Sabah, Borneo Custom Tour
1st - 16th August 2009
Leader: Rob Hutchinson
Participants: Mike and Susan Nelson
Whitehead's Broadbill, Mount Kinabalu © Rob Hutchinson / Birdtour Asia
This custom tour while focusing and the amazing birds and mammals of Borneo also indulged Mike’s passion for photography and sound-recording of birds songs, all with outstanding results! The birds performed brilliantly with highlights difficult to choose although Bristlehead, obliging Whitehead’s Trogon, Whitehead’s Broadbill, some well behaved pitta’s, spectacular hornbills and photogenic owls were notable and mammals included the ‘Old-man-of-the-forest’, entertaining Proboscis Monkeys, pug-faced Maroon Leaf Monkey's, Leopard Cat, Moon Rat and a Red Giant Flying Squirrel in full flight.
Our tour began with a mid-morning flight across Sabah from Kota Kinabalu to Sandakan with the forested Crocker Mountain Range and the jagged granite peak of Mount Kinabalu whetting our appetite for latter adventures. Our birding began in the leafy gardens of our lodge at Sepilok where we found Spectacled Spiderhunter, Long-tailed Parakeet, and striking Black-and-red Broadbills among the commoner birds.
After lunch we headed to the world-famous Orang-utan rehabilitation centre. Bornean Orang-utans were thin on the ground at feeding time as natural fruit is abundant at this time of year but we saw one entertaining individual and enjoyed the antics of the accompanying Long-tailed and Sunda Pig-tailed Macaques. As the afternoon heat became more bearable we took to the recently constructed canopy walkway for a different perspective on the forest. Fiery Minivets added colour then a stunning Violet Cuckoo sang at eye level and a group of Blue-rumped Parrots gave a fly-past. Our ears were ever alert for the calls of our main target and before long the “meowing” calls did indeed draw our attention to a group of five Bristleheads moving through the distant canopy. After great scope looks we positioned ourselves in their flight path to enjoy these strawberry-headed crows right overhead. Chuffed as we were to have one of the most desirable endemics already under the belt there was still time to find a handsome Rufous-collared Kingfisher lurking in a dark gully nearby.
The next morning the Sepilok forest brought another rush of new birds including Bornean Black Magpie, Black-backed Kingfisher, Abbott’s Babbler Grey-cheeked and Hairy-backed Bulbuls, and a Black-capped Babbler stalking across the road. The most spectacular birds came in a rush, with a pair of Scarlet-rumped Trogon and a male Red-naped Trogon appearing together and a calling male Banded Kingfisher nearby. The journey to the Kinabatangan River was broken by a pair of Bat Hawks guarding a nest in a roadside tree and a surprise pair of Long-tailed Shrikes which given the time of year might be recently colonists to this area. Having settled into our Lodge on the banks of the river we made our first foray by boat in the afternoon. Our four boat excursions onto the river gave an excellent selection of the rich diversity; the endangered Storm’s Stork and Lesser Adjutant were seen several times, raptors were conspicuous with Lesser and Grey-headed Fish Eagles sticking to the waterways while Crested Goshawk, Rufous-bellied Eagle, and Crested Serpent Eagle were overhead. Wallace’s Hawk Eagle showed nicely perched on the river bank but the diminutive White-fronted Falconet was a little more distant. The open views from the river give good opportunities to spot birds perched in the treetops and indeed we found Little, Pink-necked and Thick-billed Green Pigeons, Green Imperial Pigeons, Long-tailed Parakeets, many Blue-crowned Hanging Parrots, Bornean Brown Barbet, Common Hill Myna, Lesser Cuckooshrike, Black-winged Flycatcher-shrike and a Moustached Hawk Cuckoo gave a couple of amazing close fly-bys as it crossed the river.
Colourful broadbills included Black-and-Red Broadbill along the Kinabatangan River and Black-and-Yellow Broadbill at Danum Valley © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
White-chested Babbler and Malaysian Blue Flycatcher are common along the river banks and we also teased out a nice Hooded Pitta on one occasion.
Even in the midday heat, the forest around out lodge added our first Ferruginous Babbler, Rufous Piculet, Asian Fairy Bluebird, and amazing close views of Fluffy-backed Tit Babbler.
Hornbills were conspicuous here as always with Oriental Pied and Black the commonest species but several sightings of Rhinoceros Hornbill and a pair of Wreathed.
The mammals were a great highlight of course, headed by the unique ‘big-nose’ Proboscis Monkeys, but also including Sunda Silvered Leaf Monkey, Sunda Pig-tailed Macaque and Long-tailed Macaque.
The night boat ride after dinner gave nice close looks at Buffy Fish Owl together with roosting Blue-eared Kingfisher and Black-and-Red Broadbill, while Brown Wood Owl showed and posed for photos in the lodge garden and a cute Malay Civet visited.
