Bhutan Birding the Buddhist Kingdom II & Assam Extension 8th April to 1st May 2018 (25 Days) Trip Report Beautiful Nuthatch by David Erterius Trip report compiled by Tour Leaders: David Erterius & Greg de Klerk Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan - Birding the Buddhist Kingdom II & Assam Ext 2018 2 Tour Summary There can hardly be a greater contrast on a birding tour than this tour through Assam and the Buddhist kingdom of Bhutan! We began our tour with an impromptu birding session in the hotel gardens, where we located Yellow-footed Green Pigeon, Indian Cuckoo, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Coppersmith Barbet, Striated Swallow, Dusky Warbler, Striated Grassbird, Zitting Cisticola, Common Tailorbird and Oriental Magpie-Robin before navigating through the bustling Indian city of Guwahati. Our next stop was a regional waste dump. It is here, among the swathes of trash – which had been fermenting due to the pre-monsoon rains – that we connected with the critically endangered Greater Adjutant. Fittingly, these large grotesque stalks were found scavenging between heaps of waste being moved by excavators in close proximity to the main entrance. We then had the leisure of exploring the surrounding area, which yielded Lesser Whistling Duck, Garganey, Glossy Ibis, Grey-headed Swamphen, Black-winged Stilt, Whiskered Tern, Great Myna, Rosy Pipit, and Citrine and White Wagtails. After our visit to the rolling panoramas of the landfill site, we traversed many kilometres of cultivation and villages – dotted with occasional Black-winged Kite – as we made our way to Nameri. After a quick break in Tezpur, we made the final stretch of the journey to Nameri, collecting Grey-breasted Prinia en route, where we stopped for lunch in the company of a couple of Common Blue-tailed Bee-eater by Keith Hill Mynas. Valentine With our hunger sated, we headed upstream along the Jia Borelli, meeting with a small groundcrew, and then rafting back downstream to camp. The relaxing ride produced some wonderful species, including Ruddy Shelduck, Striated Heron, Great Cormorant, Western Osprey, Common Sandpiper, Small Pratincole, River Tern, Oriental Turtle Dove, Lesser Coucal, Green Imperial Pigeon, Common, Crested and Pied Kingfishers, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Wreathed Hornbill, Grey-throated Martin, and River and Grey-headed Lapwings, but the undoubted highlight was the wonderful Ibisbill feeding in the choppy flow of water. We then returned to camp, and a spot of owling revealed Brown Hawk-Owl before we settled for a restful night. A quick spot of birding produced Asian Koel, Greater Flameback, Thick-billed Warbler, Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker and Great Hornbill in the early morning. Our departure from our lodging in beautiful weather saw us cross the Jia Borelli River in a large dug- out canoe, to explore the forests of Nameri. As we arrived, a rapidly developing storm brought with it heavy rain, disrupting our attempts to bird, as we took shelter nearby until the rain had passed. Soon afterwards, the sun became visible through the dissipating storm, increasing the humidity rapidly as we began to traverse the forest looking for different bird species. It was evident Oriental Turtle Dove by Glen from early on that the humidity would affect our birding, as slowly Valentine the species that we were searching for hid themselves in thick Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan - Birding the Buddhist Kingdom II & Assam Ext 2018 3 cover to avoid the intense heat. Despite the difficulties of birding in these conditions, we still managed to locate Gadwall, Common Merganser, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Little Cormorant, Oriental Darter, Crested Honey Buzzard, a wonderful adult Crested Goshawk, Common Moorhen, Great Stone-curlew, Little Ringed Plover, Temminck’s Stint, Wedge-tailed Green Pigeon, Asian Barred Owlet, Silver- backed Needletail, Asian Palm Swift, Grey-capped Pygmy and Grey-headed Woodpeckers, Black- naped Monarch, Hair-crested Drongo, Sultan Tit, Pin-striped Tit-Babbler, Chestnut-bellied and Velvet- fronted Nuthatches, White-rumped Shama, Pale-chinned Blue Flycatcher, White-capped Redstart, Siberian Stonechat, Golden-fronted Leafbird, Lineated and Blue-eared Barbets, Yellow-vented and Plain Flowrpeckers and Sand Lark. An interesting mammal species was Capped Langur. As we navigated through the forest, we were also fortunate to find a couple of interesting small creatures, including a snake which remains unidentified, and leeches which had come out after the rainfall seeking a meal. After a relatively successful morning, we returned to camp for a very good lunch, which was interrupted by a Golden-fronted Leafbird by Keith Valentine Cinereous Tit. The afternoon session saw the group split into two, as a small group decided to remain behind at camp. The main group headed back into Nameri forest, where they were able to locate Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Banded Bay