Your flight destination: Manado city in Indonesia
Duration: 7 Days/ 6 Nights
Cost: ... (It depends on the number of participants).
Cost includes: accommodation during the tour, meals and drinking water, transportation, local guides, entrance fee to birding sites.
Cost does not include: airfare, travel insurance, accommodation in Manado city before and after the tour, any personal expenses.
INTRODUCTION
The tropical rainforest that covers Tangkoko Nature Reserve is the habitat of a lot of species of birds, mammals, insects and reptiles. Birding is a favorite activity among visitors who go there. Birds such as kingfishers, flowerpeckers, sunbirds, parrots and hornbills have become targets of observation and photography. Usually, the birdwatching trip to Tangkoko is combined with tour to Minahasa highland where more endemic species could be seen there.
The highland of Minahasa is the natural habitat of various species of birds that are endemic to Sulawesi island. Some of them are Black-crowned White-eye, Scaly-breasted Kingfisher, Sulawesi Blue Flycatcher, Sulawesi Pitta, Sulawesi Myzomela, Pygmy Woodpecker, Sahul Sunbird, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Sulawesi Cuckoo-dove, and etc.
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| Green-backed Kingfisher |
Here is the typical itinerary for birding in Tangkoko:
ITINERARY
Birdwatching Trip to Tangkoko and Minahasa Highland
Activities: walking, birdwatching, boat tour, hiking, sightseeing
Day 1. Manado city - Temboan Hill - Tangkoko Cottage
- When participants arrive at Sam Ratulangi International Airport of Manado city, we will meet them and organize their transfer to Tangkoko by car. It takes around 2 hours of driving.
- We will do a short stop at Temboan hill to watch such birds as Sulawesi Hanging Parrot, Pygmy Hanging Parrot, Knobbed Hornbill, Sulawesi Dwarf Hornbill, Green Imperial Pigeon, Black-naped Imperial Pigeon, Gray-cheeked Green Pigeon, Sahul Sunbird, Sulawesi Brush Cuckoo, Sulawesi Cicadabird, Black-billed Koel, and etc.
- Check into a cottage or homestay near the entrance gate of the tourism park. Rest.
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| Knobbed Hornbill |
Day 2. Tangkoko Forest
- We will start our birdwatching trip in Tangkoko at 06:00. Birds such as White-necked Myna, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Green Imperial Pigeon, Bay Coucal, Lesser Coucal and even the Speckled Boobook could be watched near the parking lot.
- As we walk deeper into the forest, we could see more birds such as the Green-backed Kingfisher, Sulawesi Lilac Kingfisher, Ashy Woodspecker, Spot-tailed Goshawk, and Knobbed Hornbill.
- We will also check the river that flows to the beach, near the entrance are to look for such birds as Nankeen Night Heron, Little Egret, Barred Rail and Great-billed Kingfisher. It is not only birds that we could see in the forest. We could see Celebes-crested Macaque, and Sulawesi Bear Cuscus. Butterflies such as the Blanchard's Ghost, Blanchard's Wood Nymph, Back to homestay at 12:00 for lunch and rest.
- We will do birding walk again in the afternoon at around 15:00, this time to plant nursery area to look for Blue-backed Parrot, Purple Heron, Scaly-breasted Munia, Chestnut Munia, and etc.
- Before sunset, we will walk to the site of Gursky's Spectral Tarsier to watch it after sunset.
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| Sulawesi Hanging Parrot |
Day 3. Temboan Hill, Man-made Lake, Naun River
- We will start early in the morning again by doing birdwatching at Temboan Hill. Our targets will be the Knobbed Hornbill, Sulawesi Dwarf Hornbill, Sulawesi Pygmy Hanging Parrot, Sulawesi Hanging Parrot, Sulawesi-crested Myna, Minahasa Racquet-tail, Gray-cheeked Green Pigeon, Yellow-sided Flowerpecker, and etc.
- We will continue our exploration of the avifauna of Tangkoko area to a man-made lake that is located at a roadside that leads us to Batu Putih village. We will look for such birds as Oriental Darter, Purple-winged Roller, White-breasted Waterhen, Little Grebe, Little Egret, Sulaweso Crow, Yellow Bittern, and etc.
- In the afternoon, at around 15:00, we will go by boat to Naun River to look for Great-billed Kingfisher. There are birds that we could see too such as the Pacific Swallow, Pacific Reef Heron, Great-billed Heron, White-rumped Triller, and etc.
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| Great-billed Kingfisher |
Day 4. Tangkoko Forest, Tomohon town, Lake Linow
- We could do early morning birding to review birds that we haven't seen in the previous days such as the Sulawesi Dwarf Kingfisher, Pale Blue Monarch or Gray-sided Flowerpecker.
- After lunch, we will check-out of the guesthouse and continue our trip to Tomohon town in Minahasa highland. It takes around 2 hours of driving depending on the traffic. Check into a hotel. We will visit Lake Linow to watch such birds as Sunda Teal, Little Egret, Barn Swallow, Tern, White-breasted Waterhen, and etc
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| Sulawesi Dwarf Kingfisher |
Day 5. Mount Mahawu
- Early in the morning, we will do birding in Mount Mahawu. Our targets include: Sulawesi Pitta, Scaly-breasted Kingfisher, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, Sulawesi Blue Flycatcher, Sulawesi Cuckoo-dove, Superb Fruit-dove, Red-eared Fruit-dove, Yellow-billed Malkoha, and etc.
- We will return to Mount Mahawu in the afternoon again to watch Citrine Canary Flycatcher, Sulawesi Bush Warbler, Mountain White-eye, Sulawesi Drongo.
- Night birding after sunset to look for Sulawesi Scops Owl and Speckled Boobook.
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| Scaly-breasted Kingfisher |
We will go early in the morning to look for such small but colourful birds as Sulawesi Myzomela, Crimson-crowned Flowerpecker, Crimson Sunbird, Black-crowned White-eye, Black-sunbird, Brown-throated Sunbird, Sulawesi Bush Warbler.
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| Some birds in Sonder farm forest: Yellow-sided Flowerpecker, Yellow-billed Malkoha, Sulawesi Drongo, Little Egret, White-browed Crake, Crimson Sunbird, Sahul Sunbird |
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| Sulawesi Myzomela |
We will also do birdwatching in an open farmland to find birds of prey such as Black Kite, and Lesser Fish Eagle or Sulawesi Serpent Eagle.
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| Black Kite |
Day 7. Tomohon, Manado
We will do early morning birding in Mount Mahawu until around 08:00. After that, we will return to our hotel for breakfast. At 10:00, we will check out of the hotel and transfer you to Sam Ratulangi International Airport where you could continue your adventure in other parts of Indonesia or fly back to your own country.
Equipment needed:
To enhance the birdwatching and photography experience, participants need to bring their own binoculars, camera with telephoto lens. Flash light, insect spray, and raincoat/ rainponcho will also be needed during the tour. Participants can wear hiking boots or sport shoes for the tour. Having a pair of flip-flops will be useful during the resting time in the cottage or homestay.
Booking
If you are interested in taking this birding tour, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by whatsapp to: +62 813 3224 5180 or by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com.
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