ORNITHOLIDAYS’ TOUR TO SRI LANKA AT CHRISTMAS

Teardrop of the Indian Ocean

21 December 2002 – 04 January 2003

A Personal Diary by Richard Coomber

Brochure

Saturday, 21 December

On a grey, damp and foggy morning Ornitholidays' first Christmas group to Sri Lanka assembled at Heathrow’s Terminal 4. It was an early start for us all and in spite of information to the contrary check-in was underway by 7am. There were familiar faces and new ones, and everyone looking forward to some sunshine, warmth and tropical birding away from it all.

Our Sri Lanka Airlines Airbus A330 left more or less on time at 10.45am and had soon broken through the fog and clouds into the blue yonder heading south-east on an arc over Europe and western Asia before crossing the Arabian Sea to our destination.

Sunday, 22 December

Somewhere in the darkness over the Arabian Sea tomorrow became today and at 2.45am we landed at Colombo. Formalities were quickly dealt with and the ground agent’s representative noted our ticket details for the reconfirmation of our return flights. Outside the airport, we met Deepal, our guide, and one of Sri Lanka’s top birders.

We headed east, passing the northern outskirts of Colombo and off into the country. In the dark it was impossible to have any idea of the scenery we were passing. The roads were often tree-lined and lanes became leafy, until at 6am we arrived at Ingiriya Forest Reserve. It was still dark and the lane petered out to become a stony track into the forest. This was it, the first birding of the tour and the first group bird was appropriately a Sri Lanka Frogmouth picked out in the beam of Deepal’s torch quite close to the track after it responded to playback. We had good views of the bird through the scope, which was small when compared with its larger relatives across the ocean in Australia.

Forest

As daylight broke the frogmouth went off to bed and we went birding further into the forest as unfamiliar songs of the dawn chorus greeted a new day. It was damp and overcast, but thank goodness, it didn’t rain properly. We soon found our first endemic, a Brown-capped Babbler, as it furtively flitted from one side of the track to another in response to Deepal’s playback giving views with varying success. We heard Green-billed Coucal, another endemic, and saw Black-headed Yellow Bulbul and Brown-breasted Flycatcher well and had Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill fly through the trees. We had a couple of encounters with Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher, but if anyone saw anything it was a blur of blue and orange.

Before setting off for Kitulgala, we stopped at a local restaurant, about ten minutes from the forest reserve, for a well-earned breakfast. Outside the property we discovered a white male Asian Paradise-flycatcher and a male Oriental Magpie-robin, but the best bird was after the meal, when Deepal led us into a small plantation and within 20 yards of the road produced an Indian Pitta! A frogmouth and a pitta and we hadn’t seen 20 species in the country yet!

Heading on we were introduced to paddyfields and associated bird species. White-throated (or White-breasted or Smyrna) Kingfishers sat on wires or posts - sites they shared with wintering Blue-tailed Bee-eaters. Then there were a host of herons and egrets, usually Indian Pond-herons, Yellow-billed, Cattle and Little, with the larger Great Egret also being seen from time to time. Dry areas would have a pair of Red-wattled Lapwings and often White-breasted Waterhens and Common Mynas would be around.

We reached Kitulgala in time for lunch and found that the rest house was perched above a river of the same name and looked across to some wonderful tropical rainforest on the far side. The river was much used by the locals for bathing, and today being Sunday they seemed to make more of a family outing, with boys out on the rocks making live music with drums rather than having a ghetto-blaster pounding out the beat. A Little Cormorant was oblivious to the comings and goings. Overhead circled Indian Swiftlets and the occasional Asian Palm Swift. Jim saw a small falcon, but it got away. It may have been an Oriental Hobby, or as Deepal suggested, the small local race of Peregrine.

After lunch and time to settle-in, Deepal took us across the river in the outrigger canoe that acted as a very frequent ferry service. We sat on the freeboard, but the vessel was so stable we realised, perhaps too late in the day, that standing up was much more comfortable and certainly no hardship. Across the river a path wound up into the forest, where houses nestled beneath the trees by clearings where crops grew. A radio blared out, but didn’t seem to deter the birds, which were no doubt used to the racket. Heavily built Green Imperial Pigeons lumbered between the trees on either side of the river and we had Sri Lanka Hanging Parrots around, tiny and hurtling on a blur of wings as they sped by. Rose-ringed Parakeets had longer tails than the endemic grey-headed Layard’s Parakeets that were also in the area. The large trees held barbets, the largest of which was Brown-headed, which shows a yellow eye-ring. There was also the endemic Yellow-fronted and Crimson-fronted. The latter, which is a potential endemic split from the mainland species, was only seen briefly for it flew just as the scopes were brought to bear on it. Far more cooperative was the endemic Spot-winged Thrush, singing beautifully in full view. Another endemic was Orange-billed Babbler, a species similar to Yellow-billed, but with a more rufous plumage and of course an orange bill.

We did well for woodpeckers. The only Rufous Woodpecker seen on the tour was here and in the same group of trees we found Lesser Yellownape and Red-backed Woodpecker, also known as Black-rumped Flameback. So many Sri Lankan birds have two or more English names, which stems from history and the close proximity of India and Salim Ali’s version of things. A list of alternate names appears at the end of this report. One of the last birds we saw before returning to the rest house was a pair of Green-billed Coucals, a secretive endemic of rainforests, which looks like a regular coucal, but with a pale lime-green bill. We saw them fly across a creek into a tangle of creepers and other vegetation on the far side. After a patient wait they eventually appeared to give good views through the scope – not an easy bird to see well.

We returned to the rest house to change and freshen up (and check for leeches!) for dinner. As we reached the garden dozens of large insectivorous bats hawked insects in the floodlights by the lawn.

Also seen during the day were Common Sandpiper, Emerald Dove, Pompadour Green Pigeon, Greater Coucal, Red-rumped Swallow, Grey Wagtail, Small and Flame Minivets, Yellow-browed and Black Bulbuls, Common Iora, Jerdon’s and Golden-fronted Leafbirds, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Black-naped Monarch, Purple-rumped and Long-billed Sunbirds, Black-hooded Oriole and Southern Hill Mynas.

