Indigo-banded Kingfisher of Villa Escudero

[Ely Teehankee]

I have been to Villa Escudero several times for the past 3 years. When I first saw the Indigo-banded Kingfisher (Alcedo cyanopectus) 5 1/2 inch (141 mm) I was amaze by the beauty of this small bird. Very often I get to photograph this bird but always leaving something to be desired as far as image quality is concerned. Thanks to Mela and her crew they have improved the setup of the habitat so one could see the IBKF more often in the open. Villa Escudero is one of the venue that Canon's Photomarathon will have for this year and it gave me the opportunity to visit my Canon friends and take pictures of this very desirable bird.


Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 800mm f5.6L IS USM, Gitzo GT3530LS tripod, M-3.6 Mongoose Gimbal Action Head. Manual exposure in available light. Canon S100



This is the male Indigo-banded Kingfisher standing on top of a rock in the shape of a large hard boiled egg. The distance is about 13.1 meters from where I was sited.
1/20 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




It is only now that I noticed that the male's two band creates the shape of a heart on its chest. In a way, this bird can be classified as a love bird with a heart of love feathered on its chest.
1/15 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




On this same hard boiled rock, the female tries her luck to fish in the clear running water coming from the fall. You will notice that she has only one band on her chest and they do not meet.
1/160 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




This is dam that holds the water and generates electricity for Villa Escudero. I think it was during the time of the Grandfather of Mela when this dam was build and created this mini waterfall. Visitors gets a magnificent view of this man made waterfall while having their lunch at the bottom of the fall and experienced the cold water running on their feet.




This is where the overflow empties into a smooth flowing river and where the Indigo-banded would hunt for their fish and crabs.




Usually the irradecent blue stripe runs down the entire back of the IBKF but I do not know why with this particular bird there is a gap which makes it look different. Maybe he has folded his wings a little bit more.
1/20sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




The male perches on a branch for a few seconds enabling me to take his portrait.
1/20sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




In this picture you can see the irradecent blue running the whole length of the birds back which is what I usually see.
1/125sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




This is where the significant changes were made on the flow of the water to the river. Rocks were placed on the left hand side to soften the flow of the water and on the right side it was allowed to flow at a faster rate. A new area was created after a few meters by placing boulders and rocks to slow down the current but allowing fish and crabs to pass thru thereby enabling the Indigo-banded Kingfishers a chance to catch their prey.




The male IBKF stand majestically and waiting for the right moment to catch his fish.
1/40 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




You can see the almost perfect heart shape on the chest of the male Indigo-banded Kingfisher.
1/100 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




I was able to photograph the female IBKF perch on a branch at 9.07 meters, the closest the bird came to me.
1/50 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




This is how the Indigo-banded Kingfisher looks like to the naked eye.
He is underneath the bush perch on on top of the biggest boulder left of the middle of this picture. That is how small it is when you see this bird in the wild.



The female Indigo-banded Kingfisher was perch on this branch at 9.07 meters and you can see the difference compared to the male as it has only one band and they do not meet.
1/50 sec., f/5.6, ISO 1600




The male has two bands and although the first one meets the second one does not join completely.
1/125 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




From where I sit this is how the habitat looks like. I wait for the bird to come. Sometimes it does not make any sound as it comes in silently, so you have to stay alert always on the lookout for the bird. The boulder that looks like a hard boiled egg is the yellow-green color on the left side of the picture beside a clamp of bamboo leaves. From this distance it looks like an ordinary big rock but you can't carry it because it is big.




1/125 sec.,f/5.6, ISO 800




1/80 sec.,f/5.6, ISO 800




After taking some pictures, I will check it on the camera monitor magnifying the bird to check if the settings are correct. This picture on the monitor show that the bird was taken at 1/20th of a second f/5.6.




1/125 sec., f/8, ISO 800




1/125 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




1/30 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




1/100 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




1/25 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




1/100 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800




At first I thought that the Indigo-banded Kingfisher was ball legged but looking at the other pictures, I realize that the bird has to stand this way so that he has a firmer grip on the rock for instant take off when he dives for his fish. The bird is more intelligent that what people give them credit for. Every time I see a beautiful bird, I am awed by God's beautiful creation.
1/20 sec., f/5.6, ISO 800

[Tirso Paris]

Wow! What a wonderful album of the Indigo-Banded Kingfisher. Super sharp captures, nice compositon, and very informative documentation. Congratulations Ely and thanks for the share.

[Ramon Quisumbing]

Wow, these are the clearest, most detailed photos yet of the IBKF! Congrats, Ely.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 3, 2012 1:00:42 GMT Tirso Paris said:

Wow! What a wonderful album of the Indigo-Banded Kingfisher. Super sharp captures, nice compositon, and very informative documentation. Congratulations Ely and thanks for the share.

Thank you Tirso for your appreciation and if I may suggest you extend your honeymoon with your wife to visit this place. They have a nice museum with so many unusual items like a shrunken head. They also have a cultural dance show and buffet lunch by the waterfall. Needless to say you will have the chance to see and photograph this beautiful pair of Indigo-banded Kingfisher.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 3, 2012 1:01:04 GMT Ramon Quisumbing said:

Wow, these are the clearest, most detailed photos yet of the IBKF! Congrats, Ely.

Thank you very much Ramon. This is the reason why I was trying to convince you to join me last Saturday. Next time we will go together and try to get closer pictures of these beautiful birds.

