Bird
Watching in Bhutan
Bhutan
has a diverse avifauna: 616 species have been recorded so far and many
more are likely to be found. This is a large number for the size of
the country; for comparison less than 800 species are found in all of
North America. Click here HERE
for a list of birds available in Bhutan and HERE
for their pictures.
Main
Habitats and Bird Species
The
bird habitats of Bhutan can be roughly divided into:
Forest
Scrub
Wetlands
Alpine habitats
Agricultural land
Around human habitation.
There
is a small area of lowland grassland that extends into India, but this
supports scattered trees and no grassland bird specialists have so far
been recorded in Bhutan.
Forests and Scrub
Unlike
other Himalayan countries, Bhutan still retains much of its forests
substantially intact. The country’s forests are rich, diverse and
beautiful, forming some of the best remaining representatives of
forest habitat in the Himalayas.
Forests
and bushes support the high proportion of 84% of the country’s
breeding birds. In addition 57% of Bhutan’s globally threatened
birds and 90% of the country’s restricted-range birds are dependent
on forests.
Subtropical
and warm broadleaved forests grow along the foothills up to 1000m (-1200m). Higher up,
and extending up to 200 m (-2300m), is warm broadleaved forest. These
forests are the richest in bird species.
The
globally threatened Rufous-necked Hornbill Aceros nipalensis is
virtually confined to these forests and requires mature fruiting
trees. While this species is still fairly common in Bhutan, it is rare
and declining elsewhere in its range. Another endangered species,
Beautiful Nuthatch Sitta Formosa, which is rare and poorly
known wherever it occurs, has been found only in Bhutan in warm
broadleaved forests. These forests are also important for the
enigmatic Chestnut-breasted Partridge Arborophila mandellii,
which is both internationally threathened and restricted in
distribution.
Amongst
species with restricted ranges, Yellow-vented Warbler Phylloscopus
cantator and White-naped Yuhina. Yuhina bakeri are almost
confined to subtropical and warm broadleaved forests. These are also
the main habitat of Broad-billed WarblerTickellia hodgsoni and
Rufous-throated Wren Babbler Spelaeornis cautstus.
Cool
broadleaved forests
grow on moist exposed slopes, up to 2900m, above the warm broadleaved
forests. They are second only to the subtropical and warm broadleaved
forests in their bird-species richness. The globally threatened
Chestnut-breasted Partridge and Blyth’s Tragopan Tragopan blythii
have been found here, the latter in the far east. Some of Bhutan’s
Wood Snipe Gallinago nemoricola, an altitudinal migrant,
probably winter in cool broadleaved forests. These forests are the
chief habitat for the restricted-range species Ward’s Trogon Harpactes
wardi, Hoary-throated Barwing Actinodura nipalensis and
Brown-throated Fulvetta Alcippe ludlowi; Broad-billed Warbler
and Rufous-throated Wren Babbler also breed.
Chir
Pine Pinus
roxburghii
forms open dry forests in the deeper dry valley between 900 m and 1800
m (-2000m). Almost no
other trees species occur, and the shrub layer is poorly developed.
These forests are poor in birds species and hold no specilaities.
Breeding birds include Blue-caped Rock Thrush Monticola
cinclorhynchus and
Hill Prina Prinia atrogularis.
Blue
Pine
Pinus wallichiana is the temperate equivalent of Chir
Pine and grows in Bhutan’s dry valleys between 2100 and 3000 m
(-3100m). Like Chir Pine it is species-poor for birds, Breeding
species include Rufous-fronted Tit Aegithalos iouschistos and
Yellow-billed Blue Magpie Urocissa flavirostris.
Spruce
Picea mainly grows from 2700m to
3100m (2500 – 3200m). Together with Hemlock Tsuga dumosa
and fir Abies densa, spruce forest grows in the cloud-forest
zone between the cool temperate broadleaved forest and the treeline
and is drier that Hemlock for fir forest. Spruce forest supports a low
diversity of birds species, including Buff-barred Warbler Phylloscopus
pulcher and Grey-crested Tit Parus dichrous.
