Biodiversity Birding in Raja Ampat

Biodiversity Birding in Raja Ampat

Birding in Raja Ampat with our Biodiversity Eco Resort Team

Previous bird-rewarding visits convinced to spend our holiday again in Raja Ampat. Raja Ampat Biodiversity Resort on Gam Island is the place for all who enjoy birding and diving. The beautiful coral reefs and the good birding opportunities looked promising. The nearby island of Waigeo was also interesting to us. At the end, we were everything but disappointed. Both diving and birding in Raja Ampat exceeded our expectations.

You can reach the Biodiversity Resort by ferry from Sorong to Waisai on Waigeo. There you can find a boat to Gam Island. The boat trips offer good chances for birding in Raja Ampat. On the way, we saw Matsudaira’s Stormpetrel Pomarine Skua and Terns. Tree trunks in the water are perfect for terns. They use them as transport between the islands. Reaching the resort we got a warm welcome from the manager Rey and his friendly staff who felt as friends. They informed us about the dive sites, excursions and birdwatching sites. Gam has several jungle tracks which are good for low and middle elevation bird species.

What to expect from birding in Raja Ampat?

The first day we spotted a thermal flock of birds while birding in Raja Ampat. More precisely, 2 White-bellied Sea-eagles (one adult and one immature), 1 Gurney’s Eagle, 1 Osprey and more than 7 Lesser Frigatebirds. The jetty of the resort is a good place for observing Sulfur-crested Coke, Papuan Hornbills and Brahmany Kites.

There are a lot of birds at the beach and the paths between the cottages. Noisy Helmeted Friarbirds, shining metallic Starlings, alarming sacred Kingfishers, bold Willy Wagtails and spiderhunting Mimic Meliphaga’s are the most common birds. By early morning walks, we spotted also Pink-spotted, Wompoo and Superb Fruitdove.The forest openings at the hillside are a perfect place for Shining Flycatcher, Northern Fantail and Hooded Butcherbird. But also, for starbirds like Glossy Manucode and Common Paradise Kingfisher.

One morning an un-expected Great Cuckoo-dove was here. Between the cottages at Papuan Frogmouth kept us out of our sleep. We also saw Brown-headed crow for two times, close to the dining area.

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Good places for Birding in Raja Ampat

Close the resort area there were two paths that lead into the jungle. One followed the coastline and ended in the little village Yenbeser. The other one leads into the hills and ends at the display-site of the Red Bird of Paradise. The best time to walk on these paths is definitely early in the morning. But also mid-day and afternoon walks can be productive.

On the coastal path all Pigeons seemed to congregate. Brown Cuckoo-dove, Stephen’s Emerald Dove and Moluccan Fruit-dove were present. In the palm treetops, we spotted Sunbirds and Lories. Also loud Dollarbirds and a Brush Cuckoo were there. The Dollarbirds attacked to Collared Sparrowhawk, a very good species! When we reached the beach we watched a beautiful scene. Several Moustached Treeswifts bullied to perching Osprey (how good can it get).

The jungle path to the Red Bird of Paradise site is good if you want to encounter a wide variety of birds. We saw Frilled Monarchs, 2 Myzomela species, Long-billed Honeyeater, Raja Ampat and Rusty Pitohui, Spot-winged Monarch and Thicket-fantails while birding in Raja Ampat Also, Flowerpeckers, Sunbirds and a Hanging Parrot. To our surprise Fruitdoves, Drongo’s and a female Red Bird of Paradise (!) Were active in the flock. We also spotted Nicobar Pigeon.

Red Bird Location and Wilson’s Site

The Red Bird of Paradise and Wilson’s Bird of Paradise are both close by the Biodiversity Resort. A visit to the Red Bird location is best by boat and in the early morning. We saw Beach Stonecurlew, Great-billed Heron, Dwarf Fruitdove (!) And Largetailed Nightjar. The Wilson’s site is on Waigeo was extra worth visiting.

After some tracking in the dark, we observed this jewel of the forest. It cleaned the display site for more than one hour and we felt like David Attenborough. Close to the hide of the Wilson’s Bird of Paradise several Red Bird of Paradise were active. Birding in Raja Ampat is a Wonderful opportunity for all the bird lovers.

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In our two weeks visit, we have spotted over 100 bird species on Gam (bird list below). We saw a lot of birds and experienced good dining options. Nice cottages and the worlds best diving sites were also part of our wonderful trip. So, if you want to go birding in Raja Ampat, this is definitely a place for you.

There is only one problem: You want to go back, again and again.

With kind regards,

Jurgen van der Meer

Take a look at our section Birdwatching and Jungle Treks , If you want to know more About birding in Raja Ampat.

