Birding in Mapawa Nature Park, CDO

Today (February 27) is the second day of the Philippine Environment Summit in Cagayan de Oro City (CDO) and I just arrived in my transient hotel walking distance away from the venue particularly in Win Min Inn, an affordable and convenient accommodation establishment right in the heart of Agora Bus Terminal. Just before the forum started early this morning I headed to Mapawa Natural Park, a popular mountain resort situated more or less 10 kilometers away from the city proper. I hired a motorbike to ferry me in the area and good thing the driver agreed to wait for me for at least two hours of birding.

I pre-booked online through its dynamic facebook page and the resort personnel already assigned a guide for me in the person of Dodong Paglinawan, perhaps the only good birding guide in Mapawa. Some pre-arranged details had me paying 500 pesos for the guide and 70 pesos for the environmental fee which the resort strictly imposes.

It was still very dark when I arrived in the resort but plenty of calls already greeted my ears even before I could step out of the motorbike. While waiting for Dodong the very first bird I saw was the Philippine Drongo Cuckoo and some calls of Philippine Magpie Robin and Philippine Bulbul just along the main road near the information center. Several doves flying all over the canopy of endemic trees which included White-eared Brown Dove, Yellow-breasted Fruit Dove and Philippine Cuckoo Dove. At this point frustration came over me because with the dark site I could hardly take pictures.

When Dodong arrived he told me the best bird he was sure would appear is the Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, a 100% dweller in the resort which is a highlight among other Philippine endemics in Cagayan de Oro. But before we headed to the specific site of this star bird we stopped by a stream where the Southern Silvery Kingfisher stayed and waited for a breakfast. And then on the same site we had good looks of the Brown-breasted Kingfisher and another Mindanao endemic Black-faced Coucal. At the other end of the forest opposite the stream I heard multiple calls of Hooded Pitta. As usual this bird is one of the hardest to see despite it calling in a nearer location.

In an open area I thought of as a team-building site a Rufuos Paradise Flycatcher flew straight only once and never got back. The flock of Asian Glossy Starlings obstructed the arrival of Philippine Hanging Parrots which Dodong said are also in abundance here. And when we had full natural light mix flock of Grey-streaked Flycatcher, Red-keeled Flowerpecker, Olive-backed Sunbird, Brown-throated Sunbird and Brown Shrike came.

After less than two hours I left the resort in a hurry to catch up with the summit schedule in downtown. Dodong said Mapawa is so far the number one birding area in the entire Cagayan de Oro City and he used to guiding all other birders here from all over the world. I might have fall short of the other special bird species here but certainly that instant decision to insert a birding tour in CDO is worth more than doing nothing in a hotel room in one fine morning.

LAKE AGCO: In Search for the MINDANAO MINIATURE BABBLER

The entire Mt. Apo Natural Park is a huge protected area covering two provinces and two big cities. Geographically it is never easy to identify a good site for birding despite it being an abode of several endemic and resident birds. As a newbie in birding I have yet to personally see majority of Mindanao endemic birds here, particularly popular species which according to some could be seen effortlessly such as the Apo Myna and Philippine Eagle.

The latest information I got from Pete Simpson is all about the Mindanao Miniature Babbler (MMB), another Mindanao endemic which according to him can be best seen in Lake Agco of Kidapawan City. Lake Agco is a jump off point to Mt. Apo which happened to be another common entry point in North Cotabato area but is temporarily closed as of the moment due the series of earthquakes happening in Mindanao over the last 4 months. The Mindanao Miniature Babbler was the ultimate reason why I was enticed to join Pete’s birding session with guests from United Kingdom last January 12.

Right after they chased the Japanese Night Heron at Eden Resort Pete’s group picked me up at Sta. Cruz and we travelled all the way to Kidapawan City. This session was made with a prior consent from Tourism Office Joey Recimilla and staff Ver Sibonga. Our entry through Agco was welcomed by remnants of earthquake with people being placed in a specific evacuation center in between the city and the lake. The entire sitio is like a ghost town and I thought it would take some more time before they could go back to their residents.   

Right up the intersection to Agco Resort we started our birding hoping to immediately see the Mindanao Miniature Babbler in a shade of some common pine trees. No one seen right there though, but some familiar birds came like Brahminy Kite, Philippine Bulbul and Grey Wagtail. We thought of just staying outside as initially relayed by Pete but with Ver joining us we were allowed to get inside the resort, perhaps a much better idea because there are a lot more birds there.

Near the entrance waiting for us was one Philippine Serpent Eagle, an endemic raptor in the Philippines perching in a very favorable perspective, the first time I caught with a lens this attractive species we always failed to photograph with my Big Year Team.

The policy to not allow people to enter the resort was a blessing in disguise for us. Silence always allow birds to freely room around and in a single location we enjoyed spotting good species such as Sulphur-billed Nuthatch, Elegant Tit, Mountain White Eye, Long-tailed Ground Warbler, Bicolored Flowerpecker, Scarlet Minivet and the rare Bundok Flycatcher which was a lifer to me. From this point we had initial glimpse of the MMB but there was no clear angle to photograph the bird because aside from being a hyper one, MMB is also very small to be distinguished from the leaves and small tree branches.

   

The closer we got of MMB was at the façade of the resort where we parked our vehicles. The eager group from UK had me getting idea to extend patience when doing birding. How could I not wait for a prestigious species right in my area when in fact people from UK even came here to see the bird? According to Pete, Lake Agco is the place where he saw the Mindanao Miniature Babbler in a consistent basis and no other place elsewhere in Mindanao.

The last spot where Pete brought us was at a trail going to the hot lake. This beautiful area is decorated not only with good vegetation but some rare species of highland birds, most notable are the Buzzing Flowerpecker, Little Pied Flycatche, Turquoise Flycatcher and Orange-bellied Flowerpecker. For sure there are other stuffs that Pete said he saw but I never had good glimpse which is another motivation for me to be back to Lake Agco soon.

The Mt. Apo side of Kidapawan is for me the most accessible site for birding given that Lake Agco can now be reached by any type of vehicles. The presence of Mindanao Miniature Babbler and other Mindanao endemics including the Philippine Eagle has made Lake Agco a birding hotspot for international birders. At some point this is an unbeaten opportunity which in the long run can be a good market for ecotourism in the place other than trekking and mountaineering. On a contrasting surface this is a challenge to all of us especially the local and national government agencies. The fact that birds are dependent on our forest cover should always keep us keen on how to make them stay and multiply.