Frankly, Ho Chi Minh Metropolis isn’t a spot you’d go to particularly for birding. However if you’re there anyway (in the beginning of an extended birding journey) and have a day to spare, then why not? Particularly, a spot named Sala Township regarded fascinating primarily based on just a few latest eBird lists.
Sala Township is a barely bizarre place in that it is vitally near town heart (simply on the opposite aspect of the river) and partly poshly constructed up, partly consisting of scrubland. The type of place that will likely be utterly uninhabitable for birds in about 5 years, if Vietnam continues creating and if my standard pessimism is justified.
Anyway, having learn far too many books on the Vietnam Battle in my youthful days, there was a sure fascination in beginning birding in Vietnam – although I had been within the nation greater than 20 years in the past when the place in a roundabout way was rather more fascinating (i.e., no Starbucks wherever, no straightforward cab rent through Seize, no money machines, and so on.).
In comparison with the aforementioned eBird checklist, my yield was modest – which I partly blame on the time of the day (roughly from 2 pm to five pm native time) and partly on my restricted abilities as a birder.
Nonetheless, it was price it for seeing a number of Asian Inexperienced Bee-eaters alone.
One paper – describing analysis conveniently carried out on the college campus of Chittagong College, presumably near the canteen – appears at useful resource partitioning between this bee-eater and one other one, the chestnut-headed bee-eater. Useful resource partitioning is mainly the time period for liking various things, which makes it simpler to reside collectively (suppose you consuming many of the meat and your spouse consuming many of the greens of a shared dinner).
Apparently, the analysis discovered that each species primarily spend their time in timber (83% and 81%) and have the identical principal meals supply, hymenopterans (25% every, and no, I don’t know what hymenopterans are both – presumably one thing with wings). So, mainly, the 2 species do precisely the identical issues. Then, primarily based on these outcomes, the research concludes “coexisting bee-eater species partition their assets to restrict the results of interspecific competitors and it helps them to co-occur collectively”. QNED. (Notice for these with no correct classical schooling: that is to point out off mine).
One other paper on the Asian Inexperienced Bee-eater (“Ecology of the Inexperienced Bee-eater”) will be present in a journal edited by the apparently named Vishwashanti Multipurpose Society (subtitle: International Peace Multipurpose Society). [So if global peace is not your thing, you can presumably choose another purpose at will.]
The paper provides one fascinating truth concerning the bee-eater – apparently, it has a selected predator avoidance habits that distinguishes it from many different species. If a possible predator is trying on the bee-eater’s nest, it is not going to enter till the predator has regarded away. This means that the chicken is conscious of the place the predator is trying. The declare made within the paper – that this implies the chicken is conscious of the predator’s psychological state and thus has a ‘principle of thoughts’ – appears a bit far-fetched although.
If this can be a bit too thrilling for you, why don’t you have a look at a paper titled “Cytochrome c oxidase subunit I barcoding of the inexperienced bee-eater (Merops orientalis)”?
The primary chicken I noticed in Saigon was much less unique although – a Eurasian Tree Sparrow.
It appears a bit unhappy to me that a paper on the Eurasian Tree Sparrow and the Home Sparrow has to justify the necessity for analysis on these species by arguing this advantages people: “Sparrow species … reside in a detailed affiliation with folks. Subsequently, understanding their inhabitants standing and tendencies may even assist in monitoring the standard of environments the place most individuals reside”.
Zebra Doves appear to be as widespread in Ho Chi Minh Metropolis because the sparrows, however as they don’t reside in Shanghai, they’re extra fascinating to me – plus they’re type of cute, which is one thing not many doves and pigeons handle to drag off.
Apparently, some Zebra Doves will be fairly useful, although presumably not those I noticed. Zebra Doves are raised for singing contests in nations together with Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, and will value between 1000 and 50,000 USD relying on their singing qualities (supply).
(Notice: if you wish to lookup this supply, remember that the singing of the doves isn’t the main target of the paper – as a substitute, it’s on roundworms rampant in caged dove populations. I assume totally different folks have totally different pursuits).
Scaly-breasted Munias additionally appear fairly widespread in HCM (as they’re in Shanghai).
And apparently elsewhere: Mississipi, …
… Texas …
… and Florida. All Republican states – does that inform us one thing concerning the political opinion of this species?
My different spotlight of the day – after the bee-eaters – was a Collared Kingfisher.
This can be a chicken that takes the formation of subspecies to an excessive. eBird states that there are practically 50 of them. To present you an thought of the dimension of this quantity, it’s nearly as a lot because the variety of US states.
The species identify of the Yellow-vented Bulbul, goiavier, isn’t derived from Edoardo Goiavier (1734-1778), the Portuguese seafarer and naturalist, primarily as a result of such an individual by no means existed. As a substitute, it’s apparently derived from the French phrase for guava because the species was seen to incessantly go to guava timber. Apologies – a few of these identify origins are usually not notably fascinating.
45 of those bulbuls have been unfortunate sufficient to be dissected for an evaluation of their abdomen content material, leading to a paper for the Journal Of Oil Palm Analysis. The bulbuls are the commonest species in oil palm plantations and partly feed on bugs that harm the timber, thus the scientific curiosity (and the premature demise of the people).
Germain’s Swiftlets are a problem even for a lot better photographers than me.
Whereas the species identify germani appears to point a German connection for this species, it’s really named after a French collector, Louis Rodolphe Germain (1827-1912), for as soon as a reputation I didn’t make up. He was a veterinary surgeon in Indochina between 1862 and 1867, in response to the HBW.
The “Locomotion” part within the HBW on the species additionally explains why it’s troublesome to {photograph}: “The flight of Germain’s Swiftlet has a jerky movement, interspersed with brief glides by which wings are held angled downwards”.
My birding day ended with the flyover of a Purple Heron – not a chicken one would see so near town heart in Shanghai.
The youngest chicks in a clutch of Purple Herons of this species usually die of hunger – one paper describes this in reasonably technical phrases: “Brood discount via sibling hierarchies supplies a fine-tuning on the time of peak nestling demand”.
Saddish story on the finish: After I as soon as regarded for a information for a Vietnam chicken tour, I contacted two tour firms. My inquiry included the next sentence: “Do you may have feminine chicken guides (I’ve had good experiences with them right here in China)?”
One of many tour firms replied, “We would not have feminine chicken guides in Vietnam, however now we have feminine assistant workers and there are lots of providers in Vietnam for enjoyable.” You may nearly see the “wink, wink” within the author’s face … Whereas this sounded tempting certainly, I made a decision in opposition to that firm as I’m not that a lot into enjoyable.
Due to Morten for the eBird checklist talked about in the beginning of the publish and for patiently answering my follow-up questions.
