Bellbird Tours Pty Ltd PO Box 2008, BERRI SA 5343 AUSTRALIA Ph. 1800-BIRDING Ph. +61409 763172 www.bellbirdtours.com [email protected] Peninsular Malaysia 8 day birding tour (with optional Sabah extension) Safe, comfortable and reliable. This is the perfect tour to forest floor gems like Banded Pitta and Striped Wren- for those who have always wanted to bird South-east Babbler. Other specialities include Black Eagle, Black-thighed Asia but have had some reservations – until now, that is! Falconet, Large Green Pigeon, Black-bellied Malkoha, Blue- Join our Australian and local guide on this tour and be rumped Parrot, Buffy Fish Owl, Rufous-backed Kingfisher, amazed at how sophisticated and modern this country Banded Woodpecker, Crested Jay, Green Magpie, Large has become in recent decades. Travelling and birding Wren-Babbler, Long-billed Spiderhunter Crimson-breasted here are a breeze and Malaysia has many fascinating Flowerpecker, Malayan Peacock-Pheasant, the strange Rail- and beautiful birds awaiting us. We’ll stay at comforta- Babbler and the cute Black-and-Red Broadbill. We have ex- ble, quality accommodation with a range of food to suit ceeded 210 species on the last 3 tours! There are many all taste-buds; the road network is excellent, while the mammals (including Taipir), flowers and beautiful butterflies locals are friendly and helpful. And the birds…there’s an to be observed. This tour explores one of the richest areas amazing variety to be observed, ranging from the state- for birds in Southeast Asia, featuring Kuala Selangor, Fraser’s ly Crested Fireback and magnificent Rhinoceros Hornbill Hill and famous Taman Negara National Park. Tour starts & finishes: Kuala Lumpur International air- Leader: Peter Waanders and local guide port, Malaysia Scheduled departure & return dates: Trip reports and photos of previous tours: • 9 - 17 June 2019 http://www.bellbirdtours.com/reports Questions? Contact BELLBIRD BIRDING TOURS : READ ON FOR: Further tour details Freecall 1800-BIRDING Daily itinerary email [email protected] Booking information Peninsular Malaysia birding tour Tour details Tour starts & finishes: Kuala Lumpur Int’l Airport (see itinerary for details of pickup locations) Scheduled departure and return dates: Tour commences with dinner on 9 June 2019 and fin- ishes in the afternoon of 17 June 2019. See daily itinerary for further details. Leader: Peter Waanders and local guide Difficulty: Low/Medium/High/Excellent level of fitness required. The tour has a relaxed pace and walks are on mostly flat, often paved, surfaces, but may include some very short climbs. We generally walk slowly, with lots of stops. You can opt out of any challenging walks. What to bring: Please travel light. Binoculars, camera, mobile phone, chargers, power adaptors (british style), strong insect repellent, sunscreen, personal medications, travel umbrella, hat, wa- ter bottle, hand sanitizer. Sturdy footwear recommended. Scopes, super-telephoto lenses with tripods, and heavy suitcases are discouraged. Clothing: Lightweight long pants, t-shirt and long-sleeved shirt, over the top of which you can wear layers that can be taken off as necessary, including a rain-proof jacket. Neat casual attire for dinners. Shorts and sandals or thongs (flip-flops) are acceptable for non-birding time. Group size: Minimum 4, maximum 8 participants. Cost: AU$4,999 per person including accommodation and all meals, based on double or twin- share occupancy. Single occupancy surcharge of $600. Not included: drinks, tips, personal ex- penses. Earlybird discount of $99 for bookings received up to 6 months before departure date. Return-client discount may apply. Tour price will change with currency fluctuations >=5%. Bookings: Online at http://www.bellbirdtours.com/bookings or please complete the booking form in the back of this brochure. ITINERARY Peninsular Malaysia birding tour Day 0 (9 June). Fly to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (own arrangements), where you will be greeted by our Australian guide and transferred to your hotel (transfer and hotel included in price) to rest and refresh. Should you decide to travel earlier, please make your own way to our hotel this evening. We will meet for dinner, introductions and orientation. Overnight: Kuala Lumpur (en-suite hotel room; meals included: D). Day 1: Kuala Lumpur-Krau Forest-Taman Negara (10 June). After an early breakfast we’ll depart Kuala Lumpur for the drive to Bukit Tinggi, a bird-rich hill with native forests and beautiful botanical gardens. Our first intro- duction to Malaysian birding will be an impressive one with many birds awaiting us here, including a chance of the rare Malaysian Peacock-pheasant. Moving on to Krau forest, a remnant lowland rainforest which provides us for a chance of two of Malaysia's most beautiful species: Banded Pitta and Scarlet-rumped Tro- gon. We’ll have lunch in a local restaurant and travel into the interior of the peninsula, to the jewel in the crown of Malaysia’s National Parks: