SULAWESI BIRDING ITINERARY 15 DAYS 14 NIGHTS 2023
Day 1: Manado – Tangkoko Park
From our meeting point at Novotel hotel Manado, after breakfast we will drive
directly to Tangkoko by car. We shall do birding along the road. Upon arrival
in Tangkoko we will check-in first and after that, we continue to do birding in
Tangkoko Park. Night at Tangkoko Cottage. Meals (Breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
are included during the stay in Tangkoko.
Days 2 – 4: Tangkoko Nature Reserve Birding
This reserve on the eastern tip of the Minahassa Peninsula is one of Sulawesi’s
flagship parks, the excellent lowland jungle and mangrove forest providing
superb birding site, The reserve is especially famous for kingfishers, having
no less than eight resident species, of which four are endemic but remember
that Tangkoko also has much more to offer than its kingfisher though and with
the assistance of the skilled our local team, we will be search for Lilac
cheeked kingfisher, Green-backed kingfisher, Sulawesi-dwarf kingfisher,
Sulawesi Pitta, Rudy kingfisher, Common kingfisher, Blue-eared kingfisher,
collared kingfisher, Red-Knobbed Hornbill, Sulawesi dwarf Hornbill,
Ochre-bellied boobook, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Bay Coucal, Lesser coucal,
Sulawesi-Hawk eagle, Sulawesi serpent eagle, Black eagle, Black kite, Sulawesi
cicada bird, Rusty-breasted cuckko, Sulawesi triller, Purple-winged roller, Ashy
woodpecker, Sulawesi pygmy woodpecker, Sulawesi hanging parrot, Ornate
lorikeet, Golden-mantled Racquetail, Blue-backed parrot, Grey-cheeked Green
Pigeon, Black-naped Fruit dove, Green Imperial Pigeon, Grey-headed Imperial
Pigeon, White-bellied Imperial Pigeon, Silver-tipped Imperial Pigeon, Sulawesi
Black Pigeon, Stephan’s Dove, Brown-cuckoo dove, PhilipineScrubfowl, Barred
rail, Isabeline Bush hen. During our boat trip to the mangrove we may find
other species; White-rumped Cuckoo-shrike, Common kingfisher, Great-billed
kingfisher, Pink-necked green Pigeon, Osprey, Great Frigatebirds, Lesser
frigatebirds, Pacific reef egret, common dollar bird, Striated heron, Little
tern, Sacred and Collared Kingfisher, White-bellied Sea eagle, Brahminy kite
and Purple heron. After spending much of the day birding but we have time also
to see interesting mammals such as Black-Macacanigra, Tarsier spectrum and bear
cuscus in Tangkoko Park. Three nights will be spent in a simple lodge just
outside the park. On day 4 – morning or late afternoon we will drive to Tomohon
for overnight stay. During the stay in Tomohon, meals only breakfast and lunch
are included. Dinner excluded.
Day 5: Gunung Mahawu
Gunung Mahawu is a forested Volcano (1490 meters above sea level), inside the
crater is a steaming, emerald-green lake ringed with yellow sulfur deposits.
