Osprey

At this time, the mist had mercifully lifted and the sun was at its fullest. It was serious birding time.

We spotted a very very tiny heron with no tail, perched on the side of the thin bamboo pole. We could not make out what it was. Maritess said it was a very Little Heron. Indeed it was. There are such things as Little Herons. Mike said it was an immature Little Heron.

Maritess saw a bird disappear into a clump of hyacinth as it swam. "I see a small duck!" She enthused."If it's small, it must be panduck!" I joked. Mike was not amused as he trained his scope into the direction.

Then a bird appeared from the clump as it swam majestically towards us. It was a Common Moorhen. It looked so elegant as it glided on its own reflection on the water. It was like two birds swimming in harmony, one upright, the other, inverse.

"It looks like two hens mating" I mused. Mike was not amused.

A pair of White-breasted Waterhens sunned themselves by flapping their wings in rhythm close to the base of the platform. They were so close, there was no need to use binoculars to see them clearly.

To the delight of Prop Jerry, there were indeed Black Bitterns around! The yellow streaks running up their necks were quite evident now. These had never been sighted within Metro Manila! Mike had his scope on one black bittern, when what should peek into the scoped area?

It had big triangular red beak at the tip of its big head at the end of a grayish, redish blue neck!

It was a Purple Swamphen!

The explorers had a double whammy for the day!

Then Prop Jerry saw a second one to the west, and then a third one in its finest glory, full bodied, sunning and preening itself on top of some hyacinth!

"With its big head and awkward plump body, it looks like a small Dodo bird!" said Maritess.

Maritess can be quite dramatic but we hope she is not prophetic. We do not want this beautifully awkward looking bird to go the way of the dodo. According to Mike, the Purple Swamphen for the last few years in Candaba until early this year.

Prop Jerry and Mike also recalled that long ago and far away, Laguna de Bay teemed with Pelicans. These are said to be now extinct in the Philippines.

We were glad to learn from the boatmen that the people around the area did not hunt the birds. We did spot people of top of poles with air guns. However, we were advised that these people were hunting for tilapia. We were incredulous at first but they pointed out that if these birds were indeed hunted we would not be seeing them displaying themselves, quite impervious to our presence, like they do now.

You know what? I believe them, after all they have allowed the black bittern and the purple swamphen and the countles of other birds in this teeming area to survive.