From <@nomina.lu.se:zooekol-erling@macpost.lu.se> Thu Mar 10 07:29:56 1994
Subject: NE India trip Report
From: Erling.Jirle@zooekol.lu.se
Date: Thu, 10 Mar 94 13:01:28 +0100

To:
EuroBirdnet
SverigeBirdnet
Birdchat
Vivek Tiwari, Princeton   (vivek@ee.princeton.edu)
Alan Wilkinson, Harlow, UK (aw@sofa.demon.co.uk) 
Nigel N.J.Lindsey@Bradford.ac.uk


Hello
I got several messages from people interested in hearing more about the remote 
NE corner of India. Here is a short report.
I participated together with 8 others in a trip organized by Per Ahlstroem 
(Regulus Tours). The trip was 2900 USD for 24 days (5-28 Feb 1994). 
The former North East Frontier Agency, now Arunachal Pradesh, was opened up for 
foreigners (groups only) for the first time 1993. Our group was the first 
birdwatching group from the west to visit A.P., we heard about an 
Spanish-French-English botanical expedition some months before.Foreign visitors 
to A.P. are charged about 150 USD per day and person to cover transportation, 
administration etc ! This made the trip considerably more expensive (8 days in 
A.P.) I guess a large amount of these money disappears into some peoples 
pockets). 
We had an excellent organizer in India, Vijay Arora from Delhi, who made a 
great job getting special permits, arranging transports, carriers, food and 
everything during the whole trip.
Via Calcutta and Dibrugarh (Assam) and the Old Stillwell Road (old road to 
Burma) we arrived to Namdapha National Park in A.P. the 6 Feb. This park is 
mainly tropical rainforest and is 2000 sqkm and has an elevation from 200 to 
4500 m.a.s.l. It@s on the Burma border, and there is a big adjoining forest in 
Burma. A major part of the park is a core area, closed to visitors, but the 
central part, the so called buffer zone is open for vistors. It represents a 
good cross-section of the park the staff claims. There are few trails in the 
park, but we managed to reach 800 m (tents and carriers), were the mountain  
rainforest type starts. Below 800 m it`s tropical rainforest, mainly wet 
evergreen, annual rainfall 6000 mm, but also Giant Bambboo-forest. It`s 
extremely difficult to reach the higher elevations since there are no trails 
above 800 m, these areas are unexplored, not even the park staff has been high 
up ! But hunters from local tribes claim to have seen f.ex. snow leopards up 
there. 8 species of cats are listed in the mammal list for the park. They have 
counted 63 tigers. Elephants are decreasing due to people catching and taming 
them. At the entrance thre is a museum and a small zoo, were White-winged Duck 
is bred in captivity (only local individuals succeed). Some ducks will be 
released. We visited 2 localities in the park were ducks have been seen, but the 
water level was probably too low in these ponds.
There are several rivers in the park, the entrance road follows one and along it 
we saw:
White-bellied Heron (Ardea insignis) 1 seen 12-14.2
White-tailed Sea Eagle (new for A.P.)
Lesser Fishing-Eagle  2
Black Stork 3 (new for A.P.?)
Ibisbill 8
Great Black-headed Gull  2

