The most extensive and least expensive Birding Expedition of papua new guinea
A Premier
Birding Expedition in
papua new guinea
Tari Gap's Ambua Lodge - Mt Hagen's Kumul Lodge
Tabubil & Kiunga - Fly & Elevala River - Varirata N.P. Shore and Water Birds around Port Moresby includes Iconic Mt Hagen "Sing Sing" Show
Optional New Britain Island Extension - more endemics
Only 10 participants on this Small Group Birding Expedition
August 2025 - Departure date TBA in early April 2024
PLUS Optional 5 Day Pre-tour Extension
14 Days / 13 Nights Fully Escorted Small Group Birding Tour
Price for 2025 TBA in early April 2024
TWIN SHARE
Single Supplement TBA
Price TBA early April
TWIN SHARE
Single Supplement available
Plus 5 Days / 5 Nights New Britain Island Extension to Small Group Birding Tour
Tour Package includes All Meals, Accommodation, Guides, Sightseeing, Entry Fees to all activities, Porterage, Transfers, Taxes, Land & Water Transport & Experienced Australian Tour Leaders
*And All Domestic Air Flights within Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea is an exotic, exciting developing nation that encompasses the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands. It is a fascinating country of immense cultural and biological diversity and is known for its high mountains, impenetrable rain forests, mighty rivers, volcanoes, beaches and spectacular coral reefs. New Guinea, the planet’s second largest island, was the last inhabited landmass to be explored by Europeans and roads are still yet to find their way through much of the rugged countryside. Despite its proximity to Australia, Papua New Guinea remains a frontier; there are still many traditional tribal villages, often with their own languages, where old traditions and cultures still hold pride of place.
Zoogeographically it demonstrates strong links to Australia, however it surpasses the bigger country in biodiversity. Papua New Guinea has a list of over 900 bird species! And what species they are!
It is impossible to think of New Guinea, as a birder, and not think of Birds of Paradise. These birds, and this statement may attract a little controversy, are the most beautiful birds in the world and, as a result, New Guinea must ultimately be on any ‘must visit’ list.
If Birds of Paradise are on the menu that should be persuasion enough however Papua New Guinea offers so much more! Fruit-doves, fig parrots, fairywrens, whistlers, paradise kingfishers, jewel-babblers, pittas, honeyeaters, berrypeckers and bowerbirds, will also compete for your attention!
Papua New Guinea is an expensive destination, mostly because of the lack of on ground travel infrastructure, so there is a need for every person to fly every where but also because every one of our destinations is largely supplied by air as well, causing each item to be more expensive than ‘usual’. Despite the expense Papua New Guinea remains an unforgettable location, filled with unimaginable birds and experiences.
This tour includes observing seabirds from a boat and snorkelling in one of the worlds most pristine marine environments in Kimbe Bay. Some stunning species include the Fire-maned Bowerbird, Brown-headed Paradise Kingfisher, Ribbon-tailed Astrapia, and Raggiana, Emperor and Blue Birds of Paradise. This birding tour of PNG will explore the Highlands, the Islands and Port Moresby’s surrounding forests. The richness of the authentic culture and vast expanses of forest, alive with some of the planets most exciting birds makes for great photography.
Flynns Tours is the only Tour operator serving PNG that includes the cost of all domestic airfares in your Package.
* For the 14 Day Birding Tour a price cap of AUD2,300 included in the total package price should cover the cost of the 4 Domestic Flights. For the 19 Day Birding Tour a price cap of AUD3,200 included in the total package price should cover the cost of the 6 Domestic Flights. Following consultation any excess to this price cap will be billed to the client.
Papua New Guinea is a developing country with a mountainous mainland surrounded by many remote islands. The regional centres are for the most part un-connected by road. Travellers normally book with only 2 nationally owned airlines that provide the only reliable air service. Airfares are expensive post covid and without experience they are difficult for outsiders, even travel agents to book without the risking the smooth running of the most extensive and interesting Small Group Birding Tour of Papua New Guinea.
