Last of the Eskimo Curlew from Canada

Story about this Last Eskimo Curlew by Fred Bodsworth was featured in Readers Digest book series. I remembered reading it and being engrossed in the perilous journey that the Eskimo Curlew underwent as it literally flew from one end of the earth to another, namely the Arctic in search of its mate. YouTube has a cartoon series on this species as well. There are several species of 3 species of Curlews in South East Asia. I've seen the Eurasian Curlew before. The rarer ones are the Far Eastern Curlew and the Little Curlew. Would be a loss to humankind should the latter two species face the same fate as the Eskimo Curlew.......
A comparison of the Curlews, Godwits and Sandpiper is available below with their respective status (as sourced from WaderTales website).

Monkey business in Taman Botani Shah Alam and Hooded Pitta

I usually post pictures of birds since this is mainly a blog about birdwatching but these Dusky Leaf Monkeys were irresistably cute. A group of them were jumping from tree to tree near the public swimming pool in Botanical Gardens, Shah Alam (Taman Botani Shah Alam). Pool area is now closed to public with red tape sealed all around it. So monkeys were having a FIELD DAY that Saturday afternoon. The Hooded Pitta was seen so that's a tick for my checklist:) Avian species that I was able to see (definitely two heads and four eyes are better than one) have been recorded in eBird Malaysia. My checklist is available here. Five species of Pittas (Pittidae family) which can be found in Malaysia are described further in Malaysian Birds website.  

Single individual Dusky Leaf Monkey was joined by a second one a few minutes later......

Enjoying their tea-break of coconut leaf plucked straight off the frond of the tree!

Al fresco dining amongst the Botanical Gardens.

Avian species and Leaf Monkeys co-existing in harmony at Botanical Gardens - lessons to be learnt for humankind.

Paya Indah Wetlands April 2017

Coppersmith barbet was the first bird seen that hot Sunday afternoon as I entered Paya Indah Wetlands. Located in Dengkil, Selangor, this wetlands was around half an hour drive from Kuala Lumpur. This 15cm beauty is the smallest barbet amongst the 11 species of Asian barbets, according to an article entitled "Notes on the Field Identification of the Green-Plumaged Barbets in Peninsular Malaysia" by Allen Jeyarajasingam published in eBIRD Malaysia. Click here to read this article and to view the beautiful, clearer and sharp pictures by Andy Lee and Choy Wai Mun.  

Coral red patches on front of its head according to Allen J. article.

 Coral red on breast bands in pictures above and below:-

Lesser Whistling Ducks, Cotton Pygmy Goose (1 male and 4 females), Little Egret, Cattle Egrets, Malayan Night-Crowned Heron, Brown Shrike, White-breasted Waterhen, were out and about in the wetlands from 5.15 to 7.15pm. Birds species seen that day has been reported in eBIRD Malaysia. As I ended my journey in Paya Indah Wetlands, the resident hippo peered at me from within its enclosure wondering what kind of creature I was sitting inside "the shell" of my car as I snapped a picture of it:)