I have always wanted to go back too Sangihe since me and some friends visited this island in summer 2003, as it was rain season that time we didnt see very much that time.
So becuase of that we wanted to go back when the weather is much more drier, warmer and the chance of seeing birds is a lot easier, we also decided to visit more more islands than just Sangihe this time and quite soon found we found out that it was quite easy to get to the Talaud group from Sangihe + the Talaud islands has a quite fascinating bird fauna.
Last time we visiting Sangihe, we spent most of our time on the east coast, around a city called Enemawira.
But this time we have decided to be focus more on the west coast, especially in the Gunung Sahendaruman moutain range. We did land on the airport here on Sangihe yesterday night so there has not been so much birdwatching. We are currently staying in a small hotel in Tamako city, on Southwest Sangihe
Earlier this morning (around 7:30) we took a trip to a typically lowland and searched through a lowland forest located just a few km east of the hotel, the forest mainly contained somekind of ratan/bamboo forest mix, with only a few larger trees and with a small number of river creeks.
Birds recorded in the first day.
Lilac-marked Kingfisher Cittura cyanotis: 4 were seen a few brief time, 2 where also heard. Seems common in lowland forest, easiest to see perching on branches along small river creeks or in forest edges.
Hooded Pitta Pitta sordida: Highligt of the morning, a single male was observed walking on a small forest track and we manage to get a few really good sights of it, one other bird heard just outside the hotel.
Black-naped Fruit Dove Ptilinopus melanospila: Was reguraly seen and probably observed 6-7 flocks with 9-12 birds each of them. Really noisy birds which easily was traced up and seen. Commonest bird of the first morning.
Black-naped Oriole Oriolus chinensis: Quite common but tended to be rare when you walked deeper inside the forest, easiest seen in plantations and other cultivated habitat. Saw mostly along the walk paths and often seen in groups of 2-7 birds.
Yellow-sided Flowerpecker Dicaeum aureolimbatum: Was very common in the fields surrounding the forest and large groups of 10-20 birds was regulary recorded before entering the forest, seemed to be mostly absent in the thicker forest parts, a typcically grassland living species.
Grey-sided Flowerpecker Dicaeum celebicum: Despite hearing from a few German tourists that this bird was very easy to see around the hotel, we only manage to see 2 birds flying seen feeding on insects in the garden outside the hotel.
Elegant sunbird Aethopyga duyvenbodei: Surprisingly, seen just after a 30 minutes walk from the hotel and seemed very common in the forest we visited, we saw no less than 17 birds was seen.
Brown-throated Sunbird Anthreptes malacensis: Very common and regulary observed all along the track.
Black Sunbird Nectarinia aspasia: Seemed to be rare in the forest, as it generally is common on Sangihe, probably common at higher altitudes, only manage to make two secure obervations of single birds in a large flock of brown-throated sunbirds.
Moluccan Swiftlet Collocalia infuscata. Saw a single bird flying over a river creek in dawn, hope to see larger number at higher altitudes, another species which is rare in lowlands.
Blue-tailed Imperial Pigeon Ducula concinna: A nesting female observed just outside the hotel, hope to see larger numbers at higher altitudes.
Red and blue Lory Eos historio: Pure race extinct, but feral individuals is common in our hotel garden.
Channel-billed Cuckoo Scythrops novaehollandiae: impressive cuckoo, a pair was observed along the track and a third bird was heard.
and finally we manage to see a group of
Great-billed Parrot Tanygnathus megalorhynchus
A poor sight of a group of three birds seen flying over the walking path at dawn, very rare and almost extinct in the lowlands.
Later to night we will probably to a second trip to an area further south to see if we can manage to see som owls or some nightjars.
I will try to leave a report each day.
Nice birds, would have been all lifers for me. Where exactly are Sangihe and Talaud? Never ben to those parts of the world, which is a shame, as I live fairly close by.
Sebbe, fun report and look forward to hearing more from you! Like Hanno, those would've all ben lifers to me, too, but then I've only been in that general part of the world once (and only on Bali). Do you have any photos of any of these birds?