Photos with this report (click to enlarge) | |||
 White-winged Wood Duck |
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Itinerary
March 2 2008 Arrive Phnom Penh on Dragonair from Hong Kong
Overnight Rory’s Guest-house (US$20)
March 3 Tut-tuk to Killing Fields Genocide Memorial at Choueng Ek and S21 (Tuol Sleng), the Khmer Rouge prison camp and torture centre.
Pm to Wat Phnom, and some sightseeing along the Mekong by the Royal Palace. O/n Rory’s GH
March 4 Flight to Siem Reap on Siem Reap Airways. Contacted Sam Veasna Centre and stayed at Karen & Howie’s place. Pm visit to Bayon temple and Angkor.
March 5 Angkor Wat AM and Tah Prom forest temple PM.
March 6 Angkor Wat and Preah Khan temple with Satphoen.
March 7 Tonle Sap and Prek Toel with Sopheap Chim.
March 8 Ang Trepeang Thmor (ATT) wetland with Sopheap and Ewan Urquhart, now with us until Tmatboey.
March 9 Siem Reap to Dam Deik, then dirt road, steadily deteriorating to Thbeng Mean Chey and then Chhep, onto forest tracks to take 8 hrs to go 60 km to Dong Plet and the duck pond site at Okoki (6 km from the Laos border), which was some 2 hours from Dong Plet itself. Arrived 2100. Camped.
March 10 Okoki duck pond area, camped.
March 11 Okoki duck pond to Dong Plet and then the vulture restaurant (<2 hours travel). Camped.
March 12 Vulture site then back to Thbeng Mean Chey, and up to Tmatboey, arriving 1700.
March 13 Tmatboey, Giant Ibis site and Klong na Klang White-rumped Falcon site. White-shouldered Ibis nest site pm.
March 14 Tmatboey, Pale-capped Pigeon/ Spotted Wood-Owl area and then Savanna Nightjar site. Farewell to Ewan.
March 15 Tmatboey Giant Ibis site, then to Kompong Thom and florican site at Chi Krai, Steung.
March 16 Kompong Thom grasslands Manchurian Reed Warbler site, then to Kratie and Asian Golden Weaver site at lake there.
March 17 Kratie Mekong River for Mekong Wagtail and Mekong R. dolphin. Return to Phnom Penh. O/n Cozyna Hotel (US$28)
March 18 Phnom Penh to Hong Kong on Dragonair, then HK to BNE and CNS on Cathay Pacific, arriving March 19.
Cambodia was quite an experience, ranging from ultra-touristy but still amazing Angkor (2 million visitors p.a.) to what was the last redoubt of the Khmer Rouge on the remote and inaccessible Laos border, travelling for 14 hours on one of the worst roads I've ever used, taking 8 hours to go the final 60 km!
The temples were a fantastic sight, Bayon was very impressive, and Angkor Wat has a tremendous setting even though it has been prettified and the forest has no under storey any more. I ticked my long overdue Oriental Darter there, which was nice, also Hainan Blue Fly and White-throated Rock-Thrush, with Black Baza nearby.
The Khmer people seem really nice, very easy going, so the chaotic, nay anarchic traffic sort of works as there is no road rage, though you need strong nerves to travel by tuk-tuk as we did for a couple of days, having a collision on the second day too which was resolved very amicably, especially as the guy came head-on along the wrong side to the road! The dust in the dry is also horrible, so face masks area good idea, and roads vary from quite good to under construction to bloody dire.
We went to the genocide memorial at Choueng Ek near Phnom Penh, where nearly 9000 skulls are piled up in a 9-storey Buddhist stupa, and the numerous mass graves still have gruesome rags and bits of bone sticking out. Also went to the notorious Tuol Sleng, which is a former secondary school that turned into S21, the Khmer Rouge torture facility. The sheer banality of the evil was mind numbing, they passed 18000 prisoners through there before sending them out to the killing fields, photographing and documenting each soul, with grim pictures of their handiwork after questioning. The faces of the lost stare blankly out at you and it was pretty grim stuff, the student gym equipment got perverted into torture instruments and they are still set up, along with nightmarish notices that promise five (5) electric shocks if you cry out under torture. It'd be funny if it wasn't so evil, maybe we should laugh at it now, and I found it a strange and rather depressing place to visit, a monument to the pathetic barbarity of our species. It's now a big tourist attraction of course, and I thought our guide at the killing fields was way too emphatic on the gore and sensational aspects, I wish we gone round without him. Sadly my write up of the experience was stolen and is now in China......
Food was disappointingly boring, rice morning noon and night, and not very spicy, with dire coffee- so much for the French influence, though you can get good baguettes in the big towns. French is very little in evidence, English dominates everywhere and mainly older people speak French it seems, I barely used it all trip.
Hotels are good, you can get an aircon room with hot water, quite clean and nice for US$20-28, There are lots of up-market quite expensive hotels at $150+ but the lower end are just fine and we did not pay more than $28 for a night for the two of us. We camped a few nights, which was pretty dire, then found out they had hammocks too, which we could have had had we only known.
Lake Tonle Sap was a good destination, with miles of bamboo fish traps and so many boats and houses on stilts; I'm amazed the fishery can still support so many people. It also supports a large Asian Openbill colony and about 40 pairs of Painted Storks at the site we got to, plus 2 Lesser Adjutant and about 5 Greater Adjutants, and 150 Black-headed Ibis. We had to wade the last 30m as the river had sunk down overnight, but it was worth it, climbing a rickety bamboo platform to overlook the heron and stork colony.
