Nitewalk at Lambir Hills National Park 17th October

Ever since MNS Miri members went on their first nitewalk way back in 1998 with Dr Rhett Harrison (not sure whether he was already a doctor then or not), we have kept this aspect of our outing alive come rain or shine, full moon or not.

Many have gone with us trudging thru the damp forest, sometimes in drizzles characteristic of the namesake rainforest. Children as young as six and members well over sixty; parents, teachers, inquisitive youngsters have enjoyed the wonder of seeing the creepy crawlies on the main trail of Lambir, sights they don't normally see during the day on the same path.

It can't be compared to Singapore Zoo Nite Safari of course but the charm of Lambir Hill Nitewalk lies with the little critters that makes Lambir Hills their's home.

Our big animal sightings so far have only been restricted to monkeys, tarsiers, and giant squirels. We are still praying hard for an encounter with the resident clouded leopard or sunbear. Our most exciting and favorite must have been the snakes and tarantulas. A few close encounters with the crawling kind have made some members addict to the nitewalk.

It's not just the off-chance sighting that draws people to a nitewalk. The serenity of the rainforest after sunset, the ruckus or lack of it mixed with the damp darkness creates a feeling of mysterious calm about such places. It helps that you are well familiar with the place by day, seeing it at night just further adds to the affinity to the trails.

This nite we didn't see many of the usual big players on the trails other than some oversize snails, frogs, ants, numerous stick insects, and a beautiful gecko. Our resident tarantula seemed to have gone AWOL.

Our nite's tally:














Nazeri Abghani/MNS Miri/Oct 2009

Birdwatching near Bukit Song, Lambir Hills NP

The section of Lambir Hills National Park we went birdwatching 3rd October was perhaps the least visited part of the NP other then by villagers living in Pantu Buri, farmers opening new land or those travelling to the newly opened oil palm plantations further north of the NP. Though the roads are typical 4WD Sarawakian dirt road, it's just barely manageable even for a 4WD. We definitely do not recommend going in there with a family sedan.

Steve, Musa, Liz and Nazeri made up the team of four that could wake early enough to make it to the 0530 hrs meeting call at Mosjaya. All the other sane birders were undoubtedly in bed dreaming of their most favorite birds. We on the other hand fantasized about Wreathed Hornbill, Wrinkled Hornbill and other rarities in these parts all the way to Bukit Song.

The early morning departure was actually perfect, by the time Steve maneuvered the DMAX and Nazeri opened up the gates we were only a few minutes shy of 0630hrs. For Sarawak, this is as bright as 0700 hrs in KL with even less people but fresher jungle air.

Birds were fortunately already busy catching the proverbial early worms, while some were contented with just singing their hearts out for the whole forest to hear. The forest edge we were at was perfect for the sort of birdwatching we intended for the morning. Sandwiched between two prime rainforests, hidden away from traffic, we were perfectly positioned to watch the birdies.

A shama was the first to announce it's presence, followed by the Black-headed Bulbul. Later to be followed by the Plaintive Cuckoo, Black and Yellow Broadbill, Barbet sp. and Hornbill sp. Faintly audible was the soft tap-tap-tap of of the woodpecker. Hopes were quite high that we woul record the presence of either Wreathed or Wrinkled on this auspicious day. Any day where you can go out twitch this early at such a prime spot should be declared an auspicious day.

A large hornbill finally did fly past, landed right at the top of a tall tree in front of us. Bino poised, Steve and et al prayed for Wreathed Hornbill, clammy hands on the focussing ring, Leica Televid APO 77 swung to position just as fast .... to confirm the bird : Asian Black Hornbill! A few long seconds of close scrunity later, it was still ABH. It was full agreement and without a doubt NOT a Wreathed Hornbill that day. We waited ...

There were plenty of other birds to watch and tick. We noticed two flowering species of trees all around our perch, small little birdies were flitting in and out, some went for the fruit and some went for the nectar. Yellow-eared Spiderhunter; Hairy-backed Bulbul, Lesser Leafbird, Cream-vented Bulbul, and Yellow-vented Bulbul were all there taking turns foraging and feeding. Once in while the birds would stop to preen.

