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Sulawesi & Halmahera trip report (1 Viewer)

Ignacio

Well-known member
I just uploaded to my website www.iyufera.com a photo report from my three-week trip to the islands of Sulawesi and Halmahera (Indonesia) last August.

Weather was horrible throughout, but I managed to see most of the key endemic species, both birds and mammals.

Best,
 
Impressive as always, Ignacio, and thanks for putting your report online. I went to Torajaland once and didn't look at the birds at all. What was I thinking? Anyway I'm off to southern Morocco in the beginning of December, so your report on that should help in the planning.
 
Minahassa Masked Owl photo?

Amazing photos Ignacio! The Babirusa are brilliant, very tempted to make the trip for them. Some good news.... your roosting Sulawesi Masked Owl appears to be the much rarer Minahassa Masked Owl... comments anyone? Only saw this species for the first time myself this year, at Lore Lindu. Nice one!
 
Impressive indeed. An excellent report and stunning photogrpahy :t:

I would be great if you could upload some of the photos to the Bird Forum Gallery as well so they could be include in Opus and the Bird Database. You've taken at least half a dozen new species just from this visit - no mean feat considering we've now almost 6,000 species with photos - quite a few taken by Rob as well I might add!
 
Amazing photos Ignacio! The Babirusa are brilliant, very tempted to make the trip for them. Some good news.... your roosting Sulawesi Masked Owl appears to be the much rarer Minahassa Masked Owl... comments anyone? Only saw this species for the first time myself this year, at Lore Lindu. Nice one!

Aha! That was one of the big controversies of the trip. I showed the photo to every birder I met during the trip and got mixed oppinions. Although of course I'd love it to be Minahassa, I tend to lean towards Sulawesi:

The photo was taken looking up a hollow tree, and I stepped down the flash not to blind the bird. Although the "mask" looks quite dark, it doesn't seem to be a different tone to the breast (as should in Minahassa). Size was of course very difficult to asses.

Anyhow, I'd love to hear more oppinions! It would be indeed great for it to be Tyto inexspectata.

And thanks for your comments!
 
Impressive indeed. An excellent report and stunning photogrpahy :t:

I would be great if you could upload some of the photos to the Bird Forum Gallery as well so they could be include in Opus and the Bird Database. You've taken at least half a dozen new species just from this visit - no mean feat considering we've now almost 6,000 species with photos - quite a few taken by Rob as well I might add!

Thanks, IanF. Hadn't thought of that, will get to it.

Best,
 
The photo was taken looking up a hollow tree, and I stepped down the flash not to blind the bird. Although the "mask" looks quite dark, it doesn't seem to be a different tone to the breast (as should in Minahassa).

I've been checking various sources, and I have found no indication that facial disk versus breast is useful for identifying the Minahassa. It is shown as darker in the Wallacea field guide, but in the text they refer to both face and underparts as "light rusty", and e.g. in HBW vol. 5 the facial disk is shown as being lighter than the chest. I have, however, found clear statements saying that the rufescent tone to the facial disk is very useful, and "your" bird is far beyond anything I have seen on photos or illustrations for Sulawesi Masked. Additionally, I see no indications of small white spots on the wings, although those possibly wouldn't have been visible in this angle/light (but despite their small size they're visible on all decent photos I've found of Sulawesi Masked). That said, my experiance with these species is entirely limited to photos, what I've found in the literature and handling a specimen Sulawesi Masked some time ago, but I see no reason to doubt this as being a Minahassa. I might have been more hesitant if your other photos had been "problematic" (e.g. due to camera or too much photoshop), but they're excellent. Coincidentally, what I suspect could be photos of the same bird have been uploaded to orientalbirdimages as a Minahassa. Your unidentified deer is a Rusa Deer (Cervus [Rusa] timorensis) and the flying fox from Halmahera is the stikingly handsome Masked Flying Fox (Pteropus personatus).
 
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Buenas tardes, Ignacio, fotografias muy hermosas!

Beautiful stuff. How easy is it to get to Sulawesi and Halmahera from Bangkok or Jakarta? I'm going to be in Australia and Thailand next year but am considering extending my trip into late August but going to Indonesia (I won't be in too much of a hurry to come back here into the grip of a recession!).
 
Thank you Rasmus. I took a look to orientalbirdimages and it certainly looks much the same. I must admit my main reference was the Wallacea guide illustration (Coates et al), plus back home the Handbook (HBW). Some birders I met in the field agreed with your comments.

I guess definitive confirmation could come from elimination - someone who has seen several Sulawesi Masked specimens and rule it out as one.

I will update this in the report, mentioning it as a more than probable Minahassa. IanF, if this is reasonably confirmed I'll upload it as Minahassa to the database.

Thanks also for the bat and deer IDs!
 
Buenas tardes, Ignacio, fotografias muy hermosas!

Beautiful stuff. How easy is it to get to Sulawesi and Halmahera from Bangkok or Jakarta? .

Thanks for your comments. From Jakarta there are several weekly flights to Manado, from where it's easy to drive to Tangkoko. And from Manado there are also flights to Palu in Central Sulawesi. Enjoy!
 
Hi, Ignacio! :hi:

You have no idea how green with envy I am after knowing where you've been in August! ;) What an exciting trip, in spite of the weather, fantastic fauna!!! o:)

As Ian, I lure you to post the bird pictures in the gallery, they are very good and we hardly ever (or never) see images of them! :t:

Saludines desde Oviedo!

Marian
 
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