Butterfly Watching in Arfak Mountains of Manokwari

Cruiser Butterfly in Arfak mountains
Manokwari

I guided two Swiss tourists on a hiking and camping tour in Arfak mountains two weeks ago. We stayed for 4 days/ 3 nights exploring the bio-diversity of the tropical jungle to see butterflies, dragon lizard, snake, and birds. We also had night walks to find cuscus possum and glowing mushrooms.
When the weather good, we could see a lot of colorful butterflies flying around our basecamp. I took the opportunity to take some pictures of them. There were Cruiser Butterfly (Vindula arsinoe), Blue Mountain Swallowtail (Papilio ulysses), and butterflies from the genus of Tirumala and Ornithoptera.

Red Abdomen Dragonfly

There were also dragon flies which I saw sitting on the green leaves or young twigs near our tents. My old Fujifilm HS 50EXR is powerful enough to take pictures of red-abdomen dragonfly. I don't have field-guide books of butterflies, dragonflies and beetles of New Guinea. Without such books, it will be very difficult to determine the species of the insects whose photographs I present in this blog.
In addition to insects, visitors can also see soa-soa lizards, cuscus possum and birds of paradise. Binoculars, spotting scope and super telephoto camera are needed to see and take pictures of them.

Arfak range is a very good destination for visitors who are interested in watching butterflies, dragonflies and beetles. Another site in Manokwari that I highly recommend for watching insects is Mansinam island.
If you plan to visit Manokwari to see its butterflies, dragonflies and beetles, and need a guide, you could book a  jungle tour from me by sending email to: peace4wp@gmail.com

Rainforest insects Dragonfly from the Table Mountain of Manokwari

Dragon fly can easily be seen when we go hiking in the tropical rainforest of the Table Mountain of Manokwari. A dragonfly looks like a helicopter often hovering above running water or standing still on a tiny stalk of a plant. I like to watch a dragonfly from a close distance. I don't know the number of species that we can find in the rainforest of the bird's head region of Manokwari - West Papua but I believe that there are many of them. Some have red bodies whereas others have dark black or brown colours.

If we want to watch dragonflies from close distance, we must move slowly. Our digital camera should be ready before we walk towards the insects. I saw many dragon flies while hiking a long the banks of a small river in the morning time when the weather was clear. Besides watching dragonflies, we can see other species of rainforest insects in the mountain. by Charles Roring