A group of Hill Myna made a fly past several times right above our heads.

Many flowerpeckers and sunbirds were sighted fleeting amongs the forest edges. Purple-naped Sunbird did not make an appearance today as it did 15th August at the same patch.

Throughout the morning many more birds made their own private appearances on top of those already mentioned above:
Thick-billed Pigeon
Dusky Munia
Red-bearded Bee-eater
Lesser Coucal

Red-eyed Bulbul

Red-throated Barbet

Orange-bellied Flowerpecker

Black and Yellow Broadbill (heard)

Argus Pheasant (heard)Van Hasselt's Sunbird

Yellow-rumped Flowerpecker

Dark-necked Tailorbird

Crested Serpent Eagle

Crested Goshawk

Silver-rumped Swift

Chestnut-rumped Babbler

Blue-crowned Hanging Parrot

Blue-throated Bee-eater

Plain Sunbird

White-breasted Woodswallow

Tricolored Munia


Van Hasselt's Sunbird. Photosource Lip Kee Yap, Singapore.

With the conversions and opening up of forested lands and secondary forests near Lambir, the actual protected area has become more accessible of late. All around Lambir, oil palm plantations are cropping up, while others are at the forest clearing stage. New farms are being opened up and planted. This new access points gave more people greater opportunities to walk right up to the park bounday, enter it if they the wanted to. What we hope is that those who do take the trouble to go there, actually went there with benign intentions, to enjoy nature like us, birdwatching.

We are in the midst of keeping track of birds we see in Lambir in the hope of contributing to the Lambir NP Birdlist. Partly to monitor what's in and around the national park currently as well as note those that are no longer present.

Lambir Hills National Park is one of Birdlife's International Important Bird Area (IBA) within the northern division alongside with Niah National Park, Loagan Bunut National Park, Mulu National Park and Similajau National Park.

Write-up by Nazeri Abghani/MNS Miri/Oct 09

LAMBIR HILLS NATIONAL PARK

GoogleEarth Map from 2005. The dark green patch is Lambir Hills NP boundary.

Birdwatching at Pantu Buri

Looking at the edge of boundary of the northern section of Lambir NP.

This place is just off the road to Lambir Hills NP, right after Bukit Song, at the northern edges of Lambir Hills National Park. These days there are plenty of 4WD roads connecting a few of the smaller villagers in the backwaters of Lambir as well as to the various newly opened farms, and oil palm plantations.

Steve Dexter, Musa Musbah, Marijke Jannsens and yours truly piled up in Steve's Dmax and off we went on a bumpy ride on a dirt road to Pantu Buri. We were already in beautiful setting surrounded by prime rainforest even before we reached the main dirt track to Buri. Along the road down the side of Bukit Song, we heard and saw plenty of birds: 6 Slender billed crows, 4 Red-bearded bee-eater, 1 Black and yellow broadbill, 2 Blue-throated bee eater, 4 Hill Mynas, 2 Large woodshrike and several unidentified little sunbirds ... they were fleeting too fast for us to bother.

Off we went on our way to Buri after ticking of the bee eaters. We stopped by a little pond where Musa last enjoyed close-up views of Oriental Darter. Te bird wasn't there today. Instead we were happy with 20+ Barn swallows and Pacific swallows perched on telephone lines all along the track to the kampung. We heard Pied fantails and another group of Hill nearby, the mynas later flew past.

Pantu Buri is located along the Bakong River ... there are 2 clusters of longhouses, the traditional massive woodenand zinc types. There were several more modern individual houses to located alongside. LAKU's waterpump is located at the end of the dirt track. What's more interesting is the expanse of swamp (used to be paddy fields but were left fallow after this year's massive flooding in the area). The huge expanse of open space with numerous blackened dead tree trunks seemed ideal perching place for raptors and darters. Other smaller typical small birds were also seen in the area.

Bakong River looks massive with the amount of water flowing through it. The banks were crowded with not so tall trees that looks perfect as perches for kingfishers, darters, raptors and others. Crocodiles are also residents here according to the kampung folks we spoke to, though we didn't see any today.

