July 14 – Day 18: PAU and return home

A leisurely start before we returned to PAU for some last minute birding. We checked the trees again for roosting frogmouths but couldn’t find them, however much to our embarrassment the driver pointed them out in the first tree we’d looked at! Anyway we got great views of three Marbled Frogmouths, the first ones of the trip. 

Marbled Frogmouth

We had a similar selection of birds to our first visit here but also added Plumed Whistling-Duck and Pied Heron to the trip list. 

Plumed Whistling-Duck

Pied Heron

Australian White Ibis

Little Black Cormorant

Comb-crested Jacana

Masked Lapwing - another familiar Australian species

Fawn-breasted Bowerbird

Black-backed Butcherbird

Intermediate Egret

Most of the group left mid-morning for their flight to Brisbane while Neil and I carried on with Max for another hour and a half. 

Torresian Imperial Pigeon

Grey-headed Manakins

We managed two new birds: a large flock of Grey-headed Manakin and a flyover Australian Hobby before returning to Dixie’s for lunch. I then bade Neil farewell and went to the airport for my flight to Manila and onward to London via Dubai.

It had been a superb trip, finishing with 251 species, of which 96 were new and a total of 20 Birds-of-Paradise seen.

July 13 – Day 17: K17 and back to Port Moresby

We returned to K17 to start our last full day’s birding. There were plenty of pigeons and parrots feeding in a fruiting tree along with a Grey-headed Cicadabird. 

Pink-spotted Fruit-Dove

We tried to tape lure in a Blue Jewel-babbler but it only remained in view for a split second before disappearing back into the forest. We paid another visit to the King BoP and he was much more cooperative today, even sitting out in the open, albeit not for very long. 

King Bird-of-Paradise

We passed the spot where Sir David Attenborough was hoisted into the canopy to watch displaying Reggiana and Greater BoPs for one of his documentaries. Back at the entrance, two Grey-headed Goshawks flew around and landed in a close tree.

It was soon time to leave the area and we headed back to the hotel to checkout before making our way to Kiunga Airport for a two hour flight back to Port Moresby. Surprisingly for Air Nuigini it left early and arrived ahead of schedule. A quick stop at Dixie’s to check in and drop off our bags and then we made our way up to Varirarta. We only had a couple of hours but it was enough time for one good bird – Barred Owlet-Nightjar at his regular haunt.

Barred Owlet-Nightjar

We returned to Dixie’s for our last evening meal together, unfortunately they don’t have beer and there’s nowhere close to get any. We voted for our Top Five birds and Flame Bowerbird was the ultimate winner.

July 12 – Day 16: Boystown Road & K10

Welcome news at breakfast, England had thrashed Australia in the semi-final of the Cricket World Cup! We returned to the main track while Rockjumper staked out the grassy knoll. It was pleasant weather for birding with sunshine but there wasn’t anything new seen. 

Red-cheeked Parrot

Red-flanked Lorikeet

We did however get great views of a male Flame Bowerbird that twice flew over the track and our first perched Red-flanked Lorikeets and Zoe’s Imperial Pigeon. Two Fruit-Doves in one tree became an Orange-bellied and a Pink-spotted under closer inspection and they were joined by a Crinkle-collared Manucode. Also on the BoP front, one or two female Kings were seen.

A few local boys walked past, one of which was carrying a Cassowary chick, no wonder we hadn’t encountered one anywhere. On that note we left the area and had a quick stop at the airfield to look for pratincoles. We didn’t find any but instead managed great views of a Buff-banded Rail.

Kiunga Airfield - no pratincoles here

Buff-banded Rail

Out again after lunch to a different patch of forest. A Grey-headed Cuckooshrike was new and we saw a female Black Berrypecker on a nest next to the path. A couple of male Greater BoPS were seen but otherwise it was fairly quiet. We stayed to dusk to try for night birds but nothing responded.

July 11 – Day 15: Boat back to Kiunga

Continuing with the early starts it was a little more challenging by torchlight but we were soon tucking into a cooked breakfast. We piled into the boat and motored a short way down the river where we pulled up. 

