Birdwatching Tour in Klasow Valley of Sorong Regency

Golden Myna in Klasow Valley

I visited Klasow valley early this year from 31 December 2015 to 5 January 2016. I guided some American and Dutch visitors. We walked in the jungle of the valley to watch various species of tropical birds. Klasow valley was only 1.5 hours ride by a 4WD car from Sorong city. It was covered with lowland tropical rainforest. A lot of birds made the forest of the valley as their natural habitat. 

Birds were usually active in the mornings and in the afternoons. There were several ideal spots in the valley that we found suitable for birding:

• Clearing area in the jungle village - The best time to watch birds in the village is between 16.00 and 18.00. Various species of birds can be seen flying over the village and perching on the branches of nearby trees. Some of the birds that I saw were Large Fig Parrot (Psitaculirostris desmarestii), Moustached Treeswift (Hemiprocne mystacea), Golden Myna (Mino anais), Helmetted Friarbird (Philemon buceroides), Pinon Imperial Pigeon (Ducula pinon), Dollarbird, and etc.
• Foot Path - This was the walking path from the main road to the village. It took around one and a half hours of walking to reach the village. For birdwatchers, usually the duration would be longer. While walking through the jungle along this path, we heard the sounds of Blyth's hornbill, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo that were flying, perching or walking on the branches of the trees. Because the open space was narrow, the chance to see birds were lower. With some patience and a lot of silence during the walk, we were able to see birds including the colorful Black Lory and Large Fig Parrot, Pygmy Parrots. Pygmy Parrots live in termite nests attached on trees.

Palm Cockatoo (Probosciger aterrimus) in Klasow valley

• The banks of small rivers - This is a recommended site for any birdwatchers who want to watch Western Crowned Pigeon (Goura cristata) which local people usually call, "Burung Mambruk." I was lucky during the birding trip because I could see Orange-billed Kingfisher, and Dwarf Kingfisher.
• The Banks of Klasow river - The banks of Klasow valley have got several display trees where Twelve-Wired and Lesser Birds of Paradise like to gather and dance.  I and my guests had to wake up at 04.30 to go birding at the bank of the river. We walked for around one and a half hours to reach the display tree of the paradise birds. When we arrived, the sun had risen from the horizon and it was bright for us. Male Lesser birds of paradise started calling female Lesser BOP.
  

Dwarf Kingfisher in Klasow Valley of Sorong Regency - West Papua

To enhance the bird-watching experience in the jungle, birdwatchers need to bring their own binoculars and spotting scopes. I only have a pair of binoculars.
Nikon has launched a powerful bridge camera for birdwatchers. Its type is Coolpix P900 with 83x optical zoom. It enables birdwatchers to take pictures of birds or other wild animals in distant trees.

Field Guide
There is a field-guide book that I recommend to all birdwatchers who want to visit West Papua. Its title is Birds of New Guinea.

Besides watching birds in Klasow valley, visitors can also watch wallaby, and a lot of colorful butterflies in the tropical rainforest.

The Birds
During my previous birding trips, I saw a lot of birds that make the valley as their natural habitat. Some of them are listed as follows:

• Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor)
• Magnificent Riflebird (Ptiloris magnificus)
• Twelve-wired Bird of Paradise (Seleucidis melanoleuca)
• King Bird of Paradise (Cicinnurus regius)
• Lowland Peltops (Peltop blainvilii)
• Shining Flycatcher (Myiagra alecto)
• Frilled Monarch (Arses telescophthalmus)
• Helmetted Friarbird (Philemon buceroides)
• White-bellied Cuckoo-shrike (Coracina papuensis)
• Glossy Swiftlet (Collocalia esculenta)
• Moustached Tree-swift (Hemiprocne mustacea)
• Papuan Frogmouth (Podargus papuensis)
• Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis)
• Papuan hornbill (Rhyticeros plicatus)
• Rufous-bellied Kookabara (Dacelo gaudichaud)
• Shovel-billed Kingfisher (Clytoceyx rex)
• Forest Kingfisher (Halcyon macleayii)
• Dwarf Kingfisher (Ceyx lepidus)
• Yellow-billed Kingfisher (Halcyon torotoro)
• Black Lory (Chalcopsitta atra)
• Eclectus parrot (Eclectus rotatus)
• Sulphur Crested Cockatoo (Cacatua galerita)
• Red-cheeked Parrot (Geoffroyus geoffroyi)
• Western Black-capped Lory (Lorius lory)
• Large Fig Parrot (Psittaculirostris desmarestii)
• Pinon Imperial Pigeon (Ducula pinon)
• Pink-spotted Fruit Dove (Ptilinopus perlatus)
• Wompoo Fruit-Dove (Ptilinopus magnificus)
• Beautiful Fruit-Dove (Ptilinopus pulchellus)
• Western Crowned Pigeon (Goura cristata)
• Brahminy Kite (Haliastur indus)
• Grey-headed Goshawk (Accipiter poliocephalus)
• Dwarf Cassowary (Casuarius bennetti)
• Hooded Pitta (Pitta sordida)
• and etc.

Watching Butterflies
The villagers grow flower plants near our jungle hut and their houses. During sunny days, we could see butterflies fly over the flowers to find nectar. I took some pictures of the butterflies but find that it was difficult to identify them. I don't have any field guide books. My only source of information was the internet. What I saw were Cruiser Butterfly (Vindula Arsinoe), Blue Mountain Swallowtail (Papilio Ulysses), Meadow Argus (Junonia villida), and lots of colorful butterflies which I still could not identify. I had to make several searches on the internet to identify the butterflies.

How to get there?

