244



S. Porter—Wanderings in the Far East



A bird which is the very antithesis of the foregoing is the Black¬

necked Tailor Bird ( Orthotomus atrogularis), a quiet and unobtrusive

little bird inhabiting the lower foliage in the swamps. It is famous

for its unique habit of sewing together large leaves in the form of

a pouch or pocket in which it makes its nest. It is of warbler-like

appearance, and has a reddish head, long beak, and tail which is

carried at an elevated angle. I later became very familiar with this

little bird whilst staying in Johore, it frequented the bushes around

the bungalow, always on the search for small insects upon which it

lives. It has a very distinctive call, a loud “ tweet-tweet ”, which at

once enables one to locate it. I was never lucky enough to find the

nest, though I think it was the nesting time during the period I was

there (January to March). These little birds are quite fearless, and

I was able to watch them through my bedroom window, pursuing

their continual search for a livelihood, which I do not think is a very

hard task in the tropics.


The mud banks of the creeks which swarm with marine life make

an ideal home for the Common Sandpipers ( Tringoides hypotencies).

Malaya is the winter home, or at least one of them, of this very widely

distributed species, and here let us hope it finds sanctuary from the

man with the gun who is always waiting to “ greet ” it when it arrives

in its summer home in the north of Europe and Asia, though when

we hear of people bagging fifty couple of “ snipe ” (which is the name

of all small shore birds) in a morning near Singapore, it does not look

as if it gets much respite ever there.


I often saw the bird around the mud flats of the mangrove swamps,

either solitary or in pairs, but never in flocks, it is quite tame and

seldom takes wing, even when one passes only a few yards away.

When disturbed it flies low over the water with a soft, whistling cry,

and soon settles again on the mud-flats, where it searches for the

small Crustacea which form its main food.



(To be continued .)