Monday, 23 December

Overcast and humid with light rain at times. 85ºF

After breakfast Deepal took most of the party back across the river, initially returning to the area visited yesterday afternoon and then climbing higher into the forested hills, crossing several streams in the process. There were some excellent birds in addition to a number of those species seen previously. A pair of Malabar Trogons, a Chestnut-backed Owlet, Greater Flameback, Indian Scimitar-Babbler, White-throated Flower-pecker. Amongst the heards were Sri Lanka Junglefowl, Sri Lanka Spurfowl, Indian Blue Robin and Sri Lanka Myna. Little did we realise at the time that this would be the nearest we would get to the myna! There were several bouts of rain, but not sufficient to spoil an excellent morning’s birding.

Brenda, Eileen and Elizabeth decided they would not be taking to the water, so I took them birding around the hotel area. We had good views of many species through the scope and amongst them were a number of endemics including Sri Lanka Grey Hornbill, Sri Lanka Hanging Parrot, Yellow-fronted Barbet and Black-throated Munia. One of our first birds was a superb Stork-billed Kingfisher on wires by the river soon after the rest had crossed on the outrigger canoe.

After lunch we drove a short distance and crossed the river by a footbridge. For a while we had heavy rain, so we sheltered beneath the eaves of a building watching a group of boys playing cricket. If they can play that well on a pitch that bad in such weather, it’s no wonder Sri Lanka can beat us! Once the rain ceased, we walked a path where Deepal had found a pair of Sri Lanka Frogmouths at their daytime roost. Further up a hill we watched Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike, White-throated Flower-pecker and three very noisy Lesser Yellownapes. We had superb views of Layard’s Parakeet through the scopes, noting their short tails when in flight. As we returned to the bus flocks of egrets and pond-herons arrived to roost by the bridge.

Tuesday, 24 December

Overcast and humid. 84ºF

Pre-breakfast birding found us in the grounds of the adjacent property, where a splendid mansion showed signs of deterioration since its glory days. Nevertheless there were good birds in the grounds including a pair of Chestnut-backed Owlets and a superb Indian Pitta. We also saw Lesser Yellownape, Brown-headed Barbet and Layard’s Parakeet. Outside the entrance to the hotel we found a feeding party of Yellow-fronted Barbets and watched a male Common Koel in a paw-paw tree.

After breakfast we loaded up and headed for Ratnapura, our base for the next three nights, which we reached by lunchtime. En route we saw our first Crested Serpent Eagle, but the route seemed to be constantly passing through small settlements, villages and towns – another intestinal road.

During the siesta period that followed lunch, Jim found a Hippolais warbler by the pond below the dining area. It was probably a Booted or Sykes’, but disappeared before it could be positively identified. The area produced our first White-browed Bulbul and a number of colourful dragonfly species.

Our afternoon walk began around the edges of an area of tea cultivation and produced superb views of an Indian Pitta that eventually perched out in the open for several minutes – ‘zonking’ views. The area produced our first Black-headed Cuckoo-shrike. Pompadour Green Pigeon came into the trees above us and a Red-rumped Swallow hawked the plantation with Barn Swallows. In distant trees were Green Imperial Pigeons. Nearby we watched a female Purple Sunbird perched beside the smaller female Purple-rumped for comparison. Later in a rubber plantation from which we overlooked a small valley, the plan was to wait for  owls at dusk. Common Mynas and Large-billed Crows flew over to roost and amongst the Indian Swiftlets Jim found a single Little Swift, but the nearest we got to an owl was briefly hearing a Collared Scops Owl.

With the confusion of English bird names in this part of the world, we should not have been surprised when the Roast Turkey at the Christmas Eve buffet dinner was called a Roast Terloy!

Wednesday, 25 December

Hot and sunny at times after early cloud. Occasional clouds built up during the day and dissipated. 90ºF

Father Christmas was still doing the rounds back in UK, when the alarm went at 4am for an early start for what promised to be a superb day’s birding. The early start was needed to reach Sinharaja Forest Reserve, some three hours drive away. Fortified with an early morning cuppa (Ceylon tea of course) we set off along more winding roads. The only notable sighting en route was a glimpse of a Small Indian Civet that ran across the road in the headlights of the bus. Eventually we reached the Forest Department offices at Sinharaja, where we transferred to Land Rovers for a 30-minute ride up the steep rocky track to the entrance gate - this was a rock and roll Christmas!

Sinharaja was declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 1989, having been declared Crown lands in 1840 and receiving varying degrees of protection since that time. 75% of its flora is endemic and many of the endemic bird species also occur.

It was the endemics we would concentrate on and none came any easier than the male Sri Lanka Junglefowl amongst the dense trees and saplings just inside gate. As we looked across the valley at the beginning of our walk a party of White-faced Starlings were seen and in the same area we saw two or three Besra, an accipiter. The earthen track through the forest, passed beautiful pink and purple orchids and climbing pitcherplants. We came across a pair of White-throated Flowerpeckers feeding on flowers in a tree, which they shared briefly with a pair of Sri Lanka White-eyes. Soon after we heard a bird feeding flock approaching and soon there were Orange-billed Babblers coming out to the edge of the road. Briefly, an Ashy-headed Laughingthrush came out onto a sunlit branch. Realising its mistake it plunged back into the forest and after that all we achieved with laughingthrushes were less satisfactory views of a small flock feeding on the ground deeper inside the forest. In the trees above we saw our first Red-faced Malkoha, a relative of the less-colourful coucals. Now extinct on the mainland of the sub-continent, it has thus become an endemic by default! With the calls of the flock still around we next saw a male Malabar Trogon and were surprised to learn that both it and the malkoha were part of this large multi-species feeding flock.

On reaching the research centre about 4km. from the entrance gate we took a side track and were treated to yet more good views of a singing Spot-winged Thrush, which Deepal proceeded to record. He must have made a one track LP as the bird sang on and on.

Green Garden Lizard

We had our lunch sitting around the research centre and afterwards found a beautiful Green Garden Lizard that posed perfectly for the photographers. Nearby a large Water Monitor searched for scraps on the small rubbish tip - quite a productive food source judging by the reptile’s large size. In the area around the research centre we hoped for Sri Lanka Blue Magpie. It seemed a long wait, but when a stunning pair appeared the wait was well worth it, a beautiful blue and chestnut magpie with a red wattle around the eye. With target achieved we walked back to the pick-up point and saw Malabar Trogon along the way as well as various other species seen earlier. From the pick-up area it was only a short walk to a vantage point. On the way Jeff spotted up a circling Indian Black Eagle, somewhere this side of infinity, but it soon disappeared.