Twelve-wired Bird-of-Paradise

Atop a tree on the opposite bank sat a male Twelve-wired BoP; it was calling continuously and was looked almost alien with its misshapen head and bizarre tail strands contrasting with its bright yellow body. It remained for about twenty minutes before quietly disappearing into the forest. Continuing on we saw some more Grey Crows and Southern Crowned Pigeons, the latter showing off their bad hair-dos.

Southern Crowned Pigeon

Azure Kingfisher

We walked around a different muddy forest trail and had scope views of both Little and Common Paradise Kingfishers. Back at camp there was a feeding flock of Double-eyed and Orange-breasted Fig-Parrots as well as a perched Doria’s Hawk. Lunch included fried spam for which Kwatu is famous for but there was plenty of choice for those that don’t care for such a delicacy, like various packets of cream-filled biscuits!

Doria's Hawk

We walked to another hide overlooking a bower but its creator, the Flame Bowerbird remained absent during our stay. Fortunately one flew over the river as we headed back to Kiunga on the boat although we really wanted better views of this spectacular orange bird. There were a couple of other new birds on the return journey with two Pacific Bazas and a Dwarf Fruit-Dove seen. 

A rather large dugout on the river

Arriving back at Kwatu, using the boat seats a a makeshift quay

It was nice to get back to civilisation in Kiunga where we could get clean and remove the layers of mud from our clothes and boots. We heard news of a tribal massacre in the Tari area in PNG which was where there’d been trouble last year and it’s remained out-of-bounds since.

July 10 – Day 14: Boat to Kwatu

Another early start but this time we boarded a boat for a two day trip downriver to Kwatu Lodge taking with us an overnight bag. 

Boat to Kwatu

Other river traffic

The weather was sunny and the birding relaxing as we slowly motored along the main Fly River highway before turning off into a tributary. 

Saltwater Crocodile, only a small one compared to the beasts in northern Australia

Pinon's Imperial Pigeon

Palm Cockatoo

Palm Cockatoos

Pigeons and Parrots were plentiful including Pinon's, Collared and Zoe’s Imperial Pigeons and the impressive Palm Cockatoos, along with the colour-opposed Sulphur-crested cousins, Double-eyed Fig-Parrots and Yellowish-streaked Lory. Other new birds included a new BoP – Trumpet Manucode, and both Black-billed and Ivory-billed Coucals. Raptors such as White-bellied Sea-Eagle and Brahminy Kite were regularly seen over the river.

White-bellied Sea-Eagle

Disembarking at a very muddy quay at Kwatu

Lunch at Kwatu Lodge

We arrived at camp for a late lunch and then headed out into the forest on some very muddy trails, hearing but failing to see three species of kingfisher although we did see a Cassowary's footprint so we knew they were about. 

Cassowary footprint

Back in the boat, we added our last BoP, a female Twelve-wired. More impressive was a Southern Crowned Pigeon which sat up high in the trees and three Grey Crows flew over. We stayed out until dark, getting a Papuan Nightjar over the river and hordes of Flying Foxes heading out to feed.

The rather rustic Kwatu Lodge

Kwatu Lodge is very basic but with six twin-bedded rooms all with mattresses and mosquito nets, two outside loos and a bush shower room it is perfectly adequate. The chef made us a reasonable dinner and after the log we retired to bed early as there was no electricity to keep us up.

July 9 – Day 13: Transfer to Kiunga

As we left Cloudlands Hotel for the last time, the weather was the same as when we arrived, raining. One stop along the way added Dwarf Koel then we went for a walk around a forested area at K17. The target species was King BoP and he was soon located high up in his regular tree, resplendent in his red and white plumage with yellow bill and two short tail streamers. However, he wasn’t a great fan of sitting out in the open!

Many roadsigns are in English and Pidgin, the latter being the most widely spoken language in PNG

This sign is all in Pidgin - can you work out what it means?

We checked into Kiunga Hotel for lunch and then went out to scan a forest edge from a small ridge. It was noticeably hot and sunny, but a pleasant change from the cloudy skies of late. There was a reasonable amount of birds around with Greater BoP and Lowlands Peltops. All too soon it began to rain although we did managed two Papuan Spinetails flying low over the forest and brief views of a group of Papuan Babblers.

