Beach resort birding

A hop away from Dumaguete is one of my favorite islands, Siquijor. I'd been to Siquijor twice before. The first time was in 2004 as a regular sun-worshiping tourist and then again in 2007 as a birder.

How could we resist?  Our pitta twitch was quite successful and we could do a bit of target birding (we didn't have any long lenses during our first Siquijor birding sortie) before heading back to Manila.  And ... BEACH!

We were able to book the last garden room at the Coral Cay Resort (www.coralcayresort.com) in San Juan and early the next morning we went straight to the pier to purchase our fast craft tickets.

And failed!  

The combination of a low pressure area and the habagat was stirring up some angry waves and all small sea craft were grounded by the coast guard!  Thankfully the larger RORO (ROll-on-/ROll-off) craft were still allowed to travel!  With the limited transport, there were predictably long lines (mostly toursits!) to get RORO tickets, but our lucky streak continued and we got the last two passenger slots for the RORO!

After a (slightly) choppy 2 hour slow boat ride, we finally landed at the striking white sand beach pier at San Juan! More than 10 years since my last visit, I could already see the changes to this (once?) mystical island - the pier had been much improved with a modern terminal for waiting passengers!  The white sand beach though was beautiful as ever, even under the grey skies.

We had reserved the next morning for birding to chase our targets, but all other times, we just spent lazing about the resort: swimming in the pool, walking on the beach, eating, snoozing, catching up on some reading or just (as what vacation is best for) staring at the deep blue!

The view from our little veranda.

While mornings were sunny, by mid-afternoon the skies turned grey and the wind picked up.  It was fun strolling on the beach with the wind whipping about sand, dried seagrass leaves and other bits of beach litter!

Walking on the beach, we were bound to pick up a pack of cool beach dogs who always seem to welcome a tummy scratch and pat on the head.

Back at our cabana, we would of course be distracted by the birds flitting about the garden.  Our room faced some colorful San Francisco ornamental plants and a spreading pomelo tree which was a favorite hang out of a pair of Olive-backed Sunbirds.

Walking about the sand were Zebra Doves which stopped every now and then to do a low courtship bow and dance, complete with soft growls.

A Philippine Magpie-Robin would call from a flowering caballero shrub where it hid from the guests walking on the paths.

Every now and then a Philippine Pied Fantail would fly in, snapping its wings and tail loudly.

A nearby palm tree held a large number of noisy Asian Glossy Starlings nesting. These two were gorging on some ripe papaya fruit behind our cottage.

A cute pair of Chestnut Munias were busy building a nest in a dracaena plant beside the neighboring cottage.  They would rest a bit on the pomelo tree between carrying long blades of dried grass.

So even at the beach, birds beckon. Sun, sand, sea, beach and birds... aaaah, the life!

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South Cot and Gen San birding

Adri and I still had the full weekend ahead of us after Friday's Tacurong Bird Festival and our day birding at the Baras Bird Sanctuary.  SOX is a great place for some quick target birding, and Felix already had it all planned out for us.

On Saturday morning, we got up early to go birding at Mt. Matutum in South Cotabato.  It was a long drive across dirt roads criss crossing hectares of pineapple farms and avocado orchards just to get to the foot of the mountain.  I certainly can't imagine walking all that way!

We picked up our guides along the way and the view of Mt. Matutum was quite ominous.  It was a grey morning and the mountain was shrouded in cloud! Not looking very good!

Not the best of weather to go up a mountain and bird!

We left the vehicle at a school house at the edge of the residences, and walked through vegetable farms so commonly seen at the edges of protected areas.  We soon heard the familiar twittering of white eyes.  After a brief discussion on their identity (Everett's or Mountain?) and good looks at their underparts, we decided they were Everett's White eyes.

A pair of Everett's White-eyes

We did spot Mountain White eyes later.

We flushed several White-eared Brown Doves (Short-billed Brown Dove) along the path. Small mixed flocks were flying around the still wet leaves, we saw Brown Tit Babblers,  Little Pied, Turquoise and Citrine Canary Flycatchers.  

In the distance, flocks of Short-tailed Glossy Starling flew across the valley. Closer to us, a pair of Scarlet Minivets were moving around.

