Hunt for Green Pigeon species post Global Big Day 2019

Pink-necked Green Pigeon

Pigeons and Doves, there are around 300 species being recognised globally, of which more than 50 species are likely to occur in Southeast Asia according to Ecology Asia's website. A particular Green Pigeon species in Malaysia sparked some excitement for me post Global Big Day 2019. A flock of this Green pigeon species was seen feeding on a fruiting tree in Perdana Botanical Garden (Lake Gardens) in Kuala Lumpur as I ended my Global Big Day birdwatch count there on a hot Saturday morning. The second count site at Paya Indah Wetlands in the afternoon was in the pipeline, so I couldn't stay on to observe the flock of Green Pigeons for a longer period of time.     

The possibility of the Orange-breasted Green Pigeon was there and in order to reconfirm my earlier observation as the Pink-necked OR the Orange-breasted, I made a second trip to Perdana Botanical Gardens on Sunday afternoon. I miscalculated the traffic jam and ended up being stuck for half and hour at the Merdeka Square roundabout. As I made my way to the exact spot where I had seen the flock of green pigeons feeding in the fruiting tree the day before, I was lucky enough to encounter a pair of Golden-fronted Leafbird. This pair were most likely to be escapees from KL bird park which is adjacent to the Lake Gardens. Glad to see this pair flitting about freely within the Botanical Garden grounds. The Golden-fronted Leafbird was the "golden" find for me that Sunday afternoon and all frustration from the horrible and unexpected traffic jam encountered earlier melted away at the sight of this leafbird species. Melodious calls of this Golden-fronted leafbird species were different from the Orange-bellied leafbird that can be found in the montane forests of Peninsular Malaysia.     

Golden-fronted Leafbird

The flock of Green Pigeons flew into the same fruiting tree later in the evening and after observing them for a longer period of time, the pinkish tinges on the neck of the juvenile were visible so it was the Pink-necked species indeed. My checklists submitted for eBird's Global Big Day 2019 initiated by Cornell Lab of Ornithology, for Perdana Botanical Gardens is available HERE, and HERE for outskirts of Paya Indah wetlands and HERE for Cyberjaya, with the final bird heard being the Large-tailed Nightjar.