This is a classic case study of mistaken identity and information being passed on from generation to generation. All bird photographs in this article were taken by the Canon 7D camera using a Canon EF 300mm f/4L IS lens with a 1.4x extender.
The real maya, the Philippines' national bird before 1995.
This was never a national bird of the Philippines!
One of the most widely spread misinformation in the Philippines is the identity of our formal national bird. Before the Philippine Eagle was declared as the official national bird of the Philippines in 1995, the title previously belonged to the Philippine maya.
Everyone thinks it's the brown bird...
When I was a child, I was told all of those tiny brown birds were all mayas. Everyone around me thought the same. My friends, family, and teachers, all of them thought the brown birds were mayas. Unfortunately what I was taught was incorrect. These brown animals, the most widely seen bird species in the country, is not actually endemic to the Philippines. It's found all over Europe and Asia and was introduced here. The official name of this bird is the Eurasian Tree Sparrow or Passer montanus.
The real maya stands out -- it's red in color
Thankfully this morning, in my backyard in Bacolod, Philippines, a real maya bird visited my garden. This was the first time I've ever captured a real maya bird on a DSLR. He was looking to build his nest and something in my garden attracted him. Soon there were two of them looking around for building material.
The Philippine maya is otherwise known as the Black-headed Munia also known as Chestnut Munia (Lonchura atricapilla). While it's family is found throughout Asia, the maya bird subspecies particularly belongs to the Philippines. It's called Lonchura atricapilla jagori.
When they are young, the color of their feathers are brown but when they mature, they turn red.
So there you have it, you have now been given truth. Spread it out and help educate the masses! Teach your friends, relatives, and children the correct information. If you are Pinoy, you should at least know your former national bird wasn't an introduced species by foreigners.
nice post kuya.. now I know what a real maya looks like.. So the brown bird I always saw back when I was a child was not the real maya.. sigh, guess I have never actually seen a live maya my entire life.
ReplyDeletethank for this post. i know about the true maya although i have had some arguments back in high school on what a maya looks like. now i checked google and to my surprise the pictures coming out are not the real maya. thankfully there's your post. the other one is a common street bird from india to brazil and even in colder states in the US... and i really cant believe so many filipinos thought that's our former national bird.
ReplyDeleteI am not a bird lover but I really love the maya birds. They are so noisy but of course I know they are only singing.
ReplyDeleteAnd oh by the way ...if the true maya is the red one so what's the name of the other bird (the brown) one which is not the true maya? I've seen the real maya and the fake maya too and I think the real maya looks more beautiful.
ReplyDeleteDoes maya live in Acacia Tree? co'z in our school, maya stays or live in an Acacia Tree and they usually fly in a circular formation.
i also see the "used to be" maya of my childhood as more beautiful... (based from these pics) ..i haven't seen the real one yet, though.. basta.. birds are lovely...esp Cinderella's...
DeleteHow interesting! This is really enlightening and helpful. Now I know. The real maya looks so much prettier. I often wondered what was so special about the little brown bird to make it to the national roster. Thanks.
ReplyDeletethe brown one is also called "maya" hence the mistaken id. the other red one is actually a reddish-brown color. you would frequently see it in rice fields and grasslands or being sold in front of churches.
ReplyDeleteI think that real maya you're talking about is actually the Chinese maya we used to call in our locality in Masbate. It really looks very similar.
ReplyDeleteI used to think maya is a small brown bird and often frown why it's the national bird as it is small and plain looking...now i see why maya is the national bird. it's lovely.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to have a copy of your book on Philippine Birds, if it's possible?
thank you very much. my email: eilujannsummer@gmail.com
salamat po.
The brown one is commonly called "house sparrow". Sa katagalugan ay tinatawag itong "mayang-bahay". Akala ko ay ito ang naging national bird natin. Nagtataka ako dahil bakit naging national bird ang isang pesteng ibon. Naninira ng bahay at tanim na palay ng magsasaka. Salamat kay Don at naliwanagan ako.
ReplyDeleteIts only after reading your blog have i known about this fact. Thanks a lot. I posted it in my fb account. By the way, do you have a pic of the dalawidaw? I am from Iloilo and we have this popular native song with that title. They said its a red-breasted little black bird. I've been searching the internet but found none. Hope you have it in your files. Thanks. My email: estudyante.kasali@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteWow! I used to wonder why our former national bird looked so ordinary. Thanks to your blog I'm enlightened on how the real maya looks like. Very beautiful, indeed. =)
ReplyDelete