Hi all,
Been a bit behind on things, but wanted to post a bit about my recent (well somewhat recent) trip to Indonesia this past summer. As usual, Indonesia didn't fail to disappoint (with multiple meanings). The birds were amazing as always, but also it was extremely depressing to see the continued habitat destruction, incessant bird trapping, and piles of plastic. Overall it was a very successful trip that concentrated on some extremely rare species that probably won't be around for much longer.
Over general itinerary was western Java (Halimun, Gede, Jakarta), the Banyak Islands (Bangkaru & Babi), Simeulue, and Aceh. As usual we did the trip independently, but did hire a local in Aceh as you're supposed to have a guide to visit the reserve.
Once we arrived on Java, our first stop was Halimun NP, with the goal of picking up a few targets that are difficult to see elsewhere. The main target was Javan Blue-banded Kingfisher which I managed to see, but unfortunately Melissa missed it. We did quite well with our other targets though and had a few surprises as well!
Check out the blog for the full account of our time at Halimun.
https://budgetbirders.com/2019/09/16/indonesia-halimun-hallelujah-we-made-it-to-halimun/
Best,
Ross
Been a bit behind on things, but wanted to post a bit about my recent (well somewhat recent) trip to Indonesia this past summer. As usual, Indonesia didn't fail to disappoint (with multiple meanings). The birds were amazing as always, but also it was extremely depressing to see the continued habitat destruction, incessant bird trapping, and piles of plastic. Overall it was a very successful trip that concentrated on some extremely rare species that probably won't be around for much longer.
Over general itinerary was western Java (Halimun, Gede, Jakarta), the Banyak Islands (Bangkaru & Babi), Simeulue, and Aceh. As usual we did the trip independently, but did hire a local in Aceh as you're supposed to have a guide to visit the reserve.
Once we arrived on Java, our first stop was Halimun NP, with the goal of picking up a few targets that are difficult to see elsewhere. The main target was Javan Blue-banded Kingfisher which I managed to see, but unfortunately Melissa missed it. We did quite well with our other targets though and had a few surprises as well!
Check out the blog for the full account of our time at Halimun.
https://budgetbirders.com/2019/09/16/indonesia-halimun-hallelujah-we-made-it-to-halimun/
Best,
Ross