Aug 24, 2025
The Celestial Monarch is the 12th prompt of #gloribirds - a #birdartchallenge featuring birds with flattering names hosted by @printyourbird @paints_and_penguins @ivetasaviary and @wingingitdrawing .
seen from Brazil
seen from China
seen from Netherlands
seen from United States
seen from India
seen from United States
seen from Türkiye
seen from China
seen from Netherlands
seen from Ireland
seen from China
seen from China
seen from Serbia
seen from Netherlands
seen from Finland
seen from United States
seen from Finland
seen from Iraq
seen from United States
seen from United States
The Celestial Monarch is the 12th prompt of #gloribirds - a #birdartchallenge featuring birds with flattering names hosted by @printyourbird @paints_and_penguins @ivetasaviary and @wingingitdrawing .
Birdtober 15th, 2024 "Eyering"
Celestial Monarch! What a beautiful bird.
Then dump the gas on them!
(Buck Rogers 2429 A.D. daily strip)
The Beautiful Jay (shown here with other gloribirds) is the sixth prompt of #gloribirds - a #birdartchallenge featuring birds with flattering names hosted by @printyourbird @paints_and_penguins @ivetasaviary and @wingingitdrawing .
A new variant has been added!
Celestial Monarch (Hypothymis coelestis) © Cheta Chua
It hatches from black, blue, clear, crested, long, pale, short, similar, small, turquoise, and white eggs.
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[2137/11056] Celestial monarch - Hypothymis coelestis
Order: Passeriformes Suborder: Passeri Superfamily: Corvoidea Family: Monarchidae (monarch flycatchers)
Photo credit: Adrian Constantino via Macaulay Library
Birdwatching Fringe Benefits
click here for more photos Why do I go birdwatching?
Honestly? I go for the view and the landscape. The birds have to live and fly somewhere, and they stay in some of the best addresses in the planet.
There is no birdwatching without "everything else." Birding goes with having to deal with crawling critters (that sometimes bite), thorns and mud that stick to the skin, shoes and clothes. And those leaves! They hide the birds!
There are of course the delicate flowers that play hide and peek and provide tired astigmatic eyes some rest.
Oh, I must not forget to mention this. Aside from the 31 Writhed Hornbills, another highlight of our trip to Bislig was seeing the gorgeous Celestial Monarch (Hypothymis coelestis). Yes, gorgeous is a scientific term. :)
I also learned something important about the Celestial Monarch: it usually (always?) travels in mixed flocks. A Rufous Paradise-Flycatcher (Terpsiphone cinnamomea), another lifer, heralded its arrival, momentarily distracting me with its flaming appearance. Fortunately, the royal blue CM decided to land where my binoculars were pointed. The CM twirled, turned towards us, and with a flick of its tail, it raised its crest, like one would raise an eyebrow. I'd like to think we deserved its curiosity and not its disdain.
What I will say next is horribly cliche-ish, but yes, my heart started to pound, I started to hyperventilate and I felt faint and goose-pimply all over. I actually started to tear up. But I had to stop myself from crying and wasting the few precious seconds I had to see it. I simply had no time for drama.
The "afterglow" lasted for a week. I kid you not. Go birdwatching, if only for your complexion. Now if only people knew how to best live with all other living creatures in the planet. :)