From the summit, you can see neighboring Mount Lokon with its ever-present
plume of smoke. On a clear day, you can also see both the Sulawesi Sea on the
west and to the Maluku sea to the east, Gunung Mahawu is located near the
village of Rurukan where Sir Alfred Wallace lived for a while. Now Gunung
Mahawu is one of the Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) in Asia by
BirdLife International. In this birding place, we have some interesting
Sulawesi endemic species, it is one of the easiest and most reliable sites in
Sulawesi for the Scaly-breasted kingfisher- Actenoidesprinceps but please note
this star bird of Sulawesi is very skittish and always hide so to spot them
still need luck. Bird species at Gunung Mahawu and Tomohon; Scaly-breasted
kingfisher, Lilac-cheeked kingfisher, Green-backed Kingfisher, Blue-eared
Kingfisher, Collared Kingfisher, Sulawesi scops owl, Speckled boobook,
Ochre-bellied boobook, Sulawesi babbler, Chestnut-backed Bush-Warbler, Sulawesi
Blue-Flycatcher (split from Mangrove Blue-Flycatcher), the ultra
rareRufous-throated Flycatcher, Pale-blue Monarch (split from Black-naped
Monarch), Isabelline-bush hen, Barred rail, White-browed Crake, Sulawesi Myzomela,
Island Flycatcher, Citrine Flycatcher, Grey-sided Flowerpecker, Yellow-sided
Flowerpecker, Crimson-crowned Flowerpecker, Black-fronted White-eye, Mountain
white-eye, Streak-headed Dark-eye, Mountain Tailorbird, Purple-winged Roller,
Yellow-vented Whistler, Crimson Sunbird, Black Sunbird, Olive-back sunbird,
Sooty-headed bulbul, Hair crested drongo, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Ashy
Woodpecker, Sulawesi pygmy Woodpecker, Grey Wagtail, Yellow Wagtail, Chestnut
Munia, Scaly-breasted munia, Rusty-breasted Cuckoo, Brown-cuckoo dove,
superb-fruit dove, Sulawesi black-Pigeon, Sulawesi-hanging parrot, Black Eagle,
Black Kite, Osprey, Spotted Kestrel, Peregrine Falcon. Meals (Breakfast and
Lunch) are included. Dinner excluded.
Day 6: Tomohon – Kotamobagu
On the way to Kotamobagu, we have a great chance birding on Lake Tondano to see
Purple swamphen, White-browed crake, White-breasted waterhen, Common Moorhen,
Javan pond heron. Lunch en-route and late afternoon we reached Kotamobagu,
Check-in a hotel. Meals (Breakfast and lunch) are included. Dinner excluded.
Days 7: Dumoga Nani Wartabone National Park
full day morning and afternoon we will explore the Maleo breeding Center, the
most handsome of all megapodes is the endemic MacrocephalonMaleo of Sulawesi.
Its black-and-pink plumage, erect tail and grotesque helmet or cephalon (hence
its scientific name) and characteristic rolling call make the Maleo a must for
bird-watchers visiting Sulawesi. and on the same days, it is possible to help
with the release of chicks back into the wild. After spending some time
searching for Maleos, we will walk in this small forest patch, searching for a
local endemic, Sulawesi crested Myna, White-necked Myna, Maroon-chinned
Fruit-Dove, Yellow-billed Malkoha, the strange white-eyed race of Hair-crested
Drongo, Black-billed Koel, Bay Coucal, Black-naped Fruit Dove, Sulawesi hanging
Parrot, White-breasted Woodswallow and Sulawesi Hawk-Eagle. These forests also
hold Sulawesi black Pigeon and perhaps get further chances at Sulawesi Pitta.
Meals (Breakfast and Lunch) are included. Dinner excluded..
Day 8: Gunung Ambang
This morning we will start very early and explore some of the surviving montane
forests in GunungAmbang Nature Reserve. Here we try to find the Matinan
flycatcher and we will also be hoping to encounter the beautiful the
Scaly-breasted Kingfisher and if we are in luck we will spot the purple-bearded
Bee-eater, Red-eared Fruit Dove, Sulawesi blue flycatcher, Sulawesi leaf
warbler, Superb Fruit-dove, Ornate lorikeet, yellow and green lorikeet,
Black-billed Koel, Sulawesi Pitta, Sulawesi Pygmy Woodpecker, Ashy Woodpecker,
Malia, yellow sided flowerpecker, Sulawesi Myzomela.
