Starting off from KL, we drove towards the coastal open field with patches of Mangroves in the early morning. Found most of the birds we wanted but missed a few. In the afternoon, we went up to Fraser's Hill which we spent 3 days. The hill station proved to be a challenge with the low birding activities throughout the day and night. We managed to find 2 out of 3 targeted owls, but again, the Collared Owlet is rather quiet just like any of my previous trips. Brown Wood Owl was difficult, we only managed to find it on our last owling session up here. The Mountain Scops Owl was not easy either, many birders would agree that even though you may got near to a Mountain Scops Owl, does not necessary mean you will get even a split second look at it. But luckily we did pretty well. The scops owl stayed long enough for record shots with the camera. Red-headed Trogon requires 2 days of searching and waiting but we finally got 1 female and 2 male. Lots of Common Green Magpie, we saw them every day while we were there. Other highlights from the hill station include Malayan Laughingthrush, Malayan Partridge (7 of them), Malayan Whistling Thrush (heard only), Slaty-backed Forktail and Bushy-crested Hornbill (we saw 4 flying by).  After Fraser's Hill, we covered a nearby lowland forest in the late afternoon and morning the following day. The highlights from this forest were (but not limited to) Black-throated Babbler, Black-capped Babbler, Short-tailed Babbler, Ferruginous Babbler, Chestnut-rumped Babbler, Rufous-collared Kingfisher, Rufous-backed Kingfisher, Banded Woodpecker, Crimson-winged Woodpecker, Buff-rumped Woodpecker, Buff-necked Woodpecker, Hairy-backed Bulbul, Grey-cheeked Bulbul, Spectacled Bulbul, Cream-vented Bulbul, Buff-vented Bulbul, Red-eyed Bulbul, Stripe-throated Bulbul, Black-and-Red Broadbill, Black-naped Monarch and not forgetting the most tricky of all, a Chestnut-backed Scimitar-Babbler. Next, we drove up to the hill of Bukit Tinggi for overnight. The next morning, we waited for our targets but only one appeared while the other target is no where to be found. However, we saw a star bird of the trip. We also found Scaly-breasted Bulbul, Blue-eared Barbet, Yellow-vented Pigeon, and Large Woodshrike. For our final destination, we covered the lowland forest near KL where we managed to include Rufous-backed Kingfisher, Pale Blue Flycatcher, White-chested Flycatcher, Banded Kingfisher, Red-bearded Bee-eater and few others.

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Another good weekend trip with Michael and Claire. I have guided both of them before, this time we spent more time in the lowland forest of Pahang focusing on the just the "missing" or target species that Michael needed.

From KL, we set off to Pahang and arrived at our destination right on time! We spent the whole day until it gets dark. By the end of the day, we nailed White-bellied Woodpecker, Crimson-winged Woodpecker, Long-tailed Parakeet, Black-thighed Falconet, Black-throated Babbler and others.

The following day, we returned to the forest for more targets (but due to limited time, we only spent less than half day here) which includes Great Slaty Woodpecker, Rufous-collared Kingfisher and others. Next we drove to Hulu Langat for a very quick birding session for Rufous-backed Kingfisher, Orange-backed Woodpecker and a few others. 

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This is my 2nd time guiding birders from South America. Last year, I had Hugo based in Ecuador and today, I had this couple from Brazil with me in Fraser's Hill. So, now I have guests coming from almost all continents. Before they come over to Peninsular, both of them spent a few days in Sarawak and Sabah. So, they already had a taste of birding in this part of the world.

We start looking for birds once we arrived at the hill station, and the first bird we saw is a Black-throated Sunbird. Then, we added Long-tailed Sibia, Silver-eared Mesia, Spectacled Laughingthrush, Large Niltava, Fire-tufted Barbet, Orange-bellied Leafbird and Streaked Spiderhunter. We were only focusing on specific birding spots in the hill station to ensure we get higher chance to see more species. We were unlucky with the Red-headed Trogon, but we still managed to locate Common Green Magpie, Blue Nuthatch, Black-browed Barbet, Pygmy Cupwing, Buff-breasted Babbler, Grey-throated Babbler, Rufous-browed Flycatcher, White-tailed Robin, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, Mountain Bulbul, Stripe-throated Bulbul, Malayan Laughingthrush, Malaysian Partridge, Mountain Tailorbird, and few others great species! All new birds (lifers!) except Oriental Magpie Robin for the couple.

We waited for about an hour to get this species of partridge. Photo taken with iPhone through the binocular.
















Sent them back to their overnight accommodation at the end of the day, bid them farewell before I make my way home to KL.

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Nice to meet this team of birders from Singapore again. One didn't come and replaced by another birder. But still lots of laughter and jokes, just like the previous outing.

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I arranged an 8 day birding trip with Weng Chun in June 2018 for my wife and myself. Weng Chun provided alternative itineraries and we decided to go with a tour that encompassed Kuala Selangor, Fraser’s Hill, Taman Negara and Bukit Tinggi but in fact was much more as Weng incorporated stops between locations that gave us opportunities to see many more species. Weng Chun’s enthusiasm and determination that we see as much as possible was brilliant. If one of us missed a bird he would persevere until we had both seen it. Accommodation was good throughout and he ensured we had water, rest breaks and meals throughout the trip. He would sort out the hotel check-ins, help with luggage and was a joy to spend time with, helping us get the most from the trip. He was interested in our previous birding experiences and other wildlife interests and was delighted whenever we achieved a good sighting or obtained a good photograph of a particular or difficult species. We had early starts and night time excursions for owls and nightjars and by the end of the trip had amassed 240 species. I would not hesitate in recommending Weng Chun as a guide when visiting the Malaysian Peninsular. - Graham & Christine

This is another great trip! 😄 Love to share the birding activity with enthusiastic birders. I've just realized I took more than 500 shots with my iPhone on this trip. There was an unfortunate incident, my compact spotting scope fell and joint was opened, had to send it back to the manufacturer for repair. 😢

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Just about a month ago, I received an enquiry from Kenny based in Singapore. I suggested to him that it would be better to go up to the hill station because that will provide him with many new species rather than going to Kuala Selangor which he will be seeing almost the same species back home. We met early in the morning in KL city centre and drove up to Fraser's Hill with a breakfast stop in Kuala Kubu Bahru. We start birding upon reach the hill station. No time to waste.

One of the first few species seen and the highlight for Fraser's Hill is no doubt a Red-headed Trogon. There is also a few Common Green Magpie at the same location.  For the next few hours in the hill station, we added Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Fire-tufted Barbet, Long-tailed Sibia, Silver-eared Mesia, Spectacled Laughingthrush, Malayan Laughingthrush, Emerald Dove, Malaysian Partridge, Large Niltava and so much more.

It was a short trip but a memorable one. It is always nice to see a family enjoying this "birding" activity. What a nice way to spend quality time together with family members!

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