ZECO TRAVEL TALK

This post was written by Zegrahm expedition field staff member, Pepper Trail.

The day started with a scout to the small island of Lehaga, located off the northern tip of Sulawesi in the Gangga Island group. It was the firm belief of our expedition leader, Mike Messick, that this is pronounced “Ganja,” and that we needed to explore this region further. As it turned out, we spent a very mellow morning on Lehaga, where we met a most friendly and hospitable Indonesian host named Heri who oriented us to the best snorkeling spots and led a walk across the island. The nature walkers were treated to the acrobatic chasing and incessant squabbling of several groups of collared kingfishers, as well as views of two species of sunbirds and the Sulawesi endemic slender-billed crow. The snorkelers had a fine time exploring the reef and the powdery sand beaches of Lehaga, and the divers, led by Thomas’s unerring instincts, found a spectacular coral garden in a sandy flat that yielded ribbon eels, an eagle ray, and several species of mantis shrimp.

In the afternoon, we docked alongside at the busy port town of Bitung. One group set off for Tangkoko National Park to undertake the “Trek to the Tarsiers.” These tiny prosimians, with huge eyes and delicate long fingers, are active at night, and spend the day hiding in the complex niches and cavities of strangler fig trees. The outstanding Tangkoko park naturalists have discovered several of these trees, and guide visitors there. The only problem is: the tarsiers reveal themselves only at dusk, and to reach the trees at the right moment, we needed to hike a couple of miles through the rainforest in the heat of the afternoon, and then stumble back in the fading light of evening. And, of course, all without knowing whether the tarsiers would decide to cooperate on this particular day.

It all worked out perfectly. We had time for spectacular views of the Sulawesi black macaque—an impressive monkey whose black coloration and lack of a tail give it an ape-like look—as well as the rather less prepossessing marsupial called the cuscus, which combines the speed of a sloth with the appearance of a termite nest that has seen better days. We were also treated to extraordinary views of several of Sulawesi’s endemic birds, including the beautiful green-backed and lilac-eared kingfishers.

As we approached the tarsier area, our group divided and headed for two different trees. Both groups arrived just the light in the forest began to fade. Immediately, success! We all spotted the tarsiers, who were nestled in their niches, looking gravely at these sweaty, noisy, and wildly enthusiastic visitors. One tree contained at last four tarsiers, and the other at least five. After half an hour of observations and many, many photographs, we made our way out of the forest, to find that the local guides were waiting for us with a band, beer, and tuna sate with peanut sauce. All in all, it was an absolutely unforgettable day.

View a photo gallery of the White-necked, Vanuatu, Beck’s petrels and New Zealand Storm-Petrel!

The recent Zegrahm Expeditions New Zealand to New Guinea program provided a cornucopia of rare and little known seabird species. It all began with wonderful sightings and photographic opportunities of the recently rediscovered New Zealand Storm-petrel and ended with a Beck’s Petrel, the fifth of the voyage, as the expedition vessel, the M.V. Clipper Odyssey approached the Laughlan Islands in Papua New Guinea. Along the way there were also such species as Heinroth’s and Tropical shearwaters, Collared, Black-winged, Tahiti and White-necked Petrels.

The most significant sightings and photographs, however, were of Vanuatu Petrels, a species that has not been seen at sea for over 80 years and never before photographed over the ocean. Previously known only from seven museum skins, this rare and virtually unknown seabird has now only been seen twice, since it was originally collected in January of 1927. The Zegrahm team, led by seabird expert Peter Harrison, observed this rare species in the northern Vanuatu Islands just 60 miles from where the original type specimen was collected by Rollo Beck during the Whitney South Seas Expedition. Read more

Today we steamed into the beautiful harbor of Ternate. Surrounded by volcanoes, it was an impressive sight. Ternate was an important port for the early spice trade, known for its cloves and nutmeg. It was our first dry landing since we embarked in Port Moresby. We were met by a convoy of the “best transport available.” It was like a day at the races watching 21 cars try to line up in order! We departed for the Sultan’s palace under police escort. The locales excitedly waved as we drove through the streets. Once at the palace we were welcomed by the prime minister, as the Sultan was in Jakarta. We gathered in a lovely pavilion and under Venetian chandeliers we were entertained with traditional dances. The dancers and costumes were beautiful.

Complete with sirens, the convoy moved on to the public market. The variety of goods and intense colors were fantastic. We wondered through the produce, with chilies and fruits everywhere. The aisle led us to the fish market—baskets piled high with sardines, dried fish on racks and whole fish in a variety of sizes. Conrad tried to convince some of us that the snake fruit was the best…not so sure about his taste! Our next stop was the old Portuguese fort. Set up on the hillside, the fort offered spectacular views of the harbor and surrounding volcanoes. Our convoy wound its way back to the Clipper Odyssey and deposited us at the gangway. Ternate had given us a fantastic afternoon experience.

In perfect Zegrahm style, we combined four expedition days in to one. The birders left when the moon was still full and bright, in search for the red bird of paradise. Jonathan was hopeful they’d see one or two red “bops” fly overhead. It wasn’t so…they saw 6 males and many females—truly beyond expectations!

The rest of the group visited the village of Yanwapnor. Some went in search of a lost orchid, which had been rediscovered in the village, while others strolled down the well swept lanes. The pride of the villagers showed in this beautiful town. We all met at the elementary school where the children were waiting to welcome us with songs. Read more

Our entrance in to the Asmat region began slowly. The ship carefully made her way towards Flamingo Bay just as the tide was beginning to rise. The captain of the Clipper Odyssey did an amazing job crossing the mud bar in to the mouth of the river at low tide—sometimes at depths less than seven feet. All the while, making it look easy. Little did we know that time was spinning backwards and we were entering another world. Read more

G’day. I have enjoyed the extreme good fortune to live on the shores adjacent to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (GBR) for a little over 15 years. I stopped counting the number of dives I’ve made on this World Heritage listed biological marvel, when the number reached into the thousands. When you’ve been this lucky, it’s easy to forget what a privilege it is to access and utilize the individual reefs of it’s make up. So when one gets the opportunity to visit the less accessible outliers it is indeed a rare treat. Read more

Leslie Kim is a representative from Stanford Travel/Study, one of our travel partners, and kindly offered to write a blog post about our time in Santa Ana Island.

We finally awoke to sunshine and blue skies in this idyllic pearl of the Solomon Islands. As occurred in Utupua, each Zodiac that arrived at the beach landing was greeted by a fierce “welcoming committee” composed of local men dressed in warrior costumes and brandishing spears and machetes (although today’s adult warriors were not nearly as cute as the children at Utupua). A highlight of the day was certainly watching the beautifully dressed local men and women perform their traditional dances. While the people of Owa Raha are Melanesian, their dress and many of their customs and even language have Polynesian origins. Read more

As we crossed the surf line in our Zodiacs on the morning of February 10 at Tikopia, the exceptional nature of the place was immediately apparent. One of the most isolated islands on this itinerary, this Polynesian outlier in Melanesia, is the only location on this trip where the islanders have originated in Polynesia. Only a few huts were visible through the palm trees as we approached in our Zodiacs. A light rain feel during our landing on the reef flat and the clouds, which hung over the top of the mountain behind the beach, gave the island an almost ethereal quality. Read more