Borneo for Bird's Wildlife & Nature - Day 10 - 12th June 2025

Our pre breakfast walk around the grounds of the Sepilok Jungle Resort took us down towards the main gate with the sounds of Bornean Gibbons already drifting through the air from various troops somewhere off in the jungle beyond.

A family of White-breasted Waterhens crossed the road

A pair of Little Green Pigeons got the ball rolling nicely and were quickly followed by a stunning Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker.  This family were starting to get a bit confusing with so many very similar names.  Little Spiderhunters zoomed around and both Chestnut and Dusky Munias were feeding with Tree Sparrows and Zebra Doves on the track while Ashy Tailorbirds were very vocal in the palms where Asian Glossy Starlings were making a racket and were spooked by a pair of Banded Woodpeckers.  A Sunda Pygmy Woodpecker was also seen as it poked around a dead snag – our first since the first afternoon.

Angie was stuck like this for two weeks and could only look at canopy birds

Back up and into the jungly ‘gardens’ some quality time standing around a man made lake gave us some sky and the trees to search.  Plaintive Cuckoos moved between the trees and a gang of Black Magpies noisily made their presence known while Golden Whiskered and Black-eared Barbets sung and were seen in flight.  Brown Barbet groups were vocal and as usual actually showed quite well.

South East Asian Box Turtle - Cuora amboinensis 

A group of noisy Long-tailed Parakeets flew over as well as a couple of squeaky Hanging Parrots and there were the usual Bulbuls and Blue-throated Bee-eaters. A male Buff-necked Woodpecker showed well at eye level and we could hear the double grunting of Rhinoceros Hornbills as they passed through beyond our vision. Cinnamon-headed and Pink-necked made it a three Green Pigeon morning and we saw Brown-throated and a young male Crimson Sunbird along with yet another Spiderhunter – Thick-billed.  Velvet-fronted Nuthatches and Lesser Green Leafbirds kept the colour flowing.

Not entirely sure but think that this is a female Yellow-breasted Flowerpecker

Thick-billed Spiderhunter

Crimson Sunbird 

Buff-necked Woodpecker 

Breakfast beckoned and the Stork-billed Kingfisher joined us again before we packed up and said our farewells to Sepilok.  A stop at the Orang Orphanage on the way out failed to net us the pesky Falconet but there were some very obliging Silver-rumped Spinetails.

We literally retraced our steps to Gomantong and spent a very productive hour working the entrance road which began with a fly over Black Eagle as we tried to leave the bus!  The new birds here took some work but we all got to see the yellowy Dark-necked tailorbird and Sooty Capped Babblers along with three preposterous beasts with the magnificent Banded Broadbill, black and pearly white Blyth’s Paradise Flycatcher and orange, lilac and sky blue Ruddy Kingfisher.  They were get your bins and go wow moments.  That Kingfisher appearing from deep within the jungle was simply wondrous.

Banded Broadbill

There were other birds too with Rhino Hornbills overhead and Red-throated Barbets tok tocking away while Verditer Flycatcher and White Capped Shamas added yet more colours and style.

Chinese Violet Asystasia gangetica 

Dancing Girls Ginger Globba sp

Mussaenda villosa 

Trichosanthes cucumeroides 

Upright Elephant Ears

There were heaps of Butterflies and Odonata and I even got some pics this time which the Malaysian Butterfly and Dragonfly Facebook people have very kindly helped me with once again.  There were also some very cool giant Pill Millipedes.

Koruthaialos rubecula rubecula 

Acytolepis ripte

Caleta elna elvira 

Junonia hedonia ida

Junonia hedonia ida

Taractrocera ardonia sumatrensis 

Ypthima pandocus sertorius 

Giant Pill Millipede possibly Bothrobelum rugosum 

Another huge Asassin Bug

Cricket sp

Orthetrum testaceum 

Orthetrum testaceum 

Onychargia atrocyana 

Neurothemis fluctuans 

All too soon we had to move on again as another long drive through the horrors of the palm plantations was required to get us to Lahad Datu which would become our stepping stone to the might Danum Valley.

We arrived at the hotel at lunchtime and the skanky pond below the huge hotel had a few trees around it and was full of life and from my seventh floor I could see active nests of Nankeen and Black-crowned Night Herons and lots of Great Egrets; some with blue eggs and others with young that should have probably already vacated the parental home.

Great Egrets

Great Egret

Great Egrets - 4 'chicks'

Nankeen Night Heron

Nankeen Night Heron

Nankeen Heron

Nankeen Night Heron - juvenile

Black-crowned Night Heron - juvenile

Black-crowned Night Heron

Hypolimnas anomala anomala - from the 7th floor!

Black Eagle and White bellied Sea-Eagles were seen out over the mangroves and to my left I could see a huge bay down on the coast.  It was just a shame that there was not time to go and see the sea once again.

We soon headed out again and made our way to the Silam Track (we did not no that this was the way in to Danum Valley at the time) and spent till dusk working the jungle either side of the road.  As usual it was amazingly productive and gave us a host of new and exciting species.  A ten minute Malkoha-fest saw several Raffle’s followed by both Red-billed and Chestnut-breasted high in the canopy while a Moustached Hawk-Cuckoo sung and flashed across the road.

A couple of Green Ioras were seen well and Charlotte’s Bulbul became the latest of the brown bulbuls to be added to the tally. Black-throated Babblers sung in the thickets and we saw Asian Fairy Bluebird and Common Hill Mynas as well as a Greater Racket-tailed Drongo which only had one of his accoutrements. 

Palm 'nuts' 

Some noisy canopy shouting drew us to a party of Great Slaty Woodpeckers and with a little patience we got superb scope views as they pranced around a dead snag looking half plucked and very reptilian in appearance.  They even did the wing flapping while perched thing that I had seen in videos of this, the world’s biggest Woodpecker.

Great Slaty Woodpeckers

Great Slaty Woodpeckers

Great Slaty Woodpeckers

Black-banded Squirrel 

Rhinoceros Hornbills headed off to roost and Wreathed Hornbill finally found its way onto every ones list although they once again eluded the camera.  Both Grey-rumped and Whiskered Treeswifts joined the Swiftlets doing circuits and we even got perched up views of the nattily attired Whiskereds.  A Brown-backed Needletail hurtled through too as we were waiting for the Malaysian Eared Nightjars to appear which they did as the light fell and we watched them flap and glide on ‘v’ wings through the clearing.

The Cicada noise soon drowned out all other sounds and we bumped back out hoping for some headlight wildlife but only found a couple of dogs!  It had been a long day.