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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 11, 2009 8:36:35 GMT
Thank you Ding. A lucky shot of an unexpected bird.
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Post by ppaaoolloo on Jul 11, 2009 11:05:56 GMT
@ely I'll probably try tomorrow. I got my new support a few weeks ago and my schedule cleared for tomorrow. So much work to do and yet so little time  |
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Post by tina mallari on Jul 11, 2009 11:08:23 GMT
Oh myyyyyy gollyyyyyyy ely !!!
this is the best looking white morph philippine coucal i have ever seen in photos - I am in aweeee
Big congratulations !!!!
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 11, 2009 14:07:24 GMT
Thanks Tina. I was just lucky to be passing by and had a good shot.
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Post by Raul Benjamin Puentespina on Jul 11, 2009 15:03:54 GMT
Hi Ely, my avatar is the blue-throated barbet...  |
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Post by Sylvia Ramos on Jul 11, 2009 15:25:20 GMT
Hi Ely, CONGRATS! Really great capture! I've also seen that bird in Caylabne/Palay-Palay but don't have any pics.
I also remember the discussion on this bird in the WBCP egroup .. they usually refer to it as a White Morph Coucal.
Also found this in the WBCP egroup: "The term "phase" in its' most correct acception refers to transitional, and temporary plumages that are age-related. A "morph" is a described and recognised plumage variant of adult birds. A white "morph" will live and die a white "morph" and, it is not transitional."
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 12, 2009 0:06:53 GMT
Hi Ely, CONGRATS! Really great capture! I've also seen that bird in Caylabne/Palay-Palay but don't have any pics. I also remember the discussion on this bird in the WBCP egroup .. they usually refer to it as a White Morph Coucal. Also found this in the WBCP egroup: "The term "phase" in its' most correct acception refers to transitional, and temporary plumages that are age-related. A "morph" is a described and recognised plumage variant of adult birds. A white "morph" will live and die a white "morph" and, it is not transitional." Gee, thanks Sylvia. There has been some confusion as to what this bird is. Your relating the description given by the WBCP is most appreciated. Mabuhay. Thank you Raul for identifying your Avatar as the Blue-throated Barbet. Its a beautiful bird. Good shot and good choice for your Avatar. |
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 12, 2009 1:18:26 GMT
Hi Ely, CONGRATS! Really great capture! I've also seen that bird in Caylabne/Palay-Palay but don't have any pics. I also remember the discussion on this bird in the WBCP egroup .. they usually refer to it as a White Morph Coucal. Also found this in the WBCP egroup: "The term "phase" in its' most correct acception refers to transitional, and temporary plumages that are age-related. A "morph" is a described and recognised plumage variant of adult birds. A white "morph" will live and die a white "morph" and, it is not transitional." I have modified the name of this bird to "White Morph Coucal" as this seems to be the most appropriate name as found in the WBCP egroup. This information was given by Sylvia and concurred by Romy. What is interesting about this phenomena of "Morph" is that the bird will live & die a white morph and it is not transitional. Thank you Sylvia for you valuable input. Mabuhay. |
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Post by Tonji Ramos on Jul 12, 2009 1:44:56 GMT
Nice capture Ely! We saw this bird but never took a picture of it. It acted just like a coucal, hiding inside a tree then a bush. Your bird is great, out in the sun trying to dry itself. I guess sometimes the rain helps bird photography. I see you got the bird photo of the week as well. Superb! The 800mm and your persistent efforts are producing great pics.
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Post by Eric Patdu on Jul 12, 2009 2:10:55 GMT
I would have to recant my previous ID of this bird as an albino. I dug up the discussion on this bird in 2007 when Tina took the first photo of this bird.
This is the entire email of Steve Pryor on this subject.
Hi All,
Just a little preliminary information on this white morph.
Though the Kennedy Guide makes no mention of it (and yes, not very understandably for myself either), it is not the only resource for Philippine birds around (thankfully!).
Volume 4, P. 588-589, Handbook of the Birds of the World (Lynx Edicions) carry this morph on a plate and mention the form in a text description.
My description from the plate: plumage all white; legs and feet apparently bluish-grey (the color of the legs and feet is not as dark as in the normal morph Coucal); eyes red; the bare skin around the eye would appear to be lighter in color than in the normal morph, and a sort of pale blue-grey; the bill would appear to be yellowish at the base and a sort of pale bluish near the tip.
Range:
This is as far as we know now. Luzon (most or all records I have read have it in the South of Luzon); Jon Hornbuckle reports the morph also off Luzon, from Panay if I am not mistaken. Therefore, as far as we know now this white morph would appear to be limited to occuring only in the nominate race viridis.
Requested are all sightings on Luzon, but in particular, any and all sighting outside of Luzon. Send them to the records committee data collators.
Cheers,
Steve
So there it is! We not only know that it is a white morph but we can almost be sure that it is the nomimate race viridis of the Philippine Coucal. ;D
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Post by JP Cariño on Jul 12, 2009 2:50:37 GMT
 I got the same fella in caylabne a few months back. i think the eyes are red and this may help in the id if its albino but i specifically remember the legs being grey |
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Post by Elvin Sansona on Jul 12, 2009 3:34:53 GMT
Thanks Eric, it clears everything in my mind. So there is a small group of this white morph Philippine Coucal existing in our country
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 12, 2009 4:17:55 GMT
You are right Tonji. If it rains the previous day and its sunny while you are taking your picture it is okay. The only drawback is that you have a "wet" bird. I learned the virtue of "persistence" from you & Sylvia and I posted this sometime ago at the Forum if you recall. Thanks to you & Sylvia I am following your footsteps. I know you are thinking of buying a new lens. Go for it Tonji, get one that you don't have to buy anymore for a long long time. I am very happy that I made that decision even if it is very heavy to carry around.