Flynn's Tours experienced staff remove the risk and with all tour participants booked in a group booking we can provide the lowest prices possible and manage your bookings for you and allow you to enjoy your holiday without frustration and disappointment !
Day By Day Presentation
Day 1: Thursday 17th August - Port Moresby
We fly into Port Moresby mid-afternoon on our Air Nugini flight from Brisbane where your luggage will be transferred to our hotel. We will not wait too to begin birding. Departing from the airport our afternoon will be spent beginning to grow our PNG bird lists at the Pacific Adventist University.
The University grounds will remind most of northern Australia and we should see such ‘Aussie’ [but northern Australian] species as Blue-winged Kookaburra, Torresian Imperial Pigeon, Pied Heron, Fawn-breasted Bowerbird, Rufous-banded Honeyeater, and Black backed Butcherbird as well as a good mix of wetland species. The spectacular Eclectus Parrot is a possibility at this site.
We should also see some genuine New Guinea species such as Yellow-faced Myna, Brown Oriole, Grey headed Munia, and if we are lucky, Glossy-mantled Manucode – potentially our first bird-of paradise.
Sanctuary Hotel Resort and Spa - Port Moresby or similar
Any question or want to make a booking, contact us Here:
Day 2 – Friday 18th August – Tari Gap - Southern Highlands
Depart Jacksons Airport, Port Moresby 8.45 am Air Nuigini flight – arrive Tari Airport 10.20 amUpon arrival in Tari you will be met and transferred to the amazing Ambua Lodge. The Tari Valley - home of the Huli - a colourful and proud people, still largely live the same way that their ancestors did. The Huli tribe that inhabit this area is the largest as well as one of the most colourful and iconic tribes of PNG. Ambua Lodge is nestled at the edge of the lush green rainforest and overlooks the serene Tari valley below. We will spend our first afternoon enjoying Ambua’s winding forest trails searching for some of the over 200 bird species that have been recorded. The walks will take us through lush rainforest, past gushing waterfalls and over traditional vine bridges. The star avian attractions will be Birds of Paradise! The birding walks here offer the opportunity to observe up to 13 species of the Birds of Paradise alongside other fantastic birds plus a wide variety of colourful flowers, exotic plants and insects.
Ken Cross is from the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia
Ambua Lodge - Tari Gap - Southern Highlands
Day 3 – Saturday 19th August – Tari Gap - Southern Highlands
.An early start to a full day of birdwatching. With an amazing thirteen species of birds of paradise [Lawes’s Parotia, Short-tailed Paradigalla,Princess Stephanie's Astrapia, Ribbon-tailed Astrapia, King of Saxony Bird-of-paradise,Greater Lophorina, Black Sicklebill, Brown Sicklebill, and Blue Bird-of-paradise], Ambua Lodge and the Tari Gap is a mecca for birders seeking these amazing and colourful birds. Close to the lodge, birds that are commonly seen include the Long-tailed Shrike, Pied Chat, Orange-crowned Fairy-wren, Mountain Peltops, Friendly Fantail, Blue-grey Robin and the Hooded Mannikan.
Further potential highlight birds here could include Forbes's Forest Rail, Papuan Lorikeet, Yellow-billed Lorikeet, Orange-billed Lorikeet, Red-breasted Pygmy Parrot, Brehm's Tiger Parrot, Painted Tiger Parrot, Modest Tiger Parrot, Madarasz’s Tiger Parrot, Papuan King Parrot, Greater Sooty Owl, Papuan Boobook, Archbold’s Nightjar, Mountain Kingfisher, Spotted Jewel-babbler, Blue-capped Ifrit, Garnet Robin, Black-throated Robin, Lesser Ground Robin, Wattled Ploughbill, Belford’s Melidectes, Yellow-browed Melidectes, Tit Berrypecker, Crested Berrypecker, Great Woodswallow, Archbold's Bowerbird, MacGregor’s Bowerbird, Lesser Melampitta, Loria's Satinbird, Long-tailed Shrike, Black Sittella, Papuan Treecreeper, Papuan Grassbird, Canary Flyrobin (Papuan Flycatcher), and Papuan Logrunner.
