(delhibirdpix) Birding in East & West Java

Dear all,

 

Apologies for cross-posting (since it is not about birds of India) but since Indonesia is a birders' paradise, thought this might interest some.

A contingency saw me in Java where I managed to plan some bird-watching along with trekking to Mt Bromo and Kawa Ijen (east Java). Spent two (rainy) days bird-watching in Bogor and Cibodas botanical gardens as well as in Pangrango National Park (at Cibodas, West Java). It was completely the wrong time to be there as the rains still had not retreated but I had little choice. Still, managed to notch up a good number of lifers - naturally, as I have never birded in Indonesia before. 

 

Information on the net is not always forthcoming. A lack of English makes it even more of a challenge. I finally managed - with the help of a contact in Jakarta - to identify a bird guide and decided to land up in Bogor to meet him and take it from there. Simultaneously, a tie-up with a Tour agency in Surabaya for the treks to Mt Bromo and Kawa Ijen worked out. I did the trip alone so can say it is perfectly safe for women to travel alone in Indonesia. This wasnt my first visit to Indonesia and yet it felt very different as the earlier leisure trips (mostly in my non-birding days) were focussed around the Yogjakarta area, a much more tourist-friendly region.

 

Hotels/homestays and food are reasonable (very good food and much more than nasi and mei goreng); soft drinks/water are expensive. Costs were USD100/day +-. Bird/Guides are expensive upto USD100/day.

 

Birding consisted of evening and morning sessions at Bogor Botanical Garden, followed by a full-day (marred now and then by rain) birding at Pangrango National Park (evergreen sub-montane forests), followed by a day (curtailed to half by rains) at Cibodas Botanical Garden. And whatever birding could be fitted in during the Kawa Ijen trek (raining again). 

 

Thick foliage everywhere, rains and poor light prevented photography of any consequence. In any case I am very bad with the camera. A couple of recognisable ones are attached - a few more will follow. Many more need ID-ing. The book I had bought some years ago is a photographic guide (by Morten Strange) and covers only 500+ birds out of the approx 1500 seen in Indonesia.

 

25 Feb - 5 March 2010

Here is the full list. Asteriked names are non-lifers.
Bogor Bot.G
Blue Eared Kingfisher

Collared Kingfisher*
Sooty-headed Bulbul (common)

Spotted Dove (common)*
Olive-backed Tailorbird
Mountain Imperial Pigeon
Black naped Fruit Dove
Jumbu Fruit Dove

Pygmy Tit
Scarlet headed flowerpecker
Bar-winged Prinia (the most common prinia)
Purple throated Sunbird
Olive-backed Sunbird
Sunda Cuckoo Shrike
Rusty breasted Cuckoo Dove

Common Iora*

Little Spiderhunter*

Ashy Drongo*

Black-naped Oriole*

Eurasian Tree Sparrow* (common)

Black-crowned Night Heron (a colony on an island at the garden)
Rudy Cuckoo dove

Cream vented Bulbul
Red-necked Pigeon
26th evening & 27th - Pangrangro NP
Javan Frogmouth (at Cibodas garden gate)

Blood-breasted flowerpecker

Oriental White Eye*

Great Tit*

Common Tailorbird* (look and call slightly different from its Indian counterpart)
Orange spotted Bulbul (turned out to be pretty common)
White flanked sunbird
Crescent chested babbler
Pygmy wren babbler
Horsefield Babbler

White-browed Shrike Babbler*
Sunda warbler
Javan Grey throated White Eye
Mountain Tailorbird
Long-billed Spiderhunter
Chestnut fronted Shrike babbler
Orange fronted Barbet
Bronze throated Barbet
Javan Hawk Eagle
Javan Fulvetta
Blue Nuthatch
Eyebrowed Wren babbler
Spotted Crosias
Javan Tesia
Mountain Leaf Warbler
Rufous tailed Fantail
Sunda Whistling Thrush
Snowy browed flycatcher
Spotted Kestrel

Black-faced Cuckoo Shrike
Sunda Thrush
Indigo Flycatcher
28th - Cibodas Bot G
Sunda Blue Robin
Chestnut breasted Malkoha
Grey headed flycatcher (looked very much like GH Canary Flycatcher, with less yellow)
Indigo flycatcher
Mugimaki flycatcher

Little Pied Flycatcher*

House Sparrow*

Black-winged Flycatcher Shrike

Sunda Cuckoo shrike

Chestnut-fronted Shrike Babbler
Javan munia

Ashy Tailorbird

Black Eagle*

Racket-tailed Drongo (Juv)* (TBC) - Question: does a juvenile of Racket-tailed Drongo have a shorter curled tail?
Blue winged leafbird
Ruby cheeked sunbird

White-crowned Forktail
Arctic warbler
1st Mar - Bogodol and Lido hotel
Grey cheeked Bulbul

Horsefields Babbler*
Chestnut bellied partridge
Temminck's sunbird

Scaly-bellied Munia*

Scarlet-backed flowerpecker

and everyhwere all the time the following were flying around which were ID-ed by my guide as
Linchi Swiftlet
Glossy swiftlet
Edible Nest Swiftlet
Pacific Swallow (only near Bodogol NP above a man-made lake)
Little Swift
Asian Palm Swift
Silver rumped Switf

Volcano Swift

 

4th March - Kawa Ijen

Most need to be ID-ed, but definite ones are:

Cattle & Intermediate Egret

Chinese Pond Heron

Black winged Starling

Yellow Vented Bulbul

Abbot's Babbler (TBC) - pls see attached photo

+ many others from the list above

Long tailed Shrike*

5th March - Wonorejo (near Surabaya) - a combination of mangroves, farm fields and fish-farms

Mangrove Blue Flycatcher

Long-tailed Shrike (including in a cage - keeping birds is a national hobby for entry into regular bird-singing competitions)

Probably a white-shouldered Triller

Striated Heron

Racket-tailed Treepie

Island Thrush

Sooty-headed Babbler

Common Tailorbird*

Yellow-bellied Prinia (plenty)*

Zitting C*

Plain Prinia*

Yellow Vented Bulbul

Collared KF*

Purple Heron*

Olive-back Sunbird*

Purple throated Sunbird*

Pied Fantail (Surabaya zoo grounds)

plus the usual waders and terns

 

I also drove through the outer fringes of Baluran National Park, flat land with a combination of teak and acacia, the kind that exist in India. But for lack of time on a 6 hr drive, we couldnt stop to bird.

 

Happy birding.

Sushmita

 

--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "delhibirdpix" group.
To post to this group, send email to delhibirdpix@googlegroups.com.
To unsubscribe from this group, send email to delhibirdpix+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com.
For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/delhibirdpix?hl=en.