“The mist was rising off the glassy surface of the broad river as the first rays of the sun illuminated the tree tops. Out of sight, gibbons wailed and pheasants boomed in an ancient dawn ritual. Our boat drifted silently around a bend, beneath the arching branches of a wild nutmeg tree all hung about with Entada vines. A Stork-billed Kingfisher launched out from its hunting perch to jet upstream, its electric-blue rump marking its progress. A little further on a family of pot-bellied Proboscis Monkeys stretched, scratched and yawned on the bare branches of a ghostly Mengaris tree. A whoosh over our heads, and a pair of gigantic Rhinoceros Hornbills flapped and glided into view. They landed just below the canopy of a towering fig to jostle with a family of ornate Wrinkled Hornbills and a lone White-crowned Hornbill already gorging themselves on sweet figs. Back at eye-level, our attention was diverted by a tiny Pygmy Squirrel which leapt onto a sapling and forced a minuscule golden frog to spring into our boat.”
This was early morning out on the Kinabatangan River in north-eastern Borneo – a melting pot of biodiversity and a paradise for naturalists.
For as long as I recall, the idea of exploring the forests of Borneo had been an alluring but seemingly impossible dream. This is the land of head hunters, the Great Red Ape, the world’s largest flower, and snakes that fly. The land, too, of Wallace, Whitehead and O’Hanlon – explorers and raconteurs extraordinary. And a land of brilliant birds – close to 600 species including spiderhunters, shamas, leafbirds and minivets.
So finally, in March 2002, we found ourselves touching down on Malaysia Airlines flight 2608 in the sprawling city of Kota Kinabalu, at the foot of a mysterious mountain of the same name, and on the shores of the South China Sea. ?KK’ – as it is known – is the gateway to Malaysia ‘s Sabah province which occupies the northern quarter of Borneo. The world’s third largest island, Borneo is divided among three countries – Malaysia, Indonesia and the tiny sultanate of Brunei. It straddles the equator in a region known as Sundaland – a network of islands including Sumatra and Java which are surrounded by shallow seas, and were formerly linked to the Asian mainland. Because of this geological link – broken at the end of the last Ice Age just 10 000 years ago when the oceans retreated – the plants and wildlife of Borneo have strong affinities with Asia, although a few Australasian elements have strayed west. Between Sundaland and New Guinea lies a deep sea chasm which has served to isolate the fauna of Australasia where marsupials, cockatoos and other unique creatures are confined.
After a day acclimatising to the debilitating heat and humidity of KK, we headed north to the foothills of Mount Kinabalu. Its peak rising to 4100 metres, Kinabalu is the highest mountain in south-east Asia and it harbours an extraordinary diversity of endemic plants and birds. This was the stomping ground of John Whitehead, who explored Kinabalu between 1887 and 1899 and has – among others – a trogon, a broadbill and a spiderhunter named in his honour. The reserve headquarters at about 1800 metres was to be our base for two nights as we walked the network of trails and waited for birds to appear on the forest fringe. This was temperate forest dominated by oak and chestnut trees festooned with epiphytic orchids and ferns, and characteristic birds included the ubiquitous Grey-throated Babbler, Mountain Tailorbird, Chestnut-capped Laughing-Thrush, Indigo Flycatcher, Black-capped White-eye and Chestnut-capped Yuhina. Birds were most prolific at dawn, with many species habitually attracted to the moths and other insects drawn overnight to the lamps around the accommodation. Noisy gangs of curious Bornean Tree-pie were to be seen foraging alongside Ashy Drongo and Short-tailed Green Magpie – snapping up stunned beetles and haggard moths. Out of sight, Red-breasted Partridge could be heard making their repetitive cuckoo-like call, while Blue-naped Barbets remained frustratingly hidden within the canopy of primitive conifer trees. Bird wise, things went very quite after about 9 a.m – apart from the dashing Scarlet Sunbirds which attended Elderberry bushes and Bamboo Orchids – and we had to wait until late afternoon for the action to hot up. Two gorgeous birds which were most active just prior to dusk were the White-browed Shrike-babbler (a dapper black and white bird with golden tertial feathers) and the enchanting Little Pied Flycatcher which flitted confidingly within touching distance. We never managed to undertake the complete summit trail where the endemic Kinabalu Friendly Warbler would have been guaranteed, but we did encounter Snowy-browed Flycatcher and Mountain Imperial-Pigeon at about 2500 metres.
