Extreme Birding

by Barry Wright

When I passed the ripe old age of thirty and started to reduce my long distance twitching in Britain I finally thought as long as I can get through the 'cold turkey' stage all will be fine. In 1999 following on from numerous treks in South America and Melanesia the extreme aspect of twitching became very much a reality once more. The next adventure was really pushing the boundaries of twitching to the limits, as we set about seeing a single species on a remote island in the middle of nowhere?

I was not alone and would be accompanied by an ex 'twitcher extraordinaire' Neil Bostock, who nowadays scours the ends of the earth instead of the fields of the Nar valley for his new birds. The other two 'happy' sailors to be were Keith Turner and die hard Jon Hornbuckle. This 'new' adventure was met with a high degree of apprehension as the previous two weeks had been a little chaotic and somewhat decidedly strange at times following the loss of most of our valuables and birding forests seemingly devoid of birds. Fortunately the trip had already been 'test piloted' a few days before by Phil Gregory and Chris Eastwood and so it was with great reluctance that we embarked on the 'small', and I mean 'small' boat that would take us on our Starling quest. The setting was Kavieng on the north coast of New Ireland in the Bismarcks off Papua New Guinea where we would venture across the oceans. The island in question, 'Tench', it can just about be seen if you look very carefully at a World atlas with the 'Hubbell' telescope and just about notice a tiny speck in the ocean off New Ireland. At the break of dawn two-crew members, four birders and a healthy supply of fresh water and cold drinks headed off away from shore crossing from the relatively calm bay into the not so calm open seas. Initially the voyage was exciting and at the same time a change from walking through forests. Feelings of apprehension though soon set in as we entered rough waters, the boat bobbing up and down like a cork in a Jacuzzi. (No I haven't tried it!) Looking around at the faces of the others revealed a picture of 'attempted hidden fear' this feeling soon dispelled as a seabird swung into view from far out at sea. 'Tahiti Petrel', Neil shouted as we held tight with one hand on the boat until the boatmen cut the engine.

Bobbing around on the ocean we obtained fantastic views of this smart looking Petrel that approached very close a few times presumably to have a giggle at the expressions on our faces. Other birds encountered included large flocks of Noddies flying by together with the occasional floating coconut. Would this be our staple diet for the next few months if the boat broke down? The crew continued to steer the boat further and further across the ocean using the high tech navigational system on board, a watch and a small compass, as all around us was nothing more than open sea with no land in site anywhere. Like a scene out of Jaws but without the shark or Richard Dreyfus for company we all felt, what the hell are we doing out here, "and for that you get the crew, the birders, the whole damn thing"? If you thought that walking across to Scolt Head was dangerous this would certainly put your faith in bad decision making to the test, is any tick really worth this?

The seas were even rougher now and one by one the corners of the metal struts that supported the sun cover snapped as the boat crashed across the waves. Sitting on the boat was an uncomfortable experience and cushioning of the lower regions was definitely required to prevent open buttock surgery. Eventually the outboard sound was interrupted for the last time as the sun cover collapsed completely and was duly dismantled. Suddenly, 'There it is land' as a small speck loomed in the distance out of the sea. Remarkably we had located the island of Tench and all we needed now was to arrive and return safely.

A spectacular beach landing surrounded by hundreds of seabirds with White Terns gracefully flying overhead and Red-footed Boobies and Frigatebirds patrolling the beaches. A friendly pet Frigatebird greeted us as we met a few of the inhabitants that eke out a living on this remote outpost of PNG where the population numbers less than 100 and they have their own language. Our language at this point was very simple, "Thank God we're still alive, now where's the Starling". Having gained permission, exploration of this haven for breeding seabirds was certainly not a disappointment as we wandered along the beach able to walk freely. Perched close by in the trees were glistening White Terns and the more subdued Brown and Black Noddies but where was the Starling, the Holy Grail of Tench? A wander off the beach into the palms and other trees revealed an all black starling sized bird feeding on some fruits. Atoll Starling was well and truly under the belt, a stunning black bird with a brilliant orange yellow eye.

Ok, the seabirds were much better but in order to see this bird there are literally only a few atolls in the entire world where you can feast your eyes on this 'Pacific dream'. Atoll Starling is only found on one atoll off Indonesia and a few in the Pacific off New Guinea and maybe this is one of the easier places to observe this little known and endangered species. We had taken Tench by storm and reaped the rewards of this bird rich island. The entire island can be walked around in less than an hour and although we didn't cover all the area we found lots more Starlings, and numerous very tame Pacific Imperial Pigeons. With the help of the local children, 'White-tail' the local name for Nicobar Pigeon was easily seen in the trees above, a good site for this widespread but difficult to see at times species.

A return to the beach produced Beach Kingfisher and a magnificent immature White-bellied Sea Eagle quartering the island. We bid farewell to the locals, their hospitality second to none and headed back into the ocean to attempt to locate New Ireland. Fortunately a few hours later we were back on dry land, it was certainly a twitch in its extreme sense and our records of birds seen proved valuable to those studying this little known part of the World. It had certainly taken 'A toll' on us but go on, try it for yourself and remember to take a cushion and some cream for those bruised buttocks?