The Tubbataha Expedition - North Atoll

Tubbataha... 

From as far back as I can remember, Tubbataha has been in my list of places to visit. However, since I am not a diver, there was no real urgency.  When I became a bird nut in 2012, it went to the top of the birding bucket list.  But prior to 2016, there were no organized birding tours to Tubbataha.  The only tours available were Live Aboard Dive Expeditions.  Because of this, only a few birders were able to visit the place.  When my friend Rommel Cruz organized the first Tubbataha birding tour in 2016, I was not in a position to go with the trip.  That the trip was a success only served to whet my appetite.  When bookings for the 2017 trip opened, I expressed interest but work and other obligations again got in the way.  Several months later when bookings for the 2018 trips opened, I signed up and made a deposit.  But the trip was cancelled due to some problems with the schedule of the ship. I transferred my booking to the 2019 trip.  But as the saying goes, all the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, or as Mr. Murphy says, if something can go wrong it will…

A few days before my departure, my mother started experiencing a feeling of being exhausted, often gasping for breath, so we went to her nephrologist on the eve of my departure and she was diagnosed with severe anemia (a common occurrence among hemodialysis patients).  The recommendation was for her to have blood transfusion and be confined overnight (damn you Mr. Murphy, see you in 2020 Tubbataha...). But when my mother mentioned to her doctor that I was leaving for a trip the next day, his exact words were, “that’s okay, this is just a transfusion” (Bless you Doc!). Still, I left having mixed feelings…

I took an early morning flight to Puerto Princessa and fortunately there were no delays. After breakfast at Itoy's and lunch at Balinsasayaw, we boarded M/Y Narayana at around 2pm.  There were fourteen people in our party, including Rommel. 

Before we got underway, Tubbataha management personnel came on board and gave us a short briefing on the rules governing the park.  

And we were off... next stop Tubbataha...  Some facts about our destination...

Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park is a 97,030-hectare Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Palawan, the westernmost Philippine province. It is located 150km southeast of Puerto Princesa City, at the heart of the Coral Triangle, the global centre of marine biodiversity.

Tubbataha is composed of two huge coral atolls – the north atoll and the south atoll – and the Jessie Beazley Reef, a smaller coral structure about 20 kilometres north of the atolls.

The reefs of Tubbataha and Jessie Beazley are considered part of Cagayancillo, a remote island municipality roughly 130 kilometers to the northeast, inhabited mainly by fisherfolk. 

The name “Tubbataha” comes from the Samal language meaning “long reef exposed at low tide”. Before Tubbataha became well known, the Samal – seafaring people of the southern Philippines – would visit the reefs intermittently, according to their nomadic lifestyle. However the people more tightly bound to Tubbataha are Cagayanons, inhabitants of the neighbouring islands of Cagayancillo. Traditionally, during the summer months when the sea was calm, they would sail in their native pangko, to visit the abundant fishing grounds of “Gusong”, their name for Tubbataha. (info from: www.tubbatahareef.org).

In order to protect the reef, our ship has to be tied to one of several mooring bouys.  Hence all live aboards bring along a speed boat or two to bring divers (and in our case, birders), around.

The two speedboats that we will use to get around in Tubbataha.  These will also be where we will be doing our birding at Bird Islet

Before long, we were treated to a beautiful sunset, the first of several that we got to experience during the trip.

After a hearty dinner and briefings from divemaster Abet Lagula and tour leader Rommel Cruz, it was time for bed.  

I woke up at dawn when I felt the ship's engine slow down and eventually die down.  I went on deck to have a look but was still dark though. We had reached Tubbataha!  And I could hear already birds!

Tubbataha Sunrise

My first glimpse of the Bird Islet at the North Atoll (photo taken from M/Y Narayana)

The Bird Islet, also taken from the deck of M/Y but using my 500mm telephoto lens. 

Due to tidal conditions, the speed boats could not bring us to Bird Islet until around 9am.  So the divers did a couple of dives in the morning before our birding trip. In the meantime, several marine denizens of Tubbataha entertained us starting with this Green Sea Turtle. 

