photography

New Guinea and the BoPs!

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Our last stop in Indonesia was the province of Papua, on the island of New Guinea. We also went to Papua New Guinea, the country that covers the other half of the island. New Guinea is famous for having almost all of the birds-of-paradise (BoPs) (exceptions are two species in the Moluccas and two species in Australia)! Since I have been reading about the BoPs for almost my entire life I couldn’t wait to go there. Here are the pictures.

In Papua we started at the island of Waigeo in the Raja Ampat island group. One of the most obvious bird species were the huge flocks of Lesser Frigatebirds, seemingly migrating as they streamed across the sky overhead.
Another conspicuous resident of the island were the Willie-wagtails (the real name) which hopped around our houses and sang constantly.
Torresian Crows also frequented the trees by the beach, potentially foraging on the sand.
We unanimously agreed that Waigeo had some of the best sunsets we had ever seen, lasting for almost an hour and constantly changing from pink to yellow to orange to red to purple to black.
The reason we came to the Raja Ampat is because they have two endemic BoPs. One of them is the Wilson’s Bird-of-Paradise (shown here) commonly agreed to be one of the most colorful, with its red back, yellow neck, bald blue head, green chest, and blue feet, it is like a tiny firework display.
Here you can get a better view of the curled blue tail feathers and the yellow on the neck, as well as the dark iridescent green belly.
The other BoP endemic is the Red Bird-of-Paradise, with a green head, brown and yellow body, and bright red tail feathers it is one of the more “classic” BoPs in the genus Paradisaea.
Although the Red was hidden in the trees most of the time we could occasionally hear some of its loud resounding trumpet-like calls, meant to attract females to the communal lek.
Although there are only two species of BoP are endemic to the Raja Ampat there is a third species that also lives on mainland New Guinea. Since BoPs are actually descended from crows, the crow-like manucodes are still BoPs. This is a Glossy-mantled Manucode, which was actually just seen near our homestay and not at a special hide.
One of the other birds that frequently turned up at the beach was the aptly named Beach Kingfisher, with the distinctive all-white head visible in the photo.
Although Eclectus Parrots are common on the islands this female is one of the few that perched in the open; more often they were seen flying over.
After Waigeo we stayed at the village of Syoubri in the Arfak Mountains. Our birding guide Zeth Wonggor showed us this Marbled Frogmouth (a type of nocturnal owl-like bird) in his backyard.
While we were in a hide waiting for a Magnificent Bird-of-Paradise to appear this Hooded Pitohui came onto the lek. Pitohuis are famous for being the only poisonous birds; although not deadly to humans, if you bite one you will immediately want to spit it out.
After our wait, the Magnificent Bird-of-Paradise (I call it the mag bop) did show up. The tail shape is similar to the Wilson’s, and they are in the same genus. This was also the only BoP that we saw at a lek with a female, although the female left before the male could display.
One of the least known BoPs is the Long-tailed Paradigalla, one of the “plumeless” BoPs. We waited for it to come and feed at this single banana tree, and eventually our wait was fulfilled.
Although Darwin is generally attributed with the development of the theory of evolution, the explorer Alfred Russel Wallace came up with the same idea at the same time while studying birds-of-paradise in New Guinea and observing how the males could afford to evolve gaudy plumage due to the abscence of ground-living predators and competitors for food. This paradigalla certainly dominated the bananas.
When most people think of a bowerbird it is generally the Satin Bowerbird of Australia, but I believe that this architect deserves the credit: The Vogelkop Bowerbird constructs a large hut-like tent and decorates the entrance with trash and seeds, organized by color and shape: see the large pile of nuts, the “red section”, and pile of plastic cups.
