This morning, I guided 2 avid birders with their father to Bukit Tinggi. From KL to our birding destination, we stopped by for a plate of wantan noodle. First birding of the day was the highlight of the trip. It was a Helmeted Hornbill. Despite the thick mist, we could still identify this gentle giant in our Malaysian forest. We waited for quite some time hoping that it will make a 2nd appearance, but unfortunately, it didn't. We had a consolation in a Gold-whiskered Barbet perching in the open.
We continued our walk into the forest to look for our main target, Mountain Peacock-Pheasant. Well, it was already waiting for us. It stayed on for some few good minutes for everyone to get a good look, took photos and videos. Next up, we had 3 Dusky Broadbill and a single Silver-breasted Broadbill. We tried to look for more hornbills but the visibility did not improve. That makes our birding difficult. Along the walk outside the trail, we had Dark-sided Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher and Dark-necked Tailorbird.
The crowd has entered the garden, so we continued our walk and tried to avoid the day tourists. We had 3 Red-bearded Bee-eater, Sooty Barbet, Black-crested Bulbul, Cinerous Bulbul, Black-headed Bulbul, Bar-winged Flycatcher-Shrike and Whiskered Treeswift.
Received an email yesterday. Interesting result from recent studies about Peregrine Falcon. There are so many good readings about research of birds from overseas. Hope to read more interesting studies done in Malaysia because we do have some local and non-local ornithologists working out in the field in the country.
Took a short time going through some articles on birds and coffee farm. Now I realized there are really a lot of effort on this sustainable farming practice. I would like to share the following links with you. Enjoy the articles.
There is another interesting article about crows in Malaysia which stated that the House Crow over here is genetically similar to the ones in Sri Lanka. Some believe the bird hitchhiked ships and arrived in Malaysia. Meanwhile, Zoologist Dr Hafidzi Mohd Noor from UPM said that crows from Sri Lanka was introduced in Malaysia. It was introduced as a biological control to coffee plantation in Pulau Carey in 1902 by John Edward Valentine Carey. Read more here: https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2019/03/472669/crows-problem-epic-proportions
His voice is unmistakable! I have heard of his voice for so many years on television documentaries since my childhood. I am sure you can recognize his voice instantly! For today's post, I would like to talk about David Attenborough.
Over the years, we have seen so many naturalists making lots of wildlife documentaries. Everyone has their own unique personality / character. But whenever I think about a naturalist on TV, it would always be him, the one and only David Attenborough. I tried to watch almost every documentaries I can find featuring him. One of the most unforgettable and my favorite series is The Life of Birds. As a birder, I of course bought a copy of the DVD for my own collection.
David Attenborough joined BBC in 1952 and made remarkable journeys into the wilderness to film the wonders of nature. Such an incredibly strong passion for nature, even age could not stop him from sharing his knowledge to the world. I truly believe he has witnessed so many things in life more than anyone else and he have seen the changes to the natural world - good and bad.
Pygmy Cupwing (previously known as Pygmy Wren-babbler)
Long-tailed Broadbill
Large Niltava
My first visit to Fraser’s Hill dates back to the 1990s, when I was completing my university field practical hours. I chose WWF Fraser’s Hill as my placement site and spent a total of four weeks there. At the time, I had no idea how cold it could get up in the highlands—everything felt chilly, at least by ordinary Malaysian standards. But looking back, I’m truly glad I had the chance to experience what life was like there during those days. Back then, birds were practically everywhere, and most were remarkably approachable. A simple walk along the forest trails would bring you face to face with species like the Large Niltava or the Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush, often perched close to the path. Silver-eared Mesias were abundant, their bright plumage adding color to the misty surroundings.
raser’s Hill was named after a Scotsman, Louis James Fraser. The old story many of us heard was that he went missing in the forest, never to be found. However, according to more recent accounts, Fraser actually returned to Europe, where he tragically met with an accident and died. If you’re interested in learning more about him, you can read further on his Wikipedia page.
According to Pahang Tourism, the hill station sits at 1,524 meters above sea level, although I believe this refers to the highest accessible point by foot. Generally, the main areas of Fraser’s Hill are around 1,200 meters in elevation. Temperatures usually hover between 19°C and 22°C, offering a refreshing escape from the lowland heat.
Fraser’s Hill is regarded as one of the prime birding destinations in Peninsular Malaysia. For decades, it has attracted birdwatchers from around the world. Around 250 bird species have been recorded here, though in a typical visit you might expect to see about 100, depending on the season and how much time you spend exploring. During the migration period, some species pass through while others stay on as wintering visitors.
If you’re planning a birding trip, I usually recommend spending at least three days and two nights at Fraser’s Hill. The journey from Kuala Lumpur city center is often listed as 1.5 hours on some websites and Google Maps, but in reality, it usually takes longer. The uphill road is winding and narrow, and the stretch between Kuala Lumpur and Kuala Kubu Bharu can be busy, especially during weekends and public holidays.
