Trains south were fully booked so we took buses to Tanah Rata via Ipoh taking around 4 hours past vast oil palm plantations and then winding into steep karst mountains, some heavily quarried. At 1400m the town was a gloriously comfortable 22 degrees, dry and sunny. We had a glorious view from the accommodation (if you looked in the right direction): Tree Sparrows and Oriental Magpie Robin common; Javan Mynas and the diminutive, white-bellied Plume-toed Swiftlets were lifers as was a distant Mountain Imperial Pigeon.
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| What the brochures show |
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| Not what the brochures show |
We spent just one full day in Tanah Rata. A massive shame because you could walk all day and the birding was some of the very best I've ever encountered. It did not feel very safe though and a bit of research revealed that tourists were being attacked on some of the trails. We stuck to the safer ones that went via the Parit Falls during our day here and the walking was excellent. Birding highlights were Japanese Sparrowhawk, Silver-eared Mesia, Mountain Fulvetta, Yellow-breasted Warbler, Mountain Leaf Warbler, Black-throated Sunbird, Fire-tufted Barbet, Grey-chinned Minivet, Slaty-backed Forktail, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, White-throated Fantail, Black-and-crimson Oriole, Grey-breasted Spiderhunter, Mountain Bulbul, Long-tailed Sibia and Crimson-breasted Flowerpecker. An impressive 15 lifers in 24 hours here.
Photography was difficult but I got some poor quality shots of a few species.
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| Long-tailed Sibia Heterophasia picaoides |
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| Mountain Bulbul Ixos mcclellandii |
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| Mountain Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus trivirgatus |
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| Silver-eared Mesia Leiothrix argentauris |
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| Slaty-backed Folktail Enicurus schistaceus |
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