Green Sea Turtle, Pawikan in Cuyonon.

Soon, it was time.... the trip took about fifteen minutes via speedboat.  I brought along my tripod but I decided that the best way was to stand up and shoot handheld -  which is what I did from the time we came to within shooting distance, to the time we left for the boat (for lunch), a period of about two and a half hours.  I was actually oblivious to what my companions were doing or saying, I just kept firing.  Here are some of the images that I was able to create that first morning.

Brown Noddy

Greater Frigate Bird, female

Greater Frigate Bird, male

Sooty Tern

Great Crested Tern

Great Crested Terns... many of them had chicks

Brown and Black Noddies in a small makeshift table in the hut that bird census takers used the week before.

Brown Booby

Brown Booby and Great Crested Tern

Brown Booby

Brown Noddy

Brown Boobies

Sooty Tern

Brown and Red-footed Boobies, Brown and Black Noddies 

Red-footed Boobies fighting for territory

Brown Boobies, Brown Noddy, Black Noddy

Brown Boobies

Red-footed Booby

The most sought after bird for the trip was the Masked Booby.  In recent years, the census showed only one (1) individual in the island. So a couple of my companions spent most of the morning peering through their binoculars in the hope of seeing it.  In fact, some have been to Tubbataha previously but are on this trip for the second time just so they can see the Masked Booby.  Unfortunately, even after almost three hours of searching, the bird was nowhere to be seen. 

We returned to Narayana for lunch and was told that we will probably head back at 3pm.  But due to the receding tide, it was decided that we will go back much earlier. One of the first things we saw during the afternoon sortie was a big Sea Turtle going up the beach at Bird Islet.  

Sea Turtle going up the beach and disturbing the birds

But when it reached higher ground, it turned around and went back to the water

Sea Turtle on the way back

We continued circling the island and looking for the Masked Booby. In the meantime, the other Tubbataha kept me and my camera occupied.

A pair of Brown Noddies doing synchronized flying

Brown Booby

Great Crested Tern with food in mouth

Great Crested Tern

The fast receding tide cut short our afternoon birding sortie.  Our boatman, fearing that the waters were already too shallow at our usual route, decided to take a longer way back.  We were essentially inside the lagoon and from the Bird Islet, our boatman took a southwesterly course with the intention of turning left and exiting the lagoon at some point.  After about twenty-five minutes we could already see the Ranger Station in the distance (!) and the ship was not responding by radio.  I remember asking him if he had enough fuel.  He said something that I was not able to catch (due to the noise of the engine), but it was not an answer that gave me confidence.  After a few more minutes, Rommel convinced him to turn left already (or port side in nautical terminology) and try to get out of the Lagoon.  He complied but asked us to move in front so that the propellers will sit higher in the water.  We slowly traversed the shallow waters of the lagoon "wall", all the while holding our breath that we do not hit a rock and damage our boat.  After about five nerve wracking minutes, we were clear!  But not without casualty as Rommel's (expensive?) shades fell in the water and got lost. To illustrate how far we had come, it took us almost thirty minutes cruising at a fast clip before we reached Narayana.  

As far as I can determine, our route back is shown by the purple line.  Our usual route is the green line (we were moored near the bouys).

In any case, we all breathed a big sigh of relief when we got back to our mother ship.  Did we rest?  Of course not!  Some went diving while four of us went snorkeling!  Later that afternoon, we were again treated to a spectacular sunset which we watched while on the roof deck of M/Y Narayana.  

Sunset taken at 6:03pm using my 18-35mm lens @18mm

Sunset taken at 6:11pm using my 200-500 lens @200mm

After dinner, we all sat around talking about the days activities and of course, drinking cerveza, to celebrate.  Salud!

   

Mystical Adobo and the Fruit Doves... plus a a friendly Nuthatch...

