05/07/2021
Minh's Tales from the Field: Birding in the Time of Covid
As soon as lockdown was lifted in town I grabbed my binoculars and camera and headed up to the summit of Bach Ma National Park to escape the searing heat of summer in Central Vietnam and try to find some birds.
The road was unusually quiet both to the north and south of Hue due to local Covid outbreaks. To prevent the spread of infection Hue province has banned travel from other provinces and passenger buses travelling through the province from stopping. This has made Hue, a far more peaceful and relaxed city.
The verdant forest appears out the window as we arrive at Bach Ma and start climbing towards the summit leaving the 40 degree heat of Hue below us. The rivers and streams are drier and narrower than usual but the moisture from the forest is enough to keep the Truoi Irrigation Lake working to supply the rice fields and homes to the south of Hue.
Reaching the summit area, the feeling of being in a huge air conditioner has pushed away all tiredness and worries. We are warmly greeted by friends working at the summit tourist area, happy to see some visitors after 21 days and I feel like a bird spreading its wings to enjoy the breeze and freedom. A warm cup of herbal tea then it’s off to search for wild creatures in the forest.
The contour road at the park's summit is usually quiet but at this time it was quieter than I had ever seen it with no one to be seen and not a bird singing. Turning onto a track up the side of a stream, after about five metres we hear a strange squawking sound, we thought was a monkey. Alert with binoculars in hands, cameras set-up, we stood still like tree trunks on the track waiting. It was not long before a pair of Silver Pheasants appeared, male and female crossing the track in front of us, the male distinctive with its red face and bright silver back. They all were happily chatting in pheasant language about something that had happened recently.
Not having the skill to be able to photograph through the branches, we moved back to the road side hoping they would cross to the other side. And sure enough, after a short while the male dashed out of cover to the other side of the road then stopped at the road edge. A minute late, the female followed him slowly, and a metre or so behind her two chicks hesitantly stepped on to the hard concrete road. The first chick followed its mother to the other side of the road but the second one lost its nerve and turned back into the safety of the thick vegetation from where it had come. The female turned back to encourage the nervous chick on the journey across the road while the other braver chick impatiently circled around its mother, stretching tiny feet and wings ready for the adventures ahead. After a few minutes, the female finally coaxed the shy chick out of the bushes and they marched together across the road while the male stood patiently watching his family from the other side. He seemed happy as all the family finally joined him, stood up straight, and gave a few brisk beats of his wings.
Continuing on up the slope we reached a grassy area where I spotted a Silver-breasted broadbill nest. After a short wait the birds appeared in the branches above the nest, the parents busily feeding their recently fledged young. We took a few photos until we were distracted by some strange noises coming from higher up hill.
As we trekked uphill through the bush on dry leaf litter and branches a sudden flash of bright yellow glanced through green leaves brightened up our thinking for a chance of seeing Indochinese Green Magpie.
We made our way to some rocks where we stood focused on the narrow dried up creek we had seen the bird fly into. “I see it!” One of my friends whispered. “Where? Where?” ... we crept over to where he was standing and where amazed to see just five metres away, an Indochinese Green Magpie holding a hairy caterpillar, which is it was wiping on a branch to remove the hairs. It then flew up to a tall tree nearby where we saw there was a nest with two open mouthed chicks awaiting the de-haired caterpillar!
We quickly set-up our cameras to focus on the nest 25 metres away and then quietly waited in the hope of getting some photos of the birds feeding the chicks. But as usual things never work as you expect! The parent birds soon returned not to feed the chicks but to clean up the nest and carry away the nestlings’ droppings, dumping them far away so as not to alert predators to the location of the nest.
Kek, kek, kek, came the continuous alarm calls getting closer and closer. A Red-shanked Douc langur moving through the tree tops in search of leaves for its brunch. The monkey was not intentionally heading towards the nest but nevertheless was set upon by the angry magpies. Hand over head for protection, the unfortunate monkey tried to protect itself from the savage red bills of the birds. The brave parents spread their wings to the protect the cowering chicks while cicadas provided the background sounds for this action movie!
The attacks reminded me of an incident I had witnessed at an Asian Paradise Flycatcher nest in the same forest some years before. The low cup of a nest in a fork of a small tree had been attacked by a Pit Viper and had only one chick left in it. When we came upon the nest, the snake already had the chick in its mouth while screaming around were the poor distraught parents. Helpless though this situation was at the time I was heartened at a later date when passing by the same spot to see the parent birds with a new family of fledged young happily moving though the trees.
Noon and the sun is shining directly onto the magpie nest. The sleepy chicks are enjoying a nap while their parents are taking time to preen themselves. Normally this shy species does not allow close approach and flees at the slightest noise or movement. So, it is surprising that this time, we are permitted to get close enough to stand in the open with no cover at all and take photographs and video with our mobile phones! What strange behaviour for such a secretive bird! We then realised that the nest was in the opposite direction and the parent bird was attracting our attention to lead us away from the nest. What a clever bird!
Suddenly a cracking sound from the direction of the nest area and with load alarm calls both parent birds rush back to the nest. High in a nearby tree we spot a Giant Black Squirrel moving slowly through the branches towards the nest. The magpie chicks laid low in the nest now so all we could see where their tiny tails. Worrying for the safety of the magpies, we pray they are out of view for the squirrel. Again, the parent birds react with wing beats, pecks of their sharp red bills and noisy alarm calls and the predator is chased off.
It seemed the parents have learned the lesson of leaving the chicks in the nest for too long and they take turns to jump between the chicks forcing them out onto nearby branches. A parent bird offers an enticing mouthful of insects to tempt the chicks up to the higher branches further away from the nest. Ah, the carrot and stick approach!
We didn't want to spoil the parents’ encouragements and now both chicks stood up, open mouthed, wings spread while uttering keking sounds with their tiny tails wagging up and down and left and right.
Wings outstretched, one of the chicks launches itself to a branch on nearby tree but falls short and lands on a lower branch. Making another attempt the chick finally reaches the branch it was aiming for where it joins its parents. The second youngster follows and succeeds in reaching its parents on the first attempt.
Our exciting day of birding comes to an end with an empty nest and a happy family of magpies. Lessons learned from the birds and breathtaking views from nature reminds me what we have been missing and urges me to write down my experience to share with locked down friends in Danang.
Le Quy Minh, Bach Ma, Vietnam, July 2021
