BORNEO JULY 11–29, 2017 Western Tarsier photographed by Jimmy Stanley during our night-cruise on the Kinabatangan River. LEADER: MACHIEL VALKENBURG LIST COMPILED BY: MACHIEL VALKENBURG VICTOR EMANUEL NATURE TOURS, INC. 2525 WALLINGWOOD DRIVE, SUITE 1003 AUSTIN, TEXAS 78746 WWW.VENTBIRD.COM By Machiel Valkenburg Our 2017 Borneo tour started in Kota Kinabalu, a lovely and picturesque city located on the South China Sea and on the western part of Sabah. On our first day we explored the Kota Belud area; due to the tip of a tail of a cyclone near Philippines, it had been raining the previous days, resulting in a very wet wetland with many interesting birds. More or less all possible egrets were found with Javan Pond-Heron, Rufous (Nankeen) Night-Heron, and Cinnamon Bittern being the best. The last was seen wonderfully, hunting in some rice fields. Some other species of birds related to water found during our outing were Buff-banded Rail, Watercock, Whiskered Tern, and some early returning Oriental Pratincoles. In the afternoon we headed for the beach where Green Imperial- Pigeon, Scaly-breasted Munia, and Blue-naped Parakeet were quickly found and gave good scope views. Around the hotel parking area, Collared Kingfisher and Sunda Woodpecker gave us a good show; these birds are truly magnificent. Black-crowned Night-Herons were seen on a few occasions. After leaving the city of Kota Kinabalu, we headed for Mount Kinabalu by way of the Rafflesia Center in the Crocker Range. The coming days meant mountain birding, but we were very unfortunate with a lot of rain, leftover from the previously mentioned cyclone. We did what we could and still got good looks at Bornean Bulbul, Mountain Barbet, and Bornean Leafbird in the Crocker Range—all of them desired endemics—as well as Golden-bellied Gerygone and Black- and-crimson Oriole. In the endemic-filled Kinabalu Park, the views were very poor, as this amazing forest was completely fogged in. During these days, we had a glimpse of the blue sky on only a few occasions, and when we did, we enjoyed some great birding. Some of the best birds we had splendid views of were Mountain Imperial-Pigeon, Bornean Swiftlet, Golden-naped Barbet, Victor Emanuel Nature Tours 2 Borneo, 2017 Whitehead’s Broadbill, Gray-chinned Minivet, and Bornean Treepie. We walked over the main road and discovered a group of Sunda and Chestnut-hooded laughingthrushes foraging in the grassy patches along the road. The excitement level rose quickly when the endemic Bornean Green-Magpie was discovered; all of us had great views. All the way up at the gate of the mountain, a large group of Mountain Black-eyes gave us stiff necks from looking up; for that reason alone, a Bornean Stubtail must have decided to give us some excellent ground views of his features—he was so close we could almost touch him! Wallace´s Hawk-Eagle was named after the legendary British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace. After some good days we left the mountains behind us and cruised for the lowlands. We all welcomed the warmth, and the birding proved to be hot as well. Sepilok was the first lowland destination; here the famous canopy walk was birded on four different occasions. This year many raptors were seen from the canopy with Besra being the best Bornean record, but Wallace’s Hawk- Eagle gave the best show as it ripped apart a big rat, with our group as first row spectators. An amazing experience! The first hornbills of the trip also passed through our bins with Oriental Pied- and Black Hornbill showing wonderfully. These two small hornbill species showed themselves abundantly. Several colorful species such as Blue-throated Bee-eater, Dollarbird, and White- crowned Shama were around. One evening we had the pleasure of taking a night walk in the reserve, and we were fortunate to find a flying Red Giant Flying Squirrel; some also saw the Western Tarsier. The resident Hooded Pitta was sleeping on a vine over the main road—very colorful and stunning! Naturally, owls also played a part this evening, and Oriental Bay-Owl, Sunda Scops-Owl, Reddish Scops-Owl, and Brown Boobook were either heard or seen. Victor Emanuel Nature Tours 3 Borneo, 2017 We continued our travels towards the Kinabatangan River by way of the Gomantong caves. Around the limestone cave system we came across Black-and-red Broadbill and the similar stunning Black-and-yellow Broadbill, just before we enjoyed a large group of Maroon Langurs. This endemic species of langur was foraging quickly along the road and gave us a lot of time to observe its behavior and take many pictures. Our first primate of the trip was spotted here along the boardwalk: a female with young Bornean Orangutan was right above us and gave excellent photographic opportunities. Around five, the first Wrinkle-lipped Bats