One of a pair of Scarlet Minivets - a bird I've only ever seen on Mindanao

It was only a short walk to a few stands of exotic African Tulip Trees where we waited for our main target.  We settled down and had a quick breakfast on our feet (ground was wet!) while waiting.

Signage to remind visitors of the Protected Landscape.

Flowerpeckers zipped back and forth above us: Olive-capped, Bicolored, Red-keeled, Buzzing and Orange-bellied.  White-eyes also joined in an occasional frenzy. 

We watched the bright orange African tulip blooms carefully.  Colasisis came and go nibbling at the blooms.  I distracted myself with looking at the red flowers of thick boughs of mistletoe growing on the tops of trees.  A fallen branch gave me a close up view of the bright red flower clumps.

Mistletoe in bloom high up in the trees and a closer view
from a broken branch I found on the ground.

Orchids also adorned the moist tree branches which were also covered with thick lichen and moss.

Orchids up in the trees.

I was looking at a distance at a Colasisi on the orange flowers when it jumped out of my view to be replaced with... Apo Sunbird! This tiny bird was our target!  It's not yet split as a separate species, but many birders are looking forward to when it will be recognized as T'boli Sunbird.

It was a brief view.  Both Adri and I would see it a few more times, but unfortunately for us, no photo.

Felix was exploring further up the trail and came back to say that we might want to try another Matutum specialty: Mindanao Miniature Tit Babbler.  A heavy mist was coming in and precipitation was starting to form, but hey why not?  He led us to a huge (gigantic!) tree where the birds were usually seen.

The misty forest and the huge tree where we were supposed to spot the
Miniature Tit Babblers - maybe next time!

Erm. The weather was too much and soon dampened our optimism.  It was just too misty and dark!  Soon we made our way back, still happy with our Apo Sunbird (T'boli soon!) despite the disappointment of the miniature tit babbler dip.

Rain fell for the rest of the day, making us call off any birding plans... so we comforted ourselves with: food of course!  A popular halo halo snack store on the highway provided a sugar high and dinner in GenSan wouldn't be complete without a seafood dinner cooked fresh from the day's catch.

Yummy food!

The next morning we drove past Mt. Matutum towards Lake Sebu and it famous waterfalls.  It was a pleasant drive and we passed the town of Surallah with a cheerful rotunda.  The rotunda depicts the T'boli, the Muslims and the Christians in a musical parade around various agricultural produce.

Tukiba Surallah: Discover Surallah (Hiligaynon)

We proceeded to one of Lake Sebu's waterfalls - a regular birding site for Felix. From the main road, we took a small path that led downhill to a view of the waterfall. Our first bird was a quiet Philippine Cuckoo Dove, with its tail feathers quite worn. We saw quite a number of them that morning.

Philippine Cuckoo Doves

There were also several White-eared (Short-billed) Brown Doves. We got both distant and close-up views.  

White-eared (Short-billed) Brown Doves

The Philippine Bulbuls were making their usual racket while chasing each other through the canopy.  But they were definitely outnumbered by the Yellow-vented Bulbuls that seemed to be perched everywhere!

Yellow-vented Bulbuls busy preening

We passed a flowering papaya, where a Rufous-fronted Tailorbird was hopping around. And of course I got the most comical photo of it:

Photo fail!  Rufous-fronted Tailorbird with the rufous front hidden!

A pair of Purple-throated Sunbirds also showed up.  They were the subspecies juliae, quite distinct in their coloration from the other Purple-throated sunbirds elswhere in the Philippines.  Of course while the drab female posed gamely, the more colorful male did not seem to want to!

A pair of Purple-throated Sunbirds, with the male not wanting to show his purple throat! Another photo fail!

We had several other views and heard other birds: Guaiaberos, Common Emerald Dove, Plaintive Cuckoo, Blue-throated Bee-eaters, Collared and White-throated Kingfishers, Large-billed Crows, Black-naped Monarchs, Coletos, and Yellow-bellied Whistlers.  We spotted migrants too: a Grey-streaked Flycatcher and a noisy Brown Shrike.

A few creepy crawlies were also out on display!

I caught these two bugs in the middle of some action!

When we got down to the falls, it was an impressive sight.  The heavy rains must have amplified the cataract's flow, white gushing water poured out into the brown river below.  

The waterfalls of Lake Sebu are a big tourist attraction!

