Surprise Bird at the Park

Last post I mentioned having to wait until migration for more excitement but that wasn’t true. A bird which doesn’t even occur in Thailand was spotted in the park yesterday. It’s undoubtably an escapee; likely from the neighbouring market. The bird in question is the stunning Red-billed Leiothrix.

While a lot of people would write off going to see it because it’s ‘just an escaped bird’ from the market. I don’t really see it that way; how can you not want to see this stunning bird, to see one in the wild isn’t easy and how many chances would you get to see one of these foraging around the undergrowth? Yes, it’s an escapee but now it’s in the wild. We shouldn’t judge beings by their circumstances!

People left mealworms for the bird and it came out to take them. It also found caterpillars and other invertebrates as it foraged on the ground. Occasionally perching on the exposed log after collecting food. I heard some calling too; it seemed healthy and capable to live in the wild here.

This species has been introduced to a few other countries which include France, Italy and Spain. In the United States, there’s a population on Oahu island in Hawaii. In the UK there’s a possible colony that still remains as there have been recent reports in the past couple years. In Japan a feral population of this popular cage-bird has established itself since the 1980s.

It’s not surprising why this bird would be introduced to many places – it’s a very beautiful looking bird. It was really nice day to observe one in the park and I hope it lives out the rest of its years as a free bird!

All images and video © 2022 hamsambly

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Continue to document and spread awareness of netting and trapping of birds in Thailand