhipidura javanica)

Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)

Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)

Dusky Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus)

“The Dusky Leaf Monkey, Spectacled Langur, or Spectacled Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus) is a species of primate in the Cercopithecidae family. It is found in Malaysia, Burma, and Thailand.” (iNaturalist)

Batu Ferringhi bird list

White-rumped Munia (Lonchura striata)
Chestnut-headed Bee-eater (Merops leschenaulti)
Asian Glossy Starling
common myna (Acridotheres tristis)
Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)
Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus)
Common Tailorbird (Orthotomus sutorius)
Malaysian Pied Fantail (Rhipidura javanica)
White-bellied Sea-eagle (Haliastur leucogaster)
Stork-billed Kingfisher
Oriental Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)
Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica)
Spotted Dove (Streptopelia chinensis)
Asian Koel
Striated Heron
House Martin

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Penang Hill

There is a funicular railway up to the top of Penang Hill. Luckily for me, because it is steep as heck. I only walked around the flat road up the top. I do not like climbing hills.

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma)

Van Hasselt’s Sunbird (Leptocoma brasiliana)

Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus)

Oriental Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)

Asian Fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)

Changeable Hawk-Eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus)

Dusky Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus)

“The Dusky Leaf Monkey, Spectacled Langur, or Spectacled Leaf Monkey (Trachypithecus obscurus) is a species of primate in the Cercopithecidae family. It is found in Malaysia, Burma, and Thailand.” (iNaturalist)

Penang bird list

Van Hasselt’s Sunbird (Leptocoma brasiliana)
Oriental Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)
Common Hill Myna (Gracula religiosa)
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus)
Asian Fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis)
Green Iora (Aegithina viridissima )
Orange-bellied Flowerpecker (Dicaeum trigonostigma)
Changeable Hawk-Eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus)
Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)

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Penang Botanic Gardens

Well I made it to Penang. This morning I got my Grab and made it to the Botanic Gardens at about 8am. You had to wait until some people left before they let you go in, after taking your temperature. It was a bit overcast but no rain. Still, not many birds around. It was very disappointing to be honest. Maybe I am here at the wrong time of year.

Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)

Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)

Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)

He has caught a worm for breakfast.

Crimson Sunbird (Aethopyga siparaja)

Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica)

Parent and two chicks.

Penang bird list

Crested Myna (Acridotheres cristatellus)
Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica)
Asian Glossy Starling
Pink-necked Green-Pigeon (Treron vernans)
Spotted Dove (Streptopelia chinensis)
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)
White-throated Kingfisher
Olive-backed Sunbird (Cinnyris jugularis)
Crimson Sunbird (Aethopyga siparaja)

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Tourist Photos From Pangkor and Taiping

I have finally got around to getting the tourist photos off my phone and processing them. I was in Pulau Pangkor for three months in lockdown. But I had a great guesthouse right on the water with a wharf jutting out into the ocean.

Big tanker going past

Sometimes you would get a big tanker going past the back yard. I think there was some mining going on in the hills around the mainland.

Oriental Pied Hornbill

There was a family of Oriental Pied Hornbills that would come nearly every afternoon for a feed of fruit. They would make an unearthly racket.

In the rain

Here is the view from my verandah during a deluge. It was raining lots but it would pour down for about an hour or so and then stop.

Sunrise

This was my view every morning. Lockdown was hard. The routine was – look at this, put the kettle on to boil, have my coffee, make my muesli, eat it, and then think about what I would do for the day.

Boat building

These boats were made entirely out of timber right next to us. These boats have just been launched and there superstructures and stuff are being constructed. They are trawlers and cost about two million Malaysian Ringgits.

Next wharf

This is the next wharf where the trawlers were loaded and unloaded. Ice would go on and fish would come off.

Taman Tasik

This is Lake Park in Taiping.

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Kaki Bukit Larut

Up again early this morning and caught a Grab taxi to Kaki Bukit Larut. This time I did not bother to clamber up the hill with the hordes of tourists, but went left to the waterfall. Not so many birds around. It was still a bit overcast. And it even rained for a little while. So I took shelter in a Hindu temple being repaired.

Southern Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina)

Mom with baby

Southern Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina)

Mom carrying baby.

Southern Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina)

The alpha male.

Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)

Licking his plate clean.

Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)

The orange at half-time.

Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)

Old grandpa found a coconut.

Black giant squirrel (Ratufa bicolor)

Blue-throated Bee-eater (Merops viridis)

Blue-throated Bee-eater with bee.

Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)

Taiping bird list

White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)
Yellow-vented Bulbul
Common Flameback (Dinopium javanense)
Asian Glossy Starling
Black-thighed Falconet (Microhierax fringillarius)
Asian Fairy-bluebird (Irena puella)
Olive-winged Bulbul (Pycnonotus plumosus)
Blue-throated Bee-eater (Merops viridis)
Scarlet Minivet (Pericrocotus speciosus)
Blue-crowned Hanging-Parrot (Loriculus galgulus)

Mammals

Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis)
Southern Pig-tailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina)
Black giant squirrel (Ratufa bicolor)

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