While many didn’t like sparrow hawk, there are few people especially the raptors lover or falconer that admire this species.

Sparrow is very agile and fierces in hunting their prey, a good species for falconry. Here is some sparrow hawk photo that I found.

lately my office job make me very busy and I didn’t really have chances to contact many of my friends…I feel tired and normally just come back and sleep (even if normally it is not a good night sleep)

today, once back home, I take a nab and wake up in the middle of the night… well, actually it is 11pm… fell bored because my family went back to hometown so I am alone…

So I went outside to see my eclectus parrots… giving then a supper I just realise that I feel much better just to sit there and see them have their meal…

it really work!! especially if you are the type of person that always lonely. it feel much much better just to sit there… knowing that they are there, beside you…see them eat, see them do their own activities…

Here is some photo of my vermicompost site..

KUALA TERENGGANU: A Wildlife Department ranger survived an attack by an elephant that he was trying to ride at Elephant Park, Hulu Terengganu, yesterday.

Mohd Hadzli Awang, 27, was trying to get on top of the elephant named Charlie when he lost his balance in the 8.55am incident.

Charlie became agitated and threw Mohd Hadzli to the ground.

He continued attacking Mohd Hadzli, stabbing his task against Mohd Hadzli and stepping on him.

Mohd Hadzli’s colleagues pulled him away from the elephant and rushed him to the hospital.

JOHOR BARU: Saleng Zoo has welcomed new additions to its family with three Siberian Bengal tiger cubs born two months ago.

Zoo caretaker J. Sivapriyan said the zoo now has a total of 19 tigers.

“I’ve named them Hassan and Samad, both two months old and Kuchir who is a month old.

“Each tiger has its own markings based on its stripes, much like our fingerprints. That’s how we tell them apart,” he said, adding that all three tiger cubs were healthy.

Both Hassan and Samad are the offspring of 10-year-old Putra and eight-year-old Ruby, while Kuchir’s parents are 16-year-old Kumba and 13-year-old Rainbow.

Sivapriyan, who has been working at the zoo for 11 years, said the number of tigers born at Saleng zoo had been growing steadily.

“The mating season for tigers is March and September, and they are very active and aggressive at this time.

“Each tiger has a partner as we do not want inbreeding in our zoo,” he said, adding that tigers will mate about 50 times a day during the mating season.

Sivapriyan added that during the mating season, the zoo would be “quite lively” as the tigers would be very loud.

He said that all the tigers were treated well and listened to his commands.

Visitors can take pictures with all three tiger cubs at the zoo for RM15.

The zoo opens daily from 9.30am to 7pm. Entrance fee is RM12 for adults and RM6 for children.

It is located at Lot 3777, Batu 17 1/2, Jalan Raya, Saleng, Senai, Johor.

But the country’s great diversity of birds with gorgeously coloured plumage soon won her over. Now she’s the one religiously pouring over bird guides – there is a shelf full of these books in her home in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur – and volunteering her time for bird censuses and to compile bird sightings submitted by bird watchers.

For the past four years, Cheung has avidly participated in the Asian Waterbird Census. In this event, bird watchers all over the world will, for one day in January, set out to a wetland site – a swamp, mudflat or lake – to record the presence of waterbirds. The data is then pooled to give a global health check on waterbirds.

“In bird conservation, the input of birders (that’s what bird watchers call themselves) is extremely helpful. Scientists don’t go out every day and there are so many places to cover. So if everyone chips in, it will help,” says Cheung, a Hong Kong-native who met her Malaysian husband while both were students in Britain, and moved here in 1997.

Bird study: Nina Cheung (standing) conducting a bird identification class for bird watchers.

Cheung, 45, is also a regular at Raptor Watch, an event held every March at Tanjung Tuan, Malacca, by the Malaysian Nature Society (MNS). There, she and other volunteers would station themselves at vantage points – either the beach or the light house – to count and note the species of migratory raptors flying in across the Straits of Malacca from Sumatra on their way back to breeding grounds in the north.

And as one of the editors of Suara Enggang, the bimonthly bulletin of the MNS Bird Conservation Council, Cheung helps to compile and edit articles for publication. She found time to pursue her interest in bird conservation efforts when she quit her job in marketing in 2002.

“I really started birding only in 2000. I was not interested in birds initially but was dragged around by my husband. He had suggested that we take up an outdoor activity that will not be too strenuous. But with time, birding grew on me. And with good binoculars, you see the wonderful colours of birds.”

While most bird watchers are contented with merely scouting for pretty birds, Cheung is determined to help build a database on the country’s avifauna. The birding community has, since 1988, routinely submitted their bird sightings to Suara Enggang.

However, all the information is not compiled in a manner for easy retrieval. This will soon change as Cheung, with help from other MNS members, are gathering the information into a computerised database.

“We hope to finish by the end of the year, then we will be able to analyse the data and possibly come up with trends on the distribution and status of Malaysian birds.”

She also manages Bird I-Witness, a computerised record of bird sightings in Malaysia that was launched last year. “It is very simple to do. When you go birding, you take notes on the species seen, their location and numbers. Then you key in the information in the database. The accumulation of data will give us the distribution and population of birds.”

Her volunteering work has rewarded her in return, she says. “I might be contributing but it also gives back to me, in terms of knowledge. I’m learning as I need to study records and books when I’m compiling all the information.”