Birdlist Raja Ampat:
  1. Dusky Scrubfowl
  2. Matsudaira’s Stormpetrel
  3. Pomarine Skua
  4. Wedge-tailed Shearwater (pale morph / dark morph)
  5. Lesser Frigatebird
  6. Sooty Tern
  7. Bridled Tern
  8. Brown Noddy
  9. Little Tern
  10. Black-naped Tern
  11. Lesser Crested Tern
  12. Beach Stonecurlew
  13. Striated Heron
  14. Little Egret
  15. Intermediate Egret
  16. Eastern Great Egret
  17. Eastern Reef Egret
  18. Great-billed Heron
  19. Brahmany Kite
  20. Eastern Osprey
  21. White-bellied Sea-eagle
  22. Gurney’s Eagle
  23. Collared Sparrowhawk
  24. Long-tailed Buzzard
  25. Brown Cuckoo-dove
  26. Great Cuckoo-dove
  27. Stephen’s Emerald Dove
  28. Wompoo Fruit-dove
  29. Pink-spotted Fruitdove
  30. Superb Fruitdove
  31. Beautiful Fruit-dove
  32. Dwarf Fruit-dove
  33. Claret-breasted Fruit-dove
  34. Moluccan Fruit-dove
  35. Spice Imperial Pigeon
  36. Nicobar Pigeon
  37. White-throated Pigeon
  38. Pinon’s Imperial Pigeon
  39. Eclectus Parrot
  40. Palm Cockatoo
  41. Sulfur-crested Cockatoo
  42. Red-flanked Lorikeet
  43. Black-capped Lory
  44. Violet-necked Lory
  45. Red-cheeked Parrot
  46. Rainbow Lorikeet
  47. Great-billed Parrot
  48. Orange-fronted Hanging Parrot
  49. Blyth’s Hornbill
  50. Brush Cuckoo
  51. Papuan Frogmouth
  52. Large-tailed Nightjar
  53. Glossy Swiftlet
  54. Moustached Treeswift
  55. Uniform Swiftlet
  56. Tree Martin
  57. Pacific Swallow
  58. Common Paradise-kingfisher
  59. Oriental Dollarbird
  60. Rainbow Bee-eater
  61. Rufous-bellied Kookaburra
  62. Beach Kingfisher
  63. Collared Kingfisher
  64. Sacred Kingfisher
  65. Papuan Dwarf Kingfisher
  66. Rusty Mouse-warbler
  67. Ruby-throated Myzomela
  68. Papuan black Myzomela
  69. Long-billed Honey-eater
  70. Varied Honeyeater
  71. Helmeted Friarbird
  72. Mimic Meliphaga
  73. Puff-backed Blaze
  74. Mountain Lives
  75. Tropical Scrubwren
  76. Fairy Gerygone
  77. Black Sunbird
  78. Olive-backed Sunbird
  79. Pygmy Longbill
  80. Olive-crowned Flowerpecker
  81. White-breasted Woodswallow
  82. Hooded Butcherbird
  83. Black-browed Triller
  84. Golden Cuckooshrike
  85. White-bellied Cuckooshrike
  86. Black Cicadabird
  87. Little Shrikethrush
  88. Raja Ampat Pitohui
  89. Rusty Pitohui
  90. Papuan Babbler
  91. Shining Flycatcher
  92. Frilled Monarch
  93. Golden Monarch
  94. Spot-winged Monarch
  95. Northern Fantail
  96. Willie Wagtail
  97. White-bellied Thicket-fantail
  98. Sooty Thicket-fantail
  99. Glossy Manucode (mature / immature)
  100. Brown-headed Crow
  101. Torresian Crow
  102. Wilson’s bird of paradise (male)
  103. Red Bird of Paradise (female)
  104. Black-sided Robin
  105. Olive Flycatcher
  106. Spangled Drongo
  107. Moluccan Starling
  108. Metallic Starling
  109. Brown Oriole
  110. Eurasian Tree Sparrow
  111. House Sparrow
  • Italic Birds = seen in the Sorong area or on the pelagic trip to Gam
  • Bold birds = highlights of the trip
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Raja Ampat Biodiversity Eco Resort is a place to connect with nature in one of the best diving and snorkeling destinations in the world!

Apart from the marine life that you can enjoy diving or snorkeling , Raja Ampat offers many other activities that will allow you to explore this spectacular part of the planet; kayaks, cultural visits to the villages, excursions in the jungle, visits to the small islands, enjoy the fauna and birds of the area (many of them endemic) …

In this blog we will share some of our adventures with you.

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