Some species seen (or heard) in the forest:
Rufous-throated Hill Partridge
White-cheeked H. P.
Kalij Pheasant
Grey Peacock-Pheasant (up to 6 in a day)
Barred Cuckoo-Dove
Red-headed Trogon (daily)
Great Hornbill
Brown Hornbill  9+8
Rufous-necked Hornbill  up to 10 in a day
Wreathed Hornbill
White-browed Piculet (Sasia ochracea)  3 in bamboo
Pale-headed Woodpecker  1 in bamboo
Silver-braested and Long-tailed Broadbills
Bar-winged Flycatcher-Shrike
Long-tailed Thrush
Large Scimitar-Babbler
Slender-billed Scimitar-babbler 1
Streaked Wren-Babbler  up to 10 in a day
Eyebrowed W.  3
Pygmy W.  up to 6 in a day
Spotted W.  1
Grey-throated Babbler   12
Snowy-throated Babbler (Stachyris oglei). Fairly frequent in dense bamboo, 7 
flocks, 32 specimens.
Striped Tit-babbler
Rufous-necked Laughingthrush  15
Rufous-vented L. (Garrulax gularis) 6
Blue-winged L.  1
Buff-breasted Babbler  2
Rusty-fronted Barwing  40
Rufous-throated Fulvetta  40
White-naped Yuhina  5
Grey-headed Parrotbill  70
Black-browed Parrotbill  10
Ashy-throated Warbler (Ph. maculipennis) 1
Lemon-rumped Warbler (Ph. chloronotus)  3
Large-billed Leaf Warbler (Ph. magnirostris)  1
Yellow-vented Warbler  (Ph. cantator)  5
Broad-billed Warbler (Tichellia hodgsoni)  4
Sapphire Flycatcher  3
Pale Blue F.  4
Pygmy Blue F.  5
Beautiful Nuthatch  4
A total of 210 species was seen in the park.

Then the 15-19.2 was spent in Kaziranga N. P. in central Assam. Wild Elephant, 
Water Buffalo and Indian Rhino was common (up to 40 rhinos in a day). Lots of 
waterbirds and grassland birds. No bird list was available in this famous park !
Some interesting species:
Greater Adjutant  10
Falcated Duck  25
Red-headed Merlin  1
Swamp Francolin  30
Yellow-legged Buttonquail  2
Bengal Florican  3
Pintail Snipe  2
Alexandrine and Red-breasted Parakeet   common
Tawny Fish Owl  1
Blyth`s Pipit   10
Lesser Shortwing  1
Smoky Warbler  50
Chinese Bush-Warbler  (Bradypterus tacsanowskius) 1
Grey-sided Bush-Warbler  1
Blue-throated Flycatcher (Cyornis rubeculoides)  2
We didn`t see the endemic grassland birds: Jerdon`s Bush Chat, Jerdons Babbler, 
Marsh Babbler, Bristled Grassbird.

The plans from the beginning was to visit Manas N. P. in west Assam, but this 
park is still closed. Instead we got permission to visit the Barail Range in 
southern Assam.

The 21-24 we birded the Barail Range around the town Haflong. The forests close 
the the roads are affected by local people cutting the trees and growing crops 
(jhum) but on higher elevations we found good forests. The mountains are very 
steep here, but we found trails all the way up to peaks at 1670 m. The area is 
proposed as a biosphere reserve together with a range further south (Dhaleswari 
Range). Birds and monkeys are hunted by the locals.

Some species seen:

Wedge-tailed Green Pigeon  1
Black-breasted Rubythroat (Luscinia pectoralis)  4
Orange-headed Ground Thrush  1
Long-tailed Thrush  1
Streak-breasted Scimitar-Babbler  1
Coral-billed S.  5
Red-billed S.  2
Long-billed Wren-Babbler
Rufous-chinned Laughingthrush  1
Yellow-throated Fulvetta  1
Orange-barred Leaf Warbler  2
Yellow-vented Warbler  up to 10 a day
White-gorgeted Flycatcher  4
White-tailed F.  1
Beautiful Nuthatch  2

The 26.2 we birded around Guwahati and visited Deepor Bheel, lots of waterfowl 
and several Greater Adjutants.

About 420 species was seen on the trip.

Per Ahlstroem will write a trip report (when he returns to Sweden in the 
autumn). 
There will probably be an article in Oriental Bird Club Bulletin (or Forktail 
?).

I will answer more questions if you send e-mails directly to me.

Cheers

Erling Jirle

************************************************
Pheromone Group               UNIVERSITY OF LUND

Department of Ecology
Helgonav{gen 5
S-223 62 Lund, SWEDEN
tel: 46-46-10 49 99
fax: 46-46-10 47 16
e-mail: Erling.Jirle@zooekol.lu.se
(old Bitnet: valentin@seldc52)