had an opportunity last weekend to guide two international birdwatchers here in samar. our sortie was successful spotting their bird objectives, the slender billed crow and blue fantail
we also got bonus by seeing naked-faced spiderhunter, rufous and tarictic hornbills, few tailorbirds, raptors, phil falconet, dollarbirds, fairy bluebird, black naped monarch, and also the regulars at SINP veranda. here are some of the limited photos that i managed to snap during the trip.
Dean and Craig, along the road…
The Rufous Hornbill (Buceros hydrocorax), also known as Philippine Hornbill and, locally, as Kalaw (pronounced kah-lau) is a large species of hornbill. It is endemic to the Philippines, where it occurs in primary, mature secondary and disturbed forests on 11 islands: Luzon and Marinduque (race hydrocorax), Samar, Leyte, Bohol,Panaon, Biliran, Calicoan and Buad (race semigaleatus), Dinagat, Siargao, Mindanao (plus Balut, Bucas and Talicud) and Basilan (race mindanensis). It is still common locally, notably in the Sierra Madre of Luzon, but continues to suffer from substantial hunting pressure and widespread loss of habitat. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rufous_Hornbill
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The Samar Tarictic Hornbill (Penelopides samarensis), sometimes shortened to Samar Hornbill, is a species of hornbill in the Bucerotidae family. It is found in forests on the islands of Samar, Calicoan, Leyteand Bohol in the east-central Philippines. As is the case with all Philippine tarictic hornbills, it has been considered a subspecies of P. panini. Alternatively, it is considered a subspecies of P. affinis. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samar_Tarictic_Hornbill
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The Naked-faced Spiderhunter (Arachnothera clarae) is a species of bird in the Nectariniidae family. It is endemic to the Philippines. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naked-faced_Spiderhunter
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