Bhutan– Kingdom of the Thunder Dragon 

22nd March – 7th April 2008

by Eustace Barnes

Part 2

28th March:  From Trongsa we took the road towards Zhemgang. Our first stop was at the Gansu bridge near town, where we picked up Yellow-browed Tesia and a very confiding Pygmy Wren Babbler. We managed to get some stunning photos of the latter before heading off for breakfast at Bubja; another Yellow-rumped Honeyguide site. We did not wait for the attendant to appear but did see an immature Rufous-bellied Eagle and a Wallcreeper at the site. Along this lovely valley we were treated to excellent views of the endangered Golden Langur in the dry deciduous woodlands.

Also present were several Mountain Hawk Eagles, a pair of Black Eagles and migratory Steppe and Booted Eagles along with a pair of Rufous-bellied Eagles.  At a rest stop we found a noisy group of White-crested Laughingthrushes, Blue-throated Flycatchers and numerous Blue-throated Barbets. Climbing back up to Zhemgang we stopped for lunch in more humid subtropical forests and enjoyed a good lunch and some excellent birding. We found a large mixed flock with Golden Babblers, Blue-winged Laughingthrushes and a smart Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo. We were to revisit this site on our return at an earlier time of day. A little nearer Zhemgang we were fortunate in finding a large flock of Speckled Woodpigeons, a species that can often be rather difficult to find. Somewhat elated we then continued on to our camp site at Tingtibee just in time to see a pair of Large-tailed Nightjars.

29th March :  After an early breakfast we climbed up the road to another excellent site and worked our way up from there during the course of the morning. We quickly found several pairs of Rufous-necked Hornbills sunning themselves in the morning light. We picked up Sultan and Black-spotted Yellow-Tits, a single rather elusive Spotted Wren Babbler, several Black-eared Shrike-Babblers and Whiskered, White-naped, Striated and Black-chinned Yuhinas.

Higher up, later on we found another pair of Black Eagles, more Rufous-necked Hornbills, Grey-chinned, Short-billed and Scarlet Minivets and Blue-winged Minla. At lunch we watched a pair of huge Great Hornbills soar along the hill opposite camp. In the afternoon we again ascended to the more humid forests. The highlight of the afternoon was a Lesser Shortwing that, with some work, we were all able to see really well. We then took the bus back to camp making a couple of stops lower down to find Grey-throated Babbler, Black-chinned and Striated Yuhinas along with a pair of beautiful Kalij Pheasants before we returned to camp.

30th March :  Today we retraced our steps to prepare for the next stage of our journey across this magical country. We made our first stop just above camp to be greeted with a tremendous chorus of babblers, wood-partridges, pigeons and barbets. The Rufous-necked Hornbills were very active and we saw several pairs of this huge, stunning creature. Continuing on to Trongsa we stopped in the more humid forests and worked the area thoroughly and found our target; a pair of the globally threatened Beautiful Nuthatches. They certainly lived up to their name and we were able to watch them forage down to 10 metres for about half an hour and we immediately knew what was going to be bird of the trip. At one point the male was joined by an immaculate Sultan Tit providing a remarkable image which will live with us for a long time!

Due to time restraints we reluctantly had to leave and headed for our lunch stop at Koshula. After that we had to leave for Trongsa to pick up Jim and then head for Bumthang. We saw few birds but had an entertaining trip. At Gaytsa we were looking forward to the longest straight stretch of road in Bhutan; a 500m length just beyond the village. Our driver was just getting ready to use fourth gear for the first time on the trip when we saw the only unit of traffic police in Bhutan. They had pulled over some hapless driver who had hit 35km per hour only to be stopped and fined for speeding!!! Rather deflated we continued to Bumthang for the night.

31st March : Departing late this morning after our long travel day yesterday, we headed for Ura and Thrumsing La, Bhutan’s second highest road pass. At Ura we found a huge flock of Snow Pigeons feeding in potato fields near the village along with large groups of Chough and Cinnamon Sparrows.

A single Himalayan Vulture being mobbed by crows was feeding at a dog carcass by the road. We then ascended through the wooded hills on our way to Thrumsing La through the pine and hemlock forests to the pass. It was very cold and the ground was covered with snow with a storm threatening. At the pass we found Orange-flanked Bush Robins making their way up to the tree line and a number of Gray-crested, Rufous-vented, Yellow-browed and Black-throated Tits, and several stunning Mrs. Gould’s Sunbirds. We then wound our way down through the pristine primary forests to our camp at Sengor.

1st April: After a cold night, we woke to thick fog and the drizzle and decided to  search for Satyr Tragopan from the bus. We did see a single female on the road and heard a great many males calling. As it began raining harder we tried searching above camp but rapidly ran into thick snow and worsening conditions. We then cut our losses and descended to the lush primary forests above Namling. We found a flock of 25 Speckled Woodpigeons and 3 Yellow-rumped Honeyguides. As we descended we saw a great many Red-headed Bullfinches and encountered a small group of Gold-naped finches.

