Diard’s Trogon, Sepilok, Borneo, Malaysia, July 2023
Malabar Trogon, Kithulgala, Sri Lanka, March 2025
Narina Trogon, St. Lucia, South Africa, November 2018
Red-headed Trogon, Fraser’s Hill, Malaysia, November 2019
Red-naped Trogon, Sepilok, Borneo, Malaysia, July 2023
Scarlet-rumped Trogon, Sukau, Borneo, Malaysia, July 2023
Orange-breasted Trogon, Raden Soerjo Forest Park, Java, Indonesia, October 2024
Photos by Kai Pflug
Kai has lived in Shanghai for more than 21 years. He only started birding after moving to China, so he is far more familiar with Chinese birds than the ones back in his native Germany. As a birder, he considers himself strictly average and tries to make up for it with photography, which he shares on a separate website. Alas, most of the photos are pretty average as well.
He hopes that few clients of his consulting firm—focused on China’s chemical industry—ever find this blog, as it might raise questions about his professional priorities. Much of his time is spent either editing posts for 10,000 Birds or cleaning the litter boxes of his numerous indoor cats. He occasionally considers writing a piece comparing the two activities.
Trogon is Latin for boring? But boy, are they colourful!
Such fabulous birds. I didn’t know that trogon is Latin for boring? Is this true? Ha! Caught you Peter! Just looked it up: the word trogon is Greek for “nibbling” for how they gnaw the bark of trees to make nest holes. But I almost fell for “the boring” def. Many years ago, on one of my visits to Costa Rica, a trip participate made the comment that she thought, “trogons are boring. They just sit there.” That was just fine with me as I struggled with getting decent photos. I think we saw three or four different trogon species that trip. They created a lot of excitement and I couldn’t get enough of them. Of the birds shown here, I have seen only the Malabar Trogon and I did get decent photos of both the male and the female.
I wish more birds would learn to be ‘boring’ and sit still while I frame them up!
I am all for “boring” birds. The more they sit the more I see them and wonder what they are thinking. Beautiful photos! I have not seen any of these (yet) and hope to add a few of them to my mental collection of such beauties!
Here in Mexico, my experience is that Trogons land a good ways away, usually with several branches in the way, and fly to a different branch the moment I try to get a clearer view. Please send a delegation of Asian Trogons to convince them to pose for their photos.