Ambua Lodge - Tari Gap - Southern Highlands
Day 4: Sunday 20th August - Mt Hagen Cultural Show
After an early morning birding tour we will breakfast and check-out before being transferred from Ambua Lodge to Tari Airport for your Trans Nuigini charter flight to Mount Hagen Airport. Today is indeed a special day!
We will visit the iconic Mt. Hagen Cultural Show. More than 80 tribes participate in the event performing extraordinary displays of 'sing-sings' - traditional songs, dances and ritual performances. The running of the festival began in the 1960’s and was first introduced and organised by Australian patrol officers known locally as 'kiaps' who brought in 'sing-sing' groups from surrounding areas. It created an entertaining weekend for everyone, and still does 60 years later. The “Sing Sing” enables a limited number of Western tourists to experience up close, the colour, movement and music performed by the largest gathering of diverse tribes in the South Pacific. Your camera clicking finger will earn a rest, having recorded some of the most memorable days of your global travels.
Following the show, we will travel further into the Highlands for more birdwatching, hopefully finding more species of Birds of Paradise.Then onwards to Kumul Lodge, a birdwatching lodge at 2600 metres above sea level, close to the actual peak of Mount Hagen itself. An abundance of birds, including Birds of Paradise are to be found in immediate proximity of the lodge. The star attraction just metres from the dining room balcony is the Ribbon Tail Austrapia along with the Brehm's Tiger Parrot, Smoky Honeyeater, Belford's Melidectes and Island Thrush. The Chestnut Forest Rail is occasionally seen beneath the feeder while Crested Berrypecker and White-winged Robin are often seen nearby.
The grounds also offer trails through excellent moss forest where you can see Crested Satinbird, Chestnut Forest Rail, Lesser Melampitta and maybe New Guinea Woodcock if we are lucky.Our accommodation is in the comfortable Kumul Lodge, considered the best birding lodge in the country for its abundance of easily accessible birds.
Kumul Lodge - Mt Hagen
Did you know?
Bird Watching in Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea is a bird watchers paradise! There are many locations throughout PNG where you can see the beautiful species of birds in Papua New Guinea, including the different species of the famous Birds of Paradise - found only in PNG.
Two full days birding in the Kumul Lodge area. We will have four half day birding tours within a thirty kilometre radius of our lodge. Great birds are assured including the possibilities of Blue Bird of Paradise, Superb Bird of Paradise, King of Saxony Bird of Paradise, Princess Stephanie's Astrapia, Lesser Bird of Paradise, Loria's Satinbird, Wattled Ploughbill, Regent Whistler, Tit berrypecker, Black-breasted Boatbill, Garnet Robin Mountain Myzomela, Ornate Melidectes, Chestnut-breasted Cuckoo, Black-headed Whistler, Magnificent Bird of Paradise, Torrent Flyrobin, Yellow-breasted Bowerbird among many others..
Day 5 & 6 - Mon. & Tues. 21st & 22nd August – Kumul Lodge
Kumul Lodge - Mt Hagen
Day 7: Wednesday 23rd August - Kumul Lodge
We have one more morning of birding around the Kumul Lodge area and such is its richness we will be still seeing new species. In addition to birding the Lodge area itself we will travel a few kilometres from the Lodge for some road side birding where we could see some of the common montane species such as Yellow-billed Lorikeet, Long-tailed Shrike, Red-collared Myzomela, Island Leaf Warbler, Hooded Mannikin and New Guinea White-eye. There is a possibility of Torrent Flyrobin and with luck Torrentlark on streams in the area.
We need to be at the Mt Hagen airport for an 11.45 am flight to Kiunga, arriving at 12.45 pm. Here we will transfer to a hotel for a quick lunch before driving to Tabubil, in the Ok Tedi Valley, set in the foothills of the Star Mountains. Hopefully we will have some stops for birds before reaching Tabubil.