After the cool misty heights of the mountain slopes, we descended to the lowland rainforest at Poring Hot Springs. Still within Kinabalu National Park, but with a humid tropical atmosphere, Poring provided a brief but dazzling birding experience. Just beyond our air-conditioned chalet, was a small park-like section of fragmented forest and I struggle to recall ever having enjoyed such outstanding birding in such a tiny area. Raffles’ Malkoha (the same Sir Stamford Raffles after whom the giant Rafflesia flower is named), Red-bearded Bee-eater, Gold-whiskered Barbet, Buff-rumped Woodpecker (an uninspiring name for a splendid bird), tiny toy-like Black-and-yellow Broadbills, Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (wow!), Asian Fairy Bluebird, Spectacled Spiderhunter and minuscule Orange-billed Flowerpecker were just a few of those which put in an appearance here. On the Mamut River, we watched a gaudy Red-and-black Broadbill emerge from its hanging nest, followed by a singing White-browed Shama – its liquid call akin to the African robin-chats. And, as if this weren’t enough, I was treated to a view of a Paradise Tree-Snake, launching itself from a large-leaved dipterocarp and floating about four metres through the air into the foliage of a smaller tree. Dragon-like agamid lizards clung to tree trunks, and striking Prevost’s Squirrels, with deep charcoal coats set off by an orange underbelly, scurried along broad branches. One of the highlights at Poring is a canopy walkway – albeit rather intimidating for vertigo sufferers with its highest point being 41 metres – where cuckooshrikes, trogons, minvets and fruit-pigeons can be seen. As it turned out, I was too exhausted by the time I’d hauled our two year old up the slippery trail in 100% humidity, and flopped down to watch listlessly as a pair of Abbott’s Babblers clambered up a liana, and a bizarre turquoise wood-borer beetle inched its way across my boot. Underestimating the richness of this locality, we had just one night at Poring and more time would be needed to find the variety of intriguing woodpeckers, pittas and pheasants that frequent the area.
A few days later we arrived at Sukau Rainforest Lodge on the banks of the broad Kinabatangan River. This is one of Borneo ‘s most renowned wildlife areas with Asian Elephant, Sumatran Rhino, Sun Bear and Bearded Pig alongside a host of primates, small carnivores and a jaw-dropping list of birds. The lodge has won several prestigious environmental awards for its strong ecotourism ethic and it was a pleasure to know that guests like ourselves have such a minimal impact on the fragile ecosystem. The major draw-card for wildlife is the riparian forest, dominated by fig and mengaris trees, but this is a tragically thin and vulnerable ribbon of life encroached upon by the vast and sterile oil palm plantations which cover so much of lowland Sabah. Disturbingly, the murky silt-laden river bears testimony to the forest destruction higher up in the catchment, and rafts of invasive water hyacinth have choked several formerly productive oxbows. Nevertheless, all eight of Borneo ‘s hornbill species are known from the Kinabatangan and we were fortunate to see six of them during our five night stay. Pairs and groups of Rhinoceros Hornbills were seen on the crowns of trees and – most conspicuously – honking and gliding across the river. These are surely among the most magnificent of all birds and my heart truly skipped a beat when I first set eyes upon them. The Asian Pied Hornbill and Black Hornbill were seen as solitary foragers, while the Bushy-crested and Wrinkled Hornbills went about in family groups. The last species we saw – and one of the region’s most elusive birds – was the unkempt-looking White-crowned Hornbill. One which did elude us was the massive Helmeted Hornbill – severely threatened by habitat destruction and centuries of hunting for its valued casque.