As we left the river we called in at Gomantong Caves to be enthralled by the huge caves housing thousands of bats, swiftlets of four species; Glossy, Black-nest, Mossy-nest and Edible-nest, besides an amazing array of creepy-crawlies keeping the ecosystem in balance. The nearby forest wasn’t to be outdone with our only Crimson-breasted Flowerpecker of the tour and a Black-and-yellow Broadbill battling a huge insect at close range. In the late afternoon we arrived at Borneo Rainforest Lodge, a luxurious retreat set on the river bank amidst glorious rainforest. Our 3½ days here provided continual entertainment as we explored the forest trails, roadside and impressive canopy walkway. Blue-headed Pittas were obliging, approaching to close range, a Black-crowned Pitta sang unconcerned from high above our heads, and a couple of Bornean Banded Pittas simply shone from the forest floor. Giant Pitta and Blue-banded Pitta were typically more elusive, both heard only. Other skulkers giving good views were Striped Wren Babbler, Bornean Ground Babbler and Black-throated Wren Babbler but the Diard's Trogon was decidedly more colourful.
Hornbills were abundant with Rhinoceros, Bushy-crested and Wreathed seen daily, Helmeted appeared once although we heard their impressive call often, and we were lucky enough to find a pair of Wrinkled Hornbills on our drive into the area, having missed them on the Kinabatangan River.
The impressive canopy walkway which reaches nearly 40 meters above the forest floor in places, gives a unique insight into the birds that inhabit these lofty environs and we revelled in amazing close views of Black-and-yellow Broadbill, Whiskered Treeswift, and watched a procession of birds come to bathe in the natural pools of a forest giant; Yellow-crowned Barbet and a Thick-billed Spiderhunter in particular taking the opportunity to clean themselves and cool down.
Birds of the forest floor included a very obliging Chestnut-necklaced Partridge, ‘Bornean’ Crested Firebacks with their distinctive yellow tails fed around the lodge chalets and an immense male Great Argus which crept through the under-story with great prowess at close range.
Two of Borneo’s spectacular endemic pittas; Black-crowned Pitta (left) and Blue-headed Pitta (right), photographed at Danum Valley © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
This distinctive race of Banded Pitta is usually treated as a separate species. Bristlehead is one of Borneo’s most desirable endemics, we were fortunate to see them on the very first afternoon of the tour! © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
Other highlights of the stay included another Moustached Hawk Cuckoo, Red-bearded Bee-eater, Bornean and Large-billed Blue Flycatchers, Rufous-tailed Shama, Spotted Fantail, vociferous Dusky Broadbills, the scarce Olive-backed Woodpecker, prolonged views of the mighty Great Slaty Woodpecker, a perched Jerdon’s Baza, Great-billed Heron, White-bellied Erpornis, endemic Yellow-rumped Flowerpecker, Dark-throated Oriole, Crested Jay, and a whole host of babblers including the scarce Grey-headed Babbler, entertaining Short-tailed Babbler and striking Chestnut-backed Scimitar Babbler.
Night drives give good opportunities for mammals and we logged Thomas’s Flying Squirrel, Red Giant Flying Squirrel, Lesser Mouse Deer, Malay Civet and Leopard cat among others although the highlight was undoubtedly the petite Reddish Scops Owl perched obligingly on the roadside. Mammals seen during the day time included more sightings of Bornean Orang-utans, Maroon Leaf Monkey's and at dusk a Red Giant Flying Squirrel drew a round of applause from the guests as it performed a spectacular ‘fly-by’ at the lodge.
Collecting our only Paddyfield Pipit of the tour at Lahad Datu airport en-route we continued to Kota Kinabalu for an overnight stay. We set off early the next day to the Rafflesia reserve at Tambunan, arriving pre-dawn but frustratingly both Mountain Scops Owl and Bornean Frogmouth were only heard. As dawn arrived good birds appeared thick-and-fast; roadside Temminck’s Babbler, Mountain and Bornean Barbets, Bornean Leafbirds and best of all, a pair of iridescent green Whitehead’s Broadbill gorging on fruits.
Further explorations added Bornean Bulbul, Cinereous Bulbul, the only Yellow-bellied Warblers of the tour and an exquisite party of Pygmy White-eyes, but a Fruithunter didn’t hang around long enough for all to enjoy on this occasion.