Cloudlands Hotel - Tabubil - Western Province
Day 8 & 9 : Thursday 24th & Friday 25th August - Tabubil
Birding the Tabubil area for a full day and a half before returning to Kiunga.The town of Tabubil, with a current population of about 12,000, was established primarily to serve the mine of Ok Tedi. More importantly for us it is set in extremely dense jungle fed by one of the highest rainfalls in the world.We will visit a few accessable sites with the aim of seeking some of the birds of this wonderful well named rainforest!
The Magnificent Bird-of-paradise is a key target, however, the male is incredibly reclusive and it may take us some time to get decent views. Carola’s Parotia is another BOP target. Fruiting trees will be our friends and hopefully we will see some wonderful birds feeding such as our best chance to see these species is by staking out fruiting trees, in hopes that the birds approach to feed on them. Excellent species resident here include White-eared Bronze-cuckoo, New Guinea Bronzewing, Stout-billed Cuckooshrike, Great Cuckoo-Dove, Spotted Honeyeater, Obscure Berrypecker and the Mountain Peltops. Parrots here could include Fairy and Red-flanked Lorikeets and the diminutive Red-breasted Pygmy-Parrot.
Other really secretive species that will require much patience and good fortune to see include Mountain Kingfisher, Northern Scrub-Robin, Chestnut-backed Jewel-babbler and Greater Melampitta. On our first evening we will mount a search for the crepuscular Shovel-billed Kookaburra.
As we return to Kiunga we will stop for birds, dependent on what we may still need.
Thursday - Cloudlands Hotel - Tabubil - Western Province
Friday - Kiunga Guesthouse - Kiunga - Western Province
Day 10 & 11 - Sat. 26th & Sun. 27th August- Fly & Elevala Rivers
We have the better part of the next two days to explore the marvellous array of birding opportunities that abound on the Fly and Elevala rivers. We will need to be up early on both mornings to maximize our time on these rivers, as we make our way upstream into the thicker recesses of one of the wildest forested areas remaining in New Guinea. It won’t be long before we are enveloped in new birds, including large numbers of Collared and Pinon’s Imperial Pigeons, Palm Cockatoos, Eclectus Parrots and Blyth’s Hornbills in our first morning.
Our local guide will know where to find some of the local specialties, including; the pole-dancing Twelve-wired Bird-of-paradise and the spectacular crimson and snow-white King Bird-of-paradise, replete with tail-streamers of coiled green ribbon. We will search for other species including; Pesquet’s Parrots, Southern Crowned-Pigeons (the largest in the world and the size of a turkey) as well as the endemic White-bellied Pitohui. Working patiently a few trails hopefully will reveal some quality residents such as Common Paradise-Kingfisher, Hook-billed Kingfisher, both Hooded and Blue-breasted Pittas, Spot-winged and Black-faced Monarchs, Emperor Fairywren and Black-sided Robin.
Fruiting trees may reveal Dwarf or Beautiful Fruit Dove, Great Cuckoo-Dove or Black-capped Lories.We will also try for a genuine PNG star bird – incredible gold-and-orange Flame Bowerbird. Hides have been thoughtfully constructed by local villagers adjacent to the birds’ bowers. We may have to sit in hides for a while, but we will hope to see this bird displaying at the bower.
The variety of locations available in Papua New Guinea provides endless opportunity for birdwatchers. It is understood that PNG is home to such a thriving bird population due to specific habitats and climates favoured by our endemic species and the lack of predatory animals that would otherwise threaten numbers.
Birding is available throughout the country from coastal and island locations right up to the rugged peaks of the highlands with a diversity of bird life. PNG is particularly famous for endemic species such as the Raggiana and Blue Birds of paradise and rare finds including the Fire maned Bowerbird.
The fauna of Papua New Guinea is one of the richest in the
world and it is impossible to give exact numbers of species found in New Guinea. Many species, particularly invertebrates, remain unnamed and even more are yet undiscovered.
There are about 190 species of mammals in Papua New Guinea.
