Content

Birding Fraser's Hill - May 2018

Friday, May 11, 2018

"We could not be more appreciative of nor ask for a better birding guide than Weng Chun. I tried for several months to reach him after reading many great reviews. I tried through Birding Pal site but it wasn't working correctly. I finally reached him though this site or Facebook and it was so worth the wait and effort. From our initial contact it went smoothly and he was very accommodating with planning and his recommendations were right on. He picked us up at KLIA2 and we were off.  His sense of humor was delightful and we had fun everywhere - whether driving, dining or birding. We always felt safe and well-cared for and our time with Weng Chun will be remembered. 

We did not have a specific list of birds to see - we just put ourselves in his keeping. Weng Chun knows his birds!!! He could tell minute differences in their calls and appearances and at night we were amazed he could rattle off what we'd seen that day! He worked diligently to ensure I saw a hornbill on Peninsular Malaysia - a huge desire of mine.

Birders - if you are lucky enough to be able to schedule with Weng Chun on the Peninsula - do it. He is knowledgeable, professional, committed to your quests, and fun. We are ready to return! Thank you, Weng Chun!"

Another fun birding trip filled with laughter. This time I was guiding a couple from USA to Fraser's Hill (yes, again!) and Hulu Langat.  Weather was generally good and we had pretty good birds for this trip checklist. Lots of woodpeckers! Obviously many birds we saw on this trip are different from the ones they saw while birding in Langkawi.

After meeting up with Doug and Melissa in KL, we went up to Fraser's Hill. Along the way, we made several birding stops with unforgettable sighting of a Blyth's Hawk-eagle. We stayed up in the hill station for 2 nights and another night near KL. While birding in Fraser's Hill is very comfortable with nice weather, it is always a challenge to many of my guests to go birding in the lowland where it is warmer and humid, but still getting many new birds. We were fortunate to find a few fruiting trees in the lowland forest. Not forgetting an incredible sighting of a hornbill at the end of the trip.

Lots of amazing birds perching on the trees nearby. New birds for them, of course. 

Fire-tufted Barbet through the Kowa TSN-501 spotting scope

Observing the forest canopy for Blyth's Shrike-babbler previously known as White-browed Shrike-babbler 

A start of a new day in Fraser's Hill

In the morning, we went to look for the Rufous-browed Flycatcher, White-tailed Robin and Red-headed Trogon

A quick scan of the densely covered area for broadbill, and we got one!


White-eye, Cuckoo-dove and Flycatcher seen here within 1 minute


a portable spotting scope helps a lot during our birding trip


Continue walking around Fraser's Hill and keep looking around for birds ....


.... and we saw Mountain Imperial Pigeon perching quietly, almost miss it!


Now in more open space, we look up those birds flying fast in the sky


Town Centre was decorated that day


A Large Niltava was very cooperative - it allows us time to observe and taking a few photographs too


Large Niltava (male)


in a more hot and humid situation, birding in the lowland forest near Kuala Lumpur







Licensed Tourist Guide specialized in birdwatching and photography tour in Peninsular Malaysia. BSc Forestry (Parks & Recreation Management).

Search This Blog

Birdwatching and Photography Trips

Birdwatching and Photography Trips
Join an exclusive and personalized bird watching, photography and wildlife trip with Nature2pixel. You may also book a trip with us by filling up the form below.

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

Instagram

Instagram
Follow me on instagram @malaysianbirder

Birds of Peninsular Malaysia

Birds of Peninsular Malaysia
Birds of Peninsular Malaysia

Wildlife in Peninsular Malaysia

Wildlife in Peninsular Malaysia
A collection of wildlife photographs in Peninsular Malaysia that includes mammals, reptiles and amphibians. Some photographs are taken with camera while some are taken with mobile phone whenever I get the opportunities to shoot while on a guiding assignment.

Insects

Insects
You will see other interesting insects during your birding adventure with me. Here are some of the photos I have extracted from my hard drives..

Butterflies of Peninsular Malaysia

Butterflies of Peninsular Malaysia
Collection of photographs for reference.

Notable Plants While Birding

Notable Plants While Birding
There will be some interesting flora that will definitely catch your attention while going out on a birdwatching trip with me. I am in the midst of compiling all the plants, please return to this website for updates. Thank you.

Southeast Asia Birding

Southeast Asia Birding
Sometimes I accompany my regular guests for birding trips out of Peninsular Malaysia. Check out what we found.
Powered by Blogger.

Blog Archive

Total Pageviews


Birds & Wildlife in Malaysia

About Me

I'm a bird watcher, digiscoper, photographer and a licensed nature guide. Welcome to my 'A Malaysian Birder' blog. I will post my bird sightings and photographs on this blog. I started bird watching while studying in university. After graduating with a degree in forestry specializing in parks and recreation management, I have been attached to the parks and gardens industry. My past work experiences involve conducting environmental education program, bird watching and many more. When I go out to the field, I will usually have my Leica Ultravid 10x32 binocular and Kowa TSN-501 spotting scope with me. This is the lightest setup for me as I prefer to go light these days. There are times, I will have my parabolic microphone in the field for recording bird calls.

In the past, I will have my Kowa BDXD 8x32 binocular, Zoom H2N recorder, Kowa TSN-501 and my favorite Nikon1 V1 with a 70-300mm lens. This is the lightest setup I have tried.

Bird Watching Tours

There are quite a number of birding groups from Australia, United States and United Kingdom that come over to Malaysia annually visiting the traditional key sites that include Kuala Selangor, Fraser's Hill and Taman Negara. There is not doubt that the 3 sites are the preferred birding sites in Peninsular Malaysia. So if you are coming over for birding and intend to hire a guide, you can send me an email at nature2pixel@gmail.com and go over to posting section to view photos and summary of trip reports with testimonials from past clients.

Besides following the traditional route, I also customized trip according to clients needs, preference and interests. So there are some local patches that I can introduce to all bird watchers, digiscopers and photographers.

Here are a few of my favorite birding spots around Kuala Lumpur.

• Kuala Selangor - the habitats include mangrove forest. Good for woodpecker and kingfisher. Some amount of walking is required on flat terrain.

• Fraser's Hill - one of the traditional key sites for birding in Peninsular Malaysia and still the best place to visit. Elevation between 900 - 1200m above sea level. The species found here are different from the city of Kuala Lumpur. Targets may include Trogon, Woodpecker, Partridge, Laughingthrush, Leafbird, Spiderhunter and Sunbird.

• Hulu Langat - one of the most visited birding spot due to its proximity from the city centre. Walking is required but on easy terrain in this lowland forest. Sometimes need to wait at fruiting trees. Generally a good spot for Broadbill, Kingfisher, and Babbler.

• Bukit Tinggi - An alternative spot if you do not want to spend too long hours travelling to Fraser's Hill. It's about 900m to 1,000m above sea level and you get a combination of lowland and highland species at this elevation. Walking is required but just a short distance. Traditional known for Broadbill, Hornbill, Partridge and Pheasant.

• Gombak-Ampang - Generally recommended for photographers targeting Blue-eared Kingfisher and at times during fruiting season, it attracts many species of Bulbul and Barbet. Located in urban area.

My Artwork Products

Bird Video

I am also interested to take video of birds. Here are some of my favorite videos for your viewing. Video taken with Nikon1 V1 attached to a Sigma 500mm f4.5 and most of the time iPhone SE through the spotting scope. Editing is done on smartphone Power Director for Android device and I also like the iMovie on iPhone. Enjoy.

Recommended Field Guides

If you are interested to get a copy of field guides to assist you to learn and identify birds in Malaysia. Click the followings to find out more.