Ang Trepaeng Thmor (ATT) wetland north of Angkor was reached by a very potholed, dusty road, and we slid off into a ditch during an unseasonable rainstorm, having to be pulled out by one of those two-stroke tractor things that look like giant lawn-mowers, but amazingly had enough grunt to pull us free! The wetland is a Khmer Rouge slave labour artefact, and was heaving with both Pheasant-tailed and Bronze-winged Jacana, Cinnamon and Yellow bitterns, Knob-billed Duck, and a single Milky Stork at a Painted Stork colony, probably hybridising with a Painted as it kept coming to a nest with two chicks. Two male Pied Harrier were a good pick-up too, my penultimate harrier (just the Madagascar one left), but a tad too distant for my liking. 70 + Sarus Crane here were much darker then Oz birds with redder heads and a slightly different call, a potential split I imagine as our ones are a very long way away.
A highlight for me was a very wary male White-winged Wood Duck, at a small pond in remote forest on the Laos border. We sat in a hide with astonishingly uncomfortable strangely placed view holes poked through the foliage (and about a foot off the ground!) from dawn onwards, and we heard it coming in about 0700, honking loudly and then giving a high-pitched whistling noise before plashing down into the water and paddling about, looking for all the world like a huge Muscovy Duck, with orangey bill with red patches near the base and wild orange-red eyes. It was very shy but actually stayed about 20 minutes preening, bathing and waddling stiffly about on the mud, though I fear my camera noise got to it.
We also heard Giant Ibis here and I got a UTV of a big dark bird as it launched off from another pond with an alarming and really loud roaring noise, and I managed to miss one at the Vulture restaurant next day to, leaving just before one flew in! Still, the vultures were good, with 38 White-backed, 6 Red-headed and up to 10 Slender-billed, one of the last places in Asia where modest numbers still exist. They had killed a cow the day before so the birds would be here for us.
Main targets of the trip were the two rare ibis, and we had great experiences of them both at Tmatboey. They are very shy, (Kulturfluchter is the German term, which I just learned) so it is damn difficult to get nice views- we saw Giant Ibis at the roost at dawn 0600, but they bugger off PDQ. They have a fabulous bugling rather crane-like call. We actually saw about 10 that day by tracking them down to the relict muddy trepeangs where they feed, but they take-off almost at once and getting a scope view was tricky. We lucked in on a couple of White-shouldered Ibis there too, seeing them feeding with Cattle Egrets, before seeing one on a nest late in the day. Great species, I was especially impressed by Giant Ibis. We visited four trepeangs during the course of the morning and saw the birds as follows:
Trepeang Bey - 2 Giant Ibis at dawn
Trepeang Achkander- 3 Giant Ibis, 1 Lesser Adjutant
Trepeang Kanchas - 3 Giant Ibis, 2 White-shouldered Ibis, 1 Woolly-necked Stork
Trepeang Kokohthnal - 1 White-shouldered Ibis
A few nice bonus birds came too- we flushed a Brown Fish-Owl and had great looks at it, and the guide knew a White-rumped Falcon site and we got a nice show of a male. It was amazingly tiny, no wonder I dipped on it in Thailand, it flies like a shrike and keeps in cover. We gave him a $10 bonus for that one. The dry woodlands here have an amazing variety of woodpeckers, and really remind me of the mopane forests of Zambia- I got 4 lifer woodpeckers, best being that bizarre Rufous Woodpecker which is dark brown and has a head like Hamerkop, it's a genus otherwise only in South America (Celeus) and a very strange little bird indeed.
The last part of the trip was on good roads with quite heavy traffic, amidst boring paddy and cut-over woods, not very birdy. Still, a grassland site near Kompong Thom came up with 3 male Bengal Florican, pretty striking in flight with huge white wings and a feeble little whistle call. Next day saw us try for Manchurian Reed Warbler at another grassland site near Kompong Thom, and I saw two birds in about the only reedy pond area left that I presume will be what everyone is calling this species. It looked long billed I must say and it wasn't Black-browed, but my knowledge of Acros these days is very limited. I am more interested in distinct things than subtle variations on a theme anyway, so we declared victory and left them before it got too hot. Finding 4 nbd Red Avadavat was pleasing as I've only ever seen this in Fiji (feral) and as a fly-by in Thailand. It's not an easy bird.
The final place was at Kratie for Mekong Wagtail, one of my last wagtails and easy enough on the sandy vegetated islands out in the river- I saw a male and a pair with well grown juvenile, pale grey above with a shadow face pattern. Irrawaddy Dolphin was a good mammal tick here, and the very sparse Asian Golden Weaver was a lifer as well.
We had very good French meal at Le Wok in Phnom Penh at the end, with Mekong lobster, ( no doubt highly endangered.) We had rather a marred ending though, when my laptop got stolen at Phnom Penh airport with a momentary lapse of vigilance on our part, having already got through security and having no trouble all trip previously. It was particularly annoying as my notebook and trip list were in the bag, and I’d used that machine in 10 countries with no troubles- moral of the tale, always be careful!
It was a fascinating trip to a country that was long off the radar, seeing some brilliant very rare birds with the White-winged Wood Duck, Milky Stork, Greater and Lesser Adjutant, Giant Ibis, White-shouldered Ibis, Brown Fish-Owl, White-rumped Falcon and Mekong Wagtail as standouts. Thanks to Karen at Sam Veasna Centre for fixing it up and to her and Howie for their hospitality in Siem Reap. Thanks also to guides Sopheap and Saphoen, they did a good job, especially once we learned how to ask the right questions! Thanks to Ewan Urquhart (Mr. Stonechat) for good company. The police escort, drivers, cook and local guides also did a great job, and special thanks to Mr Ying Sary at Tmatboey who knew where the special birds were to be found.