Taman Negara rainforest. We’ll settle into our accommodation for the next couple of days be- fore heading out for more birding. Overnight Mutiara Resort Taman Negara (en-suite hotel room; meals included: B, L, D). Days 2 and 3: Taman Negara (11-12 June). We’ll spend two full days in well-known Taman Negara National Park. Protecting the largest remaining tract of virgin rain forest in peninsular Malaysia, it is often regarded as one of the fin- est reserves in the world. A visit to Taman Negara is a profound experience for any naturalist. On entering the forest one is immediately overwhelmed by the awesome tranquillity and timelessness of this vast natural cathedral. Tall ever- green trees with their huge buttress roots, luxuriant lower storey undergrowth, clambering vines, spectacular butterflies and strange-looking insects are all in- tegral features of this superbly-balanced and stable environment which is the end-product of millions of years of evolution. The potential species list is huge and includes such specialties as Crested Fireback, various spp of Woodpecker and Hornbill, Banded Pitta and Striped Wren-Babbler. Other specialities we have a good chance of observing include Black-thighed Falconet, Large Green Pi- geon, Black-bellied Malkoha, Blue-rumped Parrot, Reddish Scops Owl, Rufous- backed Kingfisher, Banded Woodpecker, Banded Pitta, Black Magpie, Crested Jay, Black-throated and White-necked Babblers, Large Wren-Babbler, Long- billed Spiderhunter and Crimson-breasted Flowerpecker. We should also come across at least one of Taman Negara’s most difficult specialities, which include Banded Pitta, Red-bearded Bee- the extraordinary Great Argus, Malayan Peacock-Pheasant, Rufous-collared eater, Fire-tufted Barbet, Sultan Tit, Oriental Pied Hornbill (c) Endemic Kingfisher, the strange Rail-Babbler and Grey-chested Jungle Flycatcher. Over- Guides Malaysia night Mutiara Resort Taman Negara (en-suite hotel room; meals included: B, L, D). Peninsular Malaysia birding tour Day 4 (13 June). After breakfast and some final birding in Taman Negara we'll reluctantly leave this magical place behind as a change of scenery awaits us: the cool highlands of Fraser’s Hill. This attractive hill station is surrounded by excellent broadleaved evergreen forests that offer a sharply contrasting avifauna to that of the lowlands, including the cute Pygmy Wren-Babbler and the beautiful Long-tailed Sibia, as well as specialities like Fire-tufted Barbet, Black-and-crimson Oriole, Javan Cuckoo-shrike, the endemic Malayan Whis- tling Thrush, Rufous-browed and Pygmy Blue Flycatchers, Blue Nuthatch, Black and Malayan Laughing-thrush while more difficult specialities include the endemic Malayan Partridge, Ferruginous Partridge, Yellow-vented Green Pigeon, Rusty-naped Pitta and Marbled Wren-Babbler. Overnight: Shahzan Hotel (en-suite hotel room; meals included: B, L, D). Day 5 and 6 (14-15 June). We’ll spend two full days birding the forests of Fra- ser’s Hill. A relaxed pace, gentle climate and scenic environment make for great birding, while a range of excellent local restaurants will cater for various taste buds. Overnight: Shahzan Hotel (en-suite hotel room, meals included: B, L, D). Day 7 (16 June). After an early breakfast and some final birding we travel and bird down the hills to the lowlands near the coast, picking up any key species we may have missed. Arriving in the town of Kuala Selangor we have lunch and check into our final hotel for the trip, before heading out again to bird the nearby bird-rich city park (Oriental Pied Hornbill, Greater Flameback, Ruby-cheeked Sunbird, Pink-necked Green Pigeon and Crested Goshawk are just some of the birds awaiting us here). Overnight: Kuala Selangor (en-suite hotel room; meals included: D). Day 8 (17 June). This morning will find us birding the Kuala Selangor Man- grove and lowland forest reserve. Here the mangroves and coastal forests of- fer specialities such as Mangrove Pitta, Mangrove Blue Flycatcher, Mangrove Whistler, Chestnut-bellied Malkoha, Golden-bellied Gerygone, Lesser Adjutant stork and, with luck, Buffy Fish Owl. After a final, late lunch we check the Paya Indau wetlands to add some common waterbirds such as White-breasted Wa- terhen, Red-wattled Lapwing and a chance of Yellow Bittern, before we reluc- tantly head back to the airport for your flight home (own arrangement). We can arrange for you to be returned to a hotel which we can book for you if you wish to stay on. Please don’t book any flights departing before 6pm this evening of 1 June. (meals included: B, L). Sabah extension. From 19-28 June we offer our Sabah tour. Sabah, a part of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, is a heaven for birders. Teeming, complex rainfor- ests fan out from Mount Kinabalu to the lowlands and coast. The wildlife is incompara- Orange-breasted Trogon, Grey-whisk- ble, with a host of enticing birds (including 48 endemics) and a charismatic mammal ered Tree-swift, Black-and-Yellow fauna (including Orang-Utan).