Hemlock
Tsuga dumosa grows from 2800-3100m (-3300m). Where
rhododendrons and bamboo stands, ferns and epiphytes are frequent,
Hemlock holds a good variety of breeding species, although no
internationally threatened or restricted-range species. Red Crossbill Loxia
curvirostra particularly favours Hemlock in the Himalayas.
Fir
Abies
spectabilis
occurs widely from 3300-3800m (-3100m) and often has a luxuriant
understorey of rhododendron bamboo. Near the tree-line the trees
become mixed with junipers and smaller rhododendrons. These forests
are rich in birds species, including the restricted-range species
Hoary-throated Barwing as well as Satyr Tragopan Tragopan satyra,
Rufous-breasted Bush Robin Tarsiger hyperythrus, and
Fire-tailed Myzornis Myzornis pyrrhoura.
Bamboo
stands are an important component of forests for many birds, which
include Lesser Rofous-headed Parrotbill Paradoxornis
astroperciliaris and Greater Rofous-headed Parrotbill P.
ruficeps in warm broadleaved forests, Broad-billed Warbler and
Golden-breasted Fulvetta Alcippe chrysotis in cool broadleaved
forests, and Fulvous Parrotbill Paradoxornis fulvifrons and
Great Parrotbill Conostoma oemodium in subalpine forests.
Juniper/Rhododendron
shrubberies occur above the tree-line through northern and central
Bhutan between 3700 m and 4200 m. Damp grassy meadows are common in
this zone. The shrubberies support a small number of breeding species,
including White-winged Grosbeak Mycerobas carnipes, which is
characteristically associated with junipers, Fire-tailed Sunbird Aethopyga
ignicauda, and some bush robins and rosefinches.
Alpine
Habitats
Dry
alpine scrub grows between 4000 m and 4600 m. Only a small number of
species breed in this high-altitude scrub and on alpine grassy and
stony slopes and ridges higher up. These include Tibetan Snowcock Tetraogallus
tibetanus, Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris, and Grandala Grandala coelicolor, which occur as high as 5500 m.
Wetlands
Bhutan
has rather few wetlands and, apart from come river stretches, these
are very poorly known for birds.
Typically,
rivers and streams in the foothills and northern mountains are
fast-flowing, boulder-strewn torrents that cut through deep,
steep-sided valleys. In central Bhutan where the valleys are wide,
such as at Thimphu, Bumtha and Wangdue Phodrang, the rivers flow more
slowly. The Mo Chhu valley north of Wangdue is regularly used by
wintering and passage migrant ducks. The river beds are wide and flat
with extensive shingle deposits where they enter the plains, such as
the Torsa River at Phuentsholing, which is a good area for passage
migrant wetland birds. Bhutan’s rivers run from north to south,
originating in the permanent snow and glaciers of the main Himalayan
chain in the north, except in the east where the Kuru Chhu and Nyam
Jand Chhu enter Bhutan from Tiber and Arunachal Pradesh. There are
several small lakes including the Raksa Threng in Lunana.
Two
globally threatened wetland species occur regularly in Bhutan. The
rare White-bellied Heron Ardea insignis breeds, and frequents
only those rivers and lakes in dense broadleaved forests below 1400 m/
Pallas’s Fish Eagle Haliaeetus
leucoryphus, which has bred and may still do so, inhabits large
rivers, also below 1400 m.
The
extensive marshes in Phobjikha valley in central Bhutan are an
important wintering ground for
the globally threatened Black-necked Crane Grus
nigricollis. There are numerous small ponds and marshes, often in
cultivation and around habitation, throughout Bhutan. Black-tailed
Crake Porzana bicolour and Ruddy-breasted Crake P. fusca
can be found in these wetlands in spring and summer.
Agricultural
Land
Far
fewer species inhabit agricultural land compared to the forest that it
replaced. Most of them are widespread and common. One important
exception is the Black-necked Crane, which feeds partly in fallow
cultivation. Another possible exception is Russet Bush Warbler Bradypterus
seebohmi, which is a skulking species that has been found only
recently in Bhutan although
it has probably been overlooked in the past. Charasteristic species of
agricultural land in the subtropical zone are Spotted Dove Streptopelia
chinensis, Red-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus cafer and Long-tailed Shrike anius
schach. Oriental Turtle Dove S. orientalis, Grey Bushchat Saxicola ferrea and Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler Cettia
fortipes are common in the temperate zone.
