OBC Cambodia Tour

21st January - 2nd February 2007

Leader: James Eaton

Participants: John Archer, Ron Demey, Mark Jagusch,
Graeme Spinks and Rita Swinnen

 

Giant Ibis, Tmat Boey                                                (James Eaton/Birdtour Asia)

Once again Cambodia did not disappoint with a whole suite of rare species enlightening this bird-filled tour in a fascinating and friendly country. Beginning at Angkor Wat, the impressive temples offered a spectacular introduction into the countries history while nearby water-bird sanctuaries played host to literally tens of thousands of birds including endangered sharpei Sarus Crane and both nesting Milky Stork and Greater Adjutant. Working our way northeast into the Cambodian wilderness took us via Bengal Floricans and Collared Falconet before reaching Tmat Boey, a remote rural village which plays host to two of the world’s rarest species – Giant and White-shouldered Ibis, both of which performed better than we could have hoped for. A pair of mating White-rumped Falcons, 10 species of woodpecker including the spectacular Black-headed and an impressive 7 species of owl were also recorded. Following an overnight stop in Kompong Thom to observe the large number of wintering passerines at close quarters we visited the mighty River Mekong, home of the newly-described Mekong Wagtail and a shrinking population of Irawaddy Dolphins before reaching our final destination of Bokor National Park, where we obtained stunning close views of a pair of the near-endemic Chestnut-headed Partridge and a group of Indochinese Green-Magpies. A total of 271 species were seen and a further 15 heard only.

Our first morning was spent in the shadows of Angkor Wat, though our temple guide seemed a little perplexed as we headed straight to the forest edge rather than join the crowds for viewing the sun-rise! As the light improved the dark understory revealed the source of the sweet melodic songs, tiks and taks; Hainan Blue and Red-throated Flycatchers were numerous, Pale-legged Leaf and plumbeitarus Greenish Warblers noted and two surprises, first a perched Large Hawk-Cuckoo and then a smart female White-throated Rock-thrush sat motionless for several minutes. Moving towards the temple outer wall the larger trees held a surprising number of vocal Black-naped Orioles, Lineated Barbet and Greater Racket-tailed Drongos. Asian Barred Owlets were particularly territorial and we had fine views of several, beautifully patterned Black Baza (surely one of the best looking raptors in the world) performing brilliant aerial dives just overhead and both Shikra and Crested Goshawks put in appearances. A flighty flock of Swinhoe’s Minivets kept us entertained until we all eventually managed scope views of this nomadic winter visitor. Back towards the temple, Coppersmith Barbet and Blue Rock-thrush were numerous along with Yellow-browed Warbler and a fruiting tree held large numbers of greedy Black-headed and Black-crested Bulbuls.
Our second temple visit took us to Ta Phrom Temple, in the heart of Angkor’s forest; this fascinating temple is being lost to the encroaching jungle with huge roots snaking over the disappearing fortress. Flocks of Red-breasted Parakeets screamed above us and diligent searching soon found several Alexandrine Parakeets offering fine views. Back at our hotel gardens, Streak-eared & Yellow-vented Bulbuls were much in evidence along with migrant Dusky & Yellow-browed Warblers and Common Tailorbird.

 

           Black Baza, Angkor Wat                                Greater Painted-Snipe, Ang Trapeang Thmor

Our first full day in the field saw us head west to the large Khmer Rouge-built reservoir of Ang Trapeang Thmor, it took most of the morning before we eventually reached the water body due to our frequent birding stops, White-shouldered Starlings and Yellow-breasted Buntings were noted in several small flocks, Eastern Marsh and fine male Pied Harrier gracefully quartered the recently ploughed fields, a Greater Spotted Eagle flew overhead, Red-throated Pipits flocked on the road around the vehicles, Plain-backed Sparrows chirped continually in the background and a singing Oriental Skylark was eventually picked-out as a mere speck in the sky before diving-bombing to the ground.
Once we reached the reservoir a group of Sarus Cranes were soon located in the distance, our first of several flocks. The marsh literally erupted as we ventured from our vehicles as thousands of ducks took flight briefly before settling again; Lesser Whistling-ducks dominated with smaller numbers of Cotton Pygmy-Goose, Comb Duck, Garganey and both Pheasant-tailed and Bronze-winged Jacana and Black-backed Swamphens including a confiding pair with newly hatched youngsters. The surrounding trees hosted massive numbers of non-breeding Spot-billed Pelican and Painted Stork with a small sprinkling of Black-headed Ibis. As the day continued the surrounding scrub played refuge to some Ruddy-breasted Crakes, Vinous-breasted and raucous Black-collared Starlings, Lanceolated, Dusky and Black-browed Reed-Warblers, several Plaintive Cuckoos and finally a huge flock of Baya Weaver.

