Part 2: Kota Kinabalu to Mount Kinabalu (October 3, 2018)
Part 3: Full day at Mount Kinabalu (October 4, 2018)
Part 4: Mount Kinabalu to Sepilok (October 5, 2018)
Part 5: Sepilok (October 6, 2018)
Part 6: Kinabatangan River (October 6-7, 2018)
Part 7: Kinabatangan River, Gomantong Caves (October 7-8, 2018)
Part 8: Tabin Wildlife Reserve (October 8-9, 2018)
Part 9: Tabin Wildlife Reserve (October 9-10, 2018)
Part 10: Danum Valley (October 11-12, 2018)
Part 11: Danum Valley (October 13-14, 2018)
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Last year I was invited by Quest Nature Tours to return to the island of Borneo, a destination that I had first visited in October of 2017. The 2017 trip had been absolutely incredible and I was thrilled that Quest wanted me to return to Malaysia to lead another tour. The tour dates would be roughly the same as 2017's tour, taking place in the first half of October. However, the 2017 tour only visited Borneo for eight days, stopping over in Bali for three days at the end of the Borneo leg of the tour. The 2018 tour would only be visiting Borneo and staying for a few extra days, letting us visit the Mount Kinabalu area to find its suite of high-elevation endemic species, as well as Tabin Wildlife Reserve, an area of lowland rainforest.
I had previously put together a trip report for the 2017 Borneo tour (the first post can be viewed by clicking this link). In the introduction post I provided some background information about Borneo and what makes it unique, especially regarding island biogeography. I encourage you to read the introduction post before diving in to this trip report.
September 30, 2018
It had been a whirlwind few days leading up to the trip, but finally, I was at Pearson airport in Toronto, checking in to my flight to South Korea, and from there, flying to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah province, Malaysia. The previous days had been very busy, filled with tying up loose ends at work, attending my dad's retirement dinner in Cambridge, giving a talk about Colombia at the Worldwide Quest social in Toronto, and on September 29, emceeing my sister's wedding alongside Laura. I killed a few hours at Pearson and shortly after 12 noon, we were airborne.
October 1, 2018
The flight was long but otherwise non-eventful and I passed the time watching several movies and attempting to get some shut-eye. Due to the number of time zones we jetted through, it was already mid-afternoon on October 1 when we landed in Seoul (my body thought it was the middle of the night, though!). By early evening my flight to Kota Kinabalu had taken off, and four hours later had touched down in Kota Kinabalu. Unlike in 2017, I would not be renting a car and going off on my own prior to meeting up with the group and starting the tour. Instead, I would be heading to the hotel, preparing to start the tour the very next day. Upon arrival at the Kota Kinabalu airport a friendly face was waiting to welcome me back. It was Ben Duncan, our excellent local guide who we had had on the 2017 tour; he would be with us in 2018 as well. By the time I had arrived at the hotel it was past midnight and I was anxious to get some sleep. But before reaching my hotel room, the first reptile of the trip revealed itself - an Asian House Gecko on a window of the hotel. A small flock of Cattle Egrets flying over, illuminated by the exterior lighting of the hotel, officially represented the first bird species of the trip.
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| Asian House Gecko - Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
October 2, 2018
Feeling surprisingly well-rested, I was up at six, anxious to go for a walk around the property and familiarize myself with some of the common birds of the gardens and scrubby vegetation near the hotel.
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| My view at Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
Even from my balcony there were a few birds to be seen in the artificial landscape including the ever-present Asian Glossy Starlings, but also Zebra Doves, a flock of Chestnut Munias and a few Yellow-vented Bulbuls. Mixed in with the many Plume-toed Swifts overhead were a few House Swifts.
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| Asian Glossy Starling - Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| House Swift - Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Chestnut Munia - Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
A short walk around the hotel grounds before breakfast had already provided my first three life birds of the trip: a few Pacific Reef-Herons, a flyby Collared Kingfisher, and some distant Little Terns offshore. Additionally, a number of Changeable Lizards were hanging out on the lawn or on the bases of the nearby trees.
