SANDAKAN: Tourism Malaysia Sabah has collaborated with The Sandakan Borneo Bird Club to introduce the latest birdwatching guide for Sabah in conjunction with the upcoming Borneo Bird Festival 2022, which will take place at the Rainforest Discovery Centre (RDC) in Sepilok, Sandakan, this October.
This fun birdwatching guide highlights all the popular birding locations around Sabah, including the world heritage site Kinabalu Park, Kinabatangan Floodplains, Danum Valley, Tabin and Sepilok forests. It also provides information about each of the sites, the birds that can be seen there, trails, accommodations and how to get there.
Sabah is undoubtedly one of the top birding destinations in Malaysia, and over the years, the tourism board and local community have developed an excellent infrastructure that caters to nature lovers, birders and bird photographers.
The highlight for many birdwatching enthusiasts is none other than the 66 endemic species found only on the Borneo island, such as Bornean Bristlehead, Blue-Headed Pitta, Bornean Ground-Cuckoo, Whitehead’s Trogon, Whitehead’s Spiderhunter, and Crimson-Headed Wood-Partridge.
Tourism Malaysia Sabah Director, Ms Ednie Rahma Ab Rahim says, “The development of this Fun Map is timely as this will be useful for bird enthusiasts taking part in the festival to refer to. The birding segment is very niche but it yields high tourism revenues which will further boost the economy of Sabah.”
With this new, vibrant birdwatching guide, birders and nature lovers can easily plan which areas they would like to visit. This initiative was made possible by members of the Sandakan Borneo Bird Club (SBBC), Tourism Malaysia Sabah and written by a local Sabahan birdwatcher – Mr Alexander John.