Our tranquil start along the shores of the Tonle Sap aboard our boat the following morning was as expected with thousands of Whiskered Terns, Osprey, Brahminy Kite, Great, Indian and Little Cormorants and Oriental Darter loafed around the fishing pens. Little did we realise that upon entering Prek Toal we were actually entering the heart of darkness rather than Asia’s prime water-bird sanctuary. Needless to say, the rest of the morning is best forgotten but involved an extensive, shrinking channel system, trapped motorboat, a small unpaddlable paddle boat and the leader up to his neck in water, literally! The afternoon was considerable better though, as we reached the precariously simple platform atop a small tree overlooking part of the water-bird colony and a fine pair of Milky Stork with their recently hatched young were quickly located as we enjoyed our lunch onboard under the shade. Both hulking Greater and Lesser Adjutants remained distant until a Greater Adjutant flew low overhead enabling us to admire its grotesque form in all its beauty. On our rather more relaxed return we were able to admire the spectacle of hundreds of Painted Stork, Spot-billed pelican, Asian Openbill and Oriental Darter spiralling overhead. Navigating through the extensive channel system pulled in a few surprises, migrant Chestnut-winged and Oriental Cuckoos, Yellow Bittern, Rufous Woodpecker and Racket-tailed Treepie.

   Spot-billed Pelican, Prek Toal                        Collared Falconet, Preah Vihear Province

An early rise next morning saw us watch the sunrise to the chorus of Striated Grassbirds, Pied Bushchats and monotonous Zitting Cisticolas as several groups of Sarus Crane and Woolly-necked Stork flew by. Though our search for Bengal Florican was hampered by the long grass we twice had glimpses of a flying male followed by quite brilliant views as a female took off from under our feet and promptly circled us with the sun lighting its cryptic plumage to perfection. Our wander through the grasslands produced several species typical of this shrinking natural grassland habitat; an Australasian Bushlark mimicking Common Redshank during his song-flight, Small Buttonquails jumped up from the roadside, Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler tantalised us several times, Pintail Snipe and Bluethroats favoured the marsh edge and several fiery male Red Avadavats showed nicely. Via a rather late breakfast we headed into the promised land of the wild northern plains of Preah Vihear Province, enjoying a pleasant picnic and showy Collared Falconet en-route before arriving into the rural village of Tmat Boey in time for some laidback late afternoon birding.

