Southern Vietnam in 2023: bird hides, Silver-breasted Broadbills and Siamese Fireback

Southern

VIETNAM: Easy Indochina

A Birding with a Camera

Custom Tour

January 30-February 8, 2023

Guides: Ken Behrens &

Trần Nhật Tiên

All photos by Ken Behrens

TOUR SUMMARY

Vietnam is one of Asia’s biologically richest countries. Unfortunately, it’s also famous as a

place that is over-hunted and over-trapped, and heavily populated, making the wildlife viewing

quite difficult. The good news is that is the creation of several bird feeding and watering stations

with blinds have drastically improved this situation. These setups allows intimate views and good

photography of the normally shy birds. Southern Vietnam has been transformed from one of the

toughest birding areas of Southeast Asia to one of its easiest. This tour makes an excellent and

easy introduction to the region, which has some of the world’s coolest birds, but where birding can

often be a challenge.

This custom tour’s itinerary was built around places with good bird blind setups, and places

that offered chances to photograph some of one participant’s desired families, in his quest to

photograph all the bird families of the world. Vietnam can be a frustrating place for hardcore birder

who wants to “clean up” on localized endemics and other species, but a very enjoyable place for a

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

slower-paced “birding with a camera” approach. The accommodations are comfortable, and good

food can be found everywhere, from fresh stir-fries to tasty Bánh mì sandwiches and steaming

bowls of fragrant Phở.

The trip started with a morning in

Ho Chi Minh City. There was some

decent urban birding, including a

couple species we wouldn’t see again,

including Ashy Tailorbird and

Malaysian Pied Fantail. Local

photographers had staked out an

Oriental Reed-Warbler, and were

feeding it crickets, for great photo

opportunities! Heading east, we spent

the next three days in and around the

Tan Phu Forest. This area has recently

emerged as a top birding site due to

the creation of a couple excellent bird

hides. We spent the majority of our

time in these hides, and were rewarded

with Siamese Fireback, Black-backed

Dwarf-Kingfisher, Laced Woodpecker,

Bar-bellied Pitta (both male and

female), Blue-rumped Pitta, and a

bunch of more common species.

Birding along roads and trails turned up different species, such as Common and Great Ioras,

Banded Broadbill, and Green-billed Malkoha. We ventured out for some owling on two different

nights. Large-tailed Nightjar and Oriental Scops-Owl were incredibly cooperative, whereas

Oriental Bay-Owl and Spot-bellied Eagle-Owl were only heard.

About an hour’s drive brought us to Cat Tien, Vietnam’s best-protected and most diverse

national park. Some time in a good hide gave us great views of Germain’s Peacock-Pheasant and

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Scaly-breasted Partridge. These were joined by lots of other birds such as Greater Racket-tailed

Drongo, White-rumped Shama, and a variety of babblers and bulbuls. We walked various roads

and trails in search of other birds, and also sighted Black-shanked Douc Langur and Buff-cheeked

Gibbon. One afternoon in the park’s grassland area was a delight. There were several Green

Peafowl sightings, plus a close-up encounter with a Banded Kingfisher. Great Eared-Nightjars

hawked insects overhead at dusk.

shy birds like laughingthrushes in Vietnam.

Di Linh pass was our first site in the mountains, a very different habitat and set of birds from

the lowland semi-evergreen forests. The bird hides here have to count among the best in the

world! There is great overall diversity, and some absolutely spectacular birds visit frequently. As

evidence of this, the top two sightings from the trip occurred in these hides: Silver-breasted

Broadbill and Indochinese Green-Magpie. There was also Large Scimitar-Babbler, Black-headed

Parrotbill, Blue Pitta, Mugimaki Flycatcher, and many other species.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Heading north, we climbed onto the Da Lat Plateau, Vietnam’s richest area for endemic

birds. Although the birding here could formerly be bafflingly difficult, there are now several

carefully constructed hides. Not only do these simply allow you to see most of the endemics, they

allow you to see them vividly and intimately, and to take excellent photos. It’s a different world

from birding Da Lat ten years ago! Just a few of our prized hide sightings included Short-tailed

Scimitar-Babbler, Lesser Shortwing, Gray-bellied Tesia, and White-cheeked Laughingthrush.

Pygmy Cupwing was a major target, but unfortunately it only vocalized at close range, and

skittered through the forest behind the hide – never coming in for good views or photos. Birding

along roads filled in a few other endemics like Vietnamese Cutia and Da Lat Shrike-Babbler.

A short domestic flight brought us back to Ho Chi Minh city, where we connected with our

outbound international flights. It had been a short but sweet trip in southern Vietnam, which has

rapidly emerged as one of Southeast Asia’s premier birding and photography destinations.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

TOP 5 TOUR SIGHTINGS

As voted by all the tour participants and guides

1) Silver-breasted Broadbill – 9 VOTES. Broadbills were a major family target for this

custom tour. Early in the trip, in Tan Phu, we had a good sighting of a Banded Broadbill, but

photographic conditions were tough. So it was a great treat when a whole troop of around 20

Silver-breasted Broadbills dropped down to visit the water pool at one of the hides at Di Linh.

This bird is rich in exquisite and gorgeous details, and also displays a surprising amount of

variation among individuals.