However, as Papua New Guinea falls East of the Wallace line, there are no
African animals in the country. Marsupials such as the Tree Kangaroo, possums, wallabies and rodents dominate the mammal species.
There are at least 25,000 species of beetles and 6,000 moths and butterflies here. There are also grasshoppers, earwigs, termites, bees, wasps, ants, dragonflies, damselflies, lacewings, cicadas, mayflies, aphids and those ubiquitous mosquitoes.
There are about 160 species of frogs alone. Papua New Guinea has two species of crocodile. The estuarine or saltwater crocodile is widespread throughout the Indo-pacific. It lives in marine habitats and coastal river systems. The New Guinea crocodile is found in freshwater rivers, lakes, marshes and swamplands. The two species actually co-exist in many of New Guinea's rivers.
Papua New Guinea has a rich lizard fauna with about 170 species that includes the geckos, legless lizards, dragon lizards and monitor lizards.
There are about 100 species of skinks and approximately 110 species of snakes including sea snakes, tree snakes, pythons and (more rarely) poisonous front-fanged snakes such as the death adder and taipans.
Ken Cross is a teacher by profession and a birder and naturalist by
preference. Raised on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, he has been birding for over thirty years and remains a committed conservationist. He has led birding trips to Western Australia, Outback Queensland, the Wet Tropics and Cape York. In addition, he has organised and led many shorter tours and trips in his role as Convenor for Birdlife Australia on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Ken has also led many birding tours internationally to Singapore, Malaysia, Borneo, Thailand, Cambodia, India, Nepal, China, Canada, USA, Costa Rica, Spain, UK, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Namibia and South Africa! “Nothing”, he claims, “is more wonderful than the first time birding in a brand new country where every call, song and sighting will be a brand new life experience!” Recently, since Covid closed borders, he started a not for profit, Backyards for Biodiversity SEQ Inc - dedicated to expand the amount of urban biodiversity within SEQ and educate residents about our flora and fauna and its importance.
Meet this tour's leader and on tour birding expert -
Saturday - Kwatu Lodge - Fly River - Western Province
Sunday - Kiunga Guesthouse - Kiunga - Western Province
Day 12 – Monday 28th August – Site 17km
Early Breakfast and drive out to the 17km site for the Greater Bird of Paradise for three hours of birding. The 17 km site was made famous by none other than David Attenborough. He and his BBC crew ascended into the canopy in harnesses and filmed the display tree of the Greater Bird-of-paradise.
While waiting to hear and see this wonderful bird we will, no doubt, be side tracked by such species as Red-cheeked Parrots, Orange-breasted Fig Parrots, Trumpet Manucode, Rufous-bellied Kookaburra, Golden Monarch, Boyer’s and Black Cuckoo-shrikes Lowland Peltops, Pink-spotted Fruit Dove and the Purple-tailed Imperial Pigeon. We might even find the less common Raggiana Birds-of-paradise. Two specials we will keep an ear open for include the Blue Jewel babbler and the Hook-billed Kingfisher.
We will return to our hotel for check out before driving to the airport for departure on flight at 12.10 pm from Kiunga to Port Moresby arriving at 2.10pm. Not wanting to waste too much time in PNG we will spend a few hours of our afternoon birding along the coast. Possible species include Metallic and Singing Starlings, Hooded and Black-backed Butcherbirds, Varied and Silver streaked Honeyeaters, New Guinea Friarbird, White shouldered Fairywren, plus a range of wide spread species including shore birds.
Sanctuary Hotel Resort and Spa - Port Moresby or similar
Day 13 – Tuesday 29th August - Varirata National Park
Full Day Birding at Varirata National Park on the outskirts of Port Moresby. This area is a great combination of open Eucalyptus scrub, Cassuarina woodland and some extensive scarp forest. Despite this park being located close to the capital it remains largely under-visited. This is a pity as there are some truly excellent birds here.It is home to PNG’s national bird, Raggiana Bird-of-paradise along with another bird-of-paradise, the Growling Riflebird.