Once you arrive, you’ll find the effort well worth it. Some of the species you might encounter include the Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush, Malayan Laughingthrush, Black Laughingthrush, Silver-eared Mesia, Long-tailed Sibia, Black-throated Sunbird, Streaked Spiderhunter, Large Niltava, Rufous-browed Flycatcher, Little Pied Flycatcher, Red-headed Trogon, Collared Owlet, Orange-bellied Leafbird, Large Cuckooshrike, Black-and-Crimson Oriole, Long-tailed Broadbill, Silver-breasted Broadbill, White-tailed Robin, Streaked Wren-babbler, Pygmy Cupwing (formerly known as Pygmy Wren-babbler), Black-browed Barbet, Fire-tufted Barbet, Golden Babbler, Grey-throated Babbler, Buff-breasted Babbler, Malaysian Partridge, and many more.
Fraser’s Hill remains a timeless sanctuary for both birds and birdwatchers alike—serene, cool, and endlessly rewarding for anyone who loves the natural world.
Watch the video above, which I’ve compiled to showcase some of the amazing bird species found in this beautiful hill station. Besides birds, you might also encounter a few primates, wild boars, and plenty of squirrels—including the adorable Himalayan Striped Squirrel, one of the cutest residents of Fraser’s Hill.
When it comes to food, there are plenty of restaurants around town. Most serve local Malaysian dishes—Chinese, Malay, and Indian—while a few offer Western-style meals.
I hope this gives you a better idea of what to expect from your birding adventure at Fraser’s Hill—a cool, serene destination filled with wildlife and character.
If you’re interested in hiring me as your birding guide at Fraser’s Hill, feel free to reach out via email at nature2pixel@gmail.com or send me a WhatsApp message at +6018-363-2738. I’d be happy to help you make the most of your trip!
An email received yesterday "How will the ☕ you drink help birds? Find out now"
I drink coffee at local coffee shop, not like those Starbucks or Coffee Beans. I am not crazy about coffee but occasionally I will order just the ordinary black coffee with sugar (no condensed milk added) and ice while on birding trips. Although, I don't believe the beans or the powder originate from shade-grown coffee plantation because it will be expensive for the coffee shop owner.
Almost all kind of farming or plantation over here in Malaysia is destructive, which means, farmer or big plantation companies will clear the forest before planting their crops. Quite unfortunately, sad but true. But after reading the text on the above link, personally I like the idea of shade grown farm. It really helps to keep the birds (and other wildlife) in their existing habitat. Really a win-win situation. I might be wrong or the writer could be half right. But I think there must be a thorough field study conducted on shade-grown coffee, otherwise how would the writer come out with the statement "more than 42 species of North American migratory songbirds that winter in coffee plantations, including orioles, warblers, and thrushes". Amazing!!!
I remember this trip very well. It was my first trip with Roger for 5 days. We covered Kuala Selangor, Fraser's Hill and Hulu Langat. His enthusiasm and passion for butterflies is amazing! I was impressed and soon, I started shooting and looking out for butterflies too. I did another trip with Roger in 2011 and will compile the photos soon.
Throughout the 5 days, we see more things - apart from birds and butterflies, we had sightings of water monitor, tarantula, trapdoor spider, colugo (YOU SHOULD LOOK AT HIS FACE! HE WAS SO AMAZED), and many primates.
Let's take a look at the video. I hope you enjoy this. There are more videos from my YouTube channel which showcases Birds in Malaysia, my Birding in Malaysia trips, and others. Subscribe to the channel and you will be notify when there is a new video uploaded to my channel. Thank you.
I have been thinking whether to start a new blog or use this blog to share my butterflies sightings & photographs. After a few days of thinking about this, I decided to stick on to this blog. Over the years, going out on birding trips and sometimes just around the neighborhood, I have been able to take photographs of butterflies of various sizes. I used to have a dedicated macro lens, but nowadays I only have a micro four thirds telephoto zoom lens to take all the shots, which I am quite happy about.
How can you benefit from this page? Many of my friends are curious whenever they see colorful butterflies in their garden or while they walk in the urban parks. Sometimes they tried to describe to me what they saw which I can't imagine. Some managed to get some photographs with their smartphone and that's helpful. Now, if I can have a page filled with photographs of the common butterflies in Peninsular Malaysia, it will truly help anyone who wanted to find out what they are looking at.
An early morning drive up to a highland resort near Kuala Lumpur after a tip-off from a birding friend yesterday. I was told that a tree in this highland is fruiting again. I was stunned because the last time I visited this tree was 3 months ago, how is it possible the tree fruits again so soon? Nonetheless, we just go ahead with the plan.