Lower still we picked up a group of nine Brown Bullfinches, which is a rare bird and we were fortunate to see this species. A little later on checking a small group of birds feeding in an alder we found 4 Grey-headed Bullfinches, also a rare species. Bullfinches were to prove one of the highlights of the trip. We also found 6 Cutias, a number of Maroon Orioles and three Fire-tailed Sunbirds. In a bamboo thicket we found a single Broad-billed Warbler and a male Kalij Pheasant walked across the gulley below. Thus ended another spectacular day of birding amid quite spectacular scenery.

2nd April : Today’s birding started with a huge flock of Black-throated Parrotbills and Golden-breasted Fulvettas in a bamboo thicket. This flurry of activity took us up and down the road trying to keep up with the birds. A Rufous-throated Wren-babbler was then taped out and all got spectacular views of what can be a rather secretive species. A cackling call had us climbing down through the forest to be quickly confronted with two male Ward’s Trogons. What a superb bird! Sadly it’s globally threatened.

After that it was easy to relax and enjoy the birding. We found several Crimson-breasted Pied Woodpeckers, a pair of Greater Yellownapes and a couple of Plain-backed Thrushes. We then returned to camp for lunch during which it rained. As it was foggy and raining we did some birding around camp and found a small group of the rare Rufous-chinned Laughingthrushes and a number of Himalayan Greenfinches. At this point another group of South African birders turned up at the camp site. They had a local guide and were not happy with him. In fact they were not happy with anything and more or less demanded of me that we swap local guides. Something along the lines of ‘weeve git a crip geed ken ve ixcheenge heem fer yers?’ Well what do you say to that? Some gentle diplomacy was in order and I gave them my business card and said if they wanted a tour to Peru to get in touch.

Then back to work and in spite of conditions we enjoyed some spectacular birding in the late afternoon. In a huge bamboo thicket we came across a large flock of Rusty-fronted Barwings, Greater Rufous-headed Parrotbills and three Coral-billed Scimitar-Babblers, a very impressive species. We were then treated to more Cutias and large numbers of babblers, sibias and minlas before retiring to celebrate another spectacular day.

3rd April :  Early morning at Namling and we were greeted with several pairs of Rufous-necked Hornbills and Grey-winged Blackbirds feeding by the road and our only Rufous-bellied Niltavas,. We also found another lovely little Rufous-throated Wren-babbler and a Chestnut-headed Tesia.

We managed to tape a Slaty-bellied Tesia out into the open and then after being treated to good numbers of the pretty Gray-chinned, Short-billed and Long-tailed Minivets we returned to camp and prepared to depart for Trashigang. We stopped at the Kori La pass above Mongar and found a nice flock with Red-headed Laughing-Thrushes, 3 secretive Red-billed Leiothrix and a singing Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler. Our journey then continued east descending through a series of switchbacks to the Gamri River before climbing once again to Trashigang and our hotel. As it turned out our hotel was some distance from Trashigang owing to the original hotel in Trashigang having been closed at short notice.

4th April : We decided to leave late and explore the town of Trashigang. This lovely traditional town is well worth devoting some time to as it is very pretty with a great many very old buildings. Departing Trashigang, we had a superb view of the Trashigang Dzong, one of Bhutan’s justly famous fortified monasteries

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Our journey then took us to Wamrong along a series of spectacular ridges. Near the lovely village of Khelling we were treated to good numbers of Red-headed and Grey-headed Bullfinches and a couple of Brown Bullfinches feeding together in willow trees by the road. Some of us managed to get all three species in the same field of view! After watching these beautiful birds we found a flock of five very obliging Maroon-backed Accentors.

Winding our way around the roads of Bhutan at an average of 18km per hour was both a joy and a pain. In eastern Bhutan the road was administered by an Indian company and with absolutely no sense of irony they placed signs indicating bends in the road at seemingly random points along our route. Also, I am sure without any humour involved, they had placed a large number of signs admonishing and lecturing drivers about the need to drive slowly!!! We had, ‘This is a highway not a runway.’ and ‘Reach home in peace not in pieces.’

 
We then had a late for lunch at a breathtaking spot that looked out over the remaining Himalayan ridges towards the Brahmaputra floodplain in Assam. This was accompanied by the sign admonishing the driver to ‘Be gentle on my curves’ along a particularly sinuous stretch of tarmac. During lunch we were treated to a light raptor passage of several Himalayan Vultures, several Eurasian Sparrowhawks, Himalayan Buzzard, an Oriental Honey Buzzard and 6 Mountain Hawk Eagles.

In the afternoon we continued the short distance to our camp site at Namling where, rather alarmingly, we were advised by a road sign-- ‘If you want to donate blood, do so in the blood bank not on the road’. It was difficult to see how one might spill blood on the road except by treading on a pin as the traffic only proceeded at a pace that may nudge a donkey. After another splendid dinner we tried in vain to lure out a Mountain Scops Owl which was calling right beside the road.