Sri Lanka Blue Magpie

The Land Rovers took us back down to the bus, where we rejoined Peter who, suffering inner-ear balance problems, had decided to stay with the bus. He had seen a number of birds including a Cinnamon Bittern. We then returned to the hotel, where Brenda, Maurice and Betty had opted for a full night’s sleep and a relaxing day around the hotel. They saw about 25 species, including a Green Imperial Pigeon at its nest, a nest-building White-rumped Munia and finding the first Black-backed Robin.

Thursday, 26 December

A dull start soon gave way to a hot and sunny day with less cloud than yesterday. 88ºF

Following breakfast we drove to a forest reserve, Gilimale, about an hour away. The forest was beautiful with dappled sun shining through the leaves, butterflies were almost everywhere and feeding on a Vervain plant was a Death’s-head Hawk-moth caterpillar. So on to the birds………

To say it was hard probably sums this morning up quite well, for sunshine, heat and forest birding do not go well together. A Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher was not very co-operative, although it flitted around amongst the trees for several minutes. We tried several times for Sri Lanka Spurfowl with the usual lack of success until Deepal led us along a short side road. He played his CD, waited a few minutes and back came the spurfowl’s reply, an extraordinary cacophony of sound and not unmelodic at times either. We stood quietly and waited, but the forest remained silent except for the various calls of bulbuls and drongos. A small trail headed deeper into the forest and along this path we stood and waited. And waited, and waited. After about 45 minutes of standing listening and seeing little more than a pair of Asian Paradise Flycatchers and the occasional mossie. Maurice and I glimpsed a spurfowl passing us 20 yards away. It was very furtive, quickly disappearing with a crouching run. As a species, they are ideally camouflaged, very secretive and amazingly wary, spooking at even the slightest movement of a hand. After further bursts of song a pair circled round to Deepal’s end of the line and approached to within 10 -15 yards of him, showing themselves briefly, before becoming agitated and retreating into oblivion once more. Even Kathy standing right beside Deepal couldn’t see them. A frustrating bird to say the least!

While we were on the forest trail Jeff and Brenda saw an Indian Black Eagle overhead and later we also saw circling Mountain Hawk-eagle and Crested Serpent Eagle. Further on, in an area of smallholdings alongside the forest, an Indian Hill Robin was heard and then showed well as it responded to playback. A beautiful blue and orange male with a striking white eyebrow. It, and later another, were seen several times.

We were late for lunch by the time we returned to the hotel, but with a late afternoon outing planned, there was still time for a swim, relax or wander down to the pond to photograph the beautiful water-lilies. Disappointingly dragonflies were not as evident as two days ago.

Our afternoon session began at 5pm and in the grounds we caught up with Black-backed Robin, Small Minivet and added Common Tailorbird to the list. Crimson-fronted Barbet was around, but proved elusive, although Julia, who took the afternoon off along with Brenda and Betty, ended up with good views. In the paddies outside the hotel we found White-breasted Waterhen, before walking up to the rubber plantation to look for owls. No luck, but before sunset we watched a flock of 60+ Chestnut-headed Bee-eaters on their pre-roosting flight and found a pair of Tawny-bellied Babblers as the light faded.

Friday, 27 December

Overcast initially, soon becoming sunny, but with more haze than yesterday. 88ºF

Before breakfast those who birded outside the hotel found a party of Small Minivets, Yellow-fronted Barbets, a pair of Common Tailorbirds and added Brown-capped Woodpecker to the ever-growing list. One of the small boys outside the hotel, instead of asking for money, offered me 20 rupees for my binocs! Later we saw him wandering around the lawn beneath the bedrooms holding a bit of discarded plastic to his ear, like a mobile phone, and engaged in an earnest conversation. Concluding another deal or speaking to his broker perhaps? On his return to the hotel, Jim went down to the pond and found a Cinnamon Bittern.

We left at 8.40am for Embilipitiya, our base for tonight. Stopping at a temple, as we have done each morning, a Black-hooded Oriole showed well in the trees by the entrance gate. Another stop for a Crested Serpent Eagle also produced Scaly-breasted and White-rumped Munias feeding in the grasses beside the bus. Our next stop was for a circling Indian Black Eagle. At Lellopitiya thatched huts in the paddyfield marked the entrances to the shafts of gem mines. Health and Safety would have a fit! The area’s wealth was reflected in a large temple overshadowed by a huge statue of Buddha.

We reached the hotel in Embilipitiya in time for lunch and while he was waiting, Peter discovered a Spot-billed Duck on the shore of the lake visible from a small veranda. The trip’s first Grey Heron, Greenshank, Marsh Sandpiper and Whiskered Terns were seen from there too.

It was a pity we did not have longer to explore the area around the hotel and the lakeshore, but as soon as we were ready after lunch we left for Uda Walawe National Park, where Jim and Vivienne had a brief view of an Indian Elephant before we reached the entrance. At the entrance we transferred to Land Rovers for the afternoon, which was perhaps just as well for our bus had developed a clutch pump problem.

The park extends for 30,281 hectares and criss-crossed by dirt tracks, so we set-off in three vehicles, rotating the order at regular intervals. The afternoon was a great success with some superb wildlife viewing that included a number of Indian Elephants, including good views of one that came to feed and drink at a waterhole. A pair of Golden Jackals ran ahead along the track, but a small herd of Water Buffalo was seen by only one vehicle. Also seen was Ruddy Mongoose.

Because the habitat was more open and drier than much we had seen so far, there were a number of new birds. Black-winged Kites hovered over the grassland, where we found Pallid and Montagu’s Harriers quartering and our first Eurasian Kestrel. A large female Peregrine was perched in a bare tree as we returned to the park’s entrance – a wintering bird from the Palearctic. Everyone has seen Common Peafowl in zoos and ornamental gardens, but that’s no substitute for one in the wild, and of course chickens here were Sri Lanka Junglefowl, although only a male was seen. A party of Barred Button-quail were seen on the track, although we ended up having better views in Yala a few days later. Rain Quail was heard, but not seen. There were good views of another green pigeon as this time Orange-breasted Green Pigeons posed well in the top of some large bushes and in similar habitat we saw the grey-breasted Plaintive Cuckoo. A trio of colourful species were Indian Roller, Little Green and Blue-tailed Bee-eaters and then Eurasian Hoopoe, always a good bird to see.