Before reaching the fruiting tree, we stopped by the roadside for a family of Southern Pig-tailed Macaque. We spent about 30 minutes here.
Upon arriving at the fruiting tree, we saw 3 species of Spiderhunters. 1 hour after that there isn't much action around. The other birds that came to the tree were Asian Glossy Starling and Blue-eared Barbet. I walked away from the tree and went to look for possible targets because I can hear Velvet-fronted Nuthatch calling nearby. I went closer to the source but I heard another familiar call.... it's a Red-bearded Bee-eater!!! That will be a highlight for the trip. Quickly we took out our camera but left out the tripod. Here we spent almost 20 minutes. It came so close at eye-level. Perfect ending to a morning trip away from the city.
Guided a family of 4 for a morning birding session up in Fraser's Hill. Since it was their first experience in birdwatching, I've provided each of them a 8x26 binocular which is light and very decent for beginners. If you are interested to buy a pair of binocular for your own use and curious to find out what bird species can be found in your neighborhood, you may contact me via WhatsApp at +60183632738.
The morning started from a drive at Telekom Loop towards the towards the town center. After we parked the car, we walked for about 2.5 hours along the road. This is the best route for beginners and easy to spot the birds too.
Some of the birds seen during the session include (but not limited to):
White-rumped Munia
Buff-breasted Babbler
Rufous-browed Flycatcher
Streaked Spiderhunter
Black-throated Sunbird
Large-billed Crow
Oriental Magpie Robin
Fire-tufted Barbet
Large Niltava
Mountain Bulbul
Oriental Honey Buzzard
Chestnut-crowned Warbler
Golden Babbler
Grey Wagtail
Long-tailed Sibia
Blue-winged Minla
Mountain Fulvetta
Mountain Tailorbird
Chestnut-capped Laughingthrush
Silver-eared Mesia
White-throated Fantail
White-tailed Robin
If you are curious about birdwatching or would like to participate in a beginner birdwatching session in Fraser's Hill, you may send me a message via WhatsApp at +60183642738. Early reservation is most recommended because I had to limit the number of participants to family of 4 due to the current situation.
From carrying those heavy Nikon DSLR gears, Nikon spotting scope, Nikon binocular, heavy tripod and video head and gimbal in those early years of birding, I have realized and admitted that I will not be able to carry the same weight as before. I have sold most of those equipment and donated some but still have the Nikon binocular, Kowa binocular and Leica binocular.
These days, I am happier with my current Panasonic Lumix G7 (sometimes with Olympus E-M1 Mark II) + 100-300mm II lens and Omicron 8x26 binocular. All fits into Hypergear waterproof sling bag. It even have space for a Kowa TSN-501 spotting scope.
Went out birding early to cover the residential neighborhood and also the nearest forest to my home.
The first bird of the day was a White-throated kingfisher. Pretty noisy before dawn. Next, there were Little Heron, Painted Stork, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Pink-necked Pigeon, and few others. Oh well, I was late for forest birding today because I decided to have brunch (breakfast+lunch). Upon arrival, I managed to get Rufescent Prinia, Rufous-collared Kingfisher, Crimson-winged Woodpecker, Asian Paradise Flycatcher, and many more.
However, this afternoon birding provided me the opportunity to see a few butterflies and insects.
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
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
Collection of photographs for reference.
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
Sometimes I accompany my regular guests for birding trips out of Peninsular Malaysia. Check out what we found.
Hi, I’m a licensed guide in Peninsular Malaysia with over 15 years of professional guiding experience and a lifelong passion for birds. My journey began during my university studies in Parks & Recreation Management, leading to a career in environmental education, park management, and guiding.
Whether you're targeting Peninsular Malaysia’s deep-forest endemics, seeking elusive species like the Rail-babbler and Malaysian Banded Pitta, or exploring top birding hubs like Fraser's Hill, Taman Negara, and Bukit Tinggi, I design tailored itineraries to match your life-list targets.
Explore my trip reports, species galleries, and travel advice below. Planning your next photography or birding expedition? Get in touch to book a custom guided tour.
Equipment Evolution
In the past, I have used 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 and owned. From then onwards, I have used Omicron 8x26 binocular (and i bought 4 units), Leica Ultravid 8x32 binocular, Kowa Spotting Scope TSN773 with 20-60x eyepiece, Panasonic Lumix G7, Panasonic Lumix G9 with a 100-300mm lens and currently experimenting with Sony ILCE-A6700 and Sony SEL 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 G OSS lens.
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.
• Putrajaya - If you are staying in any hotel in Putrajaya, it's a good place to look for herons, egrets, bittern and storks.
Bird Families
Check the bird families and the taxonomy updates HERE.
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.
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.
March 2024. Fortunate enough to meet 1 of the authors before it was launched in Kuala Lumpur. Another great field guide for all birders who want to get the most updated information about birds of Malaysia.
