New Caledonia

22 January 2019 – 27 January 2019

Valentin Moser

I visited New Caledonia from the 22-28 of January 2019, allowing 5 days of birding and snorkelling.  
Kagu is the main attraction of this French overseas territory, as it is the only member of its family Rhynochetidae and truly a unique bird! It is quite straightforward in the Blue River National Park. The rest of the endemics are usually fairly easy too: A day in the Blue River National Park (possibly with bird guide Isabelle to greatly increase chances of Crow Honeyeater) and a visit to the grassland near Bourail for Thicketbird (4-5 hours away) can be enough to see all Grand Terres endemics. To see all endemics of New Caledonia, Lifou Island and Ouvéa have to be visited too!
I missed Crow Honeyeater, New Caledonian Parrot and it took me a long time to find the Goshawk. My species list misses a few of the more common bird species.

Visited Sites

General Travelling Information

Streets and infrastructure, at least between the main birding sites, are on a European level. There is some speeding, but driving is generally safe. Noumea is difficult to navigate, otherwise, navigation is quite straightforward. A car is necessary to visit all the main birding sites. English is not spoken everywhere, not even in touristy areas and a basic knowledge of French is very useful.

There are nice reefs that I found very rewarding to snorkel: Duck Island (take the taxi boat from Plage de L'Anse Vata at -22.302892, 166.443348) is overrun, especially when there are multiple cruise ships in the harbour, but has very nice corals. From Poé Beach one can rent a Kayak, paddle about 45 min to a platform and snorkel along the Barrier Reef: Big fish everywhere, a very nice place. Also reachable by Glass Bottom Boat, but then time to snorkel is limited. Nearby is a beach with vulnerable Loggerhead turtles nesting from December to January with tours run.

Someone else in the Youth hostel took a dive trip from Noumea and reported multiple seabirds including White Tern, as well as different shark species and other marine treats.

Recommended Literature

There are so few (land) bird species in New Caledonia that visiting without a physical book is certainly possible, although a collection of songs and calls is very useful. Possibly difficult species are the cuckoo-shrikes, the parrots, swiftlets, as well as White-Eye/Silvereye. Some endemic birds like Large/Small Lifou White Eye and Ouvéa Parrot, as well as restricted-range species Red-bellied Fruit Dove and Cardinal Myzomela are usually not found on Grand Terre (the main island with Kagu).

Acknowledgements

As always, an excellent trip report by Rob Gordijn & Helen Rijkes: 

Mount Koghi

The winding road up to the Auberge du Mont Koghi is already good for birding. At the Auberge, there is parking and a hut to collect an entrance fee to the area with the main attraction waterfall (cascade), although in the early morning nobody is in the hut. Soon the path is splitting (the place where I had the Goshawk): Left for the waterfall with a small, sometimes challenging path and difficult birding, to the right the path is slightly bigger and the birding a bit easier.

Blue River NP

French: Le Parc Provincial de la Rivière Bleue. Closed on Monday, open from 7 to 17 o'clock, no admission after 14 o'clock. The area around the entrance gate can be interesting. Drive to the visitor centre to reserve bus (attention: In busy times, the bus can be booked out!) and pay admission, from there drive your own vehicle to bridge at -22.130522, 166.702954. Cross, and on the other side, you meet the bus. I asked to be let out at the Chemin de cagou (where I had a Kagu). From there, interesting habitat is all along the main road and all endemics are possible on this stretch. Grand Kaori (-22.096385, 166.677928) is another excellent area for Kagu.

Target species

  • Kagu Rhynochetos jubatus

    easiest here

  • Crow Honeyeater Gymnomyza aubryana

    the only realistic site of this critically endangered bird

Local guides

Isabelle from caledoniabirds.com

Parc des Grandes Fougères

Beware of opening times. Trail map available online. On advice from park stuff, I birded the pink trail, it was quite good. I then followed the orange trail, where I surprised a shy Kagu on the trail, just before it joins the big road again.

How to get there

Entrance gate: -21.621220, 165.767680

Facilities & accommodation

Possibility to sleep in very birdy and nice "Le Refuge de Farino" close by. 

Pepe's Thicketbird Site

Follow the road from Bourail to -21.448306, 165.515194, where you can park the car on the left. There is a track opposite that was slightly overgrown when I was there. Good habitat starts soon and I flushed a Thicketbird at -21.445663, 165.517791, the second time I walked the trail in the midday heat.

How to get there

Take the road from Bourail and park at -21.448306, 165.515194

Species List

Order: systematic | alphabetic | highlights first
Published: 04 March 2019
Last updated: 04 March 2019
New Caledonia - Orniverse