Birding in Borneo
Mt. Kinabalu
February, 2012
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Mt. Kinabalu, over 4,000m high, is one of the icons of Borneo.
It is a national park and a World Heritage Site.
It is the highest mountain in the Malay Archipelago,
and the 20th most prominent mountain in the world by topographic prominence --
the amount it "sticks up" above its surroundings.
It's a biologically diverse place;
full of birds and other stuff, which is why we headed there. Duh.
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| Mt. Kinabalu |
We spent three days in the park,
in the rain and mist.
Some birds were cooperative, and some weren't.
The weather was generally crappy,
overcast and drizzly.
We spent a lot of time wandering the forest,
and didn't see many birds.
On the plus side,
the leeches were essentially non-existent.
I think we each found one,
and I never even put on my leech socks.
It was kind of disappointing,
although I wasn't complaining.
We met up with Tom Martin
and his grad students
who have a multi-year research project going on in the park.
Tom is from the University of Montana and I had met him through Dona.
They gave us a few hints of places to go,
and filled us in on things they were seeing.
One of the things they were doing was identifying nests
and studying nesting behavior.
That required them to sit still for long periods of time,
so they were not disappointed at the paucity of leeches.
Tom told me a story about when he first came to Borneo looking for a site to do his studies.
One of the potential sites, on the other side of the mountain
and about 400m lower, got eleminated in a hurry --
there were leeches everywhere,
and when you stopped,
it looked like the entire ground had mobilized and was moving toward you.
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| Short Tailed Green Magpie |
Bornean Forktail |
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| Black Capped White Eye |
Black Capped White Eye |
Xxx Chick |
We had lunch each day at the restaurant in the park.
We sat at outdoor tables with bright magenta fushias hanging around,
and there was usually a Temminick's Sunbird sipping at them.
Wow! Are they colorful birds!
They are the Asian counterpart to North and South Americas' hummingbirds.
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| Temminicks Sunbird |
Temminicks Sunbird |
Temminicks Sunbird |
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| Temminicks Sunbird |
Temminicks Sunbird |
Temminicks Sunbird |
Temminicks Sunbird |
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| Indigo Flycatcher |
Indigo Flycatcher |
Blue And White Flycatcher |
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| Bornean Tree Pie |
Sunda Laughingthrush |
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| View To SChina Sea |
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| Squirrel |
Squirrel |
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| Flower Xxx |
Flower Lavender Xxx |
Flower Pink Xxx |
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| Flower Pink Xxx |
Flower Lavender Xxx |
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| Xxx Flytrap |
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| Moth Xxx |
Butterfly Xxx |
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| Ram and a Big Tree |
Tree Fungi |
We found this cool caterpillar;
I'm always a little reluctant to mess with them or pick them up in my hand
unless I know they aren't poisonous.
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| Caterpillar |
If you want to climb the mountain,
they require you to hire a guide,
which is pretty dumb if you're actually a mountain climber;
but not so dumb if you're just an ignorant tourist.
Given the number of people who climb it,
the trail has to be a pretty well beaten path.
You go up to a hut / hotel the first day,
then leave about 02:00 in the morning so you're on top about sunrise.
It's usually clearer in the morning,
so that gives you the best shot at a nice view
and generally better conditions for going up and down.
I would have liked to climb it,
but it didn't fit with our schedule.
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| Mt. Kinabalu |
Somebody has to pack all the supplies up to the hut / hotel...
It has to be a back-breaking job,
and the people who do it don't have high-tech packs.
I wonder if they get paid by weight,
or just by the load...
it makes me stagger just looking at them.
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| Porter |
Apparently they have a race every year up to the top of Mt. Kinabalu.
There's a big sign posted by the regular trail signs
listing the winners in each category.
The times are impressive,
considering the mountain is pretty dang high.
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| Map of Trails in the Park |
Trail to the Top of Mt. Kinabalu |
Race Times |
While talking with some of Tom Martin's researchers,
one of them asked who our guide was,
as C.K. was in the nearby restaurant arranging for lunch.
When I told him, he volunteered that C.K. was the only guide
they ever saw checking out birds on his own;
they often encountered him with his cameras
(which he didn't bring along when guiding)
while they were doing their research.
There were other bird guides,
but they generally considered birding just one of many things they did,
and it wasn't a primary focus in their business or their personal life.
But C.K. clearly just loves birds,
and it shows.
We found some humongous frog's eggs,
but unfortunately didn't see the frogs which went with them.
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| Spider Web |
Frog Egg |
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| Trees in the Mist |
Trees in the Mist |
Jungle Mist |
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| Mossy Tree Trunk |
Snag |
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| Xxx White Browed Short Wing Chick |
Xxx Chestnut Crested Yuhina |
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| Forest |
Forest |
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| Mt. Kinabalu Area |
Mt. Kinabalu Area |
Mt. Kinabalu Area |
There was a huge bug on the trail sign one day;
its body was the size of my finger.
Talk about a meal!
I guess that's the tropics for you;
a lot of things grow gigantic.
If that sucker landed on me in the middle of the night I would definitely wake up.
After three days, we were ready to leave the cool and damp of Mt. Kinabalu
and head down into the warm and damp of the lower elevation jungle.
Our next destination was the Sepilok Forest Reserve,
where we hoped to see some Orangutans as well as birds.
