Location: Tambo Mudflats, Paranaque
Date: January 20, 2004
Time: 5:45 am
Birders: James McCarthy, Jon Villasper

Trip report by Jon Villasper

James and I had a go at Tambo for the Waterbird Census last Tuesday morning. We started out from the police checkpoint still dark and made our way to just before where the trail splits into two. We started hearing rubythroats and were suddenly blessed with one robin-like silhouette on the ground several meters away from us SIBERIAN RUBYTHROAT. We stayed until early light at that point and waited for the rubythroat and BLUE-BREASTED QUAIL to appear. And apppear they did. But enough of that. Let's talk census. Nursing a wound on the left foot, I asked to be left behind while James crossed the channel to have a better view of the mudflats. He found the usual birds there and in low numbers in contrast to the reports we had weeks ago. But one record surely makes up for the the low bird count. James saw what seemed to be a COMMON RINGED PLOVER. We found a way to get me to the mudflats without wading through the water and showed the bird on the scope. It's slightly bigger than a Little Ringed-Plover, had more orange legs (more orange, not more legs wise guy), and a broader white forehead. The clincher to this bird was the white bar on its wings that showed when it stretched them out. So this makes it record number 2 for the Philippines.
Woohoo!!!

WATERBIRDS:
1. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) 5 flying south
2. Great Egret (Egretta alba) 3
3. Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) 6
4. Little Heron (Butorides striatus) 12
5. Yellow Bittern (Ixobrychus sinensis) 10
6. Buff-banded Rail (Gallirallus philippensis) 1
7. Barred Rail (Gallirallus torquatus) 6
8. White-browed Crake (Porzana cinerea) 1
9. Commmon Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus) 1
10. Asian Golden Plover (Pluvialis fulva) 23
11. Little Ringed-Plover (Charadrius dubius) 106
12. Common Ringed-Plover (Charadrius hiaticula) 1
13. Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) 147
14. Lesser Sand-Plover (Charadrius mongolius) 2
15. Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia) 9
16. Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos) 9
17. Rufous-necked Stint (Calidris ruficolis) 17
18. Long-toed Stint (Calidis subminuta) 27
19. Whiskered Tern (Chlidonias hybridus) 40
20. Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) 5
21. White-collared Kingfisher (Halcyon chloris) 2
22. Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) 1
23. Yellow Wagtail (Motacilla flava) 5

NON-CENSUS BIRDS
1. Blue Breasted Quail (Coturnix chinensis) 2
2. Zebra Dove (Geopelia striata) 3
3. Lesser Coucal (Centropus bengalensis) 1
4. Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) 20
5. Pacific Swallow (Hirundo tahitica) 20
6. Siberian Rubythroat (Luscinia calliope) at least 8 poss more than 10; 2 seen
7. Clamorous Reed Warbler (Acrocephalus stentoreus) 20
8. Striated Grassbird (Megaluris palustris) 2
9. Middendorf's Warbler (Locustella ochotensis) 3+ calling; 1 seen
10. Brown Shrike (Lanius critatus) 2
11. Crested Mynah (Acridotheres cristatellus) 3
12. Scaly-breasted Munia (Lonchura punctulata) 8

Tambo Mudflats