We had a good vehicle for most of the trip, and amazingly got no punctures, though had some battery trouble at Tmatboey (till Sue suggested adding water to the totally dry battery, which fixed it!) Sadly the driver got the vehicles changed next day for Kompong Thom, and we ended with a dog of a thing that had busted air-conditioning and horrible seats, which made for a couple of uncomfortable travel days.
We recommend the Sam Veasna Centre edc@samveasna.org In Siem Reap as the land agents, they have access to all the key sites and did a fine job, whilst the trip money goes to Cambodian conservation projects. They and the Wildlife Conservation Society WCS try to promote long-term sustainable ecotourism, setting up village-level education and development projects, with the money raised from birders going to such worthwhile causes. At Ang Trepeang Thmor funds go to local livelihood projects, whilst at the Chi Krai grasslands near Kompong Thom, a seriously threatened habitat, the funds promote Bengal Florican nest protection. Villagers get paid for each nest found, and again if the nest is successful. At Tmatboey the amount paid depends on whether or not the visitors get to see the two rare ibis there, and funds are allocated subject to agreements to avoid further habitat degradation and non-hunting. The two main contacts for these sites, and without which you cannot visit, are SVC bookings@samveasna.org and WCS at cambodia@wcs.org.
Phil and Sue Gregory, Sicklebill Safaris / Cassowary House, P.O. Box 387, Kuranda, QLD, 4881
Australia Phone: +61 (0)7 4093 7318 Fax: +61 (0)7 4093 8555
Email: sicklebill@optusnet.com.au
Website 1: Http://www.sicklebillsafaris.com Website 2: Http://www.cassowary-house.com.au
Conservation status:
CR Critically Endangered; EN Endangered; VU Vulnerable; NT Near Threatened
NL Non-leader H Heard only
Birds
Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis
Just a couple of sightings, with 4 at Ang Trapaeng Thmor (ATT)
Spot-billed Pelican Pelecanus philippensis NT
About 30 seen at Prek Toal March 7th . One was at Ang Trapaeng Thmor next day.
Indian Cormorant Phalacrocorax fuscicollis
200 at Prek Toal and Tonle Sap on March 7th .
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
A few at Prek Toal and Tonle Sap
Little Cormorant Phalacrocorax niger
Just 5 at Prek Toal.
Oriental Darter Anhinga melanogaster
2 flying over at Angkor Wat on 5th , and about 30 seen at Prek Toal. A long overdue tick for me.
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea
Ten at Prek Toal and 2 at ATT, very few.
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea
Four at Prek Toal and 2 at Ang Trapaeng Thmor.
Eastern Great Egret Egretta modesta
A few at Prek Toel and ATT.
Intermediate Egret Egretta intermedia
One at ATT was the sole record.
Little Egret Egretta garzetta
Very few, 4 at ATT and a couple Kompong Thom.
Chinese Pond-Heron Ardeola bacchus
Widespread, max.30, some coming into breeding dress, winter birds presumably all Chinese.
Eastern Cattle Egret Bubulcus (ibis) coromanda
Widespread in small numbers, with 50 at ATT the max.
Striated Heron Butorides striatus
Two at Prek Toel.
Black-crowned Night-Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
15 at Prek Toal, where nesting by the Openbill colony.
Yellow Bittern Ixobrychus sinensis
Four at ATT March 7th including two males.
Cinnamon Bittern Ixobrychus cinnomomeus
Great view of a male at ATT on March 7th, which sat right out.
Milky Stork Mycteria cinerea VU
One adult of this rare stork seen at ATT March 8th , attending a nest with 2 juv. and suspected to be paired with a Painted Stork.
Painted Stork Mycteria leucocephala NT
Fifty at the colony at Prek Toel on March 7th , and 30 at ATT next day.
Asian Openbill Anastomus oscitans
A large colony of about 900 birds at Prek Toal, and a few at ATT.
Woolly-necked Stork Anastomus episcopus NT
Two on March 13th and 3 coming to roost next day at Tmatboey.
Lesser Adjutant Leptoptilos javanicus VU
Two seen at Prek Toel, March 7th then one at the duck pond, one at the vulture restaurant and a couple at Tmatboey.
Greater Adjutant Leptoptilos dubius EN
Up to five were seen at Prek Toal March 7th , the only site for it.
Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus NT
A colony of about 120 at Prek Toel. Ewan saw a couple at Ang Trapaeng Thmor.
Glossy Ibis Threskiornis falcinellus
Eleven were flying by the village of Prek Toel March 7th .
White-shouldered Ibis Pseudibis davisoni CR
Two feeding in a trepeang with Cattle Egret, and then one on a nest, with another two singles coming in to roost nearby at Tmatboey March 13th .
Giant Ibis Pseudibis gigantea CR
Ten at Tmatboey March 13th and 4 on 15th , and one the duck pond March 10th (which was a BVD, though heard well!) Ewan had one at the vulture restaurant on 11th .
Lesser Whistling-Duck Dendrocygna javanica
15 at Angkor Wat, 150 at ATT and 40 at Kompong Thom, with 10 at Kratie.
White-winged Wood Duck Cairina scutulata EN
One fantastic wary male came into the Okoki duck pond at 0700 on March 10th and stayed for 20 minutes.
Comb (Knob-billed) Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos NT
Five then a flock of 70 at Ang Trapaeng Thmor.
