Bhutan Assam Extension 12th to 16th March 2019 (5 days) Birding the Buddhist Kingdom 16th March to 4th April 2019 (20 days) Trip Report Himalayan Monal by Markus Lilje Trip report compiled by Tour Leader: André Bernon Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan – Birding the Buddhist Kingdom + Assam Ext 2019 2 Tour Summary Our fantastic set of tours started in the Assamese capital, Guwahati. Our time there saw us visiting Kaziranga and Nameri National Parks, which delivered the goods with great sightings of mammals like Indian Rhinoceros, and some fantastic birds like the much sought-after White-winged Duck. After our successful pre-tour extension, we ventured into the foothills of the mountainous Kingdom of Bhutan. Travelling west across this fantastic landscape allowed us to experience the proud culture of the Bhutanese people, as well as the incredible fauna and flora on offer there. With arguably some of the best birding in Asia, we had an incredible time. ___________________________________________________________________________________ Top 10 list (as chosen by participants): 1. Himalayan Monal 6. Blood Pheasant 2. Fire-tailed Myzornis 7. Beautiful Nuthatch 3. White-bellied Heron 8. Ward’s Trogon 4. Satyr Tragopan 9. Tawny Fish Owl 5. Ibisbill 10. Spotted Elachura ___________________________________________________________________________________ Assam Extension After meeting one another at our comfortable hotel in the busy Guwahati, we set out on our adventure through Assam, the far north-east state of India. Our adventure started at the ‘scenic’ refuse disposal site – after all, no birding tour is complete without visiting a destination like this. The main target here was the increasingly rare Greater Adjutant. Habitat loss and overpopulation has caused this species to drop drastically in numbers, and has forced them to seek out alternative feeding areas. The refuse disposal in Guwahati is now a stronghold for this species. Seeing many of them next to some Lesser Adjutants allowed for good comparison, and we also enjoyed many Black Kites, Great Myna and Striated Grassbird. Continuing out of the city, we made our way to Kaziranga National Park – a World Heritage Site. En route, we managed a great find in the form a Cinnamon Bittern. After enjoying a good lunch outside the western section of the park, we made our way in. Our first experience was a fantastic one, as we got close encounters with the first of many Indian Rhinoceros. Waterbirds were abundant and produced the likes of Black-necked Stork, Indian Pond Heron, Eastern Cattle, Intermediate, Little and Great Egrets, Grey-headed and Red-wattled Lapwings, Little Ringed Plover, Green and Wood Sandpipers, Temminck’s Stint and both Common and Spotted Redshanks. Indian Rollers showed us some colour, as did Blue-bearded, Chestnut-headed and Blue- tailed Bee-eaters, and Blossom-headed, Red-breasted, Alexandrine and Rose- ringed Parakeets. A Dusky Eagle-Owl was a nice rare addition to close off the day. We had an early start this morning, as we had our elephant ride planned. Seeing the park from a different perspective was great, as was being able to get closer to the wildlife. After a hearty breakfast, we made Greater Adjutant by Markus Lilje our way to the eastern section of the park. Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan – Birding the Buddhist Kingdom + Assam Ext 2019 3 Whilst driving through the tea plantations, we managed to find a pair of Spotted Owlets and many Green Imperial Pigeons. The eastern section of the park had some great expanses of water, and birds were abundant – including many migrants. Our first encounter was with a flock of Oriental Pied Hornbills. Waterfowl were a big attraction here, and some good species included Bar-headed Goose, Ruddy Shelduck, Cotton Pygmy Goose, Garganey, Northern Shoveler, Gadwall, Indian Spot-billed Duck, Mallard, Northern Pintail, and Tufted, Ferruginous and the sought-after Falcated Ducks. We had awesome looks at a pair of Great Hornbills on the nest, and a roosting Brown Fish Owl was a good one to get too. Woodpeckers were also abundant and included Black-rumped, Grey-headed and Streak-throated. We made a quick stop at our local guide’s home, where he showed us the traditional way of life. Some tasty snacks prepared by his sister were also enjoyed. We followed up lunch with an outing to the central section of the park. Vultures were plentiful and included a single Slender-billed amongst many Himalayan. Both Pallas’s and Grey-headed Fish Eagles provided good views too. We spent some time getting good looks at Chestnut-capped and Striated Babblers creeping around the tall elephant grass, before it was time to head out of the park before closing time. Great Hornbill by Andre Bernon We started leaving the Kaziranga area this morning, taking our breakfast with us. Our first bit of birding was done in the Haldibari