The Story
On March 22, 2018, I photographed this Red-whiskered Bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) near the Mai Po Marshes in Hong Kong’s northwest New Territories. It has a tall, pointed black crest, a red patch behind the eye and a red vent. It is a resident fruit-eater of tropical Asia that also takes small insects. It perches in the open and calls loudly from treetops, especially in the morning. IUCN lists the species as Least Concern. WWF Hong Kong has managed the Mai Po reserve since 1983. The reserve supports globally important numbers of wetland birds, which arrive in winter and during spring and autumn migration.
I used a Pentax K-1 and the HD PENTAX-D FA 150-450mm F4.5-5.6ED DC AW for this one, at 1/250 sec, f/5.6, ISO 200. Deep Bay faces pollution and development pressure, so protected wetlands like Mai Po matter for the birds that depend on it.
©2018 Adam Rainoff Photographer
The bird
The Red-whiskered Bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus) belongs to the family Pycnonotidae (Bulbuls) in the eBird/Clements taxonomy.
Source: eBird.org (opens in a new tab)
Conservation
Least Concern on the IUCN Red List (assessment published 2024), with the population trend listed as decreasing. Source: IUCN Red List
