Philippine Hawk Cuckoo at IRRI - 18 Feb

A very strange record this afternoon of a juvenile Philippine Hawk Cuckoo at IRRI. It was in trees next to the Open University building at the northeast gate. Initially I'd assumed it was a small accipiter as it took off from the ground and flew up into the trees. It perched nicely however, and I was amazed to see what I'd always been led to believe was a true forest bird in what was essentially farmland/ parkland. My first ever sighting of this species was outside my house at IRRI staff housing, a garden type environment, so maybe I shouldn't have been so surprised but since then I've got used to brief flybys in a variety of forest habitats. Kennedy says "Lowland to high elevation virgin and second growth forest... shy and secretive foraging in all forest levels from near the ground to the canopy". To which can clearly be added "Sometimes sits around in the open in farms and gardens"

Juvenile Philippine Hawk Cuckoo. 

Common Kingfishers still in the fields.