Susan Myers from her on-going tour of Borneo

We Got the Hat Trick! This year our stay on Mount Kinabalu in Borneo was nothing short of sensational! We arrived after lunch in the pouring rain and were somewhat despondent about our prospects. As it turns out the rain was probably a blessing in disguise as the next day was all action. We started our birding at the top of the road through the national park, a place called Timpohon Gate where every day large numbers of tourists start their trek up the mountain, the highest between the Andes and the Himalayas. We, on the other hand, were contrarians and walked in the opposite direction, making our way down the hill in search of the many exciting birds to be found in this center of Bornean endemicity. One of our very first encounters was at a fruiting bush containing three Golden-naped Barbets almost at arms length.

Golden-naped Barbet

This was followed in rapid succession with absolutely first class views of some other exciting endemics including Bornean Whistling-Thrush, Chestnut-hooded Laughingthrush, Mountain Blackeye

Mountain Blackeye

and Bornean Treepie. As we dodged the rain our days on Kinabalu just continued to get better! On our way to the mountain we stopped at a mid level area we the highlight was a brilliant Whitehead’s Spiderhunter, this was followed up with amazing encounters with Whitehead’s Trogon

Whitehead's Trogon

and then our much hoped for Whitehead’s Broadbill, thus completing the famous Bornean birding hat trick. We can’t forget the mammals, though. The remarkable Whitehead’s Tufted Squirrel completed the Whitehead set for us and we couldn’t have been happier. To top it all off we enjoyed better than excellent looks at the two endemic partridges, Red-breasted (a group of seven with a chick!) and Crimson-headed. Cooperative Bornean Stubtails (the leader’s favorite Bornean bird…) and Mountain Wren-Babblers rounded out an almost perfect stay at this remarkable Endemic Bird Area. Next stop: the Kinabatangan River in search of Rhinos and Pittas! 

PS: We had point blank views of Giant Pitta this morning... That just never happens! 

Thanks to David Fisher, colleague and tour participant, for the use of his images.

Oriental Bay Owl