emerged from the cave, immediately initiating the evening feast of a pair of Bat Hawks. Bornean Pygmy Elephants were seen foraging along the river. Victor Emanuel Nature Tours 4 Borneo, 2017 In Kinabatangan (Sukau) we cruised the river, and this easy birding was thoroughly enjoyed by the entire group. In the narrow creeks you get very close to the birds, as on the overhanging branches attractive species such as Rufous-backed Dwarf-Kingfisher, Stork-billed Kingfisher, and Oriental Darter are common. We saw no less than five different individuals of Storm’s Stork, which is around 2% of the world’s population, currently estimated at 260–300 individuals left in the wild. Hornbills are a main attraction in this part of Borneo, and we saw four species, enjoying them to the fullest. We spotted a couple of endemic Bornean Pygmy Elephants feeding on the fresh grass along the river. In the evenings the mammals took over, and on our night cruises we found a Common Palm Civet and three Malayan Colugos (Flying Lemurs), and a Slow Loris was a major highlight! We also came across a Buffy Fish-Owl that had just caught a large rat! The endangered Storm’s Stork has a population of approximately 300 individuals left. After the river area, we departed for the famous Danum Valley, which holds the oldest rainforest on our planet. The lavish Borneo Rainforest Lodge was our home for 4 full days (5 nights). From this beautiful lodge located in the middle of the rainforest we explored the surrounding forests using an extended trail system. During our days in the field we had many highlights, but some of the most memorable were an eye-to-eye meeting with a splendid male Blue-headed Pitta, which was very curious and sat on a vine for about 5 minutes studying our movements; a group of 8 Bornean Bristleheads, which were spotted from the amazing canopy walkway—we observed their movements and behavior for about half-an-hour; the calls of the Great Argus, a thrill for leader Machiel, were a simply wonderful sound in the early mornings; and extended magical views of a couple of Great Slaty Woodpeckers—full frame views were observed through the scope by all! Many species of abundant bulbuls and babblers, of which we saw most, some through the scope but most by bins, are another great feature of Danum. During our evenings we did not stop Victor Emanuel Nature Tours 5 Borneo, 2017 exploring but continued on several night walks and drives. The aim was to spot Civets, more Flying Squirrels, Frogmouths, and deer, and yes, we succeeded! The best sighting of all was surely a Binturong, or Bearcat; this fig-eating mammal was spotted high up in a fruiting tree near the lodge. All of these fantastic wildlife sightings were made from our amazing lodge, which I’d like to praise once again, as it is probably one of the best wildlife lodges in Asia! All the excellent meals in the lodge were accompanied by the sounds of calling Bornean Gibbons and honking Rhinoceros Hornbills in the background. An amazing time was had by all, and I cannot wait to return next year! On our last day we drove back to Lahad Datu from where we flew back to Kota Kinabalu. Our final dinner was lovely, and it was time to say goodbye to this excellent group. I hope to see you all again soon and hope to have more wildlife adventures with you! Final praise goes to our knowledgeable and expert local staff who made our stay such a wonderful experience. Our lovely group posing in the oldest rainforest on our planet, the Danum Valley. Victor Emanuel Nature Tours 6 Borneo, 2017 BIRDS: This Checklist order, and common and scientific names are those given by James F. Clements in The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World, 6th Edition, Cornell University Press, with all current updates. Possible or debated species splits and alternative Common and Scientific names (particularly those of the Oriental Bird Club) are given in ( ) or included in heavily bordered boxes. (I) = introduced species. (E) = Endemic. Ducks, Geese & Waterfowl Wandering Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna arcuata Pheasants, Grouse & Allies Red-breasted Partridge Arborophila hyperythra Chestnut-necklaces Partridge Arborophila charltonii Great Argus Argusianus argus Heard only Crimson-headed Partridge Haematortyx sanguiniceps Heard only Storks Storm’s Stork Ciconia stormi Lesser Adjutant Leptopilos javanicus Anhingas Oriental Darter Anhinga melanogaster Grebes Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis Herons, Egrets & Bitterns Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnamomeus Purple Heron Ardea cinerea Great Egret Ardea (Egretta) alba Intermediate Egret Mesophoyx intermedia Little Egret Egretta garzetta Pacific Reef-Heron Egretta sacra Cattle Egret (Eastern Cattle Egret) Bubulcus ibis (coromandus) Javan