It was turning out to be a sunny morning, and the hot air and wet ground was attracting a few butterflies to a marigold plot.

Butterflies on a sunny Sunday morning!

Damselflies and dragonflies too!

While I was passing time taking photos of butterflies and dragonflies, a young boy out with his family on a swimming picnic approached me and began to ask several questions.  Despite the language barrier, I tried my best to explain what I was looking at and doing, showing him photos from my camera and the field guide.  He got very excited, even pulling his un-interested younger sister to show her the photos.

Later, as Adri, Felix, Roland and I settled at a nearby picnic hut, the little boy left his picnicking family to join us, He excitedly pointed out the birds flying around and checked them out through our binoculars, scope and book.  He was very keen, insisting he was seeing a yellow bird on some hagimit fruit hanging quite a distance across from us.  He patiently leafed through the book and was contemplating the Elegant Tit.  Every now and then he would glance at the hagimit and point "there it goes again!".

Eventually we all saw what he was pointing at.  A tiny Orange-bellied Flowerpecker!

Our young companions sharp eyes kept on seeing this Orange-bellied Flowerpecker. 
It took us oldies quite a while before we spotted it on its nth visit to the fruiting hagimit.

Many other birds were interested in the hagimit including brown doves, Coletos, a Wattled Bulbul and Hair-crested Drongos. 

A handsome Wattled Bulbul

Noisy Hair-crested Drongos

We also saw a pair of Black-faced Coucals and a pair of Philippine Coucals skulking around the vegetation.

Black-faced Coucal

Philippine Coucal

A quiet Mindanao Hornbill played hide-and-seek with us up a nearby tree.

A hiding Mindanao Hornbill

We heard the sharp call of a Silvery Kingfisher as it made its way up and down a nearby stream. Each bird we saw and heard brought a new excitement to our young companion!  His enthusiasm was infectious.

Our enthusiastic birder for the morning!

Soon it was time for us to go, as we had an afternoon flight back to Manila to catch. We stopped by a restaurant with a view of Lake Sebu on a sunny Sunday for lunch.  On the lakeside we saw Yellow Bitterns, Javan Pond Herons, Little Egrets and White-browed Crakes walking along the fish pens.  Barn Swallows and Glossy Swiftlets were gliding across us, and in the gardens below Chestnut Munias were busy building nests.  The SOX birding weekend had turned out to be more eventful than I had expected!

Sunny views of Lake Sebu

But that isn't the end of our SOX adventure.  Felix had one more ace up his sleeve for us. On our way to the airport after picking up our things at the hotel, Felix asked if we wanted to check to see if the Spotted Kestrel was around.  This is a new addition to the Philippine Bird List, in fact, a pair had been spotted and documented last year nesting - so it was definitely a resident.  We made a quick detour to the rocky face of a hill on the outskirts of Gen San.  The bird had not been spotted recent to our visit but it was close enough to warrant a check.

As we got down from the car, we surveyed the holes which dotted the bare rock face.  And there it was!  Sitting very still in one of the shallow caverns was a Spotted Kestrel! 

Adri and Felix scanning the rock face.

Can you spot it?

A Spotted Kestrel: one of the latest Philippine records!

It was later identified through our photos as a young, subadult individual.  Was it one of the offspring from the last breeding season?  We did a little dance of joy by the side of the road.  A last minute lifer from our weekend SOX adventure.

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Birding by the road: Buenavista-Tagabinet-Cabayugan

Spectacular scenery and great birds: it's easy birding by the highway in Puerto Princesa, so we stuck to our tried-and-tested, except this time we did a reversal of the usual routine.  

As I had mentioned previously, instead of being based on scenic Sabang beach, we tried out a resort on Ulugan Bay. Starting out birding in Buenavista and driving towards Sabang, we passed through the barangays of Tagabinet and Cabayugan.

Early in the morning we stopped at the view point for the majestic karst limestone cliffs of Elephant Cave. The newly harvested rice fields were dotted with Cattle Egrets checking in between the freshly reaped stalks of  palay.

Against the blue skies, a flock of Hill Mynas flew, with one landing on a bare branch singing loudly to greet the morning.

We scoped the cliffs in the distance and found a pair of Palawan Hornbills inspecting a small cavity.  We wondered if they would use the cliff as an option for nest holes rather than trees.

