Cinnamon-headed Green Pigeon
Our New Year Ang Pow arrived a little late, but we are not complaining. Terry Chen posted a photo of a male Cinnamon-headed Green Pigeon, Treron fulvicollis, on 24 Feb 2016. It was feeding on the red berries along the forest trail at the Tampines Eco Green.
We had less than 10 records of this rare non-breeding visitor in Singapore. Our last record was on 3rd September 2011 when Con Foley photographed a pair at Pulau Ubin. Most of our sightings were at Pulau Ubin and Sungei Buloh. They must have come over from across the Causeway, most likely due to forest disturbance in Johor. They are good long distance flyers.
By mid day the pigeon was contented to stay in the shade and preen.
It was full house this Saturday morning, when the who’s who of the birding community gathered around a small tree along the trail at TEG hoping to get a shot of this pigeon. For most this was their lifer. Francis Yap confirmed that there were two male birds there this morning after looking through his photos. One appeared to be a sub-adult based on the incomplete maroon upperwing according to See Toh Yew Wai. Those who came early were rewarded with eye-level shots when the pigeon came down to feed on the red berries. There were even the mandatory FIM shots of the pigeon with the berry in its mouth. But most of us went home happy with some great open shots of this cinnamon ang pow. Dare we dream of the appearance of another rare returning resident, the Little Green Pigeon, Treron olax, missing since 2004.
Reference: Lim Kim Seng. The Avifauna of Singapore. 2009. Nature Society (Singapore).
Singapore Bird Group 