Another target is the Brown-headed Paradise Kingfisher. If trees are fruiting we should find some beautiful fruit doves such as the [aptly named] Beautiful, Pink-spotted plus the Orange- bellied. We will also work the trails seeking out what are usually ‘Cape York’ specials such as White-faced Robin, Yellow-billed Kingfisher, Yellow-legged Flycatcher, Chestnut breasted Cuckoo, Black-winged Monarch and Fairy Gerygone. We also hope for some New Guinea endemics such as Chestnut-bellied Fantail, Berrypeckers, Buff-faced Pygmy-Parrots, Hooded and Rusty Pitohuis and the very handsome Dwarf Whistler (Goldenface).
Other amzing species such as Black Myzomela, Streak-headed Honeyeater Black-billed Brushturkey, Painted Quailthrush, White-eared Catbird, Pheasant Pigeon and Chestnut-backed Jewel-babbler are possible.
Sanctuary Hotel Resort and Spa - Port Moresby or similar
Day 14 – Wednesday 30th August - Port Moresby & Home
Transfer to Jacksons Airport for 10.40 am flight from Port Moresby to Brisbane, arriving 1.50 pm..
5 Day - 5 Night
Optional New Britain Island
Pre-tour extension- more endemics
New Britain is an exciting destination in its own right and we will have several days to enjoy this tropical paradise and the amazing bird life and reef life there.
Day 1 - Saturday 12th August - Port Moresby Environs
We fly into Port Moresby early in the afternoon on our Air Nugini flight from Brisbane and transfer to our hotel. We will not wait too long though to begin birding. Our afternoon will be spent beginning to grow our PNG bird lists at the Pacific Adventist University. The University grounds will remind most of northern Australia and we should see such ‘Aussie’ [but northern Australian] species as Blue-winged Kookaburra, Torresian Imperial Pigeon, Pied Heron, Fawn-breasted Bowerbird, Rufous-banded Honeyeater, and Black backed Butcherbird as well as a good mix of wetland species. The spectacular Eclectus Parrot is a possibility at this site. We should also see some genuine New Guinea species such as Yellow-faced Myna, Brown Oriole, Grey headed Munia, and if we are lucky, Glossy-mantled Manucode – potentially our first bird-of paradise.
Sanctuary Hotel Resort and Spa - Port Moresby or similar
Day 2 - Sunday August 13th - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
Rising early we depart Port Moresby on a 7.00 am flight to West New Britain, arriving at 9.30 am. We will be picked up from the airport and transported to a luxurious dive resort with excellent facilities - Walindi Plantation Resort for a four night stay. Hopefully we will get some small time to begin ticking off some of the bird species around the resort, such as Bismarck Crow and New Britain Friarbird before our lunch.
During our first afternoon we will mount a small expedition targeting a special bird indeed; the Melanesian Megapode. Now megapodes – literally big feet – are famous for building mounds to incubate their eggs. These Melanesian birds have slightly different behavior; they are communal burrow nesters using geothermal sites that help incubate the eggs. We could see other species such as Purple-bellied Lory, Blue-eyed Cockatoo, Eclectus Parrots, Coconut Lorikeets, Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot, Black Imperial Pigeon, Red-banded Flowerpecker, White-necked Coucal, Long-tailed Myna, New Britain Friarbird, Variable Goshawks, Black-capped Paradise Kingfishers, Blyth's Hornbills, Finsch’s Imperial Pigeon, Red-knobbed Imperial Pigeon and Knob-billed Fruit Dove.
After dinner we will search for a New Britain endemic – the Golden Masked Owl.
Walindi Plantation Resort - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
Day 3 - Monday August 14th - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
Today, armed with water and a lunch pack we will take a slow birding hike. This hike will involve some climbing and reasonable fitness is required. We will be climbing to approximately 600 metres above sea level. We should encounter such species as White-mantled Kingfisher, Blue-eyed Cockatoos Red-knobbed and Yellowish Imperial Pigeons, Red flanked and Coconut Lorikeets, Purple-bellied Lory, Ashy and Black bellied Myzomela, and Metallic Starlings, Northern Fantails, Black tailed Monarch, Pied Cuckoo-Dove among others.
