Raja Ampat Reef Fish

Raja Ampat archipelago region has got the highest marine biodiversity in the world. It is a must see destination for visitors who like to see various species of reef fish. When I go to the islands for guiding tourists, I always provide enough time to do snorkeling and freediving. I have got a Fujifilm XQ2 with its waterproof case that allows me to take pictures and videos of reef fish, and other marine creatures that live in coral reef. Sunlight in general can effectively reach 15 to 20 meters below the surface. These are depths where marine life is abundant.

False Clown Anemonefish (Amphiprion ocellaris) in coral reef of Waigeo island
Raja Ampat archipelago

Based on my personal observations of traveling and doing scuba diving or snorkeling in eastern and southern areas of Waigeo island especialy in Mamiaef, Waim, Saporkren, Kabui bay, Kri, Yenbuba Strait, Mansuar, Arborek, Piaynemo, abundant fish can be seen in coral reefs that are less exposed to human activities or in areas where there is current. Kofiau is another important group of islands where the wealth of marine biodiversity is well preserved. In Misool, marine protected areas are the place where reef fish thrive.

Latticed Butterflyfish (Chaetodon rafflesi) and Lemon Damsel (Pomacentrus moluccensis)

Small-toothed Whiptail in Raja Ampat

Dolphins, whales, Manta, Giant Trevally can be seen in area along the waters of Waigeo, Dampier Strait, near Arborek and between Mansuar and Gam islands. Tasseled Wobbegong and Black Tip Shark thrive in Yenbuba strait and most of the fore reef sites of most of Raja Ampat islands. For much smaller fish such as Striped Surgeonfish, Damselfish, Pink Anemonefish, Orange skunk Anemonefish, Butterflyfish, Blenny, Angelfish, Box Fish, Knifefish and Moorish Idol, they can be seen in most of the coral reef of the archipelago.

Moorish Idol and Butterflyfish in coral reef of Waigeo island

Birdwatching and Snorkeling

I spent 5 days/ 4 nights doing birdwatching and snorkeling in Raja Ampat recently. I guided Michael - a tourist from the United States. It was a nice trip because we were able to see Red Bird of Paradise, Wilson's Bird of Paradise, Blyth's Hornbill, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Coconut Lorikeet, Red-cheeked Parrot, Eclectus Parrot, Palm Cockatoo, Common Paradise Kingfisher, Beach Kingfisher, Dusky Scrubfowl, Mimic Meliphaga, Claret-breasted Fruit Dove, Pied Imperial Pigeon, Pinon Imperial Pigeon, Spice Imperial Pigeon, Hooded Butcherbird, Moustached Tree Swift, Pacific Swallow, White-breasted Woodswallow, Olive-backed Sunbird (now also called Sahul Sunbird), Tern, Lesser Frigatebird, Torresian Crow, Brahminy Kite, White-bellied Sea Eagle, Eastern Osprey, and etc.

Wilson's Bird of Paradise (Cicinnurus respublica)

I brought a 20-60×60 spotting scope, a good pair of binoculars, and a Canon 200D with Tamron 150-600mm telephoto lens. For snorkeling and freediving, I only brought a mask and a snorkel with my underwater camera. I didn't bring my swim fins to minimize the weight of my travel bag. This equipment greatly enhanced our birding experience. I also was able to take good photos both above and under water.

If you are interested in taking snorkeling and birding tour in Raja Ampat with me as your guide, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by whatsapp to: +6281332245180.

Amazon online store has got some good books about Raja Ampat. Some of them include:

• Diving Indonesia's Raja Ampat by Burt Jones and Maurine Shimlock
• Diving & Snorkeling Guide to Raja Ampat and Northeast Indonesia by Tim Rock and Simon Pridmore.

Birds in Waigeo island of Raja Ampat

Yesterday I did some birding walk again at the southern area of Waigeo. The weather was nice towards the sunset time. Birds were flying in the air and hopping in the branches of trees. I saw one male Eclectus Parrot landing on the branch of a tree near me. It was close enough for my telephoto camera.

Eclectus Parrot

I made a few shots of him and then gave attention to Willie Wagtail that was sitting on a small twig of a shrub plant. He was quite far from me. Fortunately, my camera could still reach him. Souther Waigeo was a great site for tourists who like birdwatching. During my several days of birdwalk around the beach, I was able to take pictures of Palm Cockatoo, Sulphur Crested Cockatoo, Mimic Honeyeater, Lesser-crested Tern, Red Bird of Paradise, Brahminy Kite, White-breasted Wood Swallow, Pinon Imperial Pigeon, Black Sunbird, Rufous-bellied Kookaburra, Spangled Drongo
I also saw Beach Kingfisher but was not able to shoot it by my camera. I used Canon 200D with Tamron 150-600 mm.