Cotton Pygmy-goose Nettapus coromandelianus
10 at Ang Trapaeng Thmor and up to 25 at Angkor Wat.
Spot-billed Duck Anas poecilorhyncha
Just two at Kompong Thom and 3 on the Mekong at Kratie. These are presumably haringtoni, the Burmese Spotbill.
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Just two on the Mekong River.
Black Baza Aviceda leuphotes
One at Bayon March 4th , two at Angkor Wat March 5th , a single at Preah Khan on 6th and one near Chhep on 7th .
Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus
Two at ATT March 7th and a couple at Kompong Thom grasslands.
Brahminy Kite Haliastur indus
Just a couple of sightings on March 8th , only 3 birds.
Gray-headed Fish-Eagle Ichthyophaga ichthyaetus
One by the vulture restaurant March 11th and one at Prek Toal.
White-rumped Vulture CR Gyps bengalensis
Thirty-eight at the vulture restaurant on March 11th and 15 the day before.
Slender-billed Vulture CR Gyps tenuirostris
Two on 10th and 10 on 11th at the vulture restaurant. This is a recent split from Long-billed Vulture G. indicus, and sadly in the CR category.
Red-headed Vulture CR Sarcogyps calvus
Five on 10th then six on 11th at the vulture restaurant, one with a striking whitish eye.
Crested Serpent-Eagle Spilornis cheela
Four near Kompong Thom and another near Siem Reap.
Eastern Marsh-Harrier Circus spilonotus
One at ATT on March 7th .
Pied Harrier Circus melanoleucos
Two males at ATT March 8th , three males and 1 female seen near Kompong Thom March 15th , 1 female at the Acro site March 16th .
Shikra Accipiter badius
One at Angkor, and singles twice at Tmatboey.
Japanese Sparrowhawk A. gularis
One at Preah Khan March 4th , the broad tail bars and orangey-yellow eye distinguishing it from Shikra.
Accipiter sp. Accipiter sp.
One at Bayon was small with narrow tail bars and a dark eye, orangey breast barring and pale throat. ? Besra
Rufous-winged Buzzard Butastur liventer
Four en route to the duck site; seen daily at Tmatboey, max. 5.
Imperial Eagle VU Aquila heliaca
One at the White-r Falcon site at Tmatboey March 13th . Aquila eagles here had been recently claimed as Greater-spotted, Lesser-spotted and Indian Spotted Eagle, but this was no spotted eagle, being much too slender with a pale line along the mid wing coverts.
Changeable Hawk-Eagle Spizaetus cirrhatus
Two at Tmatboey.
White-rumped Falcon NT Polihierax insignis
One male seen well at Tmatboey, basically white-headed with a yellow cere. We saw it twice, on March 13th and then again on 14th .
Collared Falconet Microhierax caerulescens
Great views of one by the vulture swamp March 10th , late pm.
Chinese Francolin Francolinus pintadeanus
A female near the duck camp, and a male flushed and seen perched at the vulture site.
Blue-breasted Quail Coturnix chinensis
One female flushed near Kompong Thom, at the Acro site.
Red Junglefowl (H) Gallus gallus
Heard in the dry creeks at Tmatboey.
Siamese Fireback Lophura diardi
One superb male foraging by the duck pond late pm March 10th .
Small Buttonquail Turnix sylvatica
One flushed at ATT grasslands and another at Kompong Thom florican site, great to see Andalusian Hemipode!
Yellow-legged Buttonquail Turnix tanki
One at close range at Tmatboey, seemed pretty uniform and lacked spots or bars, some rusty below, seems most likely this species and not Barred Buttonquail.
Sarus Crane NT Grus antigone
About 70 of the race sharpii at Ang Trapaeng Thmor March 8th , much darker with a redder head than Oz birds.
White-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus
Eight at ATT, 3 at the duck ponds, a couple by the vultures.
White-browed Crake Porzana cinerea
Two at Ang Trapaeng Thmor on March 8th .
Ruddy-breasted Crake Porzana fusca
One imm. and a fine adult on the muddy track at ATT on March 8th .
Grey-headed (Purple) Swamphen Porphyrio (p.) poliocephalus
Twelve on March 8th at Ang Trapaeng Thmor only, very distinctively grey-faced.
Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus
Just four at Ang Trapaeng Thmor, the only sightings.
Bengal Florican CR Houbaropsis bengalensis
Three males at the Chi Krai grasslands near Kompong Thom on March 15th .
Pheasant-tailed Jacana Hydrophasianus chirurgus
Thirty at Ang Trapaeng Thmor., after 4 on Tonle Sap and one at Angkor Wat.
Bronze-winged Jacana Metopidius indicus
Twenty at Ang Trapaeng Thmor, about a third in breeding dress.
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus
Five at the Killing Fields and 6 at Kratie.
Greater Painted-Snipe Rostratula benghalensis
A single male was flushed several times at the vulture marsh area.
Oriental Pratincole Glareola maldivarum
30 at Ang Trapaeng Thmor, with 5 en route, and then 15 at Kompong Thom grasslands.
Small Pratincole NT Glareola lactea
Just three along the Mekong River at Kratie.
Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus indicus
Max. six birds at ATT, 4 at the vultures, and 4 at Tmatboey.
Pacific Golden-Plover Pluvialis fulva
Two at the Kompong Thom grasslands.
Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius
Three along the Mekong River, with a couple at two sites at Kompong Thom.
Pintail Snipe Gallinago stenura
Three at ATT and one at Kratie.
Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago
One at Prek Toel and one at ATT.
Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus
Seven at Kompong Thom and two at the Acro site.
Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
A couple at Kompong Thom with one at ATT.
Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
One near the vulture restaurant.
Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola
One at ATT and one at Kratie.
Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia
One on the Mekong at Phnom Penh
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida
70 were over the Mekong at Phnom Penh, 250 at Tonle Sap and Prek Toal, with 3 at the lake near Kratie. All nbd.
Rock Pigeon Columba livia (I)
A few in the towns, including Phnom Penh.
Red Collared-Dove Streptopelia tranquebarica
Widespread, with 10 at Tmatboey on several days.
Spotted Dove Streptopelia chinensis
Widespread. Common at Tmatboey, with 70+ in paddies.
Zebra Dove Geopelia striata
Two at Angkor Wat, but I didn't check for introduced Peaceful Dove G. placida.
Pink-necked Green-Pigeon Treron vernans
One at the vulture site.
Thick-billed Green-Pigeon Treron curvirostra
Two singles at Preah Khan temple March 6th.
Orange-breasted Green-Pigeon Treron bicinctus
Good views of 4 at the vulture site on March 11th .
Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon Treron phoenicopterus
Just 4 at Tmatboey March 12th , seen well.
Green Imperial-Pigeon Ducula aenea
Two at Tmatboey and one as we came back from the vulture site.
Alexandrine Parakeet NT Psittacula eupatria
Four big-headed large parakeets at Preah Khan looked to be this species.
Blossom-headed Parakeet Psittacula roseata
A few at Tmatboey and a couple at the vulture site, with one near the duck pond.
Red-breasted Parakeet Psittacula alexandri
Common at the temples around Angkor with up to 25 there.
Vernal Hanging-Parrot Loriculus vernalis
One seen nicely at the W-r Falcon site.
Large Hawk-Cuckoo Hierococcyx sparveroides
A great look at one at Angkor Wat March 5th .
Oriental Cuckoo Cuculus saturatus
Two at Angkor Wat Feb 6th, and one at vulture site March 11th with a call very like that of Plaintive Cuckoo.
Indian Cuckoo Cuculus micropterus
Heard, with a single seen at Tmatboey.
Banded Bay Cuckoo Cacomantis sonneratii
Three seen at Tmatboey, and a single next day.
Plaintive Cuckoo Cacomantis merulinus
One at Wat Phnom, three at Ang Trapaeng Thmor. and heard at Tmatboey.
Asian Koel Eudynamys scolopaceus
Singles seen at ATT and Tmatboey, often heard.
Green-billed Malkoha Phaenicophaeus tristis
Six at Prek Toel, and seen twice at Tmatboey.
Greater Coucal (H) Centropus sinensis
Heard at Tmatboey.
Lesser Coucal Centropus bengalensis
One at Angkor and one near the vulture site.
Oriental Bay Owl (H) Phodilus badius
One was heard at the Okoki duck camp on March 9th .
Brown Fish-Owl Ketupa zeylonensis
One seen very well in the daytime at Tmatboey near the White-r Falcon site March 12th . A species I’ve wanted since my school days!
Asian Barred Owlet Glaucidium cuculoides
One seen at Angkor Wat, heard at duck camp and Tmatboey.
Barred Owlet (H) Glaucidium brodiei
Two calling really well at the vulture camp, but hidden out of view.
Brown Hawk-Owl (H) Ninox scutulata
One was calling by the duck pond campsite.
Spotted Wood Owl Strix seloputo
Great daylight views of one at the Pale-capped Pigeon site at Tmatboey.
Great Eared-Nightjar (H) Eurostopodus macrotis
Heard at the duck pond camp only, 3 birds.
Large-tailed Nightjar Caprimulgus macrurus
A male on the way into the duck pond camp. Heard at the vulture site and Tmatboey.
Savanna Nightjar Caprimulgus affinis
One seen and heard at Tmatboey, I went back a second time for a better view March 14th .
Silver-backed Needletail Hirundapus cochinchinensis
Two drinking late pm from the vulture swamp, swooping very low and great views.
Brown Needletail (NL) Hirundapus giganteus
Ewan saw 4 at the vulture swamp
Asian Palm-Swift Cypsiurus balasiensis
Widespread in small numbers, with 30 at ATT the max.
Crested Treeswift Hemiprocne coronata
A pair at tiny nest with one white egg at Tmatboey, where we saw up to 10 birds, also four en route to the duck pond.
Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis
Widespread, we had 7 day records, max. 4 at ATT and 3 near Tmatboey.
Blue-eared Kingfisher Alcedo meninting
A single at the vulture swamp had a black bill, intense blue upperparts and rich orange underparts.
Stork-billed Kingfisher Pelargopsis capensis
Two at the vulture site showed well.
Black-capped Kingfisher Halcyon pileata
One bird on the moat by the Bayon temple gate.
Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis
Just 3 seen on the Mekong at Kratie.
Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis
Five day records, first en route to the duck pond, max. 5 at Tmatboey.
Blue-tailed Bee-eater Merops philippinus
Small numbers, max 4 at Killing Fields, 6 at Prek Toel, 6 at Tmatboey.
Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis
Small numbers from the duck pond woodlands onwards, but only 3-4 per day.
Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops
Three day records, max. 3 at the vulture site
Oriental Pied-Hornbill Anthracoceros albirostris
One at Preah Khan temple, and two at Tmatboey on two dates.
Lineated Barbet Megalaima lineata
Heard often, with several seen; especially by the Siem Reap temples.
Coppersmith Barbet Megalaima haemacephala
A couple in Phnom Penh at Wat Phnom, and again at Angkor.