• Fly from your country to Jakarta - the capital of Indonesia
• Fly from Jakarta to Sorong city
• I will meet you at the airport to arrange your transfer to Klasow valley

If you are interested in taking rainforest and birdwatching tour in West Papua, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com. I will be happy to organize your birding trip and accompany you in the jungle.

Also read:

• Birdwatching in Sulawesi
• Birding in North Sulawesi
• Birding in Sonder of Minahasa
• Birdwatching in Minahasa
• Manado City: Birdwatching and Sightseeing Tour

 

Butterfly Watching in West Papua

Here is a picture of Meadow Argus butterfly (Junonia villida) that I saw in the tropical jungle of Klasow valley. The valley is approximately 1.5 hours ride from Sorong city. There is a village in the middle of the jungle where I like to visit with tourists. I guide tourists to the valley to see tropical rainforest and to watch birds and butterflies.

Villagers in the jungle plant flowers around their houses. The flowers that bloom in the morning attract a lot of butterflies including Blue Mountain Swallowtail (Papilio ulysses), and Cruiser Butterfly (Vindula arsinoe) .

I personally do not have a field guide book for butterflies and insects of this vogelkop peninsula but by making several searches on the internet, I could identify some of them.
If you are interested in taking rainforest tour in West Papua to see butterflies and birds, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com. I will be happy to guide you in the jungle.

Tambrauw Mountains - a Recommended Destination for Rainforest Tour

Experience the Tropical Jungle
The mountain range of Tambrauw can be reached by 4WD car from Sorong city. Its tropical rainforest is the natural habitat of a lot of species of animals including Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Blyth's hornbill and Goliath Cockatoo. I promote it as a new destination this year for visitors who are interested in exploring the rich bio-diversity of Papua's jungle.

Camping Gear
Usually tourists who come in groups between 4 and 6 people spend between 4 and 5 days in Tambrauw regency. If you are interested in traveling to West Papua and want to take jungle tour, please, make sure that you bring all the necessary gear including dome tent, rolling mattrass or sleeping bag, raincoat, flash light, binoculars for watching wild animals and digital camera with telephoto lens and extra batteries.

Water Shoes
Most of the walks into deeper area of the jungle will be done along the banks of the river. Visitors will have to cross a river many times. That's why it is important to have a good pair of water shoes. You could buy the shoes at a local shoe store in your town or order them directly based on the following recommendation.

How to get there?
Fly from your country to Jakarta ( the capital of Indonesia)
Fly to Sorong city
I will meet you at the airport or at the hotel where you stay and organize your trip to Tambrauw mountains.
I suggest that the participants of the tour should be 3 or more people to share the cost of the tour.
Booking
I will be happy to arrange the tour, calculate the cost and prepare the itinerary for you. Please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or you could call me, send text/ whatsapp message to my number: +6281332245180 for more information.

Rainforest Tour in Syugrar River of Tambrauw Regency

Hiking, Birding and Wildlife Watching in Tambrauw Mountains

Last week I organized a rainforest tour for six Polish visitors. They had a 2-week vacation in West Papua. They spent their first week enjoying scuba diving in Raja Ampat and their second week trekking and camping in the tropical jungle of Tambrauw mountains from 8 to 12 Nov. 2015. While in Raja Ampat, they stayed at Kri Eco Resort. I met them at the Usaha Mina Speed Boat harbor in Sorong town and then arranged their transfer to Sausapor (the temporary capital of Tambrauw regency). After informing the local police about our arrival, we continued our trip to Syuan river. Heavy rained welcomed us. I and my friends worked fast in constructing tents for our guests. We would spent several nights trekking, birding and wildlife watching in the forest. 

Lesser Bird of Paradise

The next morning we had a short walk into the jungle where we watched Lesser Birds of Paradise. It was a nice experience of the Polish tourists who saw the rainforest as a totally new environment for them. In addition to watching birds of paradise, they also had some conversation with local people about their marriage customs, what to give as dowry, hunting practices and things that were related to the daily life of Papuan people.

Sulphur-crested Cockatoo

In the afternoon, I decided to relocate the group to Syugrar river because the water current in Syuan river was very strong. I explained to them that if we moved to Syugrar river, we would be able to walk deeper into the jungle just by walking through the river. Syugrar and Syuan rivers were separated by a huge ridge from Tambrauw mountains. We walked back to the main road and wait for several ours for our 4WD car to transfer us to our new location. 

I made a right decision. The next morning, we were able to walk deeper into the jungle through Syugrar river whose current was not as strong as Syuan. During the trip, we saw hornbill, cockatoo, lory and other tropical birds that live in the jungle. At the end of our trip, we had a short tour around Sausapor town and a walking tour around Werur village.

If you are interested in taking a rainforest tour that is organized from Sorong city, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com

Also read:
Birdwatching and Snorkeling in Raja Ampat
Raja Ampat Snorkeling
Snorkeling Vacation in Raja Ampat archipelago

Rainforest Tour along Syugrar River of Tambrauw Regency

I have just completed a rainforest tour in Tambrauw mountains where I guided 6 visitors from Poland from 8 to 12 November 2015. We went camping and trekking along Syugrar river. On the first day, I met them at Usaha Mina speedboat harbor of Sorong city. After buying some food from Remu Market, we left the city for Sausapor town. It took around 4 hours to reach Sausapor that is located in the northern coast of the bird's head region of West Papua.

We built our first camps at the side of Syuan river but the next morning we had to move to Syugrar river to avoid the strong current of Syuan. We wanted to walk deeper into the jungle to see the rainforest ecosystem.

We spent 3 days/ 2 nights trekking, camping, swimming and wildlife watching along Syugrar river. For the Polish tourists, it was a unique experience because they had never seen tropical rainforest before.
If you are also interested in taking a rainforest tour in Tambrauw mountains, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by e-mail to: peace4wp@gmail.com.