The timing of our visit here could not have been bettered; the increasingly proficient and knowledgeable local guides took us straight to our first of several quarries; a White-shouldered Ibis nest complete with a 3-week old youngster almost ready to leave home and, even better, a fine adult perched close-by intently watching our every move, our first of several sightings in the area. While admiring this endangered species we enjoyed fine views of some of the commoner species that specialise in this dry, open dipterocarp forest; Purple Sunbird, Small Minivet, Indochinese Bushlark, distinctive tonkinensis Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch all performed as expected and as the sun slowly set we located calling Chinese Francolin as White-shouldered Ibis and Spotted Wood-Owl called in the distance and a Savanna Nightjar put on a fine show, slowly circling us at eye-level as it looked for its intruder!
Next morning saw us all up and ready to attempt to beat yesterday’s splendid day. We started well with some time to kill as we awaited sunrise, a Large-tailed Nightjar came into inspect us at close quarters, Asian Barred Owlets, Barn Owl and Brown Boobook called in the distance and eventually great views were had of a Spotted Wood-Owl that perched overhead after several flybys before the distance cries of duetting Giant Ibis echoed from the forest. Following up the calls via our first of several spring-loaded Chinese Francolins, drew us to some damp paddies when Sophoan, our spontaneous guide, shrieked ‘here, here!’, we turned round to discover 5 huge Giant Ibis attempting to lift their giant frames from the ground and hiding in the surrounding trees. After a protracted game of hide and seek one ibis decided to make life a little easier for us, flying overhead and proceeding to land on an exposed branch right in front of us for the next 20 minutes, promptly becoming bird of the trip! Things were about to become even more ridiculous as another ibis, this time a White-shouldered, decided to circle round and promptly landing beside its gigantic cousin for a neat size comparison and clicking of the cameras!
After this moment of excitement we attempted to regain our composure and bird this wonderful forest at a more relaxed manner for another couple of days. As usual birding was incredibly productive and we picked up most of the hoped for species typical of this area, 10 species of woodpecker including several fine views of excited Black-headed and equally cracking views of a trio of Great Slaty’s (why are they always in threes?) and a vocal White-bellied. Brown Prinia eventually put in a rather uninspiring appearance, Rufous-winged Buzzard along with Alexandrine and Blossom-headed Parakeets were typically common and vocal, frugivores were rather thin on the ground, and in the trees, with just single sightings of Yellow-footed and Orange-breasted Green-Pigeons. Indochinese and vocal Large Cuckoo-shrike made several appearances as did low-flying Lesser Adjutants, Golden-fronted Leafbird, White-browed Fantail, Common and a single Large Woodshrikes, feisty Burmese Shrikes, White-crested Laughingthrushes and Olive-backed Pipits on top of all this we encountered presumably the same flock of Giant Ibis later the same day as they flew past us this time accompanied by 2 White-shouldered Ibis. A rather comical encounter with 3 Yellow-legged Buttonquails involved them running back and forth in a surrounded paddy looking for somewhere to hide until they all exploded to the air for a quick escape.

     White-shouldered & Giant Ibis, Tmat Boey                  White-shouldered Ibis, Tmat Boey

Our early exploits with the night-birds left us wanting for more so a couple more outings into the woods at night eventually produced the much hoped for elusive Oriental Scops-Owl, this resident form would appear a good split from other asian sub-species differing, in habitat and vocalisations. Though the pair of Collared Scops-Owls feeding outside our accommodation were a little easier for the little-sleepers amongst us, to complete our owl-haul, both Spotted Owlet and a rather sleepy looking Brown Fish-Owl were discovered during the daytime. Our final ‘biggy’ proved a little more difficult to find until our final morning when the distinctive (to our local guide at least) early morning call of a male White-rumped Falcon was heard close-by, within minutes we were scoping a fine male White-rumped Falcon perched atop a nearby tree, though the bird soon disappeared we managed to relocate it sitting next to a female and before long watched in awe as the pair attempted to continue the species existence at Tmat Boey in explicit detail despite the females rather bland expression after proceedings! Once the excitement was over we bid farewell to the wonderful wilderness and people and headed south to the town of Kompong Thom and its surrounding grasslands.