Gray-capped Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos canicapillus
A couple en route to the duck pond and next day, and one at Tmatboey.
Fulvous-breasted Woodpecker Dendrocopos macei
Good looks at two en route to the duck pond March 9th , in the dry dipterocarp woodland.
Yellow-crowned Woodpecker Dendrocopos mahrattensis
Ewan saw one en route to the duck pond, and we had one on the way out to Thbang Meanchey on March 12th . Then fine looks at a pair at Tmatboey on March 14th .
Greater Yellownape Picus flavinucha
One at Tmatboey.
Streak-throated Woodpecker Picus xanthopygaeus
Two en route to the duck pond March 9th , and two at Tmatboey March 12th .
Black-headed Woodpecker Picus erythropygius
Five near the vulture site and two next day in the dry dipterocarp woodland.
Laced Woodpecker Picus vittatus
One in the dry dipterocarp en route to the duck pond.
Common Flameback Dinopium javanense
Two en route to the duck pond, and seen a couple of times at Tmatboey.
Greater Flameback Chrysocolaptes lucidus
A noisy pair at the duck pond camp.
Rufous Woodpecker Celeus brachyurus
Two of this bizarre pointy-headed dark brown and barred woodpecker, which resembles a mini-Hamerkop, were at Tmatboey March13th .
Great Slaty Woodpecker Mulleripicus pulverulentus
Fantastic views of 2 at Tmatboey, and heard at the vulture site, where Ewan saw one.
Indochinese Bushlark Mirafra erythrocephala
A couple en route to the duck pond, two near the camp, and a couple at Tmatboey.
Horsfield's Bushlark Mirafra javanica
Two in the grasslands at the florican site near Kompong Thom.
Oriental Skylark Alauda gulgula
One near Kompong Thom and a couple at ATT.
Sand Martin Riparia riparia
Eight at ATT and 4 at Kratie lake.
Brown-throated (Plain) Martin Riparia paludicola
Six on the Mekong at Kratie.
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
Widespread, with 200+ at Prek Toel and ATT.
Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica
Six at ATT, which may have been Striated Swallow (BVD), then 4 at Tmatboey and a couple at Kompong Thom.
Mekong Wagtail NT Motacilla samveasnae
Four seen from the boat on the Mekong River, a male and then a pair with a fledged juv. on a sandspit March 17th .
Eastern Yellow Wagtail Motacilla tschutschensis
A single one day and then 3 macronyx at Kompong Thom, now split from Yellow Wagtail.
Forest Wagtail Dendronanthus indicus
One found by Satphoen at Angkor March 6th , walking in the leaf litter.
Oriental Pipit Anthus rufulus
A few at ATT and Kompong Thom. Smaller and paler than Richard's Pipit
Richard's Pipit Anthus richardi
Just a couple at Kompong Thom grasslands.
Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni
Six at Angkor and 3 en route to the duck pond.
Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus
Four at ATT, four near Kompong Thom and two at Kratie.
Large Cuckoo-shrike Coracina macei
A few were seen at Tmatboey.
Indochinese Cuckoo-shrike Coracina polioptera
A male was singing and seen well at Tmatboey on March 14th.
Swinhoe's (Brown-r) Minivet Pericrocotus cantonensis
A couple at Angkor, and at least two seen near the duck pond campsite.
Ashy Minivet Pericrocotus divaricatus
Ten in Siem Reap and 40 at Angkor Wat March 5th , with 15 there next day. One at the duck pond campsite.
Small Minivet Pericrocotus cinnamomeus
Three day records at Tmatboey and 4 near the vulture camp.
Scarlet Minivet Pericrocotus flammeus
A pair seen on two dates at Tmatboey.
Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike (NL) Hemipus picatus
Ewan saw one in the dry dipterocarp woods en route to the duck pond.
Black-crested Bulbul Pycnonotus melanicterus
Three along the duck pond trails and two at Angkor Wat.
Sooty-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus aurigaster
Small numbers in the dry dipterocarp near the duck pond, and at Tmatboey, max. 4.
Stripe-throated Bulbul Pycnonotus finlaysoni
One near the duck pond.
Yellow-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus goiavier
Small numbers at Angkor and Tmatboey, max. 6.
Streak-eared Bulbul Pycnonotus blanfordi
Fairly common, seen most days, even at S21 (Tuol Sleng) in Phnom Penh, but daily max. only 4 birds.
Puff-throated Bulbul Alophoixus pallidus
Six along the duck pond trails one day and two the next, quite vocal here.
Golden-fronted Leafbird Chloropsis aurifrons
Two at the vulture site and two at Tmatboey.
Common Iora Aegithina tiphia
Daily records max. 6 at Tmatboey and four along the duck pond trails.
Great Iora Aegithina lafresnayei
Two on two days along the duck pond trails.
Blue Rock-Thrush Monticola solitarius
Two or three seen at Angkor Wat on two days, a couple being the philippensis taxon and then one blue bellied bird also.
White-throated Rock-Thrush Monticola gularis
Two females at Angkor Wat March 6th, and unexpectedly a fine male in dense forest by the first duck pond March 10th .
Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis
At least four seen at Kratie, and a few at the Kompong Thom grasslands.
Golden-headed Cisticola Cisticola exilis
A couple at Kratie lake, right by the Zitting Cisticolas.
Brown Prinia Prinia polychroa
Two singles seen, at Tmatboey only.
Gray-breasted Prinia Prinia hodgsonii
A few were seen at Tmatboey.
Yellow-bellied Prinia Prinia flaviventris
Just singles at the Killing Fields.