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| Changeable Lizard - Shangri-La Tanjung Aru, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
The Shangri-La Tanjung Aru resort where I was staying is located only a few minutes from Tanjung Aru, a beach that is popular with the locals and which can be surprisingly birdy. The morning's temperatures had steadily climbed by the time I left for my walk after breakfast, already a good portion of the way to the predicted 32 degree high.
Over the 2.5 hours that I was out, I came across quite a few birds including a few new ones. Sunbirds are a common family throughout Asia and Africa with around ten species found in Borneo; two of these (Olive-throated and Plain-throated) are common species at Tanjung Aru. Sunbirds fill a somewhat similar niche in the Old World that hummingbirds do in the New World, and they specialize by feeding on nectar, along with insects and spiders.
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| Plain-throated Sunbird - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Plain-throated Sunbird - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Sultan - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Green Paddy Frog - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Green Paddy Frog - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
There were two particular bird species I was hoping to encounter at Tanjung Aru, species I had never seen before. The first was Blue-naped Parrot, a species native to the Philippines, the Talaud Islands near Sulawesi and some islands off the northeast Borneo coast. An introduced population has been established at Tanjung Aru beach for a number of years and seems to be relatively stable. The species is classified as "Near Threatened" according to the IUCN Red List as it has undergone declines due to trapping for the cagebird industry and habitat loss. Less than 10,000 Blue-naped Parrot are estimated to remain in the wild. Pied Triller meanwhile is a widespread species found in coastal areas, but one I had never come across before.
While unsuccessfully looking for the above species, I found a variety of other birds; Green Imperial Pigeons, Dollarbirds, White-breasted Woodswallows and Ashy Tailorbirds were particularly conspicuous. A nice variety of butterflies were present, while I also enjoyed finding a few more Changeable Lizards and Asian Water Monitors.
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| Green Imperial Pigeon - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Blue Argus - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Ashy Tailorbird - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Ghost Crab (Ocypode sp.) - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Changeable Lizard - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Common Sandpiper - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Asian Water Monitor - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
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| Asian Water Monitor - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
My brief views of a Collared Kingfisher from earlier in the morning were improved upon when I came across a few individuals. One sat on a hydro wire with a large beetle that it had recently snagged.
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| Collared Kingfisher - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
Near the end of my walk I finally struck gold in the form of a pair of Pied Trillers, a member of the Cuckooshrike family. Great views were had, though both birds stayed relatively high in the Australian Pines making photos a bit difficult.
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| Pied Triller - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
A screeching call drew my attention next; could it be a Blue-naped Parrot? The culprit was sitting quietly in one of the pines but by changing my position I soon spotted the bird which was soon joined by its mate. An excellent start to the trip!
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| Blue-naped Parrot - Tanjung Aru beach, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia |
That afternoon I relaxed and completed some prep work for the tour before meeting my group for our welcome dinner. The next day we would be traveling together to the highlands of Mount Kinabalu where endemic birds, squirrels and lizards, as well as a variety of orchids and pitcher plants awaited.
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Part 1: Fly to Borneo, Kota Kinabalu (September 30 - October 2, 2018)
Part 2: Kota Kinabalu to Mount Kinabalu (October 3, 2018)
Part 3: Full day at Mount Kinabalu (October 4, 2018)
Part 4: Mount Kinabalu to Sepilok (October 5, 2018)
Part 5: Sepilok (October 6, 2018)
Part 6: Kinabatangan River (October 6-7, 2018)
Part 7: Kinabatangan River, Gomantong Caves (October 7-8, 2018)
Part 8: Tabin Wildlife Reserve (October 8-9, 2018)
Part 9: Tabin Wildlife Reserve (October 9-10, 2018)
Part 10: Danum Valley (October 11-12, 2018)
Part 11: Danum Valley (October 13-14, 2018)
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