2) Indochinese Green-Magpie – 7 VOTES. On our second day at Di Linh, the morning was

slow, but our patience paid off when Indochinese Green-Magpie and Large Scimitar-Babbler

visited in quick succession. Getting point-blank views of these extremely shy species was an

unforgettable treat!

3) Bar-bellied Pitta – 6 VOTES. This pitta is perhaps the quintessential Indochinese bird

species, and definitely one of the best-looking pittas on Earth to boot. In Tan Phu we had

multiple looks at females, and a lengthy encounter with the stunning male shown below.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

4) Green Peafowl – 4 VOTES. The grasslands of Cat Tien NP held a bunch of Green

Peafowl. What a spectacular bird! Much harder to find than the better-known Indian Peafowl.

along the trail to one of the hides was an unexpected highlight for a couple of the participants.

Vernal Hanging-Parrot – 3 VOTES. This was a new bird for Tiên, at least to have good

perched views, so naturally it was his top trip bird!

6) Oriental Scops-Owl – 2 VOTES. On our second owling session in Tan Phu, we came

face to face with an Oriental Scops-Owl that was perched BELOW eye level! All owl

encounters are magical, but this one was special even by owl standards. See the photo earlier

in the report.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

7) Vietnamese Cutia – 1 VOTE. This big, unusual laughingthrush is endemic to south and

central Vietnam. We had to search long and hard, but eventually located a pair, in some pine

woods on Da Lat.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Indochinese Barbet – 1 VOTE Asian Barbets was one of the family targets for this trip.

Photographing members of this family is rarely easy, as they are the size, color, and shape of

a leaf, and generally stick to the canopy. With a lot of work, we eventually managed good shots

of a couple of Indochinese Barbets on Da Lat. Like all members of this family, it’s quite a good-

looking bird.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

ITINERARY

January 30 Arrival in Saigon. January 31 Birding in Saigon. Afternoon to Tan Phu. February 1 Tan Phu Forest Reserve. February 2 Tan Phu Forest Reserve. February 3 Cat Tien National Park February 4 Cat Tien NP morning. Afternoon Di Linh. February 5 Morning Di Linh. Drive to Da Lat. February 6 Da Lat Plateau. February 7 Da Lat Plateau. February 8 Flight from Da Lat to Saigon. Departure.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

PHOTO GALLERY

A full Flickr gallery of photos from this trip, organized chronologically, is on Ken’s Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kbehrens/albums/72177720306339240

Siberian Blue Robin is a fairly common hide visitor.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Flowerpeckers were a family photographic target, so it was great to have this

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Da Lat’s pine forests don’t hold a lot of birds, but they are the preferred habitat of Slender-billed Oriole.

We had amazing, close-up views of the skulking Da Lat Bush Warbler.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

The Da Lat “white spectacled” subspecies of Black-headed Sibia is quite distinctive and is sometimes split.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Thick-billed Flowerpecker, an inconspicuous canopy species.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Ioras were one of the top family targets, and we declared “mission accomplished”

after seeing and photographing this Common Iora!

Displaying Crested Goshawk, with its white undertail puffed out, is such a distinctive bird!

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Streak-eared Bulbul is one of the more common lowland bird species.

There was a Pale-legged Leaf-Warbler regularly visiting one of the Tan Phu hides this year.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Leafbirds don’t usually descend to the hides, but we enjoyed this rare sighting of Blue-winged Leafbird.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Germain’s Swiftlet is incredibly common in the lowlands, partially due to swiftlet “farms”.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

We sighted Black-hooded Parrotbills a couple times at Di Linh.

This Two-barred Warbler was sheltering under this huge leaf during a rainstorm!

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

A skulking Yellow Bittern, on our first morning in Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Asian Palm-Swifts occasionally swooped overhead in Tan Phu and Cat Tien.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Yellow-browed Warbler may be the most common bird in southern Vietnam in winter.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

The “Gray-crowned” Da Lat subspecies of Black-throated Tit is very distinctive, and is often split.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnamese Greenfinch (left) on Da Lat and Indochinese Cuckooshrike (right) at Cat Tien.

Gray-eyed Bulbul, one of an array of bulbuls and babbler that visit the lowland hides.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

White-throated Rock-Thrush female (above) and male (below) are strikingly different!

come into the hide to look for mealworms!

White-spectacled Warbler, an inconspicuous highland species.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Pin-striped Tit-Babbler visits the lowland hides, but never lingers for long.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

“Indochinese” Scaly-crowned Babbler, with a Puff-throated Babbler behind.

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

BIRD LIST

Taxonomy and nomenclature follow The Clements Checklist of the Birds of the World v2022 (including updates through October 2022).

The full list, including numbers and many other details, can be see as part of the eBird trip report for this trip: https://ebird.org/tripreport/109299

GALLIFORMES: Phasianidae

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023

E Vietnamese Greenfinch Chloris monguilloti Red Crossbill Loxia curvirostra

H = heard-only G = guide-only E = Endemic NE = Near-endemic NE = Near-endemic if split E = Endemic if split

One more look at White-browed Scimitar-Babbler.

MAMMAL LIST

Vietnam: Easy Indochina January 30-February 8, 2023