I traveled to the Malaysian State of Sabah on the island of Borneo mainly to see orangutans in the wild and to learn about the endangered Sun Bears. An unexpected bonus was the astonishing birdlife. I spotted Rhinoceros hornbills, with their weird red and gold banana-shaped headdresses, as well as black and white Oriental Pied Hornbills. Unfortunately, my telephoto lens was not good enough to capture decent photos of either species, as they were sitting in high treetops, surrounded by dense foliage. However my luck took a turn for the better one day while relaxing on the deck at Sepilok Nature Resort. The Bornean Thick-Billed Spiderhunter is found from the Thai-Malay Peninsula to Sumatra and Borneo. Since they prefer the upper canopy of the forest, sightings are usually difficult, so I was surprised when one landed on a flower, not six feet from where I was sitting. I slowly reached for my camera, aimed, and snapped a couple of quick shots before it flew away. A lucky catch indeed!
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Greetings from Cusco – Peru
Thanks Carlos. Glad you found it enjoyable.
Incredible photo!
Thanks Val! It was a reall lucky catch. It literally landed six feet away from me and I happened to have the telephoto on the camera.
Gorgeous bird and beautiful shot Barbara! Absolutely inspired. I love exotic birds. See you really soon my friend; Kelli is looking so forward to meeting you!
Thanks Ryan. I’m leaving March 27, but will be back the first week of June. Hope we won’t miss each other!
Hello Barbara!
Beautiful photo and catch! Does the name of the bird suggest that it hunts and eats spiders?
Hi Centrine. So glad you liked the photo. I didn’t know the answer, so had to look it up. Apparently, they eat nectar, insects, and small fruits, so I assume they must eat spiders.