We saw 4 Black-thighed falconets right in front of the smaller longhouse! This could be the closest all of us had been to one ... did I say four! The family unit were seen busy handling butterflies on the telephone wire. The area in front of the longhouse was overgrown with tall grasses and flowering shrubs, which explains the presence of butterflies and maybe the falconets. Upon closer scrutiny we noticed that the birds kept flying back and forth to a bare branch nearby. This might be the falconet's nest hole. Other birds we saw here were Dusky munia and numerous Chestnut Munia.

After the excitement with the falconet we moved on to the back of Bukit Song, another ideal spot for quiet birding. Here we saw Black -headed bulbul, Hairy-backed bulbul, Cream vented bulbul, Pale bulbul, female leafbird sp., a family of 4 woodpeckers sp. One interesting sighting was that of the Purple-naped sunbird!

It wasn't such a hassle to get to this new birding location, it's a nice quite corner for birding with quite a few nice birds, perhaps we'll come here more often. The kids from the longhouse too seems excited with the birds we showed them, maybe next time we'll cart along a slide projector and laptop for a bit of show and tell for the youngins : surely with the nice birds in the neighbourhood they should pick up some birdwatching.


The smallest raptor in the world, Black-thighed falconet Microhierax fringillarius.

Ruby-cheeked Sunbird

Ruby-cheeked sunbird Chalcoparia singalensis borneana. This male was sighted at Lambir Hills being visibly stressed at it's own reflection. It kept coming back to the same perch fronting a reflective glass window of a restaurant nestled down a slope of a hill.

Birds of Lambir

Birds of Lambir Hills National Park, Sarawak. Malayan Nature Journal 56:103-118 © Mike Shanahan 1999