Plain Prinia Prinia inornata
A couple of single records, from near the duck pond.
Lanceolated Warbler Locustella lanceolata
Two walking about like miniature pipits on the road verge at ATT after heavy rain March 8th . Two Locustella near Kompong Thom in the Acro grassland site Mar 16th were most likely this species.
Black-browed Reed- Warbler Acrocephalus bistrigiceps
Four at Prek Toel, and then just one at Kratie.
Manchurian Reed-Warbler VU Acrocephalus tangorum
Two at a dry reed fringed pond in grasslands near Kompong Thom March 16th , looking quite long billed, presumably this taxon.
Oriental Reed-Warbler Acrocephalus orientalis
A couple at ATT.
Thick-billed Warbler Acrocephalus aedon
Two at Kratie lake.
Common Tailorbird Orthotomus sutorius
A couple of sightings at Tmatboey.
Dark-necked Tailorbird Orthotomus atrogularis
One in dry forest en route to the duck pond.
Dusky Warbler Phylloscopus fuscatus
A couple at Kratie lake and one at the Acro site at Kompong Thom.
Radde's Warbler Phylloscopus schwarzi
One near Angkor.
Yellow-browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus
Two's and three's at the duck pond and Tmatboey; heard at Angkor.
Two-barred Greenish Warbler Phylloscopus plumbeitarsus
Split by many from Greenish Warbler - P trochiloides. One at Angkor and one at Tmatboey.
Pale-legged Leaf-Warbler Phylloscopus tenellipes
One at Preah Khan temple. Distinctive quiet metallic monosyllable call.
Warbler sp. Seicercus ?
An all yellow plain faced featureless Seicercus type was seen at the duck pond March 10th, identity unknown.
Striated Grassbird Megalurus palustris
At least 4 and then 5 seen at the two Kompong Thom grassland sites, and 2 at Kratie.
Oriental White-eye Zosterops orientalis
A couple at Wat Phnom, and 4+ at the duck pond site.
Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica
Singles at Angkor and Tmatboey on four dates.
Brown-streaked Flycatcher Muscicapa (d.) williamsoni
One at Angkor March 5th and one at Tmatboey March 13th looked distinctly streaked below and presumably refer to this taxon.
Taiga Flycatcher Ficedula albicilla
A single then two at Angkor Wat.
Hainan Blue-Flycatcher Cyornis hainanus
A male on March 5th then two males next day at Angkor Wat.
Gray-headed Canary-Flycatcher Culicicapa ceylonensis
Two along the duck pond trails, and two at Preah Khan temple.
Bluethroat Luscinia svecica
Four at ATT, then 3 one day and 4 the next near Kompong Thom.
Oriental Magpie-Robin Copsychus saularis
Surprisingly scarce, we only saw them at ATT and one near Siem Reap.
White-rumped Shama Copsychus malabaricus
A super singing male at the duck pond site.
Siberian Stonechat Saxicola maura
Six at Prek Toel, 3 at ATT and odd birds at Tmatboey, with some in open woodland. This is the taxon przewalskii cf. Ewan, (author of the Stonechats book.)
Pied Bushchat Saxicola caprata
Three day records of one or two at Tmatboey only
White-browed Fantail Rhipidura aureola
Two or three daily at Tmatboey and a couple in the dry dipterocarp near the duck pond.
Pied Fantail Rhipidura javanica
Just one was seen at Kratie.
Black-naped Monarch Hypothymis azurea
Four at Angkor, with 2 next day, then one at Tmatboey.
Asian Paradise-Flycatcher Terpsiphone paradisi
One at Angkor.
White-crested Laughingthrush Garrulax leucolophus
Noisy flocks at the duck pond, we saw 4+ on both days, and a couple seen at Tmatboey.
Abbott's Babbler Malacocincla abbotti
Great views of a pair by second duck pond, taped in on March 10th . This was heard only before.
Puff-throated Babbler Pellorneum ruficeps
One was seen briefly along the duck pond trails.
Scaly-crowned Babbler Malacopteron cinereum
Two seen along the duck pond trails on both days, March 10th and 11th . The narrow dark tippings to the rufous crown feathers were hard to see, only visible at close range.
White-bellied Erpornis (Yuhina) Erpornis (Yuhina) zantholeuca
Six one day and 4 the next, along the duck pond trails.
Chestnut-bellied Nuthatch Sitta castanea
Two on two dates and a male on the last day at Tmatboey, very richly coloured, maybe race tonkinensis?
Velvet-fronted Nuthatch Sitta frontalis
Three day records up to 4 birds, first en route to the duck pond, then at Tmatboey.
Brown-throated Sunbird Anthreptes malacensis
A male at the duck pond site.
Copper-throated Sunbird Nectarinia calcostetha
A male by the duck pond, very dark with an iridescent green crown.
Purple Sunbird Cinnyris asiaticus
One or two at Tmatboey and along the duck pond trails.
Olive-backed Sunbird Cinnyris jugularis
Four en route to the duck pond and two seen at Tmatboey. They were far paler than Aussie birds with orange pectoral tufts, yet another potential split.
Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker Dicaeum cruentatum
Two at Wat Phnom, one at Angkor and one at Tmatboey.
Black-naped Oriole Oriolus chinensis
Day records of 4, 6 and 10+ at Angkor Wat and another at Tmatboey.
Black-hooded Oriole Oriolus xanthornus
Four day records max. 4 birds, at Tmatboey.
Brown Shrike Lanius cristatus
Singles seen at Phnom Penh, Tmatboey, Thbang Meanchey, Ang Trapaeng Thmor, and near Siem Reap.
