Borneo, Days 22 & 23, 16 & 17 April 2016 - Mantanani Besar Island

We'd booked a 2 day/1 night trip to the island of Mantanani Besar through Amazing Borneo and stayed at the Mari Mari Backpakers with some snorkelling as part of the package. This fullfilled Belinda's need for some beach/island action but also gave me a shot at some good birds too!

We were picked up from the Jessleton Hotel (who kindly agreed to store some of our luggage until we returned) at 07.15 for the 2 hour minibus ride north to the jetty at Kota Belud where the boats depart for the island. We arrived early having seen 2 Black-crowned Night Herons on the way but whiled away some time watching the numerous Whiskered Terns near the quay. 

The boat trip itself wasn't without it's moments - we saw c10 Black-naped Terns and 4 Bridled Terns on the crossing.

Small islands aren't renouned for a large variety of species and Mantanani Besar is no different. It does have some goodies though and a late afternoon/early evening walk north along the coast from Mari Mari Backpackers gave me one of them - Christmas Island Frigatebird, in fact dozens of them amongst Lesser Frigatebirds and Great Frigatebirds coming in to roost on a offshore islet. White-breasted Woodswallows, Pacific Swallows and Collared Kingfishers are common on the island and I also managed some Germain's Swiftlets, Olive-backed Sunbird, 2 Pacific Reef Egrets and White-bellied Sea Eagle.

After dinner that evening a torchlit walk a few hundred yards north of Mari Mari Backpackers gave me my much wanted Mantanani Scops Owl. We had at least 4 calling and eventually I managed a brief view of one but it was spooked by my torch and flew off!

The following mornign we went for a long walk south of Mari Mari Backpackers and then inland near the school to eventually emerge on the opposite side of the island. My hoped for Tabon Scrubfowl proved nice and easy with 5 seen but it was pigeons that kept us amused trying to get a decent view. 1 group of c8 Metallic Pigeons were flushed out of the top of a fruiting tree early morning and we went on to see several Grey Imperial Pigeons and just a single Pied Imperial Pigeon. On the long hot walk back I photographed a raptor passing over a clearing that was later id'd by the resident birder/guide at Mari Mari Backpackers as a Japanese Sparrowhawk. Near the school on the way back a Paddyfield Pipit was beside the path. The last decent bird was a very close Pink-necked Green Pigeon as we sat having lunch.    

Lesser Frigatebird

Lesser Frigatebird

Lesser Frigatebird

Christmas Island Frigatebird

Tabon Scrubfowl

Japanese Sparrowhawk

  Pink-necked Green Pigeon

That pretty much concluded birding for the trip with a night in back KK at the wonderful fish quay with its food stalls and a morning exploring the city a bit before making our way to the airport for the mega journey home.

Trip list 256
Lifers 170

Borneo, Days 17 - 21, 11 - 15 April 2016 - Danum Valley

11 April was mainly a day of hanging about waiting for the 15.00 transfer bus which leaves from the Danum Valley Field Centre office in Lahad Datu. Our wonderful hosts at our B&B let us use their pool, supplied us with drinks and also gave us a lift to the office. I can't recommend them more highly.

Despite my fears our names were on the DVFC system and with a delay of an hour we set off on our drive to DVFC. The drive takes about 3 hours with the last 2 of those being on dirt roads. And boys did we hit it lucky on the road - 3 and then a single Asian Pygmy Elephants on the road (but quickly disappearing into the bushes), 3 Sambar Deer, a Bornean Yellow Muntjac, a white-phase Asian Paradise Flycatcher and then a mega Crested Fireback beside the track too. Things were looking promising as we checked in after dark and looked forward to our few days here.

Crested Fireback

During the following days we slogged the forest trails and it was HARD work! Very hot and humid and sadly the meals and accommodation at DVFC didn't offer any comfort - they were terrible. Boiled rice and cabbage and gristly bones plus chicken nugget for breakfast. A small amount of melon each day for dessert but you had to be quick before it ran out! If you go, take my advice and take plenty of snacks, we were so glad we did!

The powers that be at DVFC will try to insist you have to have a ranger with you on most of the trails (at MYR 20 an hour) but we didn't bother, walked wherever we wanted and never got challenged! 

Our days typically involved a 2-3 hours walking trails after breakfast, several hours downtime in the heat of the day and then another couple of hours walking trails in the late afternoon. 

