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Extension : Anggi grassland specialistsThe twin mountain lakes of Anggi Giji and Anggi Gita, situated at 1,860 m elevation in the Sougb-country of the southern Arfak Mountains, were first visited by a western naturalist in 1904, but it was a young Ernst Mayr who in 1928, at the beginning of an extremely productive career in ornithology and evolutionary biology, discovered the area’s paramount ornithological attraction on the eastern shores of Anggi Giji: an entirely new species of munia, which E. Hartert named Lonchura vana, and which is now more commonly known as the Grey-banded Munia. Whereas this restricted-range species subsequently has been found in the secluded upper Kebar Valley of the Tamrau Mountains, the Anggi Giji Basin remains the easiest accessible location to get to grips with this munia and other wet grassland specialists as Lewin’s Rail Lewinia pectoralis and Spotless Crake Porzana tabuensis, moreover in a visually stunning setting. And stands of swampy pandanus-dominated forest at the base of the surrounding slopes support the highly sought-after Shovel-billed Kookaburra Clytoceyx rex, with a good selection of the montane Arfak avifauna waiting to be explored uphill. In terms of total species diversity this is, however, the least complementary, most specialized of the three extensions. Day-by-day itineraryDay 1 [Monday] After a pre-dawn breakfast in our Manokwari hotel, we will transfer to Rendani Airport at first light in order to board our chartered aircraft. The short 45 minutes hop will take us above the spectacular Prafi Valley, past Mount Indon, into the Anggi Giji Basin at Irai. From here we will bird all morning following the seasonally fluctuating lake edge to the settlement of Hunku. Pacific Black Duck, Common Coot, Little Grebe, Little Pied and Little Black Cormorant, Great and Intermediate Egret, and Rufous Night-Heron abound and it will not take long before we spot our first flock of Grey-banded Munias, which in season can congregate in flocks of more than 150 individuals. But observing the two secretive rails may require considerable effort and is influenced also by water levels in the basin. After lunch we will bird all afternoon in the lakeside grasslands where we may accidentally flush Lewin’s Rail. Towards eve we will take up position at locally exposed muddy stretches at the interface between grassland and reedbeds bordering the lake's edge. Here both Spotless Crake and Lewin’s Rail ordinarily come out to feed at dusk and we may hear both species vocalizing in season. Other birds we may see here include Black and Yellow Bittern, Clamorous Reed-Warbler, and Tawny Grassbird. Dinner at Hunku. Day 2 [Tuesday] Subsequent to our pre-dawn breakfast, we’ll spend the first hour of light at muddy stretches and reedbeds along an affluent of Anggi Giji, then walk through grasslands toward a camp at the edge of the basin, where forest extends onto the surrounding hill slopes. After lunch here, we will first bird the grasslands in this area where we stand another chance of seeing Lewin’s Rail, and later shift to the forest in the hope of finding Shovel-billed Kookaburra, perhaps as it starts calling toward dusk. Other noteworthy forest birds that we may encounter here include New Guinea Woodcock, New Guinea Eagle, Vogelkop Bowerbird, Rufous-sided and Western Smoky Honeyeater, Vogelkop Scrubwren, and Black Sicklebill, while a nocturnal foray after dinner may produce Jungle Hawk-Owl, Large and Mountain Owlet-Nightjar, and Large-tailed Nightjar. Day 3 [Wednesday] Following an optional spotlighting session and our usual pre-dawn breakfast we will seek Shovel-billed Kookaburra at first light and spend the rest of the morning in the forest and grassland here. After lunch we will walk back to Hunku where we will bird along the lake’s edge until dusk providing us with yet another opportunity to observe the rails. Dinner at Hunku. Day 4 [Thursday] After a pre-dawn breakfast we will make our way back to the airstrip at Irai while birding along the lake’s edge. We will have to board our chartered aircraft before mid-morning as the building-up of clouds may jeopardize a later return to Manokwari. We will have an earlier than usual lunch in town before taking the midday flight to the Indonesian gateway of your choice. Related linksRead on about the birdlife of the Arfak Mountains. Browse our terms and conditions. Browse our check-list of the birds of Papua. |
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