Perched up in a bare tree was a large black and white hornbill – Malabar Pied Hornbill, another first for the list. There were several barbets and woodpeckers including the only Coppersmith Barbet of the trip and a Brown-capped Woodpecker. Amongst some bushes Common Woodshrike was seen – really related to cuckoo-shrikes, it bears more than a passing resemblance to a shrike. The pipit in the park was Blyth’s, a wintering species here and a new bird for a number of the party. I had only seen it once before in the Baga Fields on a Goa Christmas tour. We saw at least two Brown Shrikes and more Black-backed Robins within the park than elsewhere on the tour so far. In bushes and rank grassland along the road were Yellow-eyed Babblers and numerous warblers, especially prinias – Ashy, Grey-breasted and White-browed. The Zitting Cisticolas that displayed over the grassland are more familiarly known to European birders as Fan-tailed Warblers and those who expect to see reed warblers only in reeds may have been surprised to see a Blyth’s Reed Warbler working its way through the bushes like a whitethroat. We came on a number of seed eating species – Scaly-breasted Munias had been seen before, but Black-headed Munia and White-throated Silverbill. Towards the end of the drive we saw a Woolly-necked Stork and several scattered Changeable Hawk-eagles. Other birds were also heading to roost including Yellow Wagtails and Rosy Starlings.

With the bus still being repaired, we returned to the hotel in the Land Rovers in the dark.

Saturday, 28 December

Hot and sunny after clearance of early cloud. 94ºF

After an early breakfast we left the hotel about 6.30am initially heading for Hungama some 32kms away, a journey that took about an hour. Just beyond the village we visited a wonderful wetland, Kalametiya, where rice paddies met marshes and birds abounded. Being a new habitat so much was new, although a number of species were familiar. If there was a rush hour here, we hit it! The locals were just going to work in the fields, so therefore birds were being disturbed and flying here, there and everywhere. Some landing in another paddy, others leaving the area entirely, for there were other suitable feeding areas in the vicinity.

Parties of Garganey wheeled around, the males in non-breeding plumage distinguished from the females by their greyer forewings. Pairs of Lesser Whistling Ducks flew over from time to time and or three parties of Northern Pintail flew over, strung out in skeins like geese. Egrets and herons were everywhere – Indian Pond-herons, Cattle Little, Yellow-billed and Great Egrets – some of the latter in unfamiliar breeding plumage with black bills and vivid lime-green bare-parts from the base of the bill to the eyes. This, coupled with elegant plumes extending down the back, made them particularly handsome. A Yellow Bittern landed on the edge of one of the paddies and behaved like a ‘normal’ heron, showing long enough to be watched well in perfect sunlight through the scopes. Occasionally Great Cormorant and Oriental Darter and a Purple Heron in a large reedbed posed well. Others fed out in a more open wet pasture with Purple Swamphens and three distant Watercock, one of the morning’s target birds and the reason for our early start. Watercock can be secretive and later in the day disappear into the depths of the marshes. There were also Black-headed Ibis, a lone Glossy Ibis, Asian Open-bills, a Painted Stork and Eurasian Spoonbill. On drier areas of the pastures were a few Pacific Golden Plover, whilst a couple of Ruddy Turnstone turned over cowpats as if they were stones on a beach. Whiskered Terns and the larger Gull-billed Terns were very much in evidence, constantly dipping into pools after small fry, whilst the Pied Kingfisher preferred to hover as it watched for its prey.

Shorebirds were abundant - Marsh Sandpipers, Wood Sandpipers, Common Redshank, Curlew Sandpipers, Little Stints and Black-tailed Godwits being the most plentiful of the winter visitors from the Palearctic. Amongst these we found a handful of others – Ruff, Temminck’s Stint, Common Sandpiper, Greenshank and two Spotted Redshanks. Robert and I saw the Spotted Redshank fly into the paddies and on telling Deepal learned that this uncommon winter visitor would have been a life bird for him. We scanned and searched, but confusion reigned when a marauding Brahminy Kite disturbed everything and they were never seen again. The snipe all seemed to be Pintail Snipe, showing their dark underwings in flight - Common Snipe would have shown white. On the uncultivated side of the road, a marsh gave way to drying saline lagoons, where Little Ringed and Kentish Plovers fed. A pair of Great Thick-knees, the large and well-marked stone-curlew of southern Asia, were disturbed by a passing herd of domestic Water Buffalo.

A Clamorous Reed Warbler was seen quite well in the reeds, but not all were so easy as we discovered after Deepal pointed out the call of a Pallas’s Grasshopper Warbler. He used playback and we waited and waited and waited. Eventually, with the bird coming much closer, it was glimpsed as it darted across gaps in the vegetation, pausing only very briefly once or twice. Other passerines of note this morning were our first Ashy-crowned Finch-larks, Paddyfield Pipits and a solitary Brahminy Starling. A Yellow Wagtail showed well through the scopes. In spite of frustrations with the warbler, it was a wonderful and exciting bird area.

We continued on our way to some tidal lagoons, stopping briefly at a tank to watch a pair of Pheasant-tailed Jacanas close to the road. The larger female showed the long tail feathers of breeding plumage. The shore of the lagoon was our next stop. Thousands of shorebirds lined the sand and muddy margins, where the majority of sandpipers were Marsh and Curlew Sandpipers and Little Stints. Sandplovers were in their hundreds, with Lesser outnumbering Greater, yet it was relatively easy to find both side by side for telescope view comparisons. With them too were Kentish Plovers in both breeding and non-breeding plumages. Sifting through the sandpipers Grey Plover, Eurasian Whimbrel and Red Knot were found, the Knot being only the third seen by Deepal. Along the shore was a roost of gulls and terns. The gulls were all Brown-hooded, similar to our Black-headed, but larger and more pronounced black and white tipped wings in flight. Amongst Whiskered Terns were a few White-winged and Gull-billed Terns, dwarfed 30+ Caspians. Hidden in the group a single Lesser Crested Tern and nearby amongst resting shorebirds, we found a Little Tern in winter plumage. On the lagoon were many Pintail and Garganey, but no other species of wintering wildfowl.

