Indonesia: Sulawesi & Halmahera Sep 23—Oct 14, 2010
Posted by Susan Myers
Susan Myers
Susan Myers absolutely loves birding and traveling in Asia. As she says, "The combination of incredible and diverse wildlife, ancient and fascinating cultures, and the...Related Trips
We enjoyed some excellent birding in this wonderful and little-known part of the world, despite some difficult conditions, most likely due to this year's La Nina event. According to the U.S. National Weather Service, during October "convection remained enhanced over Indonesia." Since our visit, a number of Indonesian publications have been commenting on the unseasonably early onset of the rainy season due to the effects of La Nina. On top of this, habitat loss continues to be a major problem in this region, and it's safe to say that Indonesia falls into the category of "see it while you can." Nevertheless, the wildlife of Sulawesi and Halmahera put on a great show, even if we did miss some of the more difficult endemics, and we enjoyed a fascinating and beautiful area that is well off the beaten path.
We started our explorations of these weirdly-shaped islands in the southern city of Makassar where we explored the nearby forests of Karaenta in search of the restricted-range Black-ringed White-eye, which we found very easily. Moving further north to central Sulawesi, we spent the next few days in Lore Lindu National Park. Here we birded the attractive montane forests in search of the higher altitude endemics and specialties. Unfortunately, the recent total disintegration of the track meant we had to walk from the bottom up the Anaso Trail. Highlights on the trail included point-blank views of the newly split Olive-flanked Whistler, now in a monotypic family—so much anticipated by a few. We also scored well with amazing looks at the sensational Purple-bearded Bee-eater, followed by a Diabolical Nightjar at arm's-length. Super looks at Red-eared Fruit-Doves, a hunting Small Sparrowhawk, Rusty-bellied Fantails, and Blue-fronted Flycatchers topped off an excellent day.
We spent quite a bit of our time at Danau (Lake) Tambing where the stunning Fiery-browed Mynas dominated the scene. Pied Crows, with their remarkable vocalizations, put in some wonderful appearances. The nearby flowering trees attracted large numbers of Sulawesi Myzomelas, while Island Blue and Citrine flycatchers, Gray-sided and Yellow-sided flowerpeckers, and various species of white-eyes put in appearances. Yellow-and-green Lorikeets zipped all over the place. Along the road, the groups of Malias proved frustrating; although we saw many, it was hard to get good looks at the flighty birds, especially in the overcast conditions. Raptors also occasionally put in appearances and we had some great looks at Barred Honey-buzzards, Rufous-bellied Eagle, and Sulawesi Hawk-Eagle. Another big highlight at Lore Lindu was a very cooperative Cinnabar Hawk-Owl in the early morning—plumb in the middle of the spotlight! This species was first described as recently as 1999!
Our next destination was the island of Halmahera, where we spent a week exploring various sites. After flying to the legendary island of Ternate—the administrative center of the so-called Spice Islands during the times of the Portuguese, when nutmeg was worth more than its weight in gold—we transferred by boat to the quiet little village of Sidangoli. From here we explored the nearby forests, or what remains of them, finding a nice swag of the endemics. In the forests of the exotically-named Kali Batu Putih we turned up a shy Ivory-breasted Pitta, Halmahera Cuckoo-shrike, Halmahera Oriole, and Cream-throated White-eyes, while Gurney's Eagles soared overhead. A tough hike took us to a Wallace's Standardwing lek where we watched them high up in the canopy as dawn broke. Moving farther north we based ourselves in the (relatively) bustling town of Tobelo. Some areas of remnant forest patches rewarded us with views of more endemics such as Paradise Crow, White-streaked Friarbird, Gray-headed Fruit-Dove, Sombre Kingfisher, Moluccan Starling, and many others.
Returning to Sulawesi, we headed directly to the superb Tangkoko National Park on the tip of the northeastern peninsula. This is a small but very rich national park and we enjoyed arguably the best birding of the tour here. Over the next few days we explored the trails within the forest and spent time at an excellent lookout where we observed many of the upper canopy species. One of the features of this park is the remarkable number of kingfisher species. During our stay we observed six species including four endemics—Green-backed, Sulawesi Dwarf, Lilac-cheeked, and Great-billed (at nearby Manado). Another standout bird was the stunning Red-backed Thrush, which showed beautifully along the main entrance road. The magnificent Knobbed Hornbill showed well for us, as did Tabon Scrubfowl, White-faced Cuckoo-Dove (Sulawesi Black Pigeon), Gray-headed Imperial-Pigeon, the appropriately-named Ornate Lorikeet, and many more. At the lookout we had such good views of the racquet-tails that we were even able to see their racquets! The icing on the cake was a pair of fabulous Sulawesi Masked Owls in the cliffside cave seen on our boating adventure.
We finished our trip with a visit to the improbably named Bogani Nani Wartabone National Park. The highlight here was undoubtedly our visit to Toraut where we were able to see that largest of the megapodes, the Maleo. We watched a single bird through the scope for some time, showing off his beautiful pinkish plumage! We had more great looks at a number of raptors including Spotted Harrier, which has such an interesting disjunct distribution. In a nearby flowering tree we had great views of Sulawesi Triller, Sulawesi Cuckoo-shrike, and Large Sulawesi Hanging-Parrots. We also met up with Bay Coucal, the eye-catching Yellow-billed Malkoha, and a number of other goodies, as pretty Gray-rumped Treeswifts put on a great show.