Though I am okay birding with anybody at WBPP, more often than not my birding companions in Manila and its surrounding areas is the group that started the legend of the adobo. Last April 13, I had the opportunity to bird with this group again.   Having previously posted about the (seeming) mystical properties of Ed Santos' adobo,  I will not anymore describe its connection to a successful sortie. Our main targets for the day were the Cream-bellied Fruit, Yellow-breasted Fruit Dove, Philippine Dwarf Kingfisher, and the Luzon Bleeding Heart, which was photographed in the area a few days before. 

At 4:30am, I met with Conrad Olayres, my Thailand roommate, at a fastfood restaurant along Marcos Highway.  Several minutes later, we were joined by fellow birders Win Paler (aka Wins Tornado), Ed Santos, and Steve Albano.  After steaming bowls of mami, we set off for Infanta.  We arrived a little after seven and found Prof Ferdie Llanes, another WBPP birder already on the site. It turned out that he was there the day before and the thick fog made him wary of driving in the dark along the zigzag mountain roads, thus he decided to sleep over.

After setting up our gears, Conrad explored the area and found a fruiting ficus tree on a steep slope. It was at this point that disaster struck as Ed's gear uncoupled from his tripod and fell on the concrete pavement.  Prompting Steve to run over and help Ed.

While Wins and I were pondering on the effort and risk of going down the slope, a Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker, glided on a branch almost directly above Steve. So what else can we do but shoot.

Philippine Pygmy Woodpecker

Wins, aided by Edgar, (his driver/spotter), opted to go down the steep slope so he will be nearer the fruiting tree.  However, none of the others seemed willing to follow.  Besides, I was feeling a little hungry so I went back to my car to get something to munch on.  After eating a handful of nuts, our local guide came running saying that there was a Cream-bellied Fruit Dove perched in the open.  The site was where Ferdie was and it required going down a rather steep and slippery slope (it rained hence the ground was wet).  But the prospect of photographing one of my targets was too much to resist so onward I braved going down the slope. I cannot recall how many minutes it took me to go down about 15-20 meters (all the while saying a silent prayer that I don't slip).  When I reached the spot, Steve was already firing away while Ferdie was calling instructions to the bird on how to pose. (He was joking of course).  After a quick hello and handshake to Ferdie (whom I was meeting in person for the first time), I looked over where the bird is.  It took me a couple of seconds to see it as the foliage was quite thick.  As soon as I saw it, I fired a burst, while silently praying that my aim is steady (I was still breathing hard from the climb down).  We were shooting handheld because we left our tripods up top.  There was no space to set it anyway.   After a couple of minutes Steve, gave up his vantage point so that Conrad and I can shoot a bit nearer.  However, by the time it was my turn, the bird changed position then flew away before I could shoot.  Still, I was very happy to see and be given an opportunity to photograph this bird in the open. 

Presenting one of my better shots.

Cream-bellied Fruit Dove 

After the dove left, I immediately went back up.  I have this irrational fear of slipping down a mountain slope.  A couple of Philippine Fairy Blue Birds appeared but I had no clear shot.  It turned out only Steve was able to get one.  It soon started to drizzle so we sought cover in a small shack.  While huddling around the shack, three more WBPP birders arrived - Expedito Reyes, and Pastors Tony Lim and Dave Trinidad. After a round of warm handshakes, high fives and hugs, we set up our tripods facing the ravine and waited for birds. But there was not much activity.  Soon Edgar's sharp eyes spotted a small bird on the bushes below.  I believe it is a Grey-backed Tailorbird.  

Distant docu shot of a Grey-backed Tailorbird

I also spotted this lizard on one of the trees. I am not sure what it is but I believe it is a Skink, presumably the Eutropis multicarinata. Would welcome any correction if I am mistaken. 

Skink, presumably the Eutropis Multicarinata

After about fifteen minutes of not much bird activity, we transferred to another location a couple of kilometers down the road.  As soon as we got there, we saw these white-eyes.  