Our time at Sukau was spent loafing around the lodge, wildlife watching from electric boats on the main river and its channels, or exploring the short jungle trails. Birds were surprisingly few at the lodge itself, although Magpie Robin, Dusky Munia, Common Iora and Ashy Tailorbird were all common and confiding. The small patch of jungle – secondary forest with ginger and wild banana conspicuous beneath a sun-filtered canopy – was also less busy with birds than expected, although we did see on the minuscule Rufous Piculet – one of the world’s tiniest woodpeckers – which allowed a close approach as it tapped a dry twig, shot out is long sticky tongue and extracted a juicy beetle larvae. We heard, but did not set eyes upon, a Garnet Pitta which called frustratingly nearby. Birdwatching out on the water was altogether more productive as our boat pilot and eagle-eyed guide Herman Abang had intimate local knowledge. Oriental Darter, Brahminy Kite, Lesser Fish-Eagle, Stork-billed Kingfisher and Blue-eared Kingfisher patrolled the river and its tributaries, while the aforementioned hornbills fed alongside Little Green-Pigeon and Black-headed Bulbul in fruiting trees. Along the smaller tributaries, where veils of greenery hung to the water’s edge, flycatchers were especially well-represented with the Black-naped Monarch, extravagant Asian Paradise-Flycatcher (a snow white bird with cobalt blue head), Malaysian Blue Flycatcher and Pied Fantail all regularly encountered. White-rumped Shama, Scarlet-rumped Trogon, Maroon Woodpecker and White-chested Babbler were among the others seen but calling Hooded Pitta and Crested Fireback (an elaborately-plumaged pheasant) eluded us. Returning home at dusk one night we were treated to close-up views of an impressive Buffy Fishing-Owl which was settling onto one of its nocturnal hunting perches.
Mammal wise, we never did see the elephants or rhinos, but were more than happy with Proboscis Monkey, Long-tailed Macaque (baboon-like monkeys which searched mud banks for crabs), Maroon Langur and a single male Orangutan which had just awoken from a night in its nest of leaves.
In hindsight, we should have extended our trip to include the renowned Danum Valley conservation area (on the itinerary of most international bird tour groups) where extensive stands of lowland rainforest exist. Here, we might have chanced upon the almost mythical Bornean Bristlehead and may also have seen the Giant Pitta or Great Slaty Woodpecker. Overall, I can highly recommend Borneo as a birdwatching destination and Malaysia ‘s Sabah province provides probably the best variety of habitats with accessible road and air links. I will certainly hope to return one day for the two remaining hornbill species and perchance a glimpse of the those glorious pittas.
Off you go
Overall, I was rather surprised at the infrastructure in Borneo, and Sabah – at least – is an easy destination for travellers. English is widely understood so communication poses no problems at all. One could readily hire a car and travel around independently, or – if cost is a major factor (and that will be the case for all Rand-earning South Africans) – then it would be possible to make use of buses although you’d then be at the mercy of unpredictable time schedules. Because we were travelling with a youngster, we decided to eliminate all possible hiccups and made our arrangements with the reputable Borneo Ecotours. This is an excellent local outfit (based in KK) with very friendly and efficient staff and they are able to create tailor-made itineraries, using their own vehicles and driver-guides, or advise of pre-arranged tours with a birding or botanical bent. Borneo Ecotours also own the Sukau Rainforest Lodge and I strongly advise a visit to their excellent website – www.borneoecotours.com – for any prospective travellers.
The climate is at all times tropical with an annual rainfall of between 1500 and 4500mm; the wettest months are from October to February and this is when leeches are hard to avoid. Despite the abundance of mosquitoes, malaria is rare.
There are two flights a week from Johannesburg to Malaysia ‘s capital Kuala Lumpur on Malaysia Airlines (call their Durban office at 031 368-1966). This is a ten hour flight, but it is worthwhile to take a direct transfer from there to Kota Kinabalu (another 90 minute flight). Throughout Sabah, accommodation and food ranges from top-end (at lodges and better hotels) to budget. Most locals eat at roadside eateries dominated by rice or noodles with chicken or fish, and this tasty fare is quite enough to keep one’s birding batteries going!
A tremendous range of good natural history books (all in English) is available in Kota Kinabalu from hotel and airport shops but prices are better at mainstream bookstores. Some of these may be ordered on-line from www.nhbs.com
Further Reading
- A Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Bali. John MacKinnon & Karen Phillipps, 1993. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Borneo. Geoffrey Davison & Chew Yen Fook, 1996. New Holland, London.
- Birds of Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Geoffrey Davison & John Gale. 1992. Natural History Publications, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
- A Walk through the Lowland Rain Forest of Sabah. Elaine Campbell. 1994. Natural History Publications, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
- Into the Heart of Borneo. Redmond O’Hanlon. 1985. Penguin Books, London.
- Sabah : land of the sacred mountain. Albert Teo & A. Sullivan. Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.