Day 9: Dumoga Nani Wartabone National Park
Fullday morning birding in Tapakulintang road, another forested section of the
park, where we hope to find the regularly roosting Speckled Boobook within the
park buildings, and we might see other species; Pied Cuckooshrike, Sulawesi
Dwarf-Kingfisher, Lilac cheeked Kingfisher, Green-backed Kingfisher, Maroon
chinned Fruit Dove, Superb fruit Dove, Grey-headed Imperial Pigeon, Red Knobbed
Hornbill, Sulawesi dwarf Hornbill, Grey-headed Fish eagle, this area also good
for the endemic Ivory-backed Woodswallow, and is great for mynas, with
Finch-billed, White-vented and Sulawesi (Crested) Mynas, Barred (Sulawesi)
Honey-Buzzard. In the afternoon we will move onto another area of the park
checking the roadside paddies and wet areas for Barred and Buff-banded Rails,
and Wandering Whistling-Ducks on the way. Meals (Breakfast and Lunch) are
included. Dinner excluded
Day 10: Gorontalo to Palu via Makassar
Morning flight from Gorontalo to Palua via Makasaar. After your arrival in the
capital Town of Central Sulawesi, From Palu, we will travel by car to Lore
Lindu National Park, our base for exploring the montane forests of Lore Lindu
National Park and we will stay three nights in a simple guesthouse in Wuasa,
near to the national park. During the stay in Lore Lindu, meals (breakfast,
lunch, and dinner) are included.
Days 11, 12, 13: Lore Lindu National Park
There is probably nowhere better to see Sulawesi’s unique avifauna, with 80% of
the island’s endemic species, this park has a well-deserved reputation for
montane specialties. our main targets here are the magnificent Sulawesi endemic
of the Purple-Beared Bee-Eater, Great Shortwing, Malia, Geomalia,
Chestnut-backed Bush Warbler, noisy Caerulean cuckoo shrikes, Sulawesi
Cicadabirds, Black-fronted White-eye, black Sunbird, Black-naped Monarch, and
the Citrine Flycatcher, Island Flycatcher, Sulawesi Blue Flycatcher, Mountain
serin, Sulawesi Myzomela, Ivory-backed wood-swallow, Ornate lorikeet,
Small-sparrow hawk, Maroon-backed Whistler, Heinrich nightjar, Speckled
boobook, CinabarBoobook, Sulawesi scops owl, Sulawesi pygmy woodpecker,
Spot-tailed Goshawk, Spotted Kestrel, lemon-bellied white-eye, Sulawesi
Triller, Sulawesi cicada bird, Sulawesi serpent eagle and many more with luck!
On at least one of the days we will make the climb up the infamous Anaso Track,
which allows access to higher altitudes, and the possibility of Sulawesi’s sole
endemic bird family – Hylocitrea (yellow flanked whistler); the strange and
rare Geomalia (recently found to be an odd zoo their thrush); along with
Golden-mantled and Yellow-breasted Racquet-tails, Red-eared Fruit-Dove,
Maroon-backed Whistler, White-eared Myza, and Streak-headed Dark-eye. These
ascents will also give us a chance at the rare Mountain Serin, Sombre Pigeon, and
with luck, we might see the Purple-bearded Bee-eater known as the world’s most
interesting bee-eater. There is also often the chance to find Diabolical
Nightjars roosting during the day. On day13 – late afternoon we will drive back
to Palu for overnight stay. In Palu only breakfast and lunch are included.
Dinner excluded.
Day 14: Palu – Makassar – Ramang Ramang
Breakfast at the hotel afterward transfers to Palu airport a flight to
Makassar.
Afternoon trip can be taken to Makassar and ricefield and fishponds for Pale-headed
Munia, Black-faced Munia, ChesnutMunia, White-shouldered triller, Javan Pond
Heron, White-headed Stilt, Sacred Kingfisher, lesser coucal. During stay in
Makassar, meals (breakfast and lunch) are included. Dinner excluded.
Day 15: Ramang ramang forest – Makassar – Next
destination
Karaenta to Lore Lindu National Park. Early morning breakfast at the hotel then
we will travel up into the forested limestone hills north of Makassar city.
Karaenta Nature Reserve is the good place to spot an endemic that is confined
to South Sulawesi the local Black-ringed White-eye, This forest also provides a
good chance to see the Sulawesi Dwarf Hornbill, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Red
Knobbed Hornbill, Sulawesi crested Myna, Piping Crow, Sulawesi Goshawk and with
luck the White-necked Myna. In this forest, we might also find the Sulawesi
Streaked Flycatcher (recently described in 2015. after this trip, we will
transfer you to Makassar airport for your next destination. End of the trip.
Breakfast included.
PLEASE NOTE:
This is a sample itinerary subject can change due to weather conditions and
safety reasons.