It comes as no surprise that her weekends are taken up almost exclusively by bird-watching activities. If she is not birding with her husband and friends, she would be giving talks on bird identification or helping out as a guide on trips organised for non-bird watchers. Nothing pleases Cheung more than seeing the faces of people light up upon spotting a colourful bird through a scope.

“Not many people on these trips will take up bird-watching as a hobby but at least, we have opened their eyes to our rich bird life. Hopefully, they will grow to like birds and understand the need to protect them,” says Cheung.

But her frequent outings to nature are not always happy events. In Merlimau, Malacca, she sees nets strung across rice fields to prevent purple swamp hens from feeding there. “The farmers do not know that the swamp hens can fly over the nets and it is the small birds that get trapped instead. We cannot remove the nets, and can only free those birds that are still alive.”

She also sees changes in the landscape over the years; changes that worry her. “The reed beds are gone, there is more farming and huge swift houses (for the nesting of swifts) have come up. There are less birds as there is less habitat.”

And at Frasers Hill, the changing climate is apparent: “I see more and more lowland birds in the highlands. There are fewer birds and a difference in species composition.” Such observations prompts her to announce: “Bird while you can. You may not see them in future.” – By Tan Cheng Li

A 24-year-old man was arrested after a short car chase at Sungai Sarang Buaya in Bakri, near here, at about 11pm on Sunday.

About 40 live pangolins, including several babies, were recovered from the car.

The successful seizure followed four days of stake-out by a team headed by Asst Supt Azha Ahmad.

The team had stationed itself at the river estuary and spotted two boats approaching the coast.

One returned to the sea after the other landed near the estuary.

Two men then began loading sacks of the pangolins into a car and sped away after realising they were being watched, said ASP Azha.

“Our men gave chase. After about 100m, the driver lost control of the car and skidded into the river.

“However, he managed to escape in the dark but his friend was arrested,” he said.

ASP Azha said the seized animals, with an estimated street value of over RM70,000, were surrendered to the Wildlife and National Parks Department here.

He said the man, from Kampung Parit Enam in Sungai Balang, had been detained to assist investigations into the smuggling of pangolins from Indonesia.

Pangolins are protected animals. The case will be investigated under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972

LOVE YOU: Feline and canine friends at SPCA yesterday

MANY animal lovers gathered at the SPCA Selangor animal shelter in Ampang to celebrate World Animal Day yesterday. Volunteers, those who provide foster homes for the animals, sponsors, SPCA staff and members of the public honoured the occasion which is celebrated on Oct 4 every year.

World Animal Day is a worldwideevent to acknowledge and honour the contributions made by animals, as well as to create awareness of the plight of animals as victims of exploitation and abuse.

AMP Radio Networks general manager Kudsia Kahar was not the only celebrity guest present at the event. National badminton legend Cheah Soon Kit also came to show his support and honour World Animal Day.

“Charity isn’t limited to humans. Animals need our charity too. We all should play our part and help spread the word. We need more people to help create awareness about this kind of issues,” said Cheah.

SPCA Selangor chairman Christine Chin said: “Billions of animals are killed every day for food. Many more are being used in test labs. There’s also the issue of exploitation, as well as wildlife habitats being destroyed for development.”

The focus this year is on renewing personal pledges towards animals. Guests recited their pledges to protect and care for animals, writing them on the shelter’s World Animal Day banner as well as their personal pledge card given by the SPCA.

There was a candle-lighting ceremony to remember the plight of animals worldwide and honour the memories of animals that have touched lives everywhere.

The ceremony was followed by prayers from members of the Sathya Sai Baba Association. Awards were given to sponsors, volunteers and caregivers who have supported the animal shelter.

Vouchers for free spaying and neutering were also given away to 50 individuals who wish to sterilise their pets.

The World Animal Day celebration is an annual event in SPCA’s calendar. Information on events as well as its services can be found on its official website, www.spca.org.my.

I will wait and see, what will happen after this… Hopefully I can get some baby.

ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network (Asean-Wen) said that the money-spinning illegal trade involved endangered animals on the verge of extinction.

Asean-Wen’s Secretariat, in a statment to The Star, said the grouping had, during the January to March period, uncovered and busted more than 15 major networks involved in the illegal trade of animals.

”These major wildlife operations took place in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and Vietnam. Some 14.8 tonnes of animals parts were seized.

”More than 5,410 live and dead animals were discovered (from the busted smugglers and traders).

“More than 200 tonnes of illegal timber was also seized.

”These items were worth more than US$30mil in the blackmarket, not including the timber seized,” the secretariat’s coordinating unit’s senior liaison officer Klairoong Poon Pon said in the statement.

He said the authorities in the five countries made 38 arrests during the first three months of this year.

Among the animals and animal-parts confiscated were Bengali tigers, African elephants, black panthers, Malayan sunbears, blood pythons, clouded monitor lizards, civet cats, Sumatran tigers, exotic birds, parrots, cockatoos, leopards, boars, owls and monkeys.

”On January 9, the Malaysian police in Penang had a standoff with 12 men during a hostage drama after a wildlife trade went sour.

“The police eventually arrested the 12, seven of them Malaysians and the other five Indonesians,” the statement said.

It said Asean-Wen would continue to step up its enforcement raids throughout the region with the help of all the enforcement agencies such as the police and the wildlife department in the respective countries to try to stop the blatant cruelty against wildlife.