Cuckoo, Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Common Iora, Plaintive Cuckoo, Oriental Dollarbird, and Tickell’s Leaf and Greenish Warblers in conditions that were more favourable and less humid. The second group spent time exploring the area surrounding the camp, looking at the more common species, locating Black-hooded Oriole, Indian Roller, Scarlet Minivet and Grey-backed Shrike. As the sun was setting, the two groups were reunited before enjoying another excellent local meal and heading off to bed. The next morning began with the exploration of the local woodland surrounding the camp, where we looked for and found Greylag Goose in flight, Black- crowned Night Heron, Common Emerald Dove, Spotted Owlet, returning Amur Falcon, Large Cuckooshrike, displaying Bengal Bush Lark, Taiga Flycatcher, Black Redstart and Paddyfield Pipit. We then Indian Roller by Adam Riley settled for a good breakfast before making our way out of Nameri and through to Kaziranga National Park. After a long period of driving, through pouring rain, we stopped to bird a small lake, where we located Eurasian Widgeon, Little Grebe and Blyth’s Reed Warbler as we made progress toward our camp. We also enjoyed views of Rhesus Monkey and fantastic Western Hoolock Gibbons. We arrived at our camp in the mid-afternoon, where we enjoyed a brief lunch and a short siesta. Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan - Birding the Buddhist Kingdom II & Assam Ext 2018 4 The afternoon was dedicated to a Safari in the back of open Safari vehicles through the Kaziranga National Park (western) region. The birding was fantastic in this area, and we were able to add such specials as Indian Spot-billed Duck, Swamp Francolin, Kalij Pheasant, Asian Openbill, Woolly-necked Stork, Black-necked Stork, Lesser Adjutant, Spot-billed Pelican, Himalayan Vulture soaring overhead, Crested Serpent Eagle, Pallas’s and Grey-headed Fish Eagles, White-breasted Waterhen, Red-wattled Lapwing, Green Sanpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Spotted Redshank, Common Greenshank, Blossom-headed and Alexandrine Parakeets, Common Woodshrike, Small Minivet, Chestnut-capped Babbler,Striated Babbler and a spectacular flock of Finn’s Weaver; while also adding some spectacular mammal species, including the Indian Rhinoceros, Asian Elephant, Asian Buffalo, Wild Boar, Swamp Deer and Hog Deer. After a fantastic introduction to the wonder of Kaziranga and its vast and diverse habitats, we settled for a lovely meal in the restaurant before heading off for a good rest. Kalij Pheasant by Adam Riley The next day began bright and early as we headed back into Kaziranga to enjoy an elephant-back safari through part of the park. We were fortunate, as a large storm had broken earlier with heavy rainfall but we were not affected. We took part in the activity, managing to add Bristled Grassbird, Plain Prinia, and Jungle and Common Mynas while also getting excellent views of many mammals in close proximity to us, as they do not fear the elephants. We then headed on to the next area of the park (eastern), collecting a breeding pair of Oriental Pied Hornbills at a nest en route, before arriving at a lovely viewing point, where we were able to focus on many waterbird species. We had excellent scope views of Cotton Pygmy Goose, Northern Shoveler, Mallard, Ferruginous Duck, Eurasian Teal, Black- headed Ibis, Purple Heron, Intermediate Egret, Eurasian Coot, Pied Avocet, Northern Lapwing, Richard’s Pipit, and Pheasant-tailed and Bronze-winged Jacanas; while also managing to get fantastic views of many raptors, including Changeable Hawk-Eagle and a small family of Brown Fish Owl. We were also treated to fantastic views of many woodland species, including King Quail, Eurasian Hoopoe, Brown Shrike, Rufous and Grey Treepies, Red-whiskered Bulbul, and Blue-bearded and Green Bee-eaters before finally exiting the park to head back to camp as another thunderstorm threatened to break. We arrived back at camp just in time to avoid the downpour of another tropical storm Pheasant-tailed Jacana by Stephan Lorenz before meeting a short while later for lunch. For the afternoon session, we set off in wet and rainy conditions as the storm had continued through the middle of the day. We followed the original plan, and made our way towards a large tower in the central section of Kaziranga. Here, we were able to view Barn Swallow and Red-breasted Parakeet. Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan - Birding the Buddhist Kingdom II & Assam Ext 2018 5 Thankfully, at this time, the storm had blown over and we were able to continue our exploration of the central region of the park, adding fantastic species like Common Snipe, Common Redshank, Marsh Sandpiper, White-throated Kingfisher, Eurasian Wryneck, Bluethroat, Black-rumped Flameback, Ashy Woodswallow, Ashy Prinia, Baya Weaver and a stunning Himalayan Rubythoat that had come out after the rainfall had passed. We then visited the final location for the evening, overlooking a large waterhole, before returning to camp as darkness fell.