Disappointingly the Ta Nung Valley is closed to birders this Spring whilst a resort is being built with the associated habitat destruction that this will bring. Thang therefore recommended that we visited Cong Troi as an alternative. Our driver knew the location and it was around a 40 minute drive from Dalat. The site was basically a new road with very little traffic following a ridge-top flanked on one side by pine forest and the other by broad-leaved forest. There were also some recently cleared areas where coffee had been planted. We did most of our birding from along the road following a few side trails into the forest. The morning was cool and the activity was good. Our driver parked at the sign for the Bidoup NP and we walked the road back to the large ranger station currently under construction. Vietnamese Crossbill was the first species seen and whilst currently considered a form of Common Crossbill, it was something that I was very keen to see and they didn't disappoint. Kloss's Leaf Warblers were also quickly seen and they proved common here. Just below the Ranger's Station we heard a Vietnamese Cutia calling and a pair were soon located in the tops of a pine being the species I most-wanted to see today. On returning, the Crossbills were drinking and had been joined by a male Vietnamese Greenfinch with a good few more then seen beyond the pass. We then heard a Grey-crowned Crocias calling at the forest edge behind a new coffee plantation near the pass, but despite a great deal of time and effort, we failed to see it. We decided to walk to the ranger's station again and as we did so we heard the calls of Collared Laughingthrushes that tempted us to descend steep hillsides in their pursuit but they fell silent before we had found them leaving a tiring climb back up to the road. Despite the couple of 'near-misses' a very enjoyable site to be birding.
Oriental Darter 1 enroute from DalatBlack Eagle 1
Mountain Imperial-Pigeon 2
Grey Nightjar h
Large-tailed Nightjar h
Swallow 3
Large Cuckooshrike 2
Ashy Bulbul 2
Ashy Drongo 2
Bronzed Drongo 1
Maroon Oriole 1
Green-backed Tit 6
Chestnut-vented Nuthatch 8
Rufous-capped Babbler 1
VIETNAMESE CUTIA 2 pair
Dalat Shrike-Babbler 1 female
Mountain Fulvetta 1
GREY-CROWNED CROCIAS h
White-bellied Erpornis 1
Grey Bushchat 2
KLOSS'S LEAF-WARBLER 10
Mugimaki Flycatcher 5
Little Pied Flycatcher 2
Grey-headed Flycatcher 1
White-throated Fantail 2
Grey Wagtail 2
Black-collared Starling 2
Common Myna 20
VIETNAMESE GREENFINCH 8
'Vietnamese' Crossbill 30
Views at Cong Troi
Male 'Vietnamese' Crossbill
Immature male 'Vietnamese' Crossbill at Cong Troi
Juvenile 'Vietnamese' Crossbill at Cong Troi
Kloss's Leaf-Warbler at Cong Troi