Villages,
Towns and Dzongs
The
Common Hoopoe Upupa epops and
Red-billed Chough commonly nest under roofs of dzongs, monastries and
houses in villages and towns, even in Thimphu. Colonies of House Swift
Apus affinis are widespread in villages at lower altitudes. The
House Crow Corvus splendens, Asian Pied Starling Sturnus
contra. Common Myna Acridotheres tristis, and passer sparrows
– House Sparrow Passer domesticus, Eurasian Tree Sparrow P.
montanus and Russet Sparrow P. rutilans – are especially
associated with human habitation.
Restricted-range
Species
On
a world scale Bhutan is recognised as forming the major part of
especially high biological diversity known as the Eastern Himalayan
‘conservation hotspot’. BirdLife International identified
conservation hotspots throughout the world. First, BirdLife analysed
the distribution patterns of birds with restricted ranges, that is
landbird species that have, throughout historical times (i.e. post
1800), had a total global breeding range below 50,000km2
(about the size of Sri Lanka) (stattersfield et al., 1998).
BirdLife analysis showed that restricted-range species tend to occur
in islands or otherwise isolated patches of a particular habitat.
These are known as centres of endemism and are often called Endemic
Bird Areas. The Eastern Himalayas Endemic Bird Area is one of eight
such areas identified in the Indian sub-continent and is important
because of its wet forests. It encompasses southern and eastern Bhutan
and extends into north-eastern India , eastern Nepal, southeastern
Tibet autonomous region, the Chittagong hills in southeastern
Bangladesh, Chin hills in western Myanmar and northeastern Myanmar to
southwestern China.
There
are ten restricted-range species so far recorded in Bhutan, and all
are probably breeding species. These include Chestnut-breasted
Partridge, Blyth’s Tragopan, Wood Dark-rumped Swift Apus
acuticauda, all of which are also internationally threatened. The
other restricted-range species are Ward’s Tragon, Rufous-throated
Wren Babbler, Hoary-throated Barwing, Brown-throated Fulvetta, White-naped
Yuhina, Yellow-vented Warbler and Broadd-billed Warbler. All are
forest species, with the exception of Dark-rumped Swift which inhabits
rocky cliffs and gorges.
Globally
Threatened Species
A
total of 14 species recorded in Bhutan have been identified as
globally threatened by BirdLife International. These include
White-billed Heron, Pallas’s Fish Eagle, Chestnut-breasted
Partridge, Blyth’s Tragopan, Wood Snipe, Dark-ru8mped Swift, Rufous-necked
Hornbill, Grey-crowned Prinia Prinia cinereocapilla, amd
Beautiful Nuthatch, all of which probably breed in Bhutan. The country
is an important wintering ground for another internationally
threatened species, the Bkack-necked Crane. Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila
clanga is a rare passage migrant; Baer’s Pochard Aythya baeri, Imperial Eagle, A. heliaca and Hodgson’s Bushchat Saxicola
insignis are vagrants. The majority of internationally threatened
species inhabit forests. The exceptions includee : Wood Snipe, which
winters in swampy ground in and at forest edges, and breeds in alpine
meadows with scattered bushes and a few streams; Grey-crowned Prinia,
which winters in fallow cultivation and marshes; Greater Spotted Eagle
and Baer’s Pochard, both wetland species; Imperial Eagle, which
frequents open country and wetlands; and Hodgson’s Bushchat, which
usually occurs in tall grass and reeds along riverbeds. In their
earlier work on globally threatened species (Collar et al.,1994),
BirdLife International also listed Ward’s Trogon and Rufous-throated
Wren Babbler, but these species have been dropped from the latest list
as more information has been gathered on the species.
Migration
The
large majority of around 464 species recorded in Bhutan are resident,
although some of these are augmented by winter visitors breeding
further north. Some residents are sedentary throughout the year, while
others undertake irregular movements, either locally or more widely in
the region, depending on food supply. Many Himalayan residents are
altitudinal migrants; the level to which they descend in winter
frequently depends on weather conditions.