section of Kaziranga, with its steep forested slopes. A coral tree proved rather attractive to the birds, and we ticked off many Chestnut-tailed Starlings, Blue-throated and Blue-eared Barbets, Blue Whistling Thrush, Greater-necklaced Laughingthrush, Plaintive and Banded Bay Cuckoos and Tickell’s Leaf Warbler. After breakfast with a view, we started making our way to Nameri. Our rustic yet very enjoyable camp was to be home for the next two nights. After a welcome lunch, we made our way to the Jia Bhorelli River, where we set out on a rafting trip downstream. Our main target here was the fantastic and monotypic Ibisbill. We got superb and close-up looks before also getting good looks at Small Pratincoles and River Tern. The surrounding woodland produced Vernal Hanging Parrot as well. We had an early start this morning, Ibisbill by Markus Lilje with a surprise Great Slaty Woodpecker putting in a brief appearance at breakfast. We crossed the river once more, before going on a great hike through the Nameri Forest Reserve. Our main target here was the extremely rare White- winged Duck. We targeted a small forest pond, secluded in the shade of the massive trees. With no luck early on, we decided to give it a break and try again after an hour or two. We ticked off Small Niltava, Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan – Birding the Buddhist Kingdom + Assam Ext 2019 4 Orange-bellied and Golden-fronted Leafbirds, Barred Cuckoo-Dove, Wedge-tailed Green Pigeon, Velvet-fronted and Chestnut-bellied Nuthatches, Sultan Tit and Slaty-backed Flycatcher in the meantime. Trying our luck at finding the duck once more, we reached the last pond and were extremely lucky to spot a single bird hiding in the overgrowth. We enjoyed distant yet extended looks before leaving this extremely rare bird in peace, and then made our way back to camp where we enjoyed a superb lunch. The afternoon saw some people heading back into the forest, and highlights included a tree full of Great Hornbills, Pale-chinned Blue Flycatcher, Rufous Woodpecker and a single Pied Falconet. The others opted for a leisurely walk near our camp. This also proved successful, with excellent looks at a Siberian Rubythroat, Small and Rufous-bellied Niltavas, Spotted Owlet and Greater Flameback. The last morning in Assam saw us enjoying a short walk around camp to try and locate Siberian Rubythroat by Shailesh Pinto some new species. First up was a stunning male Siberian Rubythroat accompanied by a female. Other new species were Thick-billed Warbler, Bengal Bush Lark and fly-by Greylag Geese. We hit the road after breakfast and made our way to Samdrup Jonkhar, the Bhutanese town on the border. A great lunch at a local “dhaba” saw us on our way and through the border, where we met our Bhutanese hosts. We soon settled down for the evening, enjoying the experience of a new culture and a warm shower. ___________________________________________________________________________________ Birding the Buddhist Kingdom Our main tour commenced with an early breakfast before we made our way out of town using the east- west highway. We spotted some good birds before lunch, which included Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Greater-necklaced Laughingthrush, Wedge-tailed and Pin-tailed Green Pigeons, Rufescent Prinia, Puff- throated Babbler, White-rumped Shama, Dark-rumped and House Swifts, and Hill Myna. Near our ritualistic morning tea break, we found a great pair of Slaty-backed Forktails and more Rufescent Prinias. Our lunch area gave us Rufous-bellied Eagle before we carried on to some great forest near our first camping site, Morong. Some birds en route included Long-tailed Sibia, Great Barbet, Golden and Grey- throated Babblers, and Silver-eared Mesia. We also had fleeting glimpses of Scaly-breasted Cupwing, and Grey- cheeked and Black-faced Warblers before calling it a day. The Morong camp was a superb location, and was to be our base for the next two nights. The main target in this area was Black-faced Warbler by Markus Lilje certainly the sought-after Beautiful Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Bhutan Trip Report – RBL Bhutan – Birding the Buddhist Kingdom + Assam Ext 2019 5 Nuthatch. This species didn’t disappoint, as we had great looks at four birds on our first morning here. They were seen in a flock consisting of Sultan Tit, the ever-present Verditer Flycatcher, Small Niltava and Blyth’s Shrike-Babbler. Late morning produced a superb Pygmy Flycatcher in a flock of Yellow- throated Fulvetta and both Short-billed and Grey-chinned Minivets. The area above the campsite provided some new laughingthrushes, including Blue-winged and Chestnut- crowned, as well as the glamorous Rufous- necked Hornbill. The areas around camp held Golden Bush Robin, Bhutan Laughingthrush, Rufous-breasted Accentor and, eventually, we all got onto the resident yet very shy Large Hawk-Cuckoo.