Continuing on we reached Tissa (or Tissamaharama as it is more formally known), our base for the next three nights. A large stupa (or dagoba, as they are called locally) attracted pilgrims and beyond we passed a huge tank, dating back to the 3^rd century BC, where Whiskered Terns dipped and many people bathed. Our hotel was away from the bustle and overlooked peaceful paddyfields.

After settling in, lunch and a siesta, we drove a few miles around the tank to a point where we walked out to the bank that formed the tank’s perimeter. In some large trees were breeding cormorants, where we were able to compare Indian Cormorant with the Little Cormorant, the widespread species of rivers, ponds and tanks. Deepal led us into the grounds of a smallholding where crops such as bananas and pawpaws merged with dark riverine forest. It was a roosting site for Brown Fish Owl. Careful searching and the discreet positioning of my scope enabled us all to see it one by one as it gazed back with huge yellow eyes. It winked at Vivienne or was it Kathy? Probably both if the truth was known! Quietly we returned to the bank, where Black-crowned Night-Herons were seen and Spot-billed Pelicans flew over, usually in ones and twos, to roost on the other side of the tank. Another new bird was Cotton Pygmy-Goose with good views of a number in flight, especially when two or more drakes pursued an unattached female. In the rank vegetation around the tank we found Yellow Bittern, but it was not as obliging as the one this morning. Also seen were White-breasted Waterhen and the tour’s only Common Moorhen.

A nearby coconut plantation held, or so we hoped, our next target bird, White-naped Woodpecker. As Deepal searched we watched Rose-ringed Parakeets passing over to roost and Asian Palm Swift circling above their nest sites. A Black-backed Flameback clung to the trunk of one of the palms, but we were distracted by a party of Rosy Starlings that flew to feed in a nearby field. There were good views of some in the field and others perched on a fence, where the smarter pink and black adults showed well. Suddenly Jim noticed a woodpecker on an adjacent fence. It was the White-naped, a stunning bird – a large woodpecker, black and white on the head and a large white nape with a golden yellow back. Brilliant spotting, brilliant bird! After a while it flew across to the palms, where it was quickly relocated and watched again until it disappeared deeper into the palm grove.

Sunday, 29 December

Hot and sunny. 94ºF

After breakfast we returned to a different area of Tissa’s tank. We were looking for several species including some of the first birds we saw after leaving the bus. Until now only a handful of the party had seen Stork-billed Kingfisher, but this was soon rectified with excellent views of one through the scope. The race seen in Sri Lanka is the nominate capensis, which is the one with the dark chocolate brown head. Robert took some excellent images through a Nikon Coolpix digital camera via his telescope – digiscoping, as this form of photography is called, can produce some marvellous results given the right conditions. Our second kingfisher was much less common, a Black-capped Kingfisher, which is only a winter visitor to the island from the mainland sub-continent. Again we had good views through the scopes, but it was rather reclusive, preferring to perch deeper inside a tree overhanging the water. The other kingfishers here were Common, Pied and White-throated. In the same area as the first kingfishers, we watched the first of the morning’s two Shikras perched on a fence post. This accipiter is known as Little Banded Goshawk in southern Africa. Over paddyfields circled a light-phased Booted Eagle and amongst the bushes between the fields and our bank we looked down on a party of Tawny-bellied Babblers. In the trees along the bank we found a male White-naped Woodpecker, but all too soon it flew away out over the marsh. The shady trees also produced a Common Iora, Asian Brown Flycatcher and Black-hooded Oriole.

We searched waterside bushes and trees for Black Bittern, but to no avail, although further out in the marshier areas we saw Yellow Bitterns fly from one patch of cover to another. There were large numbers of Purple Swamphens in the area as well as a couple of Watercocks and numerous Pheasant-tailed Jacanas, whose wings flashed white whenever they flew. Lesser Whistling-ducks flew across the area, but during the whole morning we only saw one Cotton Pygmy-goose, a reflection on how overgrown this part of the tank has become, yet over the wetter distant areas we could see flocks of Garganey and Northern Pintail in flight. On some distant rank vegetation we saw our first Streaked Weaver, but as things turned out we saw them well as we were leaving the Tissa area for Nuwara Elija the following day. Three Ashy Wood-swallows were using a dead tree nearby to sally forth after insects.

Before returning to lunch we visited another wetland, this time two large lagoons set in a drier area of sandy soil with scattered bushes. Beneath one bush a Stone-curlew stood in the shade as nearby two Greater Thick-knees rested by the lagoon’s shoreline. In this area we saw the tour’s first Yellow-wattled Lapwings and saw more Pacific Golden Plover. Along the shore fed a number of the usual shorebirds including Kentish Plover and perhaps more surprisingly, Lesser Sand Plover. Across the other side of the road, some 1,000 Black-winged Stilts stood in massed ranks along the water’s edge. Amongst the Gull-billed and marsh terns that fed over the lagoon were a few Little Terns with rapid wing beats and hovering mode. I spotted a Sand Martin amongst the hirundines. Deepal pointed out that all the current books covering Sri Lanka and the Indian sub-continent, erroneously show Pale Sand Martin as being the form occurring here. In addition to numerous Paddyfield Pipits and a couple of Yellow Wagtails we found an Oriental Skylark and 10 or more Ashy-crowned Sparrow-larks.

After lunch we drove a few miles to the east of Tissa to the entrance of Yala National Park, where we transferred to the ubiquitous Land Rovers. It was busy and being a Sunday perhaps not surprising – we had to be somewhere on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The park was quite different to Uda Walawe, largely bush, with some grassland and a number of lagoons, some of which were saline. At one point we were close enough to the sea for sand dunes and to see the blue of the Indian Ocean beyond. In addition to Homo sapiens we saw a number of mammals, with Wild Boar, Sambar and Spotted Deer being new for the trip. Also seen were Indian Elephant and Water Buffalo.