About
409 species are summer visitors or partial migrants to Bhutan and
include species of cuckoos, swifts, bee-eaters, Phylloscopus
warblers, flycatchers and drongos. The migration routes of a number of
these summer migrants are poorly understood or unknown, including
those of Dark-sided Flycatcher Muscicapa sibiricia, Ferruginous
Flycatcher .ferruginea and Fork-tailed Swift Apus
pacificus. Many species winter further south in the subcontinent,
including Common Hoopoe Upupa epops, Barn Swalloe Hirundo
rustica and Ashy Drongo Dicrurus
leucophaeus. Other species, such as the White-throated Needletail Hirundapus
caudacutus and Asian Emerald Cuckoo Chrysococcyx maculates,
move southeast, perhaps as far as Malaysia and Indonesia, although
Bhutanese birds may not travel so far. The Lesser Cuckoo Cuculus
poliocephalus winter in Africa.
Around
50 species are known to winter in Bhutan, origination from a wide area
to the north in the Paleartic. These include ducks, waders, birds of
prey, thrushed, finches, and buntings. There is increasing evidence
from elsewhere in the Himalayas to suggest that some birds breeding in
the Palearctic migrate directly across the Himalayas to winter in
southern Asia rather than circumventing the Himalayan chain to enter
south Asia from the west or east of the main range. There are very few
observations of bird migration in Bhutan, and this is an interesting
area for study.
Bird Watching Areas
The
areas listed below are readily accessible, but remember that any
good-quality forest with mature trees are well-developed understorey -
especially sub-tropical forest, warm and cool broadleaved forests,
oak, fir and hemlock forests - is likely to be a good area for
birdwatching.
Forest
along Road from Sengor to Lingmethang
Sengor 3050m) to
Namling (2360m)
Habitat
: Hemlock
forest, cool broadleaved forest.
Best time to visit
: April/May
Birds
: Tragopan, Bar-winged Wren Babbler,
Fire-tailed Myzornis (rare)
Namling (2360m) to Yongkhala (1700m)
Habitat
: Cool
broadleaved/warm broadleaved forest
Best time to visit
: November
– early May
Birds
: Chestnut-breasted
Partridge (rare), Yellow-rumped Honeyguide (rare), Rufous-necked
Hornbill, Ward’s Trogon (rare), Collared Treepie (rare), Lesser
Shortwing, White-gorgeted Flycatcher (rare), Rufous-breasted Bush
Robin, Blue-fronted Robin, Purple Cochoa, Broad-billed Warbler,
Grey-sided Laughingthrush, Slender-billed Scimitar Babbler,
Coral-billed Scimitar
Babbler, Rufous-throated Wren Babbler (rare), Cutia, Golden-breasted
Fulvetta, Yellow-throated Fulvetta, White-naped Yuhina, Greater Rufous-headed
Parrotbill.
Yongkhala (1700m) to Lingmethang
(650m)
Habitat
: Warm
broadleaved forest
Best time to visit
: November
– early May
Birds
: Rufous-bellied
Hawk Eagle (rare), Collared Treepie (rare), Yellow-vented Warbler.
Forest along Road from Narphang la to Samdrup
Jonkhar
Narphang La (1700m) to Deothang
(850m)
Habitat
: Warm
broadleaved and subtropical forest.
Best
time to visit
: November
– early May
Birds
: Rufous-necked
Hornbill, White-gorgeted Flycatcher (rare), Beautiful Nuthach,
Grey-sided Laughingthrush, Yellow-throated Fulvetta, White-tailed
Yuhina, Gold-naped Finch.
Deothang (850m) to Samdrup Jonkhar
(250m)
Habitat
: Subtropical
forest
Best
time to visit
: November
– early May
Birds
: Pale-headedd
Woodpecker (rare), Blue-eared Barbet, Wreathed Hornbill, Ward’s
Trogon (rare), Blyth’s Kingfisher (rare), Violet Cuckoo (rare),
Dark-rumped Swift (rare), Rufous-bellied Eagle (rare) Pied Falconet
(rare), Silver-breasted Broadbill (rare), Rufous-breastedd Bush Robin,
Yellow-vented Warbler, Blue-winged Laughingthrush, Red-faced
Liocichila, Coral-billed Scimitar Babbler, White-naped Yuhina, Greater
Rufous-headed Parrotbill.
