Blyth's hornbills are called Burung Taun-taun

Blyth's Hornbill (Rhyticeros plicatus)

I frequently see Blyth's hornbills while trekking in the jungle around Manokwari. The best spot to watch this bird is in the lowland and lower montane forests. In West Papua, we call it burung taun-taun. It is a big bird that likes to eat fruits of nutmeg and ficus trees. Blyth's hornbills and other birds play very important role in the ecosystem of rainforest. They disperse seeds of the fruits that they eat. They can fly in a group of two, four or even thirty birds. I organize birding tours to rainforest in West Papua for birders who want to see hornbill and a lot of other tropical birds that are endemic to this region. Hornbills like to sleep in  high trees after sunset time. In order to avoid predators, perhaps snakes, Blyth's hornbills choose the tip parts of the twigs. The one on the top of this post is a male.

Male and Female Blyth's Hornbill in the rainforest of Manokwari

I have guided birdwatchers from Europe, North Americas, Asia and Australia to watch Blyth's hornbill in Manokwari, Tambrauw Mountains, Sorong and Raja Ampat islands. The best times to watch birds are in the mornings and in the afternoon before sunset. I and some of my friends built basecamps deep in the jungle for birdwatchers to stay for several nights in the tropical rainforest of West Papua to watch birds and other wild animals such as cuscus possum, wallaby, deer, soa-soa lizard, butterfly, beetles, and etc.

Birding Tour in Manokwari and Tambrauw Mountains

If you are physically fit, then you can take a birding tour with me to rainforest in Waigeo and its surrounding islands. I have seen various species of tropical birds there. Some of them that I can identify are Red Bird of Paradise (paradisaea rubra), Wilson's Bird of Paradise, Palm Cockatoo, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Eclectus Parrot, Red-cheeked Parrots, Variable Goshawk, Western Crown Pigeon, Oriental Dollarbird, Yellow-faced Myna, White-breasted Wood Swallow, Hooded Butcherbird, Pied Imperial Pigeon Pinon Imperial Pigeon, and etc.

In addition to animals, visitors who take a birding and wildlife watching tour with me can also see a lot of unique plants in the villages and forest that we visit including banana, papaya, mango, jackfruit, matoa, durian, and rambutan trees. Wild flowers such as Beach Hibiscus, terrestrial orchid spathoglottis plicata, or various colors of hibiscus can be seen in the region.

Flights to Sorong and a birding trip to Raja Ampat

• If you live in the United States or in Europe and want to watch birds in Raja Ampat, and its surrounding forest, first, you need to fly to Jakarta - the capital of Indonesia. 
• Second, you take a domestic flight served by Sriwijaya Air, Batik Air or Garuda to Sorong city. I will meet you at the airport and organize your bird and wildlife tour to the forest of Raja Ampat.

Booking

Here is my e-mail: peace4wp@gmail.com and whatsapp number: +6281332245180.

by Charles Roring

Also read:

• Flowers in Raja Ampat
• Snorkeling Pictures from Raja Ampat

Blyth's Hornbill Birds - The Symbol of True Love

Every time I go trekking in the jungle in West Papua, I often see Blyth's Hornbill birds. They are large birds that make New Guinea island and a lot of other islands in the same region as their natural habitat. Blyth's hornbills are large birds, they usually eat fruits from ficus tree, and nutmeg. They will spread the seeds from these birds to all direction of the forest thus expanding the growth of rainforest. When they fly, they create flutter sounds that are created by their wings.

Blyth's Hornbill

A couple of Blyth's hornbills are considered as the Symbol of True love by some native Papuan tribes who live in the bird's head region of New Guinea. If one of them dies, the one that survives will fly or live forever alone. I create the digital illustration of these Blyth's hornbill birds using Inkscape. My objective is to promote the preservation of tropical rainforest environment to anybody who reads this article.
Now the above digital illustration is available in various kinds of products print on demand products of Redbubble such as t-shirt, tote bags, spiral notebooks, and mugs.
If you are interested in ordering some of them, please, visit the following link:
Blyth's Hornbill

Coastal Birds in Raja Ampat

The tropical beaches of Waigeo are getting famous as tourist destination. Visitors travel from Europe, North America, Australia, and Asian countries to enjoy their holiday here in Waigeo island. There are beach resorts and homestays that visitors can choose to stay to enjoy swimming, snorkeling, scubadiving, and sunbathing. 

Beach Kingfisher

There are also tourists who travel to Raja Ampat to enjoy birding. There are a lot of coastal birds which they can watch. As a tourist guide, I have organized birding tours for visitors who want to see coastal birds such as Crested Tern, Willie Wagtail, Spice Imperial Pigeon, Beach Kingfisher, Lesser Frigatebird, Striated Heron, Eastern Reef Egret, Pacific Swallow, Torresian Crow, Radjah Shelduck, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Beach-stoned Curlew, Singing Starling, White-breasted Woodswallow, Wimbrel, Plover, Moustached Treeswift, Eastern Osprey, and etc.

Birds in Love

Sulphur Crested Cockatoo (Cacatua galerita)

Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo (Cacatua galerita) is a species of bird that is beautiful and can be seen in lowland and lower montane forest of West Papua and its surrounding islands. The bird has got white feather with yellow crest above its head. While I was guiding a French couple in Mesirrokow river of Manokwari, I was able to see a loving couple that was sitting close to each other on a branch of a tree just above the river. They saw us but did not fly away when we walked along the riverside below them. When we were already behind them, I stopped, turned around and took some pictures of them.

Birds are very romantic when they are in love. I have seen some of them when I guided visitors on birdwatching tours in several rainforest areas of West Papua.

Golden Myna in Klasow Valley

When I was in Klasow valley, I saw a couple of Golden Myna (Mino anais) kissing or cuddling each other on a branch of a dead tree. I walked slowly trying to hide myself under the cover of shrubs and other green plants. They were not afraid of me when I aimed my camera at them. I was able to make a lot of pictures of them. The one in this blog was my best shot.

Pink-spotted Fruit Dove

Another birds in love couple that I like to present in this post is Pink-spotted Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus perlatus). I saw these birds near the guesthut of Klasow valley. The male and female looked the same. I was guiding some birdwatchers in the lowland forest of Sorong regency at that time. The birds were preparing for a nest because the female bird was carrying eggs. When I returned to the valley again, I could determined the female bird had laid her eggs. I could only hear their sounds. The nest was located in higher branches blocked by leaves and twigs. The bird was also seen at Mesirrokow river - the lowland forest of Manokwari. I was guiding three French tourists. We saw the Pink-spotted Fruit Dove and Lowland Peltop at the same time.

Pinon Imperial Pigeon in lowland forest of Sorong

Pinon Imperial Pigeon (Ducula pinon) lives in lowland and lower montane forest of New Guinea. The feather is mostly brown. Its tail is black with very visible white stripe near its tip. I saw a couple of these birds after watching Lesser Birds of Paradise. I was guiding an Australian couple at that time.

Birding Optics

Watching birds in the forest  is a facinating activity. The birdwatching experience will be greatly enhanced if visitors bring high quality birding devices as binoculars and spotting scopes. I highly recommend Nikon EDG 8×42 mm binoculars and a pair of sturdy Swarovski SLC 10×42 mm binoculars that are suitable for all weather condition. Visitors who go birdwatching without proper birding optics will find their trips only as ordinary sightseeing tours. Written by Charles Roring/ E-mail: peace4wp@gmail.com Whatsapp: +6281332245180.
Palm Cockatoo
Explore the Natural Beauty of West Papua