Though the grasslands have all but made way for rice-fields in the area, the small pools still attract large number of wintering passerines and with an afternoon and morning on our side we hoped for continued success. The main target here, the tricky to identify Manchurian Reed-Warbler remained unnoticed amongst the 30 or so Black-browed and Oriental Reed-Warblers, many of which offered fine views, Black-shouldered Kite and both Pied and Eastern Marsh Harriers were present in numbers, the pools were home to Watercock, several Yellow and a single Cinnamon Bittern. As dawn approached the following morning, an Indian Nightjar put in an appearance along with over 200 White-shouldered Starlings leaving their roost and similar numbers of Yellow-breasted Buntings and Red Avadavats.
Hitting the road again we ventured to the banks of the mighty Mekong, arriving into the riverside town of Kratie with time to spare. Birding the nearby wetland was pleasant, counting the droves of Black Drongo (1200+) and Barn & Red-rumped Swallows passing overhead (60 a minute), several surprises here included a smart Japanese Sparrowhawk putting in several appearances scattering the hirundines, a few Asian House-Martins passed overhead and then a Dusky Crag-Martin flew low overhead, announcing itself as a new species for Cambodia! As dusk set in, we watched in delight as 70 Small Pratincoles hawked low nearby then a swallow roost swayed from side-to-side, numbering in excess of 15,000, all we needed now was Bill Oddie and a camera crew!
The following morning was rather laid-back as we took a small boat out onto the Mekong in search of the recently described Mekong Wagtail. We found a pair of them chasing after each other, singing and ‘doing their thing’ scrambling in amongst the bushes. On our return to shore we went in hot pursuit of the Irawaddy Dolphins and, via a minor detour to retrieve Graeme’s floating OBC cap, we had several smart views as the wind pushed them further out of the water than usual. The rest of the day was spent driving south to the small town of Kampot for an overnight stop and a look at the nearby Salt-pans. A small flock of Long-toed Stints with a single Temminck’s Stint kept us entertained and as we ate breakfast Germain’s Swiftlet was a write-in along with Pacific and House Swifts.

    White-rumped Falcon, female, Tmat Boey            White-rumped Falcon, male, Tmat Boey

From here we climbed up the degraded road to the cooler climes (for Mark at least) of Bokor National Park. Birding en-route produced a pair of perched Wreathed Hornbills and prolonged views of 3 male Red-headed Trogons in hot pursuit of a lucky lone female, before we reached our accommodation in a forestry department building with the rangers. Our main target here is the near-endemic Chestnut-headed Partridge (or endemic depending on your taxonomic persuasions) and although they were notably quiet (along with every other species except White-browed Scimitar-babbler!) during our 2-night stay it didn’t matter as on our first foray into the forest produced stunning views of a pair noisily scratching away on the forest floor, oblivious to our presence just 5 metres away, a quite amazing start. Further forays into the montane forest produced quality rather than quantity, some stunning male Siberian Blue-Robins sat for all to admire and White-browed Scimitar-babblers led us a merry dance continually circling us on several occasions, though Blue Pitta and Streaked Wren-babbler both remained as heard only. The open highlands on top were home to Siberian Stonechats and Himalayan Buzzard producing a homely feel to the place though the Grey-backed Shrike, Yellow-legged Buttonquail and Blue Rock-Thrushes painted a rather different story. Strolling down the mountain covering a wide altitude range produced plenty of new species for the trip, florescent yellow-breasted Indochinese Green-Magpies flew in unison back and forth across the road and some Orange-breasted Trogons tried their best to avoid detection. The large number of fruiting trees produced a fine array of frugivores, Vernal Hanging-Parrots zipped over, Asian Fairy-Bluebirds glowed in the sun, Yellow-vented, Wedge-tailed and Thick-billed Green-Pigeons, Moustached and Blue-eared Barbets all showed splendidly (even if some did leave it to the last moment!) as did several Orange-headed Thrushes. Bulbuls were much in evidence; Black-crested, Ochraceous, Stripe-throated and Grey-eyed all fairly common and wintering passerines were well represented, flocks of Ashy and a single Swinhoe’s Minivet, solitary Black-winged Cuckoo-shrikes, Alstrom’s (=Plain-tailed) and Pale-legged Leaf-Warblers were common by voice, a brief Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler and best of all a Lanceolated Warbler doing what it does best, crawling around our feet like a mouse, too close even for the best of binoculars. As darkness fell Mountain Scops-Owls predictably only called in the distance, though a Brown Wood-Owl didn’t seem to care that we were late getting back for dinner by refusing to budge from the roadside.
After all this it was time to make our way back to Phnom Penh after some final tasty dishes of Cambodia’s much underrated local cuisine in a riverside restaurant in Kampot, I doubt I was the only one to actually put ON weight during this tour! This put an end to a most enjoyable tour in which we saw a total of 271 species with an additional 15 heard only.

               Mekong Wagtail, Kratie                               Brown Wood-Owl, Bokor National Park