Bako: sounds of the seaside oasis
We made a trip to visit Bako National Park, eager to experience this well kept coastal rainforest and nature preserve, nestled between high sandstone mesas and the sea.
This park is a priceless sanctuary for biodiversity. Dozens of exciting species can be met and appreciated within short distances, with abundant mutual respect between humans and animals contributing deeply to an intimate vibe of an unspoilt paradise.
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While we collected plenty of amazing photographs during these two short days, I also brought along some economical microphones to record a few bird sounds.
Advancements in bird detection from audio add to the fun, and I was able to use BirdNet to assign some species to my tracks.
While the default BirdNet models (v2025-03-05) missed assignments for songs, it made calls for more birds here than the Merlin app, even with a good mic attached. [While the projects are intertwined, it seems the latest BirdNet yields more results for Southeast Asia.]
Below are a few tracks I found interesting, annotated by BirdNet predictions.
White-rumped shama
Of particular interest was the white-rumped shama. The popularity of its elaborate song may lead to endangerment, as explained by our local guide and biologist Sabariman.
There are just 43 sightings in Sarawak reported for this bird on iNaturalist, compared to 3,638 in Taiwan and 2,302 in Hawaii, both locations in which the species is considered ‘introduced.’
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I trust this particularly chatty bird is happy with the arrangements in this protected home.
Sunbirds
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The cheep cheeps of beautiful sunbirds twinkled over the forest rustling and the seaside lapping gently nearby.
Barbets, coucals, and boobooks?
I have also become fond of hearing the throaty ‘hu hu hu’ sounds echoing through the forest, such as what BirdNet here identified as barbets, coucals and boobooks:
Babblers, bulbuls, tailorbirds, kingfishers, and more
There were of course plenty more birds in the park, as my ~50 audio tracks can attest!
Among the BirdNet calls from casual recordings over a couple days here were:
Here are a couple more tracks of species frequently heard here, within a relatively pristine soundscape:
Apologies to the babblers and bulbuls, for now!