I went to Bali at very short notice for the last 5 days of April spending 3 days at and around the Ritz Carlton Resort (for free - thanks to my sister and the conference she had to attend there!) and two days in the mountains at Badugul.
I saw 75 spp over the 5 days of which 1/3 was new. I could find almost no info on Bali before I left, with the exception of one website (www.indo.com/birding/index), so I'm posting this basically to double the available info.
The birding was a real step back in time, because I was not able to find a field guide and had to make notes of all the birds I saw and identify them subsequently from the Mackinnon and Phillips Guide to the Birds of Borneo, Sumatra and Bali and from pix on the Oriental Bird Images website.
I did not visit Bali Barat reserve, partly because of the distance, partly because you need a permit for entry and I didn't have time for the faffing about that often involves, but also because I had been back in 1989 and seen Bali and Black-winged Starlings.
Birding around the resort was mostly done without bins - Its a full-on honeymoon resort, so even without optics there's plenty of need to be averting ones eyes from loved up couples!
Fortunately the birds were pretty tame anyway, and I enjoyed good views of Bar-winged Prinia, Dusky (actually Olive-backed) Tailorbird, White-headed Munia, Sooty-headed and Yellow-vented Bulbuls, Spotted Dove and Olive-backed Sunbirds. Greater Crested Terns were seen over the sea every day (I also saw dolphins distantly in the bay) and Pink-necked Green Pigeon made use of the vegetation on the sea-cliff. In addition, there were loads of White-bellied Swiftlets around the resort, while it was a real pleasure to see the 2 or 3 pairs of White-breasted Wood Swallows hawking around the pool in the late afternoon. Top bird was a single Blue-tailed Bee-eater seen from the driveway.
While staying at the Ritz Carlton I spent a few hours at the Mangrove Information Centre, which provides free boardwalk access to the terrific mangrove forest to the east of the airport. Highlights here were Small Blue Kingfisher - which looks like a miniature Collared Kingfisher, Brown-throated Sunbird, Pied Fantail (using the boardwalk as a sundeck to catch some rays), Golden-bellied Gerygone, Island Turtle Dove (my only one of the trip), and several Javan Pond Herons. An oddity here was the black-bellied race of Oriental Magpie Robin.
I also made a swift trip down the causeway to Benoa harbour which paid offf handsomely as I found a group of resting terns that included Gull-billed, Whiskered, White-winged, Little and Great Crested. The same high tide roost also held a few Greater Sandplovers and a Javan Plover, sporting a complete breast band. A flyover Little Pied Cormorant was also new.
I went here by taxi and the 20 minute drive and approximately 3 hours waiting time cost me a bit less than US$20. The driver knew the place, which I found out about from the Lonely Planet guide to Bali. Apart from the birds the mangroves are wonderful - large interlocking stands of several different species - some as large as trees and many different from the predominantly Black Mangroves and prickly mangroves from Mai Po at home (in Hong Kong).
After the conference I took a private vehicle to the Pacung Indah hotel (www.pacungbali.com) a few kilometres downhill from Bedugal (US$22 approx for the drive, and approx the same to stay). This inn had good views over terraced hillsides but few birds - a well-seen Drongo Cuckoo singing in late evening was the highlight, and a couple of tree shrews provided added interest.
Next morning I was kindly given a lift up to Bedugul by the hotel owner where I initially left my bag in the Dahlia hotel, but later transferred to the Ashram Hotel (US$ 12) which has wonderful views over the crater lake (Lake Bratan) and good forest front and back.
I spent the whole day in the Botanic Garden and the adjoining forest and farmland. Highlights included: Golden Whistler, Chestnut-backed Scimitar Babbler, Sunda Wistling Thrush, Sunda Warbler, Mountain Leaf Warbler, Flame-crowned (or Orange-crowned) Barbet, Indonesian Honeyguide, Fulvous-breasted, Grey-headed and Little Pied Flycatcher and Grey-headed, Mountain, and Yellow-bellied Oriental White-eyes, Thick-billed Pigeon, Grey-cheeked Bulbul and Malaysian Cuckooshrike.
I also saw a cuckoo that called like Oriental, but would welcome comment from anyone who knows about the split of this species and the calls of the new splits (unless anyone knows oherwise I am assuming this was the resident Sunda Cuckoo).
Only after looking at a field guide after returning home did I discover Short-tailed Strling was a possibility in addition to Philippine Glossy Starling and would welcome comment from anyone who knows the status of these species on Bali and hence which one I probably saw. (I have subsequently discovered that Short-tailed is the dominant starling here)
The highlight here was unquestionably the pair of Java Kingfishers. They fully deserve the eulogy written by Victor Mason in "The Birds of Bali". This book was discounted down to less than US$5 at the airport. Its not really a field guide, more a celebration of some of the authors' favourite birds, but an enjoyable read with some nice paintings.
Next morning I added Chestnut Bittern and my only Javan Munia on a short walk in the hotel garden on the lake shore, then hired a car to go to the furthest lake before returning to Denpasar for a 4pm flight to Hong Kong. The drive to Lake Tambligan gave god views of the forest and views of the North coast of Bali as we drove between fields of blue Hydrangea grown for cultivation.
At the lake I had brief flight views of a White-browed Crake, heard several Lesser Shortwings, and saw a couple of Blood-breasted Flowerpeckers in the forest between the gate and the lake shore. I didn't really do this area or the surrounding forest justice - it looks very good and well worth further exploration.
Please feel free to contact me for more info or a full list of species.
Mike Kilburn (Hong Kong)
Javan Kingfishers get my vote. Stunning and common if you're in the right place.