Palm Cockatoo

In addition to birding, I also enjoyed snorkeling at the beach. I saw a lot of species of fish and coral reef. There were wobbegong, butterflyfish, stonefish, Striped Surgeonfish, anemonefish, and other marine creatures like burrowing clam, christmas tree worm and crab.

Willie Wagtail

Waigeo is a nice destination for visitors who want to enjoy snorkeling, birding, sightseeing.

Mimic Honeyeater

If you are interested in traveling to Indonesia for visiting Raja Ampat, and want me to organize your tour, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by whatsapp to: +6281332245180.

Brahminy Kite

Birdwatching is an interesting activity which I offer to tourists when I organize an adventure tour to Raja Ampat. To enhance the birding experience, I bring my binoculars - Visionking 10×42 mm and spotting scope - Kinglux 20-60×60. Waigeo, and Gam islands are two important sites for birdwatching. There are a lot of species of coastal birds that visitors can watch. One of them is Brahminy Kite.

Brahminy Kite

From my recent trip to the archipelago, I saw the bird in the southern region of Waigeo island. It was sitting on the branch of a big tree around 40 meters away from me. I was at Warduwer beach at that time. Slowly I walked towards the bird. Because the bird had known my presence, I decided to stop walking.
I turned on my camera and carefully aimed it at the bird. The weather was hot that day. The sun was above my head and its light made the surrounding trees looked brighter. I pressed the shutter button once. Seconds later, the bird flew away. In the previous day, I saw a couple Brahminy Kite in north-east region of Waisai town. I also made a picture of them.

Brahminy Kite

Actually, there were a lot of birds that I saw during the trip such as White-bellied Sea Eagle, Torresian Crow, Singing Starling, Moluccan Starling, Lesser-crested Tern, Eclectus Parrot, Rufous-bellied Kookaburra, Spangled Drongo, Red-cheeked Parrot, Sulphur-crested Cockatoo, Puff-backed Meliphaga, Palm Cockatoo, Spice Imperial Pigeon, Stephan's Emerald Dove, Beach Kingfisher, and a lot more.
Raja Ampat is beautiful both above and underwater. I and the visitors whom I guided enjoyed snorkeling in several places of the regency. I brought Nikon W300. It was an underwater camera. So, I had the opportunity of taking pictures of coral reef and tropical fish that I saw during our snorkeling sessions. It was a nice adventure. They wanted to visit Raja Ampat again in the future.

Coral Reef and Fish in Raja Ampat

If you are interested in taking an adventure tour to Raja Ampat and want me to organize your tour, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or by whatsapp to: +6281332245180.
Also read:
Raja Ampat Birds
Birding and Snorkeling in Raja Ampat Karst

Wounded Moustached Tree Swift

When I went birding in the jungle of Klasow valley early this year with two birdwatchers from birdventures.com, I had an opportunity to see a Moustached Tree Swift closely. A boy from the jungle village, picked it up on the ground after watching it falling from the air. He told us that this bird was fighting against another tree swift and got hit on his eye.

Moustached Tree Swift

Simon Thomson, one of the birdwatchers, held the bird and put it on his Swarovski Optiks HD-ATS-80 HD Spotting Scope with 20x60 Eyepiece (Angled, 80mm) for closer examination. Because of the fighting, the bird suffered severe injury on his eyes. Free fall to the ground also worsened his condition.
I asked the boy what food he had given to the bird to help him survive. He answered, "sweet tea." We were so surprised to hear that. Later, Simon explained that the bird should be given insects such as grasshopper. There were around fifteen children who were around us.
After that they boy returned to his house which was not far from our basecamp. The next two days when I returned again to the valley with a Dutch tourist, they children told me that the bird did not survive. I was sad to hear that but highly appreciated the boy's effort in helping the bird.
Klasow valley is a birding site in Sorong regency of West Papua. The jungle village near Klabolo stream where I stayed was a new human settlement in the jungle. The villagers were cutting trees, clearing the lands to open vegetable gardens and build their houses. The valley is also the natural habitat of abundant butterflies, wallaby, and tropical plants.
I introduce ecotourism in the valley to curb illegal logging and to stop the destruction of rainforest. Visitors need to walk for around one and a half hour to reach the jungle village. To travel to the valley, every visitor needs a good backpack that can carry some clothes, and photographic equipment.
Birdwatchers and nature lovers who want to see tropical rainforest or watch birds in West Papua can contact me (Charles Roring) by email to peace4wp@gmail.com.