Mountain White-eye

Yellowish White-eye

After about half an hour with no birds, except the white-eyes, we decided to break for an early lunch.  And as soon as we had started unpacking the Adobo and the cold softdrinks, birds started to arrive in a nearby fruiting tree.  The first to show up were several Sulphur-billed Nuthatches.  Often seen but not always easy to photograph because they are constantly moving.  But the Nuthatches put on a show that day and gave all of us close captures.  Sharing some of them...

Sulphur-billed Nuthatch

In between the appearances of the Nuthatch, an Elegant Tit, also made a brief appearance.

Elegant Tit

Then a male Philippine Hanging Parrot, a.k.a. Colasisi, perched on the far side of the fruiting tree. It was visible to some of us but I could only see it through a small gap.  Thus, this was all that I could manage.   

Philippine Hanging Parrot, a.k.a. Colasisi

After the brief appearance of the Colasisi, we decided to continue our interrupted lunch.  While we were eating, the female Colasisi also made a brief appearance but none of us were able to get it.  Sometime after lunch, Conrad and our local guide did some exploring and shortly after we were called because they spotted a Yellow-breasted Fruit Dove.  The problem was, it was concealed inside a thick foliage and can only be seen through a small hole in the leaves.  If one moves a couple of inches, the bird gets covered by leaves and twigs.  And since there was the breeze, the leaves and twigs were also swaying!  It was a real challenge to shoot. Still we took turns aiming our cameras in the gap and helping our fellow birders see the bird.  I fired as many as I could because I knew that majority would either be covered or blurred.   Here are the better shots:

Yellow-breasted Fruit Dove.  I particularly like these last two shots because they show the purple ad yellow patches on its breast/belly.

After getting our fill of the dove, we went back to the fruiting tree hoping to get another chance at the Colasisi.  But it only came back once and stayed only a couple of seconds.  While waiting, we were entertained by this lizard which I believe is the Philippine Flying Lizard.  Again, would welcome any correction if I am wrong. 

Philippine Flying Lizard

The Elegant Tit made another appearance. This time coming nearer and staying longer.

Elegant Tit

Our second to the last bird for the day was this Pacific Swallow perched on a loose wire near one of the houses.  Its mate was building a nest in a nearby corner of the wall/roof.  

Pacific Swallow

Just as we were about to pack up, three small birds perched high up.  I was hoping that they would go lower but they didn't.  When they flew off, we decided to call it a day. 

Docu shot of an Olive-backed Flowerpecker

All in all, it was a good day of birding.  We did not see as many as we would have liked (birders are always greedy for more...), but the camaraderie (and the good-natured ribbing) that is ever present in a WBPP sortie (not to mention the sumptuous adobo, ice cold drinks, and fresh fruits), is priceless. 

Till the next sortie...

De-stressing with Ruddy

Friends and acquaintances have asked me what I get out of birding. What indeed?  Once, while being interviewed for a TV show about the birds of Coron, the host surprised me by asking this question out of the blue (there was a list of questions given to me prior to the actual taped interview).  I could not remember anymore what I answered.  But after reflecting on the question, I guess my answer would be, because it is fun.  It helps me de-stress.  When I am behind my camera and there is a bird in front of me, I forget, at least temporarily, the burdens I carry...

One such occasion happened last February 17. It was my first time to go to Capayas in 2019.  I was hoping for a "photo session" with the Ruddy Kingfisher.  And sometimes, the birding gods grant your wish...  I arrived at Capayas Creek Kingfisher Preserve around 6:45am and Erwin met me whispering  excitedly that the the Ruddy was already somewhere nearby.  We saw it perched in a buho some distance away.  I quickly set up my gear, took some insurance shots and then sat down to wait.  Before long it came nearer and what followed was a two-hour encounter (and almost 2000 shots) of "Rudy".

Here are some of the images I was able to create that day...

Ruddy Kingfisher

It was a perfect way to de-stress on a Sunday morning...  Thank you Lord for the beauty of your creation...