I spent a lot of time trying to lure pittas and managed 2 more Black-crowned Pittas but nothing else was responding.  Green Imperial Pigeons were seen daily with 2 Large Green Pigeons, 2 Grey-rumped Treeswifts and 3 Brown-backed Needletails. Raptors included Black Eagle and Changeable Hawk-eagle  and the hornbills were represented by 1 Helmeted Hornbill and 2 Oriental Pied Hornbills. 

A round up of the best of the rest included Black and Red Broadbill, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot, Blue-rumped Parrot, 2 Bornean Brown Barbets, 1 Red-crowned Barbet by our room, 2 Grey and Buff Woodpeckers, Orange-backed Woodpecker, Buff-rumped and Buff-necked Woodpeckers, Lesser Green Leafbird, a mega White-crowned Forktail on the Coffin Trail, Malaysian Blue Flycatcher, Rufous-tailed Tailorbird, Chestnut-winged Babbler, an educational id challenge with Rufous-crowned and Scaly-crowned Babblers, Slender-billed Crow and a very welcome Bornean Black Magpie around the buildings one early morning.

One afternoon we killed a couple of hours during the heat of the day on a balcony overlooking the river and some flowering bushes - it proved a spiderhunter mecca with Yellow-eared, Spectacled, Bornean and Little Spiderhunters plus Van Hasslet's, Red-throated and Crimson Sunbirds.  

On the final day I went on a long hike along the Tembaling Waterfall trail and managed to find Cinnamon-rumped Trogon, Banded Broadbill and a superb Red-bearded Bee-eater. Later that day the hanging bridge area and a trespass onto the grid trails gave me Ferruginous Babbler, Green Iora, Plain Sunbird, Black and Yellow Broadbill then at the death a marvellous Whiskered Treeswift on the bridge itself. For sheer uniqueness it was one of my birds of the trip.

We booked on a night drive on our 2nd night which produced some good stuff but it was all duplicates of stuff we'd already seen - Giant Flying Squirrel, 2 roosting Crested Firebacks, Sambar Deer, a similarly roosting Crested Serpent Eagle plus Common Palm Civet. A Buffy Fish Owl was in a tree by the badminton court after we got back from the drive. Other mammals seen during our stay were Maroon Langur and Pig-tailed Macaque.

15 April was the day we left on the 08.30 transfer minibus and this time the entrance road came up trumps again with a surprise and awesome Sumatran Rhino crossing the road in front of us!!

Luckily we managed to get on a much earlier flight back to KK from Lahad Datu (11.10 instead of 16.00!) and back in KK had loads of House Swifts, several Whiskered Terns by the fish quay plus Pacific Reef Egret, White-bellied Sea Eagle, White Wagtail and Olive-backed Sunbird.  

Rufous-crowned Babbler

Crested Serpent Eagle

Spectacled Spiderhunter

Yellow-rumped Flowerpecker

Bornean Spiderhunter

Yellow-eared Spiderhunter

Yellow-bellied Bulbul

Orange-backed Woodpecker

Scaly-crowned Babbler

Banded Broadbill

Cinnamon-rumped Trogon

Red-bearded Bee-eater

Yellow-breasted Flowerpecker

Black and Yellow Broadbill

 Green Iora

Lesser Green Leafbird

Plain Sunbird

Ferruginous Babbler

 Whiskered Treeswift

    

Borneo, Day 16, 10 April 2016 - Rainforest Discovery Centre and Lahad Datu

Today was the day we moved on but our taxi to Lahad Datu wasn't going until early afternoon so there was time for one last cheeky look at the RDC! And it turned out to be my best visit yet.

This time I was greeted by a nice close Blue-throated Bee-eater by he lake as I made my way towards Woodpecker Avenue and the Kingfisher Trail where I had most of my luck the previous day. Actually I found the unnamed stretch of track south of the WPA/KT junction the best spot. Best sighting of the morning was undoubtedly a gorgeous Diard's Trogon but I also scored with a confiding Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, 2 Oriental Dwarf Kingfishers, Fiery Minivet, Grey-bellied Bulbul, Yellow-bellied Bulbul, 2 Buff-vented Bulbuls, a Hairy-backed Bulbul high up in the canopy as was a Maroon-breasted Philentoma and 2 mega Chestnut-backed Scimitar Babblers flew across the path. I added to my babbler list with a Grey-headed Babbler plus Ferruginous Babbler and Chestnut-winged Babbler.
Along the Kingfisher Trail a nabbed another Black-crowned Pitta, Raffles Malkoha and 3 showy Buff-rumped Woodpeckers. 