5th April: At dawn our camp was shrouded in thick fog and we decided to descend and try to escape the fog. We quickly left the fog behind us and were able to bird the prime mid-altitude forests well above Deothang. Our first stop provided us with our last Rufous-necked Hornbills which provided us with another spectacle as they soared around us and displayed in the valley below. In a thickly vegetated gulley we found Scarlet Finches, numerous Gold-naped Finches, several pairs of Blue-winged and Scaly Laughingthrushes along with a pretty Little Pied Flycatcher and a number of Small Niltavas which all made for a great morning. A little lower we came across several pairs of superb Silver-eared Mesias and Long-tailed Sibias in mixed flocks. We enjoyed another great lunch below Deothang before descending to our campsite nearby.

Based by a lovely forested stream we then began to explore the lower elevation forests and a completely different set of birds. This started with both Wreathed and Great Hornbills feeding in fruiting trees by the road, giving us three large hornbill species in one day. The first Drongo-Cuckoos were found, along with Rufous Woodpecker, Red-whiskered and White-throated Bulbuls, numerous Crimson Sunbirds, Grey-headed Starlings and Common Hill Myna.     

6th April : The birdlife at these lower elevations is quite prolific and we were quickly seeing numerous Mountain Imperial Pigeons, Thick-billed and Pin-tailed Green-Pigeons, Streaked Spiderhunters, Orange-fronted Leafbirds and Asian Fairy Bluebirds. We again saw a good numbers of Wreathed and Great Hornbills feeding in fruiting fig trees.

We saw a small group of the rare and localised Dark-rumped Swifts feeding up and down the valley. Grey Peacock Pheasant was calling from nearby hill forest while we tried to see Striped Tit-babbler and Common Iora. Along the road we found Rufescent Prinia, Common Tailorbird, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Sultan Tit, Slaty-backed and numerous Black-backed Forktails. At lunch around the campsite we found the Yellow-bellied Warbler and along the river Crested, White-throated and Common Kingfishers were numerous. In the afternoon we headed for Samdrup Jongkhar for the night. Shortly before town, and with considerable foresight, the Border Roads Authority informed us on their quaint little roadside signs that ‘The impossible takes a little time but miracles we can do.’ It did cross my mind that this may have to be true given bankrupt Alitalia was in charge of getting us back home! In the late afternoon we did a bit of birding around town to see a selection of essentially Indian birds. We found Eastern Jungle Crow, Indian Pond Heron, Asian Pied Starling and Ashy Woodswallow near the hotel. A little further along we found Red Collared Dove, Rufous Treepie, Asian Barred Owlet, Brown Shrike, Common Hill Myna and Jungle Myna.   

7th  April:  Leaving Bhutan was to prove a little difficult. The frontier was closed as there was a general strike in India. We had to wait while the Bhutanese police prepared a paper for us to sign declaring that they were not responsible for us should anything transpire from our reckless decision to enter India! While we were waiting we found Coppersmith Barbet, Great Tit, Indian Roller, Crested Goshawk, Asian Koel, Pin-tailed Green Pigeon and a pair of White-vented Mynas. All of which proved very entertaining for the locals. Anyway, we eventually left Bhutan and the roads were clear and free of people, cars, trucks, goats, cows, soldiers, road building machinery, children and rickshaws. What bliss! We could just sail along a lovely country road unhindered. We headed for Guwahati and the marshes near the city. Stopping by one marsh we found Slender-billed Vultures, Purple Sunbird, Striated Swallows, Bronze-winged Jacana, Lesser Whistling Ducks, Asian Openbills and numerous Lesser Adjutants. As we moved on we explored the edge of the vast Deepor Jheel. We easily found Greater Adjutants, Purple Herons, numerous Egrets, Indian Spotted Eagle, Lesser Pied Kingfisher, Whiskered Terns and a number of Striated Grassbirds and Bengal Bushlarks. We then headed for Guwahati airport to discover our flight had been delayed three hours. This gave us time to call Alitalia and find out what arrangements had been made for getting us home as they were bankrupt and not running long haul flights. They seemed rather uninterested in our plight until I pointed out we were coming to Delhi and were quite happy to spend time in a hotel, at their expense, until a flight was found. It did the trick, and on arrival in Delhi we were immediately ushered onto a Finnair flight two hours earlier than our Alitlaia flight was due to be. On arrival in London we got through immigration in about 45 seconds and had to run to catch our bags on the carousel! As we were two hours early we thought we might have to suffer an airport breakfast whilst waiting for the taxi driver to appear but there he was waiting for us. Perfect for him, as he would otherwise, have had to suffer an airport breakfast waiting for us.

On arrival home, I was locked out and so was forced to go to Dungeness to see the Dark-eyed Junco. Lucky as it was gone a day or so later. Once home I checked my e-mail to find that Alitalia had sent us a message regarding our homeward flight!! This was a quite extraordinary expectation on their part that we should be online whilst on holiday, given their fundamental incompetence. I think the irony is probably lost on them.               

Please click here to view Part 3 (An illustrated Species List)