Nature photography in Taiping

Nature photography in Taiping, Perak, Malaysia

The city of Taiping was established inj 1874, following the signing of the Pangkor treaty between the Sultan of Perak, Sultan Abdullah and the British Empire. A further agreement was signed between Gee Hin and Hai San societies which had been at war with each other since 1861. The name Taiping originates from the Mandarin words Dai Ping, which mean 'great peace'.

In 1874 Taiping was established as the first British colonial settlement and the first planned town in the Malay Peninsular.

Maxwell Hill (Bukit Larut) was 'discovered' and named in 1879 by J.W.W. Birch. The British constructed a number of bungalows to serve as recreational houses and as a sanatorium for British officers seeking rest. It is the first, the oldest and the smallest hilltop resort in the country with an elevation of 1036m above seas level. This is compared with 1200-1524m of Fraser's Hill and 1135-1829 of Cameron Highlands.

The Taiping Lakes Gardens is the first public gardens in Malaysia, built in 1884. The idea for the gardens was put forth in 1880 by Lt, Colonel R.S.F. Walker. The land for the gardens was donated by Chung Thye Phin from a plot of disused tin mines he owned, and construction was carried out by the police force at the time.

Part of the Lake Gardens with Maxwell Hill (Bukit Larut) in the background

The famous 140 year-old rain trees

Like Ipoh, Taiping was a city 'that tin built'. Most of the pioneering work of developing Malaysia was carried on the shoulders of tin mining. With the arrival of Chinese immigrants in Malaysia, panning commenced around the 1820s and steadily grew until some clan and local Malay gang conflicts over mining rights and drinking water erupted. This precipitated the establishment of British control of the main tin mining states. Later a railway was constructed connecting tin fields to waiting ships at Port Weald.

Tin mining in the late 1800s

Chinese arrived in greater numbers to work on the mines and this gave birth to two clans; the Ghee Hin led by Lee Ah Kun and the Hai San led by Chung Keng Kwee. As mentioned above a peace agreement was signed by these clan leaders in 1874. Tin mining has declined but it was mined on a large scale in the greater area in Perak.

Large dredge in the Kinta Valley

Introduction to photography in Taiping

When I arrived in Penang in 2011 I was given 5 locations that were good for nature photography. Unfortunately these sites have been degraded since then and I recently looked to Taiping for more action. The forest covered Maxwell Hill and the wonderful asset of Taiping Lakes Gardens provide photographic opportunities in a relatively small area.Initially it was the nesting of several Oriental Pied hornbill nests that provided the initial attraction.

I will post a limited number of images in each category to control the length of this blog.

Hornbills

In the last two years there have been four pairs of Oriental Pid hornbills nesting in hollows in the rain trees around the lakes in the gardens. Nesting starts in December and chicks fledge in late March, meaning the female in incarcerated for around three months. In late December the pair builds the mud wall at the entrance to the test cavity leaving a narrow slit for the male to deliver food through. The male will deliver food hourly to start with the feeding frequency increasing when the chicks hatch to nearly every 20 minutes. The food supplied ranges from fruit, to lizards, to young birds from the neighbourhood nests. On one occasion a lump of dirt was provided and swiftly rejected. The male did not have heatstroke as soil is relatively often ingested to soothe stomachs or provide minerals. The chicks are taught to defecate out of the slit in the mud wall. One to two weeks before the chicks fledge the female will break out of the nest cavity and join in the feeding duties.

Male Oriental Pied hornbill

Female Oriental Pied Hornbill (smaller casque and different colours)

The pair constructing the mud wall

The completed mud wall with the feeding slit

Feeding fruit

A small bird has become prey

Female breaking out of the nest cavity

A chick gets ready to fledge

As well as the Oriental Pied hornbill there was a pair of Rhinoceros hornbills in the area, They could be seen foraging in trees in the Lakes Gardens and would roost each night in the same tree at the back of the Grand baron Hotel.

A female Rhinoceros hornbill (White eye surround)

A male Rhinoceros hornbill forages for food

The male hornbill in flight

Long-tailed Parakeets

I have written a previous blog on this species that also nests in cavities in the rain trees. I append a few selected images that shows there tempestuous nature and their mating protocol.

Female (left) and male (right)

Fighting

Dispute over nest cavity

Mating

Nest selection

The male is excluded from the nest therefore gives food to the female

Dusky Langurs

This adorable species has also been covered by previous blogs in this set. In Taiping the troops are mobile and can be found in several places, often demonstrating their jumping skills. The orange-coloured babies are always a highlight as is the playfulness of the juveniles. The species is very genteel and are not aggressive.

Macaques

There are two species of macaques locally; Long-tailed macaques and Southern Pig-tail macaques. Both species are present in numbers and the former can be quite aggressive to humans and will ransack rubbish bins looking for food. I include a few photos of each species. Long-tailed macaques, also known as Crab-eating macaques are omnivorous foraging on fruits, seeds, leaves and small animals, such as crabs. Despite being a nuisance in various places the species is in decline and has been classed as endangered in IUCN (March 2022).

There are two species of Pig-tailed macaques, the local species in Taiping being the Southern species (Macaca nemestrina). Both species are named for their short, erect, tails that resemble pig's tails. They are buff brown in colour with darker back and lighter undersides. The males are larger than the females. In contrast to the Long-tailed macaques this species prefers to live in primary forests way from human habitation. Like their cousins, Pig-tailed macaques are also declining in numbers and are considered 'endangered' in the IUCN list in 2022.

Other bird species

I like to record animal behaviour mostly with less emphasis on 'birds on sticks'. I will spend some time with one species rather than chasing multiple species. If various birds pass by I will always take a shot. Around the Taiping Lake Gardens and the foot of Maxwell Hill I have photographed; Crested Hawk Eagles, Lineated Barbets, White-throated Kingfishers, Painted storks, Magpie Robins, Red-throated Barbets, Verditer flycatchers, Banded broadbills, Red-bearded Bee-eaters, Blue-crowned Hanging parrots, Buffy fish owls, Spotted Wood owls, Greater flameback woodpeckers, Crested Goshawks, Little Herons, Temminck's sunbirds and several years the area had a visit by a Eurasian Hoopoe.