Few new birds were added, but one in particular was spectacular - a pair of stately Black-necked Storks, that as a breeding species in Sri Lanka, is endangered, although its range extends from India to Australia. It only occurs in the south-eastern corner of the island and even elsewhere on the Indian sub-continent it has declined dramatically. During the drive we saw two Changeable Hawk-eagles, passed Sri Lanka Junglefowl, including our first females, distinctively barred across the primaries, and saw more Common Peafowl than elsewhere on the tour. There were more Barred Buttonquail here, and this time everyone managed to see them well as they recovered their initial shyness to emerge from beneath a bush and feed out in the open. Two different Indian Pittas were a nice surprise. Also seen were Emerald Dove, Orange-breasted Green Pigeon, Pied and Plaintive Cuckoos, Common Woodshrike and Black-backed Robin.

Monday, 30 December

Hot and sunny with thin cloud at times. 90ºF

After breakfast we drove eastwards to Bundala National Park passing Indian Rollers and Black-winged Kite on wires and poles along the way.

At the park headquarters we transferred to open Land Rovers and started driving through areas of bush and from time to time groups of taller trees. Bee-eaters of all three species were not uncommon and above us circled large numbers on Indian Swiftlets and a few Crested Treeswifts. We had excellent views of the latter when a pair was found perched in a gnarled tree. There were also particularly good views of Orange-breasted Green Pigeon. Raptors were mixed with Crested Hawk-eagle, Brahminy Kite and Eurasian Kestrel having been seen before, but a sub-adult White-bellied Sea-eagle over a coastal lagoon was new. It lumbered across and surprisingly did not cause panic amongst the flocks of shorebirds and wildfowl along the water’s edge. Elsewhere in the park we saw Sri Lanka Junglefowl and Common Peafowl.

Before we returned to the hotel for lunch we paid a visit to some nearby salt works, where the heat really hit us. Nevertheless it suited the birds fine and along the margins of the saltpans were hundreds of waders, including large numbers of sandplovers – mainly Lesser and again we could compare it with its Greater cousin. Scanning along the banks separating the pans we found Small Pratincoles resting, a smart and neat grey pratincole, which occurs across southern Asia from Afghanistan to the south-east of the continent.

After a siesta we set-off at 5pm to search the edge of the tank for Black Bittern. Deepal took us to a fresh area, where we could look across and see Painted Storks, Black-necked Ibis, Eurasian Spoonbills, Purple Herons and egrets feeding. There were more Pheasant-tailed Jacanas there than any one place we had visited previously. Occasionally a pair of Cotton Pygmy-geese would whiz by on a blur of wings, small parties of Garganey would lift from time to time and we also saw Lesser Whistling-ducks pass over. Birds were passing over all the time - egrets were going to roost and Black-crowned Night-Herons leaving theirs, and in the flights of cormorants we were able to compare Indian and Little. When left undisturbed by small boys Rose-ringed Parakeets fed in the newly planted rice paddies, until they too headed to roost.

Amongst the vegetation there were good numbers of Purple Swamphens; White-breasted Waterhens were rather more furtive and a Watercock was only seen in flight. Tessa spotted a couple of Pacific Golden Plover in one paddy and there were more Pin-tailed Snipe around than we had seen previously enabling us to see them well in flight, thus noting the dusky underwing. As dusk approached a couple of Yellow Bitterns broke cover to disappear into a large scrubby area, from which a Black Bittern emerged some minutes later. Deepal spotted it as it appeared briefly and then moments afterwards it re-appeared and stood in the top of the bushes. It was a female and we had excellent views - as they would say on Birdline - sustained views. A few minutes later the blacker male also came out, with more good views.

A very satisfactory end to the afternoon and as we returned to the bus, squadrons of Giant Fruit-bats passed over like a heavy bomber raid setting off for the Rhine!

Tuesday, 31 December

Sunny and warm, becoming cooler when we reached the hills. 75ºF.

After an early breakfast we left the hotel at 6.40am bound for Nuwara Eliya, It would be a long drive, but with time for birding en route and still arrive in time for lunch. The road north passed through Yala National Park, where thick bush and scattered large trees provided some superb birding beginning with a smart male White-rumped Shama lured into view by playback. It is amazing how a black, white and orange bird can be so hard to see! From then on we bounced from one good bird to the next. Some were easier than others. One of the hardest, because of the nature of the habitat was the Blue-faced Malkoha, which only Jim saw satisfactorily. On the other hand, Grey-rumped Treeswifts perched out at the end of dead branches so were seen very well. Peter and Kathy saw a Dollarbird briefly in flight, although Deepal seemed sceptical, thinking that they may have seen an Indian Roller instead. A Forest Wagtail was seen both on the ground and in flight, when its distinctive wing pattern became apparent. In bird parties we found minivets, Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike, Common Woodshrike, Common Iora, Jerdon’s Leafbird, Oriental White-eye and Thick-billed Flowerpecker. Jungle Prinia in the roadside bushes was another new species, as was a Grey Drongo in the trees beyond, where we also found Brown-capped and Red-backed Woodpeckers.

Being part of the national park there were mammals too - a Spotted Deer and two Ruddy Mongooses crossed the road and along a muddy track I found the footprints of Golden Jackal and what appeared to be a small Sloth Bear. Butterflies, including Common Jezebel, flitted from one colourful shrub to the next.

The park’s north-western boundary was fenced and electrified along the road to keep elephants from the villagers’ fields that lined the left-hand side of the road. We stopped to see male Baya Weavers at their newly built nests suspended from the branches of a tree and a kilometre or so further on, in the reeds of a small wetland, we watched male Streaked Weavers at theirs. The area also produced Lesser Whistling Duck, Black-winged Kite, Whiskered Tern and Pheasant-tailed Jacana.

The long and winding road twisted and turned upwards and upwards after we left the coastal plains. The few raptors included Oriental Honey-buzzard and Indian Black Eagle. A photo stop was to view the Rawana Falls and to use the facilities at a nearby cafe, before we headed on to our hotel at Nuwara Eliya. The small town proclaims itself to be the Garden City of Sri Lanka and certainly was from the numbers of plots growing onions and other vegetables.

