Bagobo Babbler
BAGOBO BABBLER
Leonardina woodi
Muscicapidae Family
endemic to Mindanao, uncommon
L 192mm (7 1/2")
Bird #522 - June 2019
This bird is described in the Kennedy guide as "Unquestionably the most secretive bird in the Philippines as free ranging individuals have only recently been seen by naturalists". This is a bird that is usually found near the ground in montane forest from 1000 to 1800 meters.
The Robert S. Kennedy Bird Conservancy began studying the Bagobo Babbler in 2018. The group's mission is to study and document birds from Mindanao that are poorly known. They found 37 Bagobo Babbler nests since 2018 and have been able to photograph and document six of the nests.
Miguel de Leon and Neil Konrad Binayao of the Robert S. Kennedy Bird Conservancy invited Tonji, Ixi Mapua, Carmela Balcazar and me to visit one of the sites that was particularly conducive to bird photography. The site was a few minutes walk from a road and on a trail. This meant that the bird was used to people coming and going. The nest itself was built on a broken tree fern about two stories off the ground. This was highest of the nests that they found. We photographed it from inside a sturdy hide.
We were told that the two chicks were days away from fledging. They told us to expect the parent to feed it frequently. We observed the parent feeding the chicks about every 5 minutes. The parent also removed two fecal sacs while we were there. They also described the chicks as having a crest, indicative of it being close to fledging age.
Read MoreLeonardina woodi
Muscicapidae Family
endemic to Mindanao, uncommon
L 192mm (7 1/2")
Bird #522 - June 2019
This bird is described in the Kennedy guide as "Unquestionably the most secretive bird in the Philippines as free ranging individuals have only recently been seen by naturalists". This is a bird that is usually found near the ground in montane forest from 1000 to 1800 meters.
The Robert S. Kennedy Bird Conservancy began studying the Bagobo Babbler in 2018. The group's mission is to study and document birds from Mindanao that are poorly known. They found 37 Bagobo Babbler nests since 2018 and have been able to photograph and document six of the nests.
Miguel de Leon and Neil Konrad Binayao of the Robert S. Kennedy Bird Conservancy invited Tonji, Ixi Mapua, Carmela Balcazar and me to visit one of the sites that was particularly conducive to bird photography. The site was a few minutes walk from a road and on a trail. This meant that the bird was used to people coming and going. The nest itself was built on a broken tree fern about two stories off the ground. This was highest of the nests that they found. We photographed it from inside a sturdy hide.
We were told that the two chicks were days away from fledging. They told us to expect the parent to feed it frequently. We observed the parent feeding the chicks about every 5 minutes. The parent also removed two fecal sacs while we were there. They also described the chicks as having a crest, indicative of it being close to fledging age.
