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BIRD-BANDING A JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGICAL INYESTIGATION VOL. XXXV JULY, 1964 No. 3 AVIAN BIONOMICS IN MALAYA: THE AVIFAUNA ABOVE 5000 FEET ALTITUDE AT MOUNT BRINCHANG, PAHANG By H. Elliott McClure INTRODUCTION Early ornithologists in Malaya, both amateur and professional, made extensive studies of the birds of the uplands and mountain peaks. In order that the heat of the lowlands could be escapedrest houses were built on peaks such as Penang Hill, Kedah Peak, Cameron Highlands, Maxwell's Hill, and Fraser's Hill and birds on these peaks became available for easy observation. Resident and migrant mountain birds were listed and nesting recorded, Bromley (1949), Newman (1955), Allin and Edgar (1948), Allen (1952, 1953, 1957). Robinson (1909) lists records of collections on Malayan mountain peaks from 1886 to 1908 and he summarized the bulk of information known about the montane speciesin his monograph publishedin 1928. Sincethat time nestsof most resident speciesand the nesting habits of some specieshave been described. ß ..•....%•....' '•i•-•'...:....'½:.'.':'-,•;.:".'::.%.::i•i..".....'...; ...'" :]:.. :.•.;::•.4i• ::'"'• ... ß '• • .: ;. :•. •..• . ::. .. •'::• .• .. ..•.; • ... i-. • ,-.•:....... ....'%'• . ,: . ,;,..%...., ?U..' ;- Fig. 1. The ericaceouscloud forest at 6500 feet, Cameron Hi½•nds, M½•y•. 141 142] H. l•lliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly In 1953 a radio relay station was built at the top of 6600 foot Mount Brinchang in Pahang and the road to it makes this the high- est peak in Malaya to which there is easy access. The present study of birds above 5000 feet on this peak was begun in September 1958 and intermittent observations covered 12 weeks between that date and March 1963. HABITAT Mr. Brinchang is in the main range at 4030' N. latitude by 101ø30' East longitude, with an altitude of 6660 feet. It is not an isolatedpeak sincethe generalaltitude in this area is over 4000 feet and several similar peaks are visible from it to the north and south. It is on the western edge of the range and its western slope drops steeply with but few foothills to the coastal plain. To the east is the rolling highland plateau. The western slopehas not been deforestedand montane and sub-- montane forestsextend along the range, but the eastern slopesup to 5000 feet have been deforested for tea plantations and truck crop farms. Above 5000 feet the forest is a mixture of montane speciesin the wetter vales, and banana thickets where the habitat has been dis- turbed, giving way to the dominant ericaceousspecies of the cloud forest at the ridge. In the protected valleys trees reach heights of 80 feet but on the ridges they are gnarled and stunted with bolesand limbs encasedby mossesand lichens. The dominant tree species include Rhododendronmalayanum (deep red bell-like flowers), R. wrayi (white flowers tinged with Fig. 2. Within the low ericaceouscloud forest at 6500 feet showingthe densemass of vegetation. Vol.1964xxxv ArianBionomics inMalaya [143 pink), R. ja•miniflorum (pink flowers),Eugenia stapfiana (purplish new leaves), Baeckia frutescens(short needle-like leaves), Leuco- pogonmalayanurn (sessile strap-like pointedleaves clustered around the twigs), Vaccinium spp, and at the peak Leptospermumflavescens (fiat lanceolateleaves with • inch white flowers). Mosses,Sphag- num spp., coverthe groundand tree trunks, pitcherplants Nepenthes spp. hang from the limbs and boles,and there are densepatches of dwarf bambooBambusa elegans and giant mountainsedge, Gahnia tristis. Ferns abound,Gleichenia spp., Matonia pectinataand Dip- teris conjugata. All of the vegetationis a massof spongygrowth dripping from the almost continuousfog and rain. In the deeper valleys the stream sides are choked with a mass of banana and tree ferns tangled with vinesand low shrubs. For further descriptionsof this type of Malayan forest see Symington 1936, Strugnell and Mead 1937, Fitzgerald 1940. The temperature rangesfrom the fifties into the eightieswith the daily range about the same as the yearly range. The usual weather is for a clearing dawn sky with a beautiful sunrisefollowed by a morningof partly cloudyskies gradually denseningat mid-day. By noon or soon after the mountain is encompassedin clouds which usually bring rain during the afternoon or evening. From October until March the xvindsare from the east and from April into October they blow from the west. The top of the mountain was leveledto permit constructionof the buildings but the vegetation extends up to the edge of the fenced compound. The slopeson three sidesof the station drop away at an angie greater than 45ø and the road approachesalong a ridge from Fig. 3. Forest at 5500 feet showingtaller trees and invasion of wild bananasin open gully. 144] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly ' Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics inMalaya [145 146] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandinsJuly the north. The buildings have been attractive to a few House Swifts that nestthere, the wiresare usedas roostsby Barn Swallows, and the towers have been of some hazard to migrating or passing species.Up until 1960 ten brilliant floodlights burnedeach night attracting thousandsof moths,beetles and other insects. When the lights were reducedto three, the numbersof insectsattracted to them were greatly reduced. This had an effectupon the birdsvisit- ing the peak for very few cameto gleaninsects in 1962where many had comebefore. The numbersof birds netted droppedproportion- ately. PROCEDURE Upon arrival at the peak the netting laneswere clearedand nets erected. This usually took the afternoon of the first day and the better part of the second. As quickly as nets were up they were serviced as often as possible. This was usually at one or two hour intervals dependingupon the number of birds beingcaptured. The number of nets in operation varied from 17 to 27, but was usually around 25. They were placed in identical positionsused previously, Table 1, except where old lanes were abandoned becauseof poor collections. The net locationswere selectedso as to sample most of the habitats. Becausethe sidesof the mountain were precipitousnot many level areas were available limiting the number of nets that could be effectively serviced. The nets were left up from Monday until Saturday morning and servicing continued from an hour after dawn until after sundown. Fig. 4. A netssettingamong wild bananasin a location such as shown in Fig. 3. Vol.1964xxxv ArianBionomics inMalaya [147 Two sizesof Japanesemist nets were used; 12 meters long by 2.4 m. wide, four panels,with 36 mm meshfor the smallerspecies, and similar sized nets of 61 mm mesh for the larger forms. They werenot placedin'the net lanesin any pattern,but wereused as they were available. Many bats were caught and they seriouslydamaged the nets, sometimesruining new nets in the period of a week. Other accidentsto the nets occurred when large owls or nocturnal mammal predatorsbecame entangled in and brokethrough them. Coincidentwith the netting activities,daily lists of all speciesand their numbers were recorded. ß During the entire study each bird that was caught was banded, weighed,and a bloodsmear taken from a toe clipping. Lat-erin the study the tarsal diameter, tarsal length, bill length, and lengths of wing, tail and overall were.recorded. Ectoparasiteswere collected by dusting the feathers with the commercial silicon insecticide "Dri-die 67" and brushingout the stupefiedinsects and mites. FAUNISTIC LIST One hundred and four specieswere either seen or netted during the study. These are listed in Table 2 and the months of observation indicated. Observingthe birds in this ericaceousforest presented the sameproblem that it did in the denselowland dipterocarp forest, the birds could not be seenreadily. Therefore, no numericaltally of any accuracy was possible. Although severalspecies of birds breedingin the north overwinter in Malaya or Sumatra, they do not arrive in great numbers,nor are there extensively used flight routes. By the time the birds reach this Fig. 5. Bandinga migratory Grey-headedThrush, showing equipment used. 148] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly I I I I I I I I I I I V'ol:1964XXXV ArianBionomics inMalaya [149 I I I 150] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly Vbl.1964xxxv ArianBionomics inMalaya [151 I I 152] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly I I I I I I Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics inMalaya [153 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 154] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics in Malaya [155 z 156] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics inMalaya [157 158] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-Bandi•July Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics in Malaya [159 { H. Elliott McClure Bird-Banding 160] July Vol.1964XXXV ArianBionomics in Malaya [161 162] H. ElliottMcClure Bird-BandingJuly [[ I • ¸ ¸ Vol.1964xxxv ArianBionomics in Malaya [163 latitude their numbers have been thinned until they infiltrate the habitats rather than sweep through them. There appears to be con- siderable movement along and across the main range, but the radio towers of Mr. Brinehang, buried in fog most of the time, were not hazardous to the migrants. Table 3 lists the few birds that were picked up beneath the towers over the three years. Of the 15 species recorded l0 were probably migrants. SPECIES NETTED The netting results for the twelve trips are given in Table 4. The netter is beset by many problems in this type of habitat. The popu- lation is not a denseone and the birds do not establish flight patterns as seen in the temperate zone. Netting is strictly a blind operation for there is no way of knowing if the local birds will pass near a given net or not. Some nets may take a fexv birds regularly, but others will be sporadic in the take. Further, since there is generally no flow of birds through the habitat, exceptwhen a bird wave passes, the first and second days of netting will be the best days of yield. Once the local birds have been caught they avoid the location and the take immediately drops. Had there been alternate netting lanes to be used the nets would have been shifted regularly, but the pre- cipitous slopes and dense vegetation made this difficult.

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