A huge Greater Coucal caught our attention, skulking quietly in the vines and vegetation.  Every now and then it would come out into the open, wings open and stretched out in a sun salutation.  (It was my first time to see a Greater Coucal in the Philippines so sort of a lifer!)

As the sun climbed the skies, raptors began soaring above.  I got a lifer in dark-phase Changeable Hawk Eagle crossing overhead.

A Crested Honey Buzzard also gave a good showing in flight.

Crested Serpent Eagles called out to each other as they circled and rose higher and higher until they were dots in the distance. (I wonder if I can actually differentiate them from the endemic Philippine Serpent Eagle found everywhere else in the Philippines?)

One of the best finds along the highway was a fruiting macaranga tree.  Bulbuls and flycatchers were busy all day at the tree, either gorging on the fruit or attracted to the insects buzzing around.

The tree was not wanting for Palawan Bulbuls and blue-eyed Black-headed Bulbuls.

Nearby, a Rufous-tailed Tailorbird sang loudly as it crept about the tangles.   A pair of Palawan Blue Flycatchers kept crossing the road to the tree and back, probably busy feeding some young on a nest.

Every now and then a wave of smaller birds would pass through. Violet Cuckoos are always a welcome sight.

Fiery Minivets would accompany them.

We had second thoughts in the identification of a small brown flycatcher we initially dismissed as a Grey-streaked Flycatcher. On afterthought, was it an Asian Brown Flycatcher?  And what did it turn out to be?  A female Blue and White Flycatcher!

(On a side note, we spotted the two other species of flycatcher as well!)

We were distracted by family groups of noisy Blue-naped Parrots or elegant Palawan Hornbills passing through.

A family of Lovely Sunbirds brought our attention back nearer to the ground. 

A Green-lizard with its extra long tail briefly distracted us from bird activity.

Several other birds came by the fruiting macaranga, including a cheerful White-vented Shama and several Hair-crested Drongos.  A very quiet Square-tailed Drongo Cuckoo also showed up.

And a small flock of Yellow-throated Leafbirds also came in, blending in excellently with the vibrant green foliage.

My favorite birds at that site was a parent-and-young endemic Sulphur-bellied Bulbul.  The parent kept returning to where the young bird was perched to feed it. The young bird bravely explored the canopy but also settled down to preen and rest for several minutes at a time.

It's always great to watch this behaviour in birds.

Having rented a car, it was easy for us to move onward or back to other sites along the highway.  It's the second time we have tried this, and it seems to be a very efficient way to get around to bird, especially with the much improved roads.

We had better views of the Palawan Blue Flycatcher.

I caught glimpse of a small shrew/mouse crossing the highway, and a good view of a Palawan Stink Badger on a dark trail.  But as usual, the easiest mammal to glimpse were the Tree Squirrels running up and down tree trunks and branches, jumping from tree to tree.

Several Barringtonia trees were also in bloom, their dripping inflorescence with smooth and shiny red buds.  They only seem to open their blooms in the evening though, and by morning their flowers had fallen to the ground.

There were some birds we never got good enough views for good photos, even if we saw them several times.

Ashy-headed Babblers were very babbler-y... sticking to the dark bushes and long grass. Can you spot the babbler in the photo? It was taken from across the highway!

We also came across several pairs of Spot-throated Flamebacks, who were also nicely silhouetted against the tree trunks against the light.

 At sunset, we drove up to moonlight hill.  It looked like we had just missed the Philippine Cockatoos (again!), because though we heard them as we were climbing the steps, they were nowhere to be seen when we got to the viewpoint!

The sunset view over Ulugan Bay was beautiful. It is one of my favorite sunsets ever.

In the dwindling light, we could hear the loud calls of Great Slaty Woodpeckers echoing across the valley.  Imagine our surprise when they came up right above us!

I always think these huge woodpeckers seem almost dinosaur-like in their awkward appearance.

In the evening, we tried a random spot and were rewarded with the soft growls and hoots of several Palawan Frogmouths.

And then it was back to Jenny's Kahamut-an for a delicious dinner and a welcome rest in the silence we don't have back at home in the city.

Once again, it was a great trip! I wonder if I should ever tire of birding in Palawan.  It is a place I always look forward to going back to.

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