Common Names Latin Names
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
Oriental darter Anhinga melanogaster
Striated heron Butorides striatus
Black-crowned Night-Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
Black bittern Dupetor flavicollis
Jerdon's Baza Aviceda jerdoni
Oriental Honey Buzzard Pernis ptilorhynchus orientalis
Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus
White-bellied sea-eagle Haliaeetus leucogaster
Crested serpent-eagle Spilornis cheela
Japanese Sparrowhawk Accipiter gularis
Eurasian sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus
Crested goshawk Accipiter trivirgatus
Black eagle Ictinaetus malayensis
Rufous-bellied eagle Hieraautus kiernerii
Changeable hawk-eagle Spizaetus cirrhatus
Blyth's hawk-eagle Spizaetus alboniger
Wallace's hawk-eagle Spizaetus nanus
Black-thighed falconet Microhierax fringillarius
Peregrine falcon Falco peregrinus ernesti
Blue-breasted Quail Coturnix chinensis
Crested partridge Rollulus roulroul
Crestless Fireback Lophura erythrophthalma
Crested Fireback Lophura ignita
Great argus Argus argusianus
White-browed crake Porzana cinerea
White-breasted waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus
Common sandpiper Tringa hypoleucos
Thick-billed green pigeon Treron curvirostra
Little green pigeon Treron olax
Pink-headed green pigeon Treron vernans
Large green pigeon Treron capellei
Jambu fruit dove Ptilinopus jambu
Green imperial pigeon Ducula aenea
Rock pigeon Columba livia
Spotted dove Streptopelia chinensis
Emerald dove Chalcophaps indica
Long-tailed parakeet Psittacula longicauda
Blue-rumped parrot Psittinus cyanurus
Blue-crowned hanging parrot Loriculus galgulus
Chestnut-winged cuckoo Clamator coromandus
Moustached Hawk-Cuckoo Cuculus vagans
Hodgson's Hawk-Cuckoo Cuculus fugax
Indian cuckoo Cuculus micropterus
Banded bay cuckoo Cacomantis sonnerati
Plaintive cuckoo Cacomantis merulinus
Violet cuckoo Chrysococcyx maculatus
Little bronze cuckoo Chrysococcyx minutillis
Drongo cuckoo Surniculus lugubris
Asian koel Eudynamys scolopacea
Chestnut-bellied malkoha Phaenicophaeus sumatranus
Raffle's malkoha Phaenicophaeus chlorophaeus
Red-billed Malkoha Phaenicophaeus javanicus
Chestnut-breasted malkoha Phaenicophaeus curvirostris
Short-toed coucal Centropus rectunguis
Greater coucal Centropus sinensis
Lesser coucal Centropus bengalensis
Oriental bay owl Phodilus badius
Reddish Scops-Owl Otus rufescens
Collared Scops-Owl Otus lempiji
Brown hawk-owl Ninox scutulata
Brown wood-owl Strix leptogrammica
Large Frogmouth Batrachostomus auritus
Gould's Frogmouth Batrachostomus stellatus
Large-tailed nightjar Caprimulgus macrurus
Edible-nest swiflet Collocalia fuciphaga
Black nest swiflet swiflet Collocalia maxima
Glossy swiflet Collacalia esculenta
Brown-backed needletail Hirundapus giganteus
Silver-rumped swift Raphidura leucopygialis
Fork-tailed Swift Apus pacificus
Grey-rumped treeswift Hemiprocne longipennis
Whiskered treeswift Hemiprocne comata
Red-naped trogon Harpactes kasumba
Diard's trogon Harpactes diardii
Scarlet-rumped trogon Harpactes duvaucelii
Common kingfisher Alcedo atthis
Blue-eared kingfisher Alcedo meninting
Blue-banded kingfisher Alcedo euryzona
Rufous-backed kingfisher Ceyx rufidorsa
Stork-billed kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis
Banded kingfisher Lacedo pulchela
Rufous collared kingfisher Actenoides concretus
Blue-throated bee-eater Merops viridis
Red-bearded bee-eater Nyctiornis amictus
Dollarbird Eurystomus orientalis
Bushy-crested hornbill Anorrhinus galeritus
White-crowned hornbill Aceros comatus
Wrinkled hornbill Aceros corrugatus
Wreathed hornbill Aceros undulatus
Asian black hornbill Anthracoceros malayanus
Rhinoceros hornbill Buceros rhinoceros
Helmeted hornbill Buceros vigil
Gold-whiskered barbet Megalaima chrysopogon
Red-crowned barbet Megalaima rafflesii
Red-throated barbet Megalaima mystacophanos
Blue-eared barbet Megalaima australis
Brown barbet Calorhamphus fuliginosus
Malaysian honeyguide Indicator archipelagicus
Rufous piculet Sasia abnormis
Rufous woodpecker Celeis brachyurus
Crimson-winged woodpecker Picus puniceus
Checker-throated Woodpecker Picus mentalis
Banded woodpecker Picus miniaceus
Olive-backed woodpecker Dinopium rafflesii
Buff-rumped woodpecker Meiglyptes tristis
Buff-necked woodpecker Meiglyptes tukki
Great slaty woodpecker Mulleripicus pulverulentus
White-bellied woodpecker Dryocopus javensis
Grey-capped woodpecker Denrocopus canicapillus
Grey-and-buff woodpecker Hemicircus concretus
Maroon woodpecker Blythipicus rubiginosus
Orange-backed woodpecker Reinwardtipicus validus
Dusky Broadbill Corydon sumatranus
Black-and-red broadbill Cymbirhynchus macrorhynchos
Banded broadbill Eurylaimus javanicus
Black-and-yellow broadbill Eurylaimus ochromalus
Green broadbill Calyptomena viridis
Blue-headed Pitta Pitta baudii
Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha
Garnet pitta Pitta granatina
Hooded pitta Pitta sordida
Barn swallow Hirundo rustica
Pacific swallow Hirundo tahitica
Red-rumped swallow Hirundo daurica
Black-winged flycatcher-shrike Hemipus hirundinaceus
Large woodshrike Tephrodornis gularis
Bar-bellied Cuckoo-Shrike Coracina striata
Lesser cuckoo-shrike Coracina fimbriata
Fiery Minivet Pericrocotus igneus
Scarlet Minivet Pericrocotus flammeus
Green iora Aegithina viridissima
Common iora Aegithina tiphia
Lesser green leafbird Chloropsis cyanopogon
Greater green leafbird Chloropsis sonnerati
Blue-winged leafbird Chloropsis cochinchinensis
Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus
Black and white bulbul Pycnonotus melanoleucos
Black-headed bulbul Pycnonotus atriceps
Grey-bellied bulbul Pycnonotus cyaniventris
Puff-backed bulbul Pycnonotus eutilotus
Yellow-vented bulbul Pycnonotus goiavier
Olive-winged bulbul Pycnonotus plumosus
Cream-vented bulbul Pycnonotus simplex
Red-eyed bulbul Pycnonotus brunneus
Spectacled bulbul Pycnonotus erythrophthalmos
Grey-cheeked bulbul Alophoixus bres
Yellow-bellied bulbul Alophoixus phaeocephalus
Hook-billed bulbul Setornis criniger
Hairy-backed bulbul Tricholestes criniger
Streaked bulbul Ixos malaccensis
Ashy bulbul Hypisipetes flavala
Crow-billed Drongo Dicrurus annectans
Bronzed drongo Dicrurus aeneus
Greater racket-tailed drongo Dicrurus paradieus
Dark-throated oriole Oriolus xanthonotus
Asian fairy bluebird Irena puella
Crested Jay Platylophus galericulatus
Black magpie Platymurus leucopterus
Slender-billed crow Corvus enca
Bornean bristlehead Pityriasis gymnocephala
Velvet-fronted nuthatch Sitta frontalis
Black-capped babbler Pellorneus capistratum
White-chested babbler Trichastoma rostratum
Ferruginous babbler Trichaster bicolor
Short-tailed babbler Malacocincla malaccense
Moustached Babbler Malacopteron magnirostre
Sooty-capped babbler Malacopteron affine
Scaly-crowned babbler Malacopteron cinereum
Rufous-crowned babbler Malacopteron magnum
Grey-breasted babbler Malacopteron albogulare
Chestnut-backed scimitar-babbler Pomatorhinus montanus
Striped wren-babbler Kenopia striata
Rufous-fronted babbler Stachyris rufifrons
Grey-headed Babbler Stachyris poliocephala
Chestnut-rumped babbler Stachyris maculata
Black-throated babbler Stachyris nigricollis
Chestnut-winged babbler Stachyris erythroptera
Striped tit-babbler Macronous gularis
Fluffy-backed tit-babbler Macronous ptilosus
Brown fulvetta Alcippe brunneicauda
White-bellied yuhina Yuhina zantholeuca
Siberian Blue Robin Erithacus cyane
Magpie robin Copsychus saularis
White-rumped shama Copsychus malabaricus
White-browed shama Copsychus stricklandi
Rufous-tailed shama Trichixox pyrrhopygus
Chestnut-naped forktail Enicurus ruficapillus
White-crowned forktail Enicurus leschenaulti
Sunda Whistling-Thrush Myiophoneus melanurus
Golden-bellied gerygone Gerygone sulphurea
Dark-necked tailorbird Orthotomus atrogularis
Ashy tailorbird Orthotomus ruficeps
Rufous-tailed tailorbird Orthotomus sericeus
Yellow-bellied prinia Prinia flaviventris
Grey-chested jungle-flycatcher Rhinomyias umbratilis
Drak-sided Flycatcher Muscicapa sibirica
Asian brown flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica latirostris
Verditer flycatcher Muscicapa thalassina
Narcissus flycatcher Ficedula narcissina
Pale-blue flycatcher Cyornis unicolour
Large-billed blue flycatcher Cyornis caerulatus
Bornean Blue-Flycatcher Cyornis superbus
Malaysian blue-flycatcher Cyornis turcosus
Grey-headed flycatcher Culicicapa ceylonensis
Spotted fantail Rhipidura perlata
Pied fantail Rhipidura javanica
Black-naped monarch Hypothymis azurea
Maroon-breasted philentoma Philentoma velatum
Rufous-winged philentoma Philentoma pyrhopterum
Asian paradise flycatcher Terpsiphone paradisi
Mangrove whistler Pachycephala grisola
Grey wagtail Motacilla cinerea
White-breasted wood swallow Artamus leucorhynchus
Common myna Acridotheres tristis
Hill myna Gracula religiosa
Plain sunbird Anthreptes simplex
Plain-throated sunbird Anthreptes malacensis
Red-throated sunbird Anthreptes rhodolaema
Ruby-cheeked sunbird Anthreptes singalensis
Purple-naped sunbird Hypogramma hypogrammicum
Crimson sunbird Anthreptes siparaja
Little spiderhunter Arachnothera longirostra
Long-billed spiderhunter Arachnothera robusta
Spectacled Spiderhunter Arachnothera flavigaster
Yellow-eared spiderhunter Arachnothera chrysogenys
Grey-breasted spiderhunter Arachnothera affinis
Scarlet-breasted flowerpecker Prionochilus thoracicus
Yellow-breasted flowerpecker Prionochilus maculatus
Yellow-rumped flowerpecker Prionochilus xanthopygius
Crimson-breasted flowerpecker Prionochilus percussus
Orange-bellied flowerpecker Dicaeum trigonostigma
Eurasian tree sparrow Passer montanus
Pin-tailed parrot finch Erythrura prasina
White-bellied munia Lonchura leucogastra
Dusky munia Lonchura fuscans
Black-headed munia Lonchura malacca