On reaching the hotel we checked-in and had lunch before a short siesta. Birding was only about 15 minutes drive from the hotel and was along a track through forest. We were soon into good birds with the very shy endemic Sri Lanka Woodpigeon being amongst the first and we managed to get an immature in the scope. In all at least six were seen during the walk. The attractive Yellow-eared Bulbul was another endemic and probably the commonest bird we were to see on the walk. Betty found the bird of the afternoon as she pointed out a small dark bird working its way, mouse-like, around the moss-covered base of a tree trunk in a gully below the track. I thought it was Sri Lanka Bush-warbler, so called Deepal and the rest of the group back. Fortunately, he had a recording and as we stood motionless in the track, as this skulker was lured into the open at quite close range. We daren’t move or whisper until it disappeared, having realised it had been conned. Only then did we realise that Eileen’s view had been obstructed by another bush, but the warbler wouldn’t be fooled a second time. Another good bird here was Kashmir Flycatcher, a close relative of Red-breasted Flycatcher, which comes down to Sri Lanka in winter from ….. guess where? Other wintering species here included Greenish and Large-billed Leaf Warblers.

As we began to retrace our steps, we heard a call that was unfamiliar to Deepal. Out came the recording equipment and over the next few minutes he succeeded in making a good recording and played it back. Almost immediately an immature Mountain Hawk-eagle passed overhead, almost clipping the leaves of the trees above us. Deepal was ecstatic for this species very rarely calls and the chances of actually getting a recording must be minimal. Has anyone ever recorded Mountain Hawk-eagle before?

It had been a good day’s birding with a number that were new. The New Year’s Eve buffet dinner began at the 8.30pm, but only Jim and Vivienne stayed up to see the New Year arrive, becoming involved in the entertainment arranged by the hotel. For the rest of us hoping to sleep before an early start in the morning, midnight was a rude awakening with fireworks being let off in the road outside and hotel’s chefs parading up and down banging saucepan lids with wooded spoons!

Wednesday, 01 January 2003

Fine and sunny with thin cloud. Cooler 40º to 65ºF

Three endemic species were outstanding and one, the Sri Lanka Whistling-thrush, is particularly elusive, showing only at dawn. The best area for the species is in the forests of Horton Plains National Park, an hour or more away from the hotel. Consequently we left at 5am.

We reached the appointed site at dawn, a whistling-thrush was calling and within a few minutes there it was, perched up on a branch looking inquisitively at us for several minutes before flying away deep into the forest. Absolutely amazing! Elated we walked further along the road and soon Deepal heard a Dull-blue Flycatcher and moments later, thanks again to playback, it perched up on a sunlit branch, a grey blue flycatcher being rather turquoise on the face with black lores - the views were superb.

In addition to the two endemics, a number of other species were seen well including Sri Lanka White-eye, Yellow-eared Bulbul and the bright-green race of Greenish Warbler. Amongst the trees grew tall rhododendron bushes with clusters of red blossom. What had started as a very cold morning was warmer by the time we returned to the bus for our picnic breakfast. Having done so well so soon, Deepal suggested we began our return towards the hotel in the hope of finding our final endemic, Black-throated Munia on the edge of a nearby village. We had been driving a little while down from the national park when he called a stop. We all descended and almost immediately Black-throated Munias were seen, but only one could be scoped as it preened in the shade. A little further on we stopped in a village at a known site for Hill or Pacific Swallow and low and behold there it was sitting on a utility cable leading to a house – a red faced swallow with grey underparts and otherwise looking like a regular swallow without the long tail streamers.

A good birding place beyond our hotel is the Hakagala Botanic Gardens where a number of the endemics from the hill country may be found. By the time we arrived, having collected Betty from the hotel, it was late in the morning and birds were at a premium. The problem of course, is that there is only a limited amount one can do at dawn and we had taken full advantage of the morning seeing those species we hoped for. Our walk in the botanic gardens was quiet and relaxed. Grey Wagtail was probably the best bird and the Toque Macaques were very entertaining as they groomed one another in the warm sunshine. The gardens were well laid out, but apart from a shady fernery, were not particularly outstanding.

Following lunch we visited Victoria Park, where we soon found an Indian Blue Robin beside a shady stream and found another as we waited along the edge of a shrubbery for thrushes to appear. They didn’t arrive, but there was a pair of Common Tailorbirds and fruiting trees above attracted a succession of hungry Yellow-eared Bulbuls. As we walked back towards the stream, we saw the first Pied Thrush – a smart male, black and white as one would expect, this thrush is a winter visitor from the Himalayas. We saw about half a dozen including the less well-marked female. With mission accomplished, we stopped for a while in town. Peter and Tessa hit a supermarket in the hope of finding their favourite brand of hot and spicy mango chutney, Robert and Kathy, Jim and Vivienne, Betty and Julia paid a visit to a bazaar under the guidance of Deepal, where clothes were purchased - the safari-type shirts and trousers seemed particularly good value.

Thursday, 02 January

Warm and sunny. 75ºF

We left the hotel for Kandy at 8am, stopping immediately in a stretch of forest not far away. Birding was quiet except for superb views through the scope of a female Besra preening in the sunshine on a eucalyptus branch. Nearby a pair of Large-billed Crows mobbed a pair of Giant Squirrels and Tessa spotted a pair of Greater Coucals moving through the trees, but they were only seen briefly.

Our journey down to Kandy from the high country meandered through another million bends as we passed hillside after hillside of tea plantations along Sri Lanka’s intestinal roads. There were few obvious birds in such a monoculture and, inevitably, we stopped at a tea factory, Glen Loch, where we were given a tour of the production plant. The main employees were Tamil and they were only too pleased to pose for photographs in exchange for small change. Only when we reached the exit did we see a notice asking that all tips be placed in a communal box for fair distribution between all staff! Afterwards we were served complimentary tea and of course, the exit route passed through the shop. More retail therapy! On the plus side was a pair of Hill Swallows nesting beneath the eaves above the factory’s entrance.

We reached Kandy in time for lunch in the Hotel Suisse’s palatial dining room, for the building went back to the colonial days, and served as Mountbatten’s headquarters when he was Supreme Allied Commander, South-east Asia, during the Second World War. It was situated close Kandy Lake and just across from the Temple of the Tooth, Sri Lanka’s most sacred Buddhist site.