Burmese Shrike Lanius collurioides
Four near the duck pond and seen daily at Tmatboey, max. 4 birds.
Large Woodshrike Tephrodornis gularis
Two and then a single in the dry dipterocarp near the duck pond, on March 9th and 10th.
Common Woodshrike Tephrodornis pondicerianus
Six en route to the duck pond, and then daily at Tmatboey with up to 4 birds.
Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus
Common in suitable habitat, max. 30 at ATT.
Ashy Drongo Dicrurus leucophaeus
One at Tmatboey, and two on 4th then 3 on 5th at Angkor Wat, all ashy birds.
Hair-crested Drongo Dicrurus hottentottus
Two on one day and three the next at Angkor, and one at Tmatboey.
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo Dicrurus paradiseus
Five day records, max. 4 at Angkor March 6th and two's at Tmatboey and near the vulture site.
Red-billed Blue Magpie Urocissa erythrorhyncha
One at the vulture site, then three one day and two the next near Tmatboey.
Rufous Treepie Dendrocitta vagabunda
One at the vulture site March 10th, and two then one at Tmatboey. Another species I'd only heard previously.
Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos
Seen in most locations but only common at Prek Toal.
Common Hill Myna NT Gracula religiosa
Two on Feb 5th and 4 next day at Angkor Wat.
White-vented (Grand) Myna Acridotheres grandis
Sixteen on Tonle Sap were the only ones we saw. Split from A. javanica.
Common Myna Acridotheres tristis
A few around in Angkor and Phnom Penh, also at Tmatboey, but not numerous.
Vinous-breasted Starling NT Acridotheres burmannicus
Nine at the vulture site March 11th , 5 there next day March 12th and then 4 at Tmatboey.
Black-collared Starling Gracupica nigricollis
Scattered records, with 12 at ATT March 8th, 4 at the vulture site and 6 at Tmatboey, with two on March 14th the last.
Asian Pied Starling Gracupica contra
Just two at ATT March 8th .
Chestnut-tailed Starling Sturnia malabarica
Six at ATT March 8th , then 6 at the vulture site and 4 at Tmatboey.
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Two at Siem Reap.
Plain-backed Sparrow Passer flaveolus
Two males at ATT on March 8th , and a female at Tmatboey.
Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus
Quite common in suitable habitat.
Baya Weaver Ploceus philippinus
Twenty nbd birds in the Kompong Thom grasslands at the Acro site.
Asian Golden Weaver NT Ploceus hypoxanthus
Seven males and 2 females seen by the lake at Kratie on March16th, being unexpectedly small with bright yellow rumps.
Red Avadavat Amandava amandava
A great view of four female plumaged birds at the Acro site near Kompong Thom March 16th .
White-rumped Mannikin (Munia) Lonchura striata
Ten at Tmatboey and 40 at Kratie lake.
Nutmeg Mannikin Lonchura punctulata
Six at ATT, ten en route to Tmatboey and a couple there, with 2 at Kratie.
Yellow-breasted Bunting NT Emberiza aureola
A male and then a female at the Acro site near Kompong Thom March 16th .
Mammals
Finlayson's (Variable) Squirrel Callosciurus finlaysoni
Fairly common at Angkor, a bright coppery red squirrel with a white patch at the base of the tail. Also one at Tmatboey.
Cambodian Striped Squirrel Tamiops rodolphei
One at Angkor and a couple seen at Tmatboey. (aka Rodolph's Striped Squirrel).
Long-tailed Macaque Macaca fascicularis
A group of about 20 at Bayon and 25 at Angkor, a young one sat briefly on my foot when I was in the dry forest standing still!
Pileated Gibbon Hylobates pileatus
A pair at the duck pond, the male black with a white eyebrow and face trim the female much smaller and more olivey coloured.
Asiatic Jackal Canis aureus
One very nice looking animal came in at the vulture feeding site, with pale yellow eyes and brushy tail.
Indian Muntjac Muntiacus muntjac
A single one day, and a pair the next at Tmatboey in the dry forest.
Irrawaddy Dolphin Orcaella brevirostris
We saw 7 or 8 on the Mekong, often singly, sometimes as two or three so hard to estimate the total. Quite pale grey above with a bulbous forehead and stubby rather rounded back-set dorsal fin.
Lyle's Flying Fox Pteropus lylei
About 70 in Siem Reap and about 150+ at a camp at the stork colony at ATT.
Theobald's Tomb Bat Taphozous theobaldi
Sue saw some roosting bats at Preah Khan and forgot to tell me! Probably this species.
Wrinkle-lipped (Cambodian) Free-tailed Bat Chaerephon plicata
A fast-flying medium sized bat over a park by the Royal Palace is presumably this species, which has a huge roost in the National Museum nearby.
Bat sp.
A strange skinny and rather long- winged mid-size bat with fast flight was at the Savanna Nightjar site, like nothing I’ve seen before in shape or flight action, almost nightjar-like!
Other critters
Asian House Gecko Hemidactylus frenatus
Common near habitation
Gecko sp. An amazing call was given by one at Tmatboey camp, a really loud nasal “Gek-ko”, repeated several times, almost like someone saying the name. It seemed to give a call series of 6 or 7 and then move maybe 50m to another call post. In the bedroom one early morning it was incredibly loud, but I never got to see it, though Sue saw a large dark gecko on a tree trunk as we were leaving predawn one morning.
Snake sp. A small skinny one about 25 cm long was by the duck pond hide, pale olivey-brown with a sage green head. It was the only