[Carmela Balcazar]

I have to say - this is definitely your best series yet Ely! Few photographers have managed to capture the "heart" of the mature male indigo. The male is usually more wary and skittish, proving difficult to capture at times.

I specially like your personal accounts. For ordinary people like me, to read about the journeys and challenges of wildlife photography, as well as personal observations adds insights and appreciation to the photos.

You just made me smile on this dreary day.

[William Lim]

Fantastic photos of the IBKF and excellent narrative. Well done Ely.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 3, 2012 2:55:47 GMT Carmela Balcazar said:

I have to say - this is definitely your best series yet Ely! Few photographers have managed to capture the "heart" of the mature male indigo. The male is usually more wary and skittish, proving difficult to capture at times.

I specially like your personal accounts. For ordinary people like me, to read about the journeys and challenges of wildlife photography, as well as personal observations adds insights and appreciation to the photos.

You just made me smile on this dreary day.

Thank you Mela for your appreciation. I would like to congratulate you and your staff for the "renovation" of the overflow from the waterfall. I observed that the Indigo-banded Kingfishers sit on the rocks more often as they are more efficient in capturing their prey from this vantage point over the running water. I noticed that the male seems to be catching a fish every minute or so. The fish are very small that it takes only a few seconds for him to swallow it unlike if it is a bigger one it would take time for him to position the fish so that he could swallow it head first. It is such a delight to be watching and photographing them. It does not take much fish to satisfy their appetite but their metabolism is quite fast too because sooner than you expect they are back. I also met Shaiful & Lipan from Malaysia who stayed overnight at Villa Escudero. They too were very happy to have seen and photograph this beautiful endemic. They were thrilled with the heart shape feathers of the male IBKF. It is always good to smile, as it relieves the stress out of our mind.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 3, 2012 9:15:09 GMT William Lim said:

Fantastic photos of the IBKF and excellent narrative. Well done Ely.

Thank you William. I am now using a small but powerful camera known as Canon S100. It is capable of shooting RAW but I just use the highest jpeg for easy processing. I am quite satisfied with its performance and the pictures that I take makes it easy to make a story of my trip. If ever a bird gets close enough I will use it with RAW settings.

[oespena]

nice shots sir!!! How did you know if it's male of female sir???

[Tateo Osawa]

All nice and beautiful shots, Ely. I like photo #11 with heart mark. This is my first time to see the heart mark. I hope to shoot this bird someday.

[Ariel Matias]

Beautiful and crystal-crisp images Ely! I've been to this place long time ago and I remember that waterfalls beside the dining place. I hope to be able to go back there again someday.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 4, 2012 9:09:28 GMT oespena said:

nice shots sir!!! How did you know if it's male of female sir???

Thank you Onnie. The male has two bands running across his chest. The lower one does not join completely but still forms the shape of a heart on its chest. The female has only one band but it does not meet on its end. You can see the bands prominently displayed on the pictures.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 4, 2012 13:52:04 GMT Tateo Osawa said:

All nice and beautiful shots, Ely. I like photo #11 with heart mark. This is my first time to see the heart mark. I hope to shoot this bird someday.

Thank you Tateo. I too was happily surprise to see the heart shape by the indigo bands. I think this might be the only Kingfisher missing from your collection of Kingfishers of the Philippines.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 4, 2012 14:17:32 GMT Ariel Matias said:

Beautiful and crystal-crisp images Ely! I've been to this place long time ago and I remember that waterfalls beside the dining place. I hope to be able to go back there again someday.

Thank you Ariel. The place is as beautiful as ever and the redirected flow of the water from the falls gives one a better chance of seeing the Indigo-banded Kingfisher more often than before.

[Sylvia Ramos]

Wonderful set and narrative Ely! I really enjoyed this post and learned a lot! How's the wetland at VE?

[Neon Rosell II]

Wow! another wonderful set with awesome pictures, Ely! Shots like these makes me want to jump and swim to escape. How I wish the shooting conditions of the WP was like this and everyone can have a go at it. :-)

[tina mallari]

Excellent photos Ely !!! I would have to agree with Ramon and Mela, this IS the BEST series of photos I have seen of the IBKF of Villa Escudero.

Mabuhey :-) <--- Sorry couldn't resist ;-)

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 5, 2012 10:42:36 GMT Sylvia Ramos said:

Wonderful set and narrative Ely! I really enjoyed this post and learned a lot! How's the wetland at VE?

Thank you Sylvia. This presentation was made possible by the various suggestions made by friends who are not birders and would like to understand what bird photographers are doing to get this kind of pictures. I am getting positive feedbacks and it also requires more work before, during and after each session. LOL.

I did not have time for the wetland as the Canon Photomarathon was held at Villa Escudero.

[Ely Teehankee]

Jul 5, 2012 13:07:24 GMT Neon Rosell II said:

Wow! another wonderful set with awesome pictures, Ely! Shots like these makes me want to jump and swim to escape. How I wish the shooting conditions of the WP was like this and everyone can have a go at it. :-)

Thank you Neon. I thing it would be faster if you fly in. LOL. I agree with you on the WP. If and when BK attracts more birdwatchers and tourist, I believe making a trail to the area is possible. Ramon has put up a nice 4 room lodge with wi-fi, tv, room safe, and even a fireplace. Tourist will certainly enjoy this kind of amenities.