This photo shows the architect at work. Because of the plain plumage, the male must construct a larger bower to demonstrate fitness and maturity.
After the Arfak we took a break from the BoPs and headed to New Ireland in the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea. Although PNG has BoPs, none of them reach the Bismarcks. We still got some nice birds, like this Nicobar Pigeon.
These Moustached Treeswifts are, unlike normal swifts, able to perch on branches, and do so commonly, allowing a photo opportunity.
Back on mainland New Guinea we took a trip into Varirata National Park near Port Moresby, and that day turned out to be one of my most succesful single birding days ever. This is a Black-capped Lory, seen on the drive in.
The BoP that Varirata is known for is the Raggiana Bird-of-Paradise, PNG’s national bird. This is either a young male or a female.
Red-faced Parrots are almost exclusively found in New Guinea, but there is a small population on the Cape York Peninsula of Australia. Varirata is the only place we saw them.
Several Raggianas showed up, but we never saw an adult male.
Varirata is also the best place in the world for the delightful little Brown-headed Paradise-kingfisher, which just sits on a branch and watches you watch it.
We were also lucky enough to catch this Barred Owlet-nightjar out in the open, as they are nocturnal and generally stay inside their hole unless you are quiet and patient.
After birding the park we stopped at a nearby wetland where we saw this Comb-crested Jaçana with a chick.
We also found this Plumed Whistling-duck, a vagrant from Australia.
Once our lowland birding had been satisfied we headed up into the highlands near Mount Hagen and stayed at Kumul Lodge, known for the ease of birding at its fruit feeders. This is a Common Smoky-honeyeater eating a piece of pineapple.
The Ribbont-tailed Astrapias (a BoP) at Kumul frequent the feeders and it is more common to see them when you glance out the window than to not.
Equally common are these Brown Sicklebills (another BoP), the young bird on the right and the adult female on the left.
Kumul is also known for its rare mountain species, such as this Mountain Firetail, a finch endemic to the highlands of New Guinea.
Because of its prime location you can take tours from the lodge to see a variety of BoPs; this is a Blue Bird-of-Paradise (Cedar’s favorite) seen just a quick drive and walk away from the lodge.
One of the other birds easily seen at the feeders are Brehm’s Tiger-parrots, which make very good photography subjects.
Here you can see part of the tail that gives the astrapias their name. This photo also provides a good look at the “pom-pom” above the bill.
Less common than the tiger-parrots, Plum-faced Lorikeets skipped the feeders and fed off of the trees instead.
On a walk through the forest we came across this Lesser Melampitta, one of New Guinea’s rarest highland birds and only one of two species in its family.
Besides the trip for the Blue BoP we only took one other trip outside of the lodge for a BoP. This is the King-of-Saxony Bird-of-Paradise. The two long straight lines in the photo are not sticks but specialized feathers coming out of the bird’s head. It can move them around wherever it wants, and could theoretically slap you in the face without moving anything but its head wires. When these feathers originally came to Europe they were thought to be fakes due to the plasticky texture and flag-like appendages lining it.
This photo provides a better view of the flags on the sides of the wires. The actual bird is small, but the wires are big, so Cedar calls it the “Li’l Champion with Big Hair”.
The King-of-Saxony is actually uncommon and hard to find, so we were lucky to get such good views of it.
The call of this BoP does not sound remotely like a bird at all. It more sounds like somebody’s radio broke down and is emitting a combination of clicks, twitters, hisses, static, and beeps in a single fast series. Look it up, it’s amazing.
On almost our last day at Kumul we finally got really good views of Crested Berrypeckers, which are, along with the Tit Berrypecker, in their own family.
photography