After lunch we visited the Peradenyia Botanic Gardens on the outskirts of the city, soon becoming immersed in the wonders of the orchid house and marvelling at a splendid avenue of Royal Palms. Birds seemed everywhere from Alexandrine Parakeets flying over, their wings beating in slow motion, to a soaring adult White-bellied Sea-eagle. One bird we were really pleased to see properly was Crimson-fronted Barbet, a species so far seen well by only a few of the group. It is a potential split for the race occurring in Sri Lanka is thought to be a distinct species by local birders. Nearby we watched stunning male minivets; both Flame and Small were in close proximity. Elsewhere in the gardens were Southern Hill Myna, Black-hooded Oriole, White-throated Kingfishers and, although not avian, a large Giant Fruit-bat roost.

The return to the hotel was early for we were to visit the Temple of the Tooth before dinner, for the evening ceremony, in which the doors to the antechamber that contains the casket that holds one of Buddha’s teeth, rescued from his funeral pyre, are opened. Our timing was impeccable for we were in just the right place at 7pm as the ceremony began. To the beat of four drums, monks passed through a silver-clad door in a lower chamber, their purpose clothed in secrecy. Deepal then took us up to the next floor where we joined a short queue to file by the opening to the casket chamber. It was another of those waits we had become used to in Sri Lanka, but this time there were no leeches or mossies to worry about! Eventually the doors to the casket chamber were opened, but by that time, the queue’s length had grown significantly. We were moved quickly past the opening, with scarcely time to take in the ornate golden casket, shaped like a hybrid between a stupa and a huge Faberge egg.  It glittered like silver, but was that just the reflections from unseen lights within the room? It was a pity that the views at close range were so brief as a soldier ushered us by at a rate of knots. On the other hand a monk seemed over keen to receive offerings, especially of the financial kind. In these mercenary times more visitors = more bucks sorry, rupees! The monk’s sullen disposition contrasted hugely with the destitute old lady who shone a torch on the temple steps as we left in exchange for alms, or the inspirational cheerfulness of the legless beggar in the street outside, who in exchange for rupees wished us the best for the New Year and our journey home. Before leaving the temple complex, which had been damaged by a Tamil bomb in 1998, we visited an amazing room where pictures told the story of Buddha and the journey of his tooth to its present resting place in Kandy. At the far end a golden Buddha was flanked with elephant tusks and more golden Buddha’s lined the walls, watched from above by golden elephant heads. Over the top it might have been, but surely it is not as bad as those colonial churches in South America, where the gold was murderously stolen in the name of another religion.

Buddha

We returned to the hotel for dinner, where Julia and I were treated to wine by the group on our wedding anniversary. Thank you!

Friday, 03 January

Hot and sunny with some cloud late afternoon 80ºF

After an early breakfast most of the group joined Deepal to visit Udawettekele National Park, a reserve just outside the city. We arrived soon after first light as the dawn chorus rang through the forest around a small lake. Across the lake, a fruiting tree attracted bulbuls and both Crimson-fronted and Yellow-fronted Barbets. There was a Stork-billed Kingfisher by the lake and a pair of Greater Flamebacks in the forest across the other side where we also found Indian Blue Robin. In the forest was Brown-breasted Flycatcher and a somewhat more confiding Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher than the previous one at Gilimale. Another bird that we hadn’t seen for a while - Brown-capped Babbler, our first endemic back at Ingiriya on Day 1 and at Kitulgala the following day. Also seen were Large-billed Leaf Warbler, Black-naped Monarch, Asian Paradise Flycatcher and Velvet-fronted Nuthatch.

Betty and Elizabeth had a lazy morning around the hotel, but Brenda was more adventurous walking around the lake that lay between the hotel and the Temple of the Tooth Relic. Birdwise it was quite productive providing her with point-blank range views of a Spot-billed Pelican and a number of kingfishers, including a Common and a White-throated that ‘was knocking hell out of a crab until it flew away with it.’

We had expected to keep our rooms to 12.30pm, but the hotel changed their minds and we had to vacate at 11.30am, so the loungers by the pool came in useful. Eileen reported Asian Palm Swifts and several of the party went down to see the small roost of Giant Fruit-bats.

We left the hotel after lunch to drive the 111kms to Colombo Airport. On the way we stopped at the Island Spice Grove at Mawanella. It was an interesting experience and perhaps not one we had anticipated. Seated in an open sided shelter we were confronted by a table of spice and herbal products that reminded one of a cross between a health-food shop and a branch of The Body Shop. A youth began talking us through his wares with the slickness of a cheap jack in a street market - all words and no action, until joined by another when they started giving facial massages. More boys appeared and more massages - heads, backs, necks and knees - it smelt like a beauty parlour rather than the end of a two-week tropical birding tour. Needless to say a visit to the shop followed, but things were not cheap and unfortunately they took plastic!

Back on the road again with a long cross-country drive to the airport. On descending to the lowlands we passed numerous paddyfields with their egrets, White-throated Kingfishers and even a Blue-tailed Bee-eater or two.  Also seen were Brahminy Kite, Ashy Wood-swallow and shortly before we reached the airport hotel, where day rooms were arranged, we stopped to watch a flock of Rosy Starlings – a good bird to end with. There was then time to shower/bath/change/pack/shop (not necessarily in that order) before we went to dinner. Shortly after 11pm we left for the airport, where an early check-in enabled us to beat the rush and to change seats if necessary.

Saturday, 04 January

On schedule at 2.45am we rolled back and headed north-west into a long night. Dawn lasted across much of Europe as we were chased by the sun. We came in over eastern England, where snow lay on the ground and not surprisingly the cockpit reported as 33ºF. It was grey and gloomy - where was that sunshine we had become accustomed to during most of 2003 so far?

We landed at 8.07am 40 minutes ahead of schedule, but stayed out on the tarmac until a gate was available. The result was that we arrived on time! With the baggage safely collected and farewells bade we headed home to our corners of the country. One of the first birds for a 2003 UK list was a party of Siskins feeding in alders at the Parking Express car park seen by Brenda and Julia. The sun was breaking through and it was cold…………….

Richard Coomber
Ornitholidays
29, Straight Mile
Romsey, Hampshire
SO51 9BB
Tel: 01794-519445
E-mail: ornitholidays@compuserve.com
January 2003

Our next tour to Sri Lanka is from the 14 – 28 February 2004 and will be led by Deepal Warakagoda and Roger Lawrence.  The cost per person in a twin/double-bedded room is £1,999 and £2,159 per person in a single room.

Itinerary and Weather

© Ornitholidays

Full trip list and commentary (pdf)

Brochure