As we headed off a soaring raptor bought about an emergency stop and we jumped out to enjoy a Mountain Serpent Eagle overhead. By the afternoon we were settled into our resort on the slopes of Mount Kinabalu and ready to start our exploration of Borneo’s montane endemic hotspot. Our 2 ½ days on the mountain were marked by excellent birding and unusually fine weather. Exciting mixed feeding flocks kept us on our toes with Rufous-hooded Laughingthrush, Sunda Laughingthrush, Short-tailed Magpie and Hair-crested Drongo providing much of the noise and colour while smaller fare included White-throated Fantail, Bornean Whistler, Mountain Leaf Warbler, Yellow-breasted Warbler, Black-capped White-eye and Grey-throated Babblers in the understory. Other occasional treats were Maroon Woodpeckers, Checker-throated Woodpeckers, and our very first flock on the first afternoon gave the bizarre-looking Bare-headed Laughingthrush booming out their amazing duet with blue neck-pouches inflated as they did so!
Two of the ‘Whitehead’s trio’; Whitehead’s Broadbill (left) at Tambunan and Whitehead’s Trogon on Mount Kinabalu © Rob Hutchinson (left) and tour participant Mike Nelson (right)
Whitehead’s Trogon didn’t keep us in suspense for too long this time with a fantastic pair giving prolonged ‘scope views as soon as the first morning, although a nearby Whitehead’s Spiderhunter proved more elusive, uttering its remarkable wheezy song but giving little more than glimpses as he passed overhead several times. We also had more views of Whitehead’s Broadbill glowing in the canopy and finally got satisfying looks at a pair of Fruithunters. Down in the under-story an obliging Bornean Stubtail bounced from side-to-side along a branch while excitedly giving his super high pitched song, Mountain Wren Babbler were vocal and entertaining, and a male White-browed Shortwing also gave fine looks although he was upstaged by the female hopping around in the restaurant flowerbeds!
The higher reaches of the mountain gave repeated views of Mountain Black-eyes but the Friendly Bush Warblers didn’t appear to be living up to their name as we found none during an energetic hike up the summit trail, only to find one almost where we had begun upon our return!
Eye-browed Jungle Flycatcher proved elusive initially but then gave fine views and we were even lucky enough to hear them singing. Night excursions didn’t give us any views of Mountain Scops Owls so we were more than delighted to find an obliging bird at day-roost which proved very photogenic.
Crimson-headed Partridge finally gave good views after a cat-and-mouse chase and a large group of Giant Swiftlets showed well overhead on one morning.
Other birds during our stay were White-crowned Forktail (here of the race borneensis, which recent evidence suggests may be a different species to lowland frontalis), Bornean Whistling Thrush, Orange-headed Thrush, Golden-naped Barbet, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, ubiquitous Chestnut-crested Yuhina, Sunda Bush Warbler, Mountain Tailorbird, more Temminck’s Babbler, Black-sided Flowerpecker, striking Temminck’s Sunbird, Indigo Flycatcher and we also heard the scarce Bock's Hawk Cuckoo.
Our final morning saw us high on the mountain pre-dawn and our quarry appeared right on cue at first light, a group of Pale-faced Bulbuls feeding in flowering bushes before heading to the nearby lights to feast on moths attracted overnight. This split from Flavescent Bulbul has been popular among birders for some time so it is nice to see it adopted in the latest field guide to the island. We then headed off quickly to the Rafflesia reserve once more, arriving in time to make the most of the last of the morning cool and added Black-and-crimson Oriole, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Bar-winged Flycatcher Shrike, Golden-bellied Gerygone to our tally together with other good birds seen previously including Mountain Barbet and delightful Pygmy White-eyes. In the late afternoon we had time some final birding at Likas Lagoons before international departures and this new habitat added yet more new birds; Wandering Whistling Duck, Black-backed Swamphen, and Rufous Night Heron being the highlights besides Cinnamon Bittern, Pacific Reef Heron, Pied Triller and Germain’s Swiftlet.
Our tour total was 287 species including 16 heard only.
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Photos from the tour
Both Rufous-hooded Laughingthrush (left) and Short-tailed Magpie (right) often feed on moths attracted to the lights at Mount Kinabalu in the early morning, allowing great viewing
A fine selection of owls were seen including Buffy Fish Owl (above left) and Brown Wood Owl (above right) on the Kinabatangan River. This Reddish Scops Owl (bottom left) was a surprise find sitting quietly by the roadside during a night-drive at Danum Valley while the Mountain Scops Owl (bottom right) was found roosting during the day on Mount Kinabalu.
The nomadic Fruithunter (left) was found at two sites in the mountains while the sometimes inconspicuous Eye-browed Jungle Flycatcher was eventually tracked down at Mount Kinabalu. Both species are endemic to the mountains of Borneo. © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
Pygmy White-eye (left) is one of the trickier endemics to see, this one was at Tambunan. Pale-faced Bulbul (right) is a recently adopted split from Flavescent Bulbul and adds to a long list of Bornean endemics. © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
Borneo’s fascinating diversity stretches far beyond its birds, other delights on this tour included Comb-crested Agamid (left) at Danum Valley and Malay Civet on the Kinabatangan River.
Proboscis Monkey © Rob Hutchinson/Birdtour Asia