Blue-throated Bee-eater

Maroon-breasted Philentoma

Diard's Trogon

Greater Racket-tailed Drongo

Buff-rumped Woodpecker

Spectacled Bulbul

After lunch at SFE we endured an uncomfortable 2.5 hour taxi transfer to Lahad Datu where after a bit of a phaff we found the Bike and Tours B&B. Lahad Datu is a bit of a dump but luckily we were at a superb B&B! Chestnut Munias were nesting on the balcony and I also has White-breatsed Woodswallows and Glossy Swiflets during a relaxing afternoon/evening rounded off with a superb meal.    

 Chestnut Munias

Borneo, Day 15, 9 April 2016 - Rainforest Discovery Centre & Sepilok Forest Edge

Back at Sepilok for a couple more nights before we move on. I ought to begin with a postscript from the previous evening - after our return from KJC I ventured out for a walk around the forest trail at Sepilok Forest Edge. After almost giving up with playback I heard a tell-tail low whistle and within a few minutes I was feasting my eyes on these 2 beauties - Black-crowned Pittas, get in! 

Black-crowned Pittas

We returned again to the Rainforest Discovery Centre this morning  and were greeted upon arrival by a nice Little Bronze Cuckoo perched high in a tree by the lake. Around the trails a vocal Red-naped Trogon showed very nicely and 4 Black and Red Broadbills and a single Black and Yellow Broadbill did likewise. A Greater Racket-tailed Drongo put in an appearance and as we walked back towards the start of the walkways I kind soul pointed out a sitting Rufous-collared Kingfisher. Back on the walkway I finally scored with Bornean Bristlehead with one flying from a tree and frustratingly behind other trees and out of view.

Little Bronze Cuckoo

Black and Red Broadbill

Black and Yellow Broadbill

Red-naped Trogon

Rufous-collared Kingfisher

Back at Sepilok Forest Edge in the afternoon and evening we had both Red-billed Malkoha, and Chestnut-breasted Malkoha, Oriental Dollarbird, Blue-throated Bee-eater, Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot, White-crowned Shama, 2 Common Hill Mynas, Chestnut-winged Babbler, White-bellied Sea Eagle and Yellow-eared Spiderhunter amongst the usual common species. Around the forest trail a little Rufous Piculet gave close views and a Black-winged Kite was over the woods. 

Chestnut-breasted Malkoha

Malaysian Pied Fantail

Yellow-rumped Flowerpecker

Javan Myna

Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot

Asian Glossy Starling

Yellow-vented Bulbul

Crimson Sunbird

Common Hill Mynas

Rufous Piculet

Weekend ramblings, 30 April & 1 May 2016

Belinda and I have had a weekend of long hikes to help shake off the post holiday blues!

On Saturday we walked from East Runton to Sheringham via Beeston Common and returned via the clifftop and Incleborough Hill. A good number of Green Tiger Beetles were zipping around near Roman Camp but things weren't exactly thronging with birds. We did have luck on Beeston Common though with no les than 3 Adders including a male and female 'coiled' together! My first Lesser Whitethroat of the year was also on the common and then along the clifftop east of Beeston Bump were hundreds of Sand Martins by their nesting cliffs, a couple of House Martins and several dozen Swallows were also moving west along the coast. Common Whitethroats, Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs are now all over the place.  A large female Sparrowhawk was on the edge of Sheringham chasing the local Linnets.
After we'd finished walking we popped in to Felbrigg on the way home where the pair of Garganey were showing nicely on the marsh north of the lake and a pair of Roe Deer were also in fields.

Adder (female)

On Sunday we headed in the opposite direction from home towards Minsmere. But not before 5 Common Buzzards circled over the garden and a Holly Blue was by the patio. Our walk took us from Eastbridge to Minsmere Sluice, up the beach, around Dunwich Heath and then around the back of Minsmere reserve back to Eastbridge. I was amazed to count no less than 11 singing Cetti's Warblers between Eastbridge and the sluice plus plenty of Sedge Warblers and Common Whitethroats and 1 Reed Warbler and there was a Lesser Whitethroat in the sluice bushes. Over the beach/scrape were 4 Common Terns and 2 Sandwich Terns and then over the reeds north of North Wall a superb Bittern did a lengthy flight. On Dunwich Heath I found c4 Dartford Warblers and a Stonechat despite the bank holiday crowds that seemed to follow us all day! A quick scorch along the North Wall after visiting the cafe gave me a single Wheatear plus Reed Warbler and by the toilet block on the way back my first Garden Warbler of the year and a Weasel.

A very small detour on the way home revealed our local Green-winged Orchids are now starting to pop their heads up. Then, having looked in vain all day 3 Swifts were over the house in the evening!

  Green-winged Orchid