You did a good job Eric. Thank you for sharing the email of Steve Pryor with us. The good news is that it is a nominate race viridis for the Philippine Coucal. How & when does it become an endemic? Mabuhay Philippines.
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Post by Elvin Sansona on Jul 15, 2009 21:49:37 GMT
Digging deeper into the information minefield of the internet, I stumbled on the article by Alexandre Roulin entitled: "The evolution, maintenance and adaptive function of genetic colour polymorphism in birds". The study focused on the expression of color morphs, function, inheritance and triggering factors. The researcher used both wild (field-based) and captive (aviary-based) subjects to support his hypothesis that ornaments (which include color morphs) are condition-dependent as influence by evolution (survival) and color traits (recessive trait expression). His findings shows that "polymorphism may have evolved or be maintained because each colour morph facilitates the exploitation of alternative ecological niches as suggested by the observation that individuals are not randomly distributed among habitats with respect to coloration. Consistent with the hypothesis that different colour morphs are linked to alternative strategies is the finding that in a majority of species polymorphism is associated with reproductive parameters, and behavioural, life-history and physiological traits. Experimental studies showed that such covariations can have a genetic basis. These observations suggest that colour polymorphism has an adaptive function. Aviary and field experiments demonstrated that colour polymorphism is used as a criterion in mate-choice decisions and dominance interactions confirming the claim that conspecifics assess each other's colour morphs.
Hope this helps...
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Post by Neon Rosell II on Jul 16, 2009 2:58:34 GMT
Digging deeper into the information minefield of the internet, I stumbled on the article by Alexandre Roulin entitled: "The evolution, maintenance and adaptive function of genetic colour polymorphism in birds". The study focused on the expression of color morphs, function, inheritance and triggering factors. The researcher used both wild (field-based) and captive (aviary-based) subjects to support his hypothesis that ornaments (which include color morphs) are condition-dependent as influence by evolution (survival) and color traits (recessive trait expression). His findings shows that "polymorphism may have evolved or be maintained because each colour morph facilitates the exploitation of alternative ecological niches as suggested by the observation that individuals are not randomly distributed among habitats with respect to coloration. Consistent with the hypothesis that different colour morphs are linked to alternative strategies is the finding that in a majority of species polymorphism is associated with reproductive parameters, and behavioural, life-history and physiological traits. Experimental studies showed that such covariations can have a genetic basis. These observations suggest that colour polymorphism has an adaptive function. Aviary and field experiments demonstrated that colour polymorphism is used as a criterion in mate-choice decisions and dominance interactions confirming the claim that conspecifics assess each other's colour morphs. Hope this helps... Yup, don't know if anyone has noticed it, but my with my observations the white morph is almost always found in bushy, thick emergent forest with low tree heights while the normal colored one is mostly in open grass land areas. So I guess this color adaptation is due to the increasing forest cover for a particular area, where before it was all grasses. Just my two centavos. |
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Post by Elvin Sansona on Jul 16, 2009 4:25:58 GMT
Could be Neon, we'll just hope somebody can really look into this color adaptation behavior.
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Post by jave*finch* on Jul 20, 2009 12:57:45 GMT
whoa, nice sir, congrats. I've seen a white morph along with a normal colored bird before but unfortunately, I didn't have a camera. Is this really albinism at work or just another genetic mutation? The eyes seem to be different but it's not the typical albino eyes. The white Centropus viridis is rare, right? but there are lots of cases wherein an unusually colored bird comes out right? Then is it considered a mutation?
Dave.
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Post by jave*finch* on Jul 20, 2009 13:24:28 GMT
Oh myyyyyy gollyyyyyyy ely !!! this is the best looking white morph philippine coucal i have ever seen in photos - I am in aweeee Big congratulations !!!! Miss Tina, I think I've seen a similar picture from you before. It's a beautiful specimen too. |
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Post by Elvin Sansona on Jul 20, 2009 14:04:40 GMT
whoa, nice sir, congrats. I've seen a white morph along with a normal colored bird before but unfortunately, I didn't have a camera. Is this really albinism at work or just another genetic mutation? The eyes seem to be different but it's not the typical albino eyes. The white Centropus viridis is rare, right? but there are lots of cases wherein an unusually colored bird comes out right? Then is it considered a mutation? Dave. Dave its not albinism nor mutation but a normal coloration rarely expressed, it could be a recessive trait or an externally stimulated phenotype. There is really a need to do more research on this |
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Post by Ely Teehankee on Jul 21, 2009 0:49:18 GMT
Hi Ely, CONGRATS! Really great capture! I've also seen that bird in Caylabne/Palay-Palay but don't have any pics. I also remember the discussion on this bird in the WBCP egroup .. they usually refer to it as a White Morph Coucal. Also found this in the WBCP egroup: "The term "phase" in its' most correct acception refers to transitional, and temporary plumages that are age-related. A "morph" is a described and recognised plumage variant of adult birds. A white "morph" will live and die a white "morph" and, it is not transitional." Thank you Dave. This quote came from our lovely lady member "Sylvia Ramos" who is also a member of the WBCP. This is the only thing that I know of the Philippine Coucal "White Morph". As for the camera I would suggest that you get a Canon 50D and a 400mm 5.6 L lens. This is what Sylvia is using and she takes good pictures with it. Another lady member who is very proficient with it is "Tina Mallari". I am relatively a beginner in bird photography so I will leave this page open for the experts to make their recommendation to you. You are very young and this would be a good way to start with your hobby and perhaps help you in your desire to take up ornithology. |
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