We had a good walk from the lodge this morning, and
despite not finding Hooded Pitta we
scored with a cracking Chestnut-necklaced
Partridge skulking in the dark and shady forest floor. We also saw Short-tailed and Black-capped Babblers here and there was a small flock in a nearby
tree with Large Woodshrike and
several Dark-throated Orioles.
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| Dark-throated Oriole |
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| Large Woodshrike - very gloomy early morning light... |
A
distant dead tree held a Blue-eared
Barbet and a pair of Bornean Brown Barbets
and there was a close pair of Blue-crowned
Hanging-Parrots as well before we headed back for breakfast and then set
out on the hour and a bit drive to Gomantong Cave. Upon arrival we followed the
boardwalk to the cave and along the way we saw another Black-capped Babbler and a very confiding Scarlet-rumped Trogon.
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| Scarlet-rumped Trogon |
Once at the cave we followed the path inside
where we saw Mossy-nest and Black-nest Swiftlets in huge numbers,
despite the work going on collecting nests for the food trade. Unfortunately
all of the Edible-nest Swiftlet nests had already been harvested and overall I don’t
think this was a very good experience, seeing the guys collecting the nests and
making quite a racket. You have to ask why people want to eat this stuff and
surely there’s some alternative? Walking
back to the coach we saw a Sooty-capped
Babbler gleaning insects from the nearby trees and a Rufous-chested Flycatcher sang away beside the boardwalk allowing
walk-away views.
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| Rufous-chested Flycatcher |
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| Scaly-crowned Babbler |
It was just a short 20 minute drive to the
Kinabatangan River and a quick 5 minute journey to our excellent lodge. After
lunch we set out on our first boat ride and this proved to be a fantastic way
to see the wildlife of the area in a very relaxed fashion. We saw Storm’s Stork quite quickly and had
seconds later in the afternoon as we sailed along.
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| Easy birding along the Kinabatangan River |
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| Storm's Stork |
The variety of birdlife you
can see along the river is extraordinary and during our journey we saw Bushy-crested, Black, Oriental Pied, Rhinoceros and the much-wanted Wrinkled Hornbill as well. There was
also a Peregrine, Crested Serpent-Eagle, Crested Goshawk, Grey-headed Fish-Eagle, Bat
Hawk, Blue-throated Bee-eater, a
gang of noisy Bold-striped Tit-Babblers
and Chestnut-breasted Malkoha.
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| Wrinkled Hornbill |
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| Grey-headed Fish-Eagle |
The undoubted non-avian highlight was a large male Proboscis Monkey feeding close to the
river and we spent some time watching him – what a beast! But I suppose the
largest Crocodile I’ve ever seen ran it a close second. This monster was along
a quiet tributary and it certainly sent a few shivers along my spine – we definitely
needed a bigger boat!
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| Proboscis Monkey - reminds me of someone.... |
A flyby Great
Slaty Woodpecker somehow eluded most of us, but a Hooded Pitta put on quite a show, with several low flyovers before
we finally nailed it on its song perch. We ended with another Black-and-red Broadbill and a Lesser Adjutant before returning to the
lodge at sunset.
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| Black-and-red Broadbill is very common here |
After a great dinner we spent an entertaining hour
during which a Bornean Brown Wood Owl
(hedging my bets on the name as it is a potential split!) appeared several
times, followed by an awesome Large
Frogmouth frozen on a branch right over our heads, and we ended with a
mean-looking one-eyed Buffy Fish Owl
that appeared nearby, with a Small Toothed Civet also seen. Wow!
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| Brown Wood Owl - a future split and another endemic...? |
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| Buffy Fish Owl |
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| Large Frogmouth |
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| Small-toothed Civet |
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