Singapore and Sulawesi!

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My previous post was comprised of us visiting Indonesia west of Wallace’s Line. Here I will display photos from Sulawesi, an island east of Wallace’s Line and west of Lydekker’s Line (the separation of wildlife from Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara, and the Moluccas from New Guinea and Australia ). Sulawesi is known for its high proportion of endemism, especially in the birds, so a lot of the species shown here can be found nowhere else. I will also be posting photos from Singapore, where we stopped briefly before heading to Sulawesi. Also, many of the species I took photos of are rare and hard to see, so the photos will be of less quality because of the low light and fast-moving animals.

One of our best stops in Singapore was the Singapore Botanic Gardens, which was full of Red Junglefowl, the wild ancestor of the domestic chicken. Immediately after we got out of the Uber, we saw these chicks, much to Cedar’s delight.
One of the best ways to separate junglefowl from chickens is to check for the large white patch on the male’s head, seen here clearly.
The junglefowl were also accompanied by this Common Flameback, a type of large woodpecker.
These chicks were adorable, snuggling under the mother’s belly.
In Singapore we also went on a birding trip around some wetlands that started off with my first Dollarbird, (a type of roller) name because of the white patches in its wings that appear like “silver dollars” when it flies.
Another highlight of the birding trip was this Little Bronze Cuckoo, easily identified from the iridescent bronze back, red eye-ring, and barred belly.
While climbing to Singapore’s highest point we came across this colugo (a type of mammal that uses flaps of skin to glide from tree to tree). It stayed perfectly still the entire time, and we still don’t know if it was actually alive!
Javan Mynas like this one are common all across the city, but this one is suffering from a leg disease, and you can see the misshapen feet.
Upon leaving Singapore we arrived in Sulawesi, a haven for endemic birds. Almost 27% of the region’s birds are endemic. Sulawesi hosts 12 endemic genera of birds, including 6 kingfishers, 9 parrots, and 7 owls. One of the first endemics we saw was this Yellow-billed Malkoha, a relative of the coucals, which are relatives of the cuckoos.
Our first stop in Sulawesi was the village of Kamarora A, near the famous Lore Lindu National Park. On our first morning we took a trip to a lake just outside the park to bird. This Brush Cuckoo was seen there.
This Turquoise Warbling-flycatcher was also a highlight of the lake trip.
On the way back from the lake this raptor flew up and perched in a tree in front of us. It was later identified as a Bat Hawk, a rare species that can catch bats or swifts on the wing.
Lore Lindu is also known for its tarsiers, which are small nocturnal primates and very, very cute. This is one of the several we saw.
One of the most famous birding locations in Sulawesi is the Anaso Track. The track’s star birds is the Diabolical Nightjar (shown here). There was actually known terrorist activity on the track, but without us knowing that what we were on was the Anaso Track, we still saw the birds and came out fine.
In total we saw two nightjars. This one is engaged in a threat display.
Another star endemic bird is the Purple-bearded Bee-eater, which we saw twice on the track
Later down on the track we came into a “birdstorm” with Mountain Cicadabirds, Ashy Woodpeckers, Sulawesi Pygmy Woodpeckers, and this Sulawesi Thrush.
After Lore Lindu we stayed at Lake Poso, where the friendly Pacific Swallows provided great photography practice.
The next major stop in Sulawesi was the Togian Islands, where we saw this Ashy Woodpecker (a Sulawesi endemic) excavating this palm tree.
One of my most-wanted Sulawesi birds was the Togian Boobook, a type of small owl endemic to the islands. On our first night we asked the lodge managers and they said that an owl comes almost every night to their trash pile to feed on insects. This owl has been named Kokoro, and we saw him many times.
Kokoro would often just sit in one place for a very long time, and you could just stand, and watch him hunt or eat or anything without bothering him.
Our final stop was potentially the place I had most wanted to go in Sulawesi, Bogani Nani Wartabone National Park. Sulawesi is well-known for its profusion of endemic kingfishers, and we quickly saw this Sulawesi Dwarf-kingfisher.
Several times we came across the endemic Pale-blue Monarch flitting around in the low branches.
Another endemic we saw soon after starting was this Bay Coucal, a type of large cuckoo-like bird.
This Sultan’s Cuckoo-dove posed for the camera, unlike many of the other birds seen on the hike.
The only large mammal we saw on the hike was this macaque, which gave us very good views.
We spent a while trying to get this beautiful Sulawesi Pitta to come out into the open, and eventually it did. Pittas are normally secretive, so I was very happy.
The highlight of Bogani Nani is the Maleo, a species of endangered megapode (more on that word later) endemic to Sulawesi. When we reached a snack point we found this baby Maleo just walking around and taking scraps of food from the ground. It was definitely wild, because it flew away later (baby megapodes learn to fly instantly).
This baby Maleo blew my mind with cuteness, rarity, and comfortableness. It felt like a tiny chicken that is endangered with only 8,000 to 14,000 individuals alive.
Megapodes are birds that do not incubate their eggs, but instead either build a mound of rotting vegetation and let the heat from the chemical reactions do the rest, or dig a hole in thermally heated earth or on a beach that absorbes the sun. When the eggs hatch, the chicks dig out, fly away and grow up. One of the main reasons for the Maleo’s decline has been the unsubstantial harvesting of Maleo eggs, since they are all grouped together, easy to get, and make good eating.
Sulawesi also has two endemic species of hornbill, and we saw one. The Knobbed Hornbill is one of the largest birds in Sulawesi and also one of the most colorful.
As we were almost leaving the park a large flock of hornbills came around us from all sides. Hornbills are easily located by the loud noise their wings make when they fly, but when you are in the middle of a flock it just feels like chaos.
poetry

