Purple-backed Starling at Wat Atwea, Siem Reap

Having bumped into an acquaintance from Norwich, Steve Jones, randomly along the riverside in Siem Reap we arranged to go birding so he could get to grips with some Cambodian species. On Tuesday 12th February I took him to Phnom Kraom, but decided to stop at Wat Atwea en route. While locating a vocal Black-naped Monarch a small starling appeared in my binoculars, which was clearly Purple-backed. I immediately noticed the very dark isolated eye peering out from a rounded head, giving a cute appearance to the bird. We managed to locate three individuals, but more may have been present.
Having been vainly trying to find this species for several months with the groups of White-shouldered Starling that litter the scrub around Phnom Kraom I suddenly realised my folly. Obviously this species has a different preferred habitat to White-shouldered, like pretty much every species! Purple-backed likes nice big trees, especially like this massive fruiting Banyon tree in front of the Wat itself.
We proceeded down to Phnom Kraom, where there was a single Temminck's and 4 Long-toed Stints, 4 Marsh Sandpiper and a superb Grey-headed Lapwing. Unfortunately the Greater Painted Snipe nest has been ploughed.

Phnom Kraom early February

Field full of Asian Openbills in front of Phnom Kraom

Painted Storks

Noticed a switch in the birds at Phnom Kraom at the start of this month. The Oriental Pratincoles have reappeared, and Asian Openbills have decided that this is the place to be. 480 of the latter were feeding on the introduced apple snails in the wet season rice paddies on 5th Feb, and 85 Painted Stork were counted on the 4th. And the waders are back, mostly due to the habitat becoming suitable I suspect. 16 species so far in February, including Temminck's Stint (3 on 3rd and 1 on 5th), up to 9 Long-toed Stint every visit, 9 Grey-headed Lapwing on 3rd, 10 Kentish Plover, 5-8 Marsh Sandpiper, around 80 Wood Sandpiper, 160 Black-winged Stilts and I managed to find a nesting Greater Painted Snipe.

Phnom Kraom January sightings

Having spent more time at the SVC office in Siem Reap since the New Year I've been heading out to the rice fields and lotus wetlands just north of Phnom Kraom more regularly. Best bird for me was undoubtably Chestnut-winged Cuckoo on two dates, 15th and 20th January. I suppose the Eurasian Coot seen with Simon Mahood on 25th may also be good! January species totalled 104, from 7 visits.

Coot. This is called 'putting the bird in a landscape context'.

Comb Ducks

Ducks have been sporadic, flocks of Comb Duck (13 on 15th and 15 on 25th Jan) and a maximum of 20 Garganey with the ever present Indian Spot-billed Ducks, Cotton Pygmy-Geese and Lesser Whistling Ducks, A Grey-headed Fish-eagle on 3rd January was perhaps expected given that the world's highest density breeds just over the Tonle Sap at Prek Toal but it's an impressive beast on the local patch. Other raptors included Osprey and Common Kestrel on 15th and Peregrine on 10th. Waders were a bit thin on the ground, Wood Sandpiper and Black-winged Stilt regularly noted but just one group of stints, 8 Long-toed Stint seen on 25th January, plus a couple of Greenshank. Numbers of Asian Openbill were increasing through the month, but only to 40 by 25th and there was only a single Painted Stork (15th).

Osprey, 15th January

White-shouldered Starlings

Regular stuff runs to Watercock and Greater Painted Snipe, over 100 Pheasant-tailed and a few Bronze-winged Jacanas, Black-backed Swamphens, Yellow and Cinnamon Bitterns. White-shouldered Starling are seen most days, with a maxima of 60 on 3rd January. One White Wagtail was present on 3rd January and a Red-throated Pipit passed over on 25th. A couple of Richard's Pipit were present at the start of January, but haven't been seen since the 6th.

In addition, Thick-billed Warbler, Siberian Rubythroat and Lanceolated Warbler are all birds guaranteed to quicken a British birders' pulse that I often bump into down t'marsh.

Oriental Darter

Rob Martin