Walindi Plantation Resort - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
Day 4 - Tuesday August 15th - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
During the morning we will take a boat into Kimbe Bay where we will visit the rainforest-clad Restorf, Malumalu, and Schaumann Islands. We will also appreciate the pristine marine environment whilst snorkelling. We will hope to find fruiting trees which could be busy with pigeons and parrots, and we can also find exciting endemic passerines here. Some of the targets will include Melanesian Megapode, Nicobar Pigeon, Island Imperial Pigeon, Yellowish Imperial Pigeon, Yellow-bibbed Fruit Dove, Mackinlay’s Cuckoo-Dove, Whitebellied Sea Eagle, Lesser Frigatebird, Great Frigatebird, Beach Kingfisher, Sclater’s Myzomela, Mangrove Golden Whistler, Island Monarch, Velvet Flycatcher, and Red banded Flowerpecker.
We will also keep our eyes peeled for Heinroth’s Shearwater and Beck’s Petrel and any other seabirds while on our boat trip. Our afternoon birding could take us to Numundo, where we will look for birds found in disturbed habitats such as oil palm plantations and grasslands. We will check this area out for Buff-bellied Mannikin, Papuan Grassbird, Australian Reed Warbler, Golden-headed Cisticola, Black Bittern, Spotted Whistling Duck, King Quail, White-browed Crake, and Pale-vented Bushhen. We will also look out for other wildfowl and shorebirds.
Walindi Plantation Resort - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
Day 5 - Wednesday August 16th - Kimbe Bay, West New Britain
An early start on our last morning in New Britain will have us birding in some excellent lowland rainforest and along geothermally heated hot rivers! This area is also excellent for the endemic Black capped Paradise Kingfisher along with other endemics like Pink-legged Rail, Black Honey Buzzard, Finsch’s Imperial Pigeon, Knob-billed Fruit Dove, Blue-eyed Cockatoo, Purplebellied Lory, Violaceous Coucal, White-necked (Pied) Coucal, White-mantled Kingfisher, Ashy Myzomela, Bismarck Whistler, Black-tailed Monarch, Velvet Flycatcher, and Red banded Flowerpecker. Plenty of other species can be found too, such as Eclectus Parrot, Red flanked Lorikeet, Coconut Lorikeet, and Buff-faced Pygmy Parrot.
We will spend the afternoon birding at Kulu River. We will cover grassland habitats along with river flats and oil palm plantations. A wide range of species are possible and likely to include crakes, bitterns, shorebirds, and waterfowl. Some of the more notable species here include Pied Cuckoo-Dove, White-bibbed Fruit Dove, Knob-billed Fruit Dove, Red-knobbed Imperial Pigeon, Nicobar Pigeon, Pink-legged Rail, Blue-eyed Cockatoo, New Britain Boobook, Bismarck Kingfisher, New Britain Pitta, Black-tailed Monarch, White-backed Woodswallow, and Red-banded Flowerpecker, along with Spotted Whistling Duck, King Quail, and Black Bittern
Day 6 - Thursday August 17th - Return to Port Moresby
This morning we check out of Walindi Plantation Resort and depart from Hoskins Airport on the 7.30 am flight arriving at Jacksons Airport in Port Moresby at 8.45 am. This morning we will briefly visit the Papua New Guinea National Museum and Art Gallery which is the “spiritual house” for the rich natural, cultural and contemporary heritage of the country. We will also visit and have lunch at the Port Moresby Nature Park, spread over 30 acres the park is home to over 250 native animals and birds along with hundreds of plant species, many of which are rarely seen outside of Papua New Guinea. The Nature Park has won a number of international awards for its works. During the afternoon we will join with any new arrivals from overseas joining us for the remainder of the Birding Expedition and we will continue to grow our Papua New Guinea bird lists in the grounds of the Pacific Adventist University.
You can now go back to the beginning of this Day by Day Presentation for the remainder of the program for your extended Bird Watching Tour.