Borneo Birding sites include, Kinabalu national park, Corker range, Klias Wetland, Sepilok, Kinabatangan river, Tabin wildlife, Danum Valley and Trusmadi.
Malaysia Borneo Birding Sites
Malaysia Borneo Birding Sites (Sabah & Sarawak)
The Crocker Range National Park (CRNP) is situated in the Crocker Range, Sabah. Crocker Range was designated to be a forest reserve in 1968. Although there are no tourist facilities at this park, it is densely populated with birdlife and is a trekker’s paradise.
Rich with flora and fauna, the Crocker Range Park offers visitors the chance to see tropical vegetation and wildlife not to found anywhere else but in Borneo.
The Tabin Wild Life Reserve was established in 1984 with the aim to protect endangered wildlife. Tabin is a fantastic place for bird-spotting as there are so many different species of birds including all the 7 of Sabah’s Hornbills species and the Crested Serpent Eagle.
The park is important for its high biodiversity and unique karst (limestone) features. Besides that, it contains seventeen vegetation zones, exhibiting some 3,500 species of vascular plants.
The Park also recorded 270 bird species where out of the 29 endemic Borneo species, 26 have been recorded. There are 8 of Borneo’s hornbill species have been identified including the wrinkled hornbill. Other species include Bulwer’s Pheasant, crested fire back pheasant, Storm’s stork, and the Bamboo muni which is endemic to Borneo and has only been found in Mulu and Kinabalu.
Mount Kinabalu is the tallest Malaysian mountain. Mount Kinabalu comprises an oval-shaped granite dome which resulted 1.5 million years ago by volcanic, tectonic and geological processes.
Kinabalu Park has essentially four main vegetation zones. However, these zones are localized variations depending on factors such as soil type, terrain, presence or absence of soils, proximity to streams and degree of exposure to sunlight. Mountain Bush Warbler, Kinabalu friendly Warbler, palefaced Bilbul and Mountain Blackeyes are among the 250 species of birds that can be found here.
The oldest modern human remains in Southeast Asia along with many other relics of prehistoric man were discovered about 40,000 years ago, making the park one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. The Cave is home only to bats, swiftlets and other specially adapted forms of life.
If you leave the Great cave and return along the plank walk around clouds intermingling, you can see half a million of swiftlets are returning to their nests, whilst half a million bats fly out to forage in the forest.
The Sepilok Orang Utan Rehabilitation Centre (SOURC), which is located at the entrance of Sepilok Forest Reserves has been in existence since 1964. The Centre offers varieties of nature experiences such as nature talks, wildlife photography exhibitions, live orang utan observation during feeding time in semi-natural environment, filming, photography etc
The wealth of indigenous and rare plants, animals and birds that have found sanctuary here are to be seen to be believed. In term of its faunal richness, it boasts over 90 species of mammals and 209 species of resident birds.
The park was created in 1974 and covers an area of approximately 50 square kilometers. The park has mangroves, coastal forests and beautiful white sandy stretches of shoreline.
The park headquarters, located on Pulau Manukan, oversee Pulau Gaya, Pulau Sapi, Pulau Mamutik and Pulau Sulug.
A large number of birds are found in these islands including the white-bellied sea eagles, pied hornbills, green herons, sandpipers, pink-necked green pigeons, bulbuls, bablers, flycatchers, swiftlets, sunbirds and the megapode or burung tambun, a chicken-like bird which lays its eggs in mounds of sand on the edge of the beach. Also stand a good place to see the white breasted sea-eagle, pied hornbill, and the green heron.