Forest
along Road from Rimchu to Tashithang, Mo Chhu Valley North of Punakha
(1700m) (Jigme Dorji National Park)
Habitat
: Warm
broadleaved forest
Best
time to visit
: November
– early May
Birds
: White-bellied
Heron (rare), White-gorgeted Flycatcher (rare), Yellow-vented Warbler.
Mo Chhu valley 5-6km North of
Wangdue Phodrang (C.1300m)
Habitat
: River
Best
time to visit
: November
– early April
Birds
: Variety
of ducks and other water birds
Trek from Tashithang (1700m) to
Laya (3850m) (Jigme Dorji National Park)
Best
time for trek
: April
– early May
Recommended
time :
10
days (returning same way
and including 6 days trekking).
Tashithang (1700m) to Damji
(2430m)
Trekking
time
: 1
day
Habitat
: Cool
broadleaved forest
Birds
: Black-tailed
Crake (Gasa), Grey-sided Laughingthrush, Slender-billed Scimitar
Babbler, Golden-breastedd Fulvetta, Brown Parrotwill.
Gasa (2770m) to Koina (3200m) to
Laya (3850m)
Trekking
time
: 2
days
Habitat
: Cool
broadleaved, mixed broadleaved/coniferous, fir, spruce and juniper
forest.
Birds
: Satyr
Tragopan, Rufous-breasted Bush Robin, Purple Cochoa, Yellowish-bellied
Bush Warbler, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Fulvous Parrotbill, Goldnaped
Finch.
Trek
from Drugyel Dzong (2580m) to Jangothang (4090m) (Jigme Dorji National
Park)
Best
time for trek
: May
- June
Recommended
time :
8
days (returning same way and including 6 days trekking)
Birds
: Good
for alpine-zone species around and above Jangothang; Tibetan Snowcock,
Tibetan Partridge, Ibisbill, Himalayan Griffon, Golden Eagle,
White-throated Dipper, Grandala White-tailed Redstart.
Forest
above Dodena (2575m) below Cheri Monastry on trial towards Shodu,
Thimphu valley (Jigme Dorji National Park)
Trekking
time
: 45
minutes’ taxi ride from Thimphu centre.
Habitat
: Oak
forest
Best
time to visit
: April
- May
Birds
: Spotted
Laughingthrush, Fire-capped Tit, Golden-breasted Fulvetta,
Yellow-bellied Flowerpecker, Maroon-backed Accentor (winter)
Phobjikha valley (3050m)
Trekking
time
: 4
hours drive from Thmphu
Habitat
: marshes
& in crop fields
Best
time to visit
: May-June,
late October to mid April
Birds
: Japanese
Quail and Black-necked Crane
Forests on east side of Dochu La (3115m)
along the pack-horse trail
Habitat
: Fir,
Rhododendron, oak and bamboo forest.
Best
time to visit
: April/May
Birds
: Satry
Tragopan, Rufous-breasted Bush Robin, Slender-billed Scimitar Babbler,
Gold-naped Finch.
Forests by road over Pele La
(3390m)
Habitat
: Fir
Rhododendron and bamboo forest.
Best
time to visit
: April/May
Birds
: Yellowish-bellied
Bush Warbler, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Great Parrotbill, Maroon-backed
Accentor (winter)
Forests by road over Yutong La
(3520m)
Habitat
: Fir,
rhododendron and bamboo forest.
Best
time to visit
: April/May
Birds
: Yellow-bellied
Bush Warbler, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Great Parrotbill, Maroon-backed
Accentor (winter)
Bumtha Valley (2600m)
Habitat
: Fields,
river
Best
time to visit
: March-May,
October-early November.
Birds
: Ibisbill,
Spring and autumn migrants e.g. pipits.
Torsa river at Phuentsholing
(150m)
Habitat
: River
and shingle banks and islands.
Best
time to visit
: November
- April.
Birds
: Good
for passage migrants and wintering waders, wagtails, pipits, also
egrets, Small Pratincole. |