rainy day ramblings

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rainy day ramblings

i

am I doing enough
to earn my time here?
(and, is it possible to also read a book?)

ii

rain on rose petals
silver linings everywhere

iii

companion = [with] [bread]
this also delimits my friend/acquaintance line:
who can I invite in next
to serve a warm thick slice?
the words around us bear
the weight of deep meanings
we don’t even bother consciously knowing

from now on companion will have
a more complex, savory taste
every time it rolls around my mouth

photography

Indonesia West of Wallace’s Line

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As you may know, Wallace’s Line is the line which (in terms of flora and fauna) separates Java, Bali, Sumatra, and Borneo and their outlying islands from Sulawesi, Nusa Tenggara, Timor, and the Moluccas. West of the line we visited Sumatra, Java, and Bali. Here are photos from that segment of our trip.

Our first stop in Sumatra was the village of Bukit Lawang, where we stayed at Green Hills Guest Lodge. Our first visitor was this Silver Leaf Monkey.
Bukit Lawang is situated right by a river, and a family of Crab-eating Macaques showed up on the opposite bank.
The day after we arrived we wen on a walk to see the famous Sumatran Orangutans, (Critically Endangered) and immediately saw this young male.
This baby orangutan seemed extremely proficient at climbing and foraging, here eating the orange fruit pictured.
After seeing the first orangutans we passed through a “carload” of Thomas Leaf Monkeys, some with babies.
The star bird of the hike was this Great Argus, a type of pheasant closely related to the peafowl. It boasts strangely elongated wing and tail feathers to aid in its spectacular display, and although this male did not display, it was still astounding.
This zoomed-out picture can offer a better perspective on the seemingly stretched body of this amazing bird.
This was one of the highlights of the hike: a fully grown male orangutan, sitting in a tree.
This is a White-handed Gibbon, one of the several we saw. Back at Bukit Lawang several times we heard the song of gibbons, a truly spectacular sound. This one was with several others.
Seen at the same time as the other gibbon, here you can see a baby’s head and hands.
Near Bukit Lawang we went to a cave system inhabited by many bats. This is one of the residents.
We had also signed up for a “jungle trek” which meant staying at another spot for a night before starting. There we got great views of this Little Spiderhunter, a relative of the honeyeaters.
Near the beginning of the trek we came across another troop of Thomas’s Leaf Monkeys. This is a mother and a baby.
This squirrel was Cedar’s favorite animal we saw on the trek, and he made me put it in this post.
For me the highlight was this White-crowned Hornbill (classified as globally Endangered), seen after our night camping. It is rare and only occasionally seen in Sumatra.
On the way back from our camp we came across this Diard’s Trogon, the bright red bird in the middle of the photo.
Just before we got back to the lodge we saw this Blue-throated Bee-eater, one of the star birds of the trek.
Just before going back to Bukit Lawang we saw this bright red and yellow Banded Woodpecker from the jungle lodge.
Before leaving Bukit Lawang we got great views of this Crested Serpent-eagle calling and displaying for seemingly no reason.
Our next stop was Lake Toba, where this Eurasian Tree Sparrow provided the perfect opportunity for a more artistic photo.
Also at Lake Toba we saw this White-breasted Waterhen walk past our table at a restaurant.
After Toba we stayed at Rimba Ecolodge on the west coast. This is a Stork-billed Kingfisher, one of the most distinctive birds we saw.
Here you can see some of the strange geometric patterns found in the some of the coral of the area.
This is one of the amazing sunsets we saw at Rimba.
Since we had to fly through Java to get to Bali we stopped at Yogyakarta and saw the famous Buddhist temple Borobudur. Here we found a carving of a chicken standing on top of a temple.
We also found this amazing carving of a Green Peafowl, the lesser known relative of the Indian one. Green Peafowls mainly live in mainland Asia, but there is a small population on Java.