Read more about these animals in the following publication: Shanahan, M. & Debski, I. (2002). Vertebrates of Lambir Hills National Park, Sarawak. Malayan Nature Journal 56:103-118 © Mike Shanahan 1999

TENGKORONG WATERFALL TREK 15th August 2009

Tengkorong Waterfall is one of the six waterfalls that are relatively accessible to the public in Lambir Hills National Park. The other five waterfalls are the most popular and visited Latak Waterfall, Nibong Waterfall, Pantu Waterfall, the delightful Dinding Waterfall, and Pancur Waterfall.

Tengkorong Waterfall is on the longer and more remote trail from Lambir Park HQ. Mixed dipterocarp forest dominate the trails all the way to the waterfall. The forest canopy here is dominated by Dipterocarpaceae tree family, some good examples of giant trees can be seen along this trail.

The Engkabang trees (genus Shorea of the Dipterocarpaceae family) had been fruiting in the forest for the past two months, their distinctive 5-wing fruits could be seen scattered on the forest floor at some of the places and especially on the Inoue trail.

A hiker in a previous trek not so long ago reminisced that in her childhood years when the Engkabang trees near her longhouse were fruiting, practically the whole community went into the forest to collect these seeds. The seeds were then soaked, dried and pounded to extract the oil which would coagulate into something like lard. According to her, when the Engkabang fat was added to steaming rice, it tasted better than chicken rice!

From the Pantu intersection to the Km 4 T-junction, the path goes up and down quite a bit as we traversed across a few ridges and the intervening valleys. Two streams were crossed, the first being Sungei Letik not long after we left the Pantu intersection, which dropped into Pantu Waterfall, and the second Sungei Lepoh at 2km further on. Water level at both streams was especially low that day as Miri had been experiencing an unusually dry spell for weeks, hence we were able to cross the streams without taking our shoes off.

At Km 4, the path forked, the right one led to Dinding Waterfall and Bukit Lambir, and the other one in the opposite direction joined Bakam trail which has 2 branches, namely Tengkorong trail and Pancur trail that ended up at Tengkorong and Pancur Waterfalls respectively.

Tengkorong Waterfall appeared to be even less visited than Dinding Waterfall as we trudged on the thick layer of crunchy leaf litters which made descent down the hills rather slippery. Fortunately the gradients of the hills here were gentler. Still, it took us a total of 3 hours to reach Tengkorong Waterfall where we spent about half an hour soaking up the peace and solitude of the place, and stocking up energy for the return trek.

Tengkorong Waterfall is a pretty waterfall. The stream Sungei Liam-Libau drops about 2 to 2.5m into a fairly large circular pool.

The emerald green pool is surrounded by lush vegetation and enclosed by semi-circle ochre-coloured sandstone wall which is draped with ferns and moss. The stream then continues on to Pancur Waterfall, another waterfall for us to checkout.


A taller than average walking palm.


The Tengkorong pool.


The stream meanders from Tengkorong to Pancur.

Write-up and photos by Sara Wong, MNS Miri.