Makiling 3rd October

A nice early start up Makiling this morning, using the 4WD. Started on the mud springs track at about 6:00, and turned onto the trail that heads to the right soon after the start. Really nice forest, clearly not much traffic here. Got to a small streambed after about half an hour, and immediately disturbed a small thrush-sized bird off the forest floor. Quite possibly the Ashy Thrush I'd been searching for. I carried on for 10 minutes down the stream until it got too steep, then returned, slowly so as not to scare the bird again. This time I flushed a much larger bird, a Luzon Bleeding Heart! Extremely brief flight views only, and untickable really, but there can be no doubt about the ID.

Carried on up the mountain for a while, to see how far I could get. On the way a pair of Spotted Wood Kingfishers darted across the road, and sat up nicely in some vines. Up at station 14 there was a huge flock of Philippine Bulbuls in a fruiting tree creating an enormous fuss, along with calling doves and Coppersmiths, but no sign of Fruit Doves. A nearby bird party had a nice Coppersmith, Buzzing Flowerpecker, Red-keeled Flowerpecker and Sulphur-billed Nuthatch.

Back down at the base of the mountain no fewer than 6 Philippine Falconets in the dead tree by TREES lodge.

Sulphur-billed Nuthatch

Spotted Wood Kingfisher This cracking male was one of a pair that flew across the road in front of me half-way between the coconut sellers and the end of the track.

Philippine Falconet

Coppersmith ssp haemacephala