July 8 – Day 12: OK Menga and sunshine

Our last full day in the mountains and miraculously it wasn’t raining! The rain held off all morning apart from a brief shower and the birding was easier with more species seen than previous mornings. 

Long-tailed Honey Buzzard taking advantage of the sunshine

We did a section of track at OK Menga starting with another flyover Pesquet’s Parrot and heard the Shovel-billed Kookaburra again. A Greater BoP showed closely as did several Brown Orioles, surely the least impressive members of such a fine family. We popped back down to the river scoring well with Torrent Lark at last and two Salvadori’s Teal behaving just like South America’s Torrent Ducks.

Back on the track an Eclectus Parrot flew over but we still hasn’t seen this relatively common parrot well. A New Guinea Bronzewing belted over and we spent some time unsuccessfully trying to lure a Pheasant Pigeon into view. There were more small birds around with two Longbills seen – Yellow-bellied and Dwarf. The only other new trip bird was a smart, perched Moustached Treeswift.

Moustached Treeswift

Back for lunch at Cloudlands there were now three birding groups as Rockjumper had just arrived. The afternoon bgan with a little light rain but it soon stopped and the sun even dared to appear. We were back on the OK Menga track and there were plenty of birds around, although not always showing. 

Pesquet's (AKA Pesky) Parrot

At least six Greater BoPs were seen including two adult males and a female Magnificent Riflebird flew over, another new BoP for the trip. Parrots of various sorts came and went including four superb Pesquet’s which perched in view for a change. We tried for another 'Shoveler' (Shovel-billed Kookaburra) at dusk which called then flew over unseen. As we finished a Marbled Frogmouth also called but refused to show itself.

July 7 – Day 11: OK Menga and rain again

We returned to the same track and it was raining again, although not too heavily. Just up the track was another group that had arrived yesterday. Both groups merged at times as we walked up and down the track. 

Black Butcherbird

We started with Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo, Black Butcherbird and then the main target: Carola’s Parotia – females, young males and the occasional adult male showing on and off throughout the morning. Other BoPs seen were several female Magnificent and a Crinkle-collared Manucode.

Orange-breasted Fig-Parrots

Parrots were common with high-flying flocks of Blue-collared and perched Red-breasted Pygmy-Parrot and Orange-breasted Fig-Parrot. Over lunch time Orange-bellied Hanging Parrots were around the hotel. The rain continued all afternoon back at OK Menga with Papuan Black Myzomela being the only new bird. 

Leio and local tourism chief

We were met by the local tourism chief who welcomed us to the area; he seemed like a good guy as he was also familiar with the local birds.

July 6 – Day 10: Dablin Creek and OK Menga

Tabubil certainly lived up to its reputation as the rainiest place in PNG. The group we’d met at Kumul had suffered four days of continuous rain (and consequently did little birding) and it started raining first thing and remained so on and off all morning. Despite the weather we still managed to see birds, the highlight being a female Carola’s Parotia. 

Driving to OK Menga, note the sign in English and Pidgin

Low cloud and light drizzle is typical weather here

However we’d managed to see less than ten species before we decided on an early lunch. It seemed like there were more birds in town with Great Woodswallows flying around over the football pitch and a Scrub Honeyeater in the hotel grounds.

The afternoon session was fortunately much drier and we started with a spectacular Golden Cuckooshrike, which seemed most aberrant compared to its monochrome cousins. 

Golden Cuckooshrike

We saw a male Greater BoP, soaring Long-tailed Honey Buzzard, a perched Doria’s Hawk, Pygmy Longbill, more Blyth’s Hornbills, Beautiful Fruit-Dove and a good view of a Pesquet’s Parrot flying over. 

Greater Bird-of-Paradise

Blyth's Hornbill

At dusk we waited for Shovel-billed Kookaburra which finally decided to respond just as we were climbing into the vehicle. We piled out and heard it call from a nearby tree and saw it briefly fly between the branches.