Borobudur’s most famous attraction are the sitting Buddhas inside stupas lining the edge of the top level. Since the Buddhas are mostly enclosed, I just got a picture of the eye of one.
And here’s CEDAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Our first stop in Bali was Ubud, where we went on a bird walk around the rice fields and few forests of the city. This is a Cattle Egret in a rice paddy.
One of our target species on the walk was this Javan Kingfisher, only found in Java and Bali.
Near the end of the walk we saw this snake attack a flying lizard and eat it. Here it is preparing to strike.
Later in Bali we went snorkeling off of Pulau Menjangan, an island where we saw a herd of deer resting under a building.
This Whimbrel we saw on the beach of the island. It is a type of curlew, famous for their long, curving bills.
After snorkeling we went on a walk to dinner where we saw this Racquet-tailed Treepie, a specialty bird of the region.
The sunset over the mangroves in West Bali was spectacular.
The reason for us going to west Bali was because of West Bali National Park, and the reason I wanted to go there was because of a single bird. The Javan Banded Pitta you see here is not the special one but was seen in the beginning of the desired birding trip.
This Green Junglefowl is also not the one we were looking for, although it was high on my list of birds I wanted to see.
This is the bird I had been waiting for. This is a Bali Starling, Bali’s ONLY endemic bird, Critically Endangered with a population estimate of only 50 left in the wild. It is so valuable on the black market pet trade that a captive breeding center was once robbed at gunpoint just for these birds! We saw around 17!!!!!!!
This pair of starlings sat and posed for us for almost ten minutes!
Here you can see the wispy crest of the starlings.
This starling posed for just a moment when I got this photo, then flew away.
This Island Collared-dove is the Indonesian equivalent of the Eurasian Collared-dove, widely introduced in North America.
After the forest where we saw the starlings we went to a plantation where we got this Chestnut-headed Bee-eater.
The final segment of our birding trip in Bali was going to the shrimp farms, where we saw this Small Blue Kingfisher.
After Bali we crossed over to Java again and went to Baluran National Park to look for the Endangered Green Peafowl. Here is an Oriental Pied Hornbill seen in the park
We eventually saw three peafowl, two male and one female. This male came the closest, and gave us amazing views. Most of the global population are found in mainland Asia, but there is an isolated group found in Java.
Here you can seen part of the famous train that male peafowl have. This was either a young male or something had attacked because it was missing most of its train feathers.
This is a fully grown male peafowl, with the completely developed train of iridescent green ocelli feathers.
This is the same male peafowl.
Baluran is also famous for its herds of water buffalo and deer.
poetry

cuttings

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cuttings

one small olive-green leaf
with waxy white bloom
laid gently on a soft bed of soil
will not rest
first it will root
leaf meristem will morph
become what is needed
for this time and place
discover how to grow down
into the deep silent dark
how to become acquainted
with the ways of worms
the frequencies of underground sound
life without wind sun stars
the pressure and exactitude
of finding each fine fissure
where the tiniest root hair might take hold
and then, only after
leaf has tied itself to earth,
it will go back to stretching
trying the feel of new aspects
finding a way to elevate
the flow of energy
to enter the upright world again
with the exhilaration of becoming
more than the world knew
when one first awoke

poetry

disappearing act

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disappearing act

my favorite part of the concert
is when the house lights dim
my body melts into the seats
and my form becomes invisible presence
I’m there and transported
a silent witness
until my hands are invited
to beat the air into wild approval
percussive acknowledgement
of what the souls on stage have wrought
that we are here together
in this moment in this place
in this desire to see and be seen
to make something new
and be part of the making