Best Posts in Thread: Seagulls

Animals have distribution ranges. So the birds and insects you see in the Philippines will not be the same as species found in other countries and vice versa.

Parrots for example, are common and very diverse in Australia, New Guinea and South America, but are less so in other regions. The Philippines has one endemic species of cockatoo - the Katala, which is sadly critically endangered. But it is restricted to mountainous areas.

A few species are rare, endangered, or extinct because of human encroachment on habitats or overhunting - like Philippine eagles and hornbills. Others simply can't survive in cities, which are usually infested with sparrows which they can't compete with. Others simply don't live in or have never been common in the Philippines, like seagulls which don't really exist in most tropical islands.

But rest assured, there are plenty of birds once you get to the countryside. You just have to know where to look. In my province, these birds are common near towns and villages:

• Sparrows - nuff said.
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• Cave swiftlets - at least two species. They're the birds that are the source of bird's nest soup. Called balinsasayaw ("tumbling dancer") locally, they can be quite beautiful to watch swooping and gliding about.
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• Chestnut munia - called maya locally. They look like red and black sparrows and are very common in ricefields.
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• Olive backed sunbird - very tiny birds with brown, yellow, and blue coloration. They are common visitors of flowers. They drink nectar and are very similar to American hummingbirds (they can also hover mid-air and fly backwards).
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• Kingfishers - various kinds. My favorite to watch because they are a brilliant blue. Common near streams and ricefields.
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• Brahminy kite - Often seen soaring above farmlands and bodies of water.
  
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• Zebra dove - A gray and brown pigeon that blends perfectly with the ground. They have a distinctive coo-ing sound.
  
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• Philippine pied fantail - again one of my favorites. They are commonly seen flashing their black and white fan-shaped tails to each other near meadows and farmlands. We call them sayaw (literally "dancer").
  
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• Rails - usually called tikling. Common in ricefields and marshes.
  
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• Pipit - smaller than rails, but similar in behavior. Also common in ricefields.
  
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• Cattle egrets - commonly seen on cattle and water buffaloes.
  
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As for uncommon birds I've only seen a few times, they include ravens, crows, and several species of owls. Also note that chickens (more accurately - the red junglefowl) are native to and were first domesticated in Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent, which is why chickens here are usually far more colorful than your average European chicken.

 

Not sure if you have seen this page yet mate? May help you

Birds Of Negros Oriental

 

brian...
according to ''a guide to the birds of the philippines'' there are two varieties of crows in the fils, the Slender-billed and the Large-billed. the Large-billed is shown to be on all islands, including negros, the Slender billed is on all islands but the central visayas. but i occasionally hear (and see) crows fly over, i assume they're the large-billed.

jfi... another interesting flyover was a flock of at least 100 parakeet type birds, but only once...

i've lived in the same location for about the last 5 years and wildlife, in general, is disappointing, i've only counted about 10 species of birds in the area and the only wild animals i've seen are rats, shrews and bats.

i also spent about 6 months on a siquijor beach and another 6 months on a beach near siaton and saw very few shorebirds. i've all but lost interest in the local wild birds here.

 

''a guide to the birds of the philippines'' shows 4 species of gulls in da fils (herring, slaty-backed, black-headed, black-tailed) but none are on negros. 3 species are classified as rare and one is uncommon.