Birding activity No.16 at Hlawga wildlife park on 29th February 2020.
Birding in Yangon, Hlawga park covers 1,650 acres of land including the Lake, which is a home for over 70 kinds of herbivorous animals and about 183 species of birds. One can be happy watching the birds as well as the beauty of the natural park. Flocks of migratory birds frequently visit the park. It is a nice place for naturalists, botanists and bird-watchers. Visitors can also enjoy elephant rides, boating and fishing in the park.
Hlawga park is just about 45 minutes drive from the downtown area. It is a protected area which was established in 1982.
The park provides the most recommended species Pale-eyed Bulbul Pycnonotus davisoni endemic to lowland forests of southern Myanmar. It can be found in secondary growth forests, scrub, open ares, edges and clearings in broadleaf evergreen and mixed deciduous forests.
On that day, there were 12 local bird watchers. We gathered in front of the Park ticket selling centre at 7:00 am. Morning hours were perfect at the western part of the park. First our records of a large group of Asian Openbill flying out of a distance. Four of Pale-eyed Bulbuls were seen in the field what we normally found outside of the Hlawga park. It was a really fantastic view of the photographer.
A total of about 30 individuals were observed. Species like Black-headed Bulbul, Black-crested Bulbul, Red-vented Bulbul, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Ayeyarwady Bulbul and Pale-eyed Bulbul, and Racket-tailed Treepie, Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Olive-backed Sunbird, Rosy Minivet and White-throated Kingfisher.
We returned to the small restaurant to have breakfast after a couple of birding hours. Our group enjoyed various kinds of tasty Myanmar traditional salad and green tea. After that, we went into the MIniZoo. Observation in the Mini Zoo was made for one hour.
Later each buys an entrance ticket. We entered into the park with the other local visitors by Buggy. We left at the Pacinia 1 site. The site is our second priority bird watching site because such nice species Osprey and Oriental Darter could be seen easily at the site.
We had a tasty lunch at lake view restaurant with a nice view of the two Spot-billed Pelicans and three Bronze-winged Jacanas. Little Cormorant and Oriental Darter were diving in the lake. Osprey which was flying over the lake and a number of Black-crowned Night Herons in the bushes.
Later, we came out form the park with the other visitors by buggy. The 40 species had been recorded in the areas of Hlawga that are getting dry for the summer season of Myanmar.
