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Paul Dukes travelled on our 'Sri Lanka - Wildlife and History' holiday and submitted this entry to our writing competition.
Asian Elephant, Yala NP by David Allison
Sri Lanka - Wildlife & History tour, February 2014
After enduring one of the wettest and windiest winters ever recorded in Britain it was with some relief that the tour members emerged into the warm sunny conditions at Colombo airport where the early afternoon thermometer registered over 30C. The good weather happily prevailed throughout most of the tour banishing all thoughts of the miserable conditions left behind.
Following the usual format of combining historical sites with wildlife, the tour began in the north of the island visiting in turn the ancient capital of Anuradhapura, Mihintale, the seat of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, and the magnificent rock fortress at Sigiriya. The group also admired the extraordinary rock carvings at Dambulla and some of the party also made an excursion to view another former capital at World Heritage listed Polonnaruwa. One of the great attractions of Sri Lanka as a destination for this kind of tour is that all the historical sites are set amid verdant countryside full of natural history interest and, whilst the emphasis during the early phase of the tour was on the island's past, the bird list increased daily with sightings of Malabar Pied Hornbill, the endemic Grey Hornbill, colourful Bee-eaters, Indian Rollers, Indian Pitta, Orange-headed Ground Thrush and many other exciting birds as well as exotic butterflies, lizards, Grey Langurs and Toque Macaques.
Entering the picturesque Hill Country via Kandy, the group had their first experience of the many tea estates which characterise the higher elevations, and attended a performance of Kandy dancing in the city. Nuwara Eliya introduced yet more endemic birds to supplement the species already found around Kandy, and an excursion to Horton Plains proved to be particularly successful providing close-up views of the elusive Whistling Thrush or Arrenga, Sri Lanka Bush Warblers, Dull Blue Flycatchers, Sambar and the endemic highland 'Bear' Monkey, as well as Black-lipped Lizards. Also noteworthy was Adam's Peak bathed in early morning sun many miles to the west, a mountain with great religious significance to several different faiths.
A gradual descent to the southern lowlands was punctuated by more superb birding around the Surrey Estate, where a roosting Brown Wood Owl was one of the highlights, and lunch at the Ella Rest House where diners can look out towards the plains far below. As the tour reached the south coast the sheer abundance of waterbirds and waders was almost overwhelming as the group visited several of the freshwater 'tanks' around Tissamaharama, the salt-pans and scrub at Bundala National Park and the variety of habitats within Yala National Park. Leopard, Wild Boar, Spotted Deer, Sambar and Mugger Crocodiles were among the wildlife observed at Yala whilst elsewhere the impressive diversity of bird species included Black-necked and Lesser Adjutant Storks, Great Thick-knees, Small Pratincoles and the rare sight of Slaty-breasted Rail and Ruddy-breasted Crake feeding side by side in a roadside ditch!
A long drive from Yala took the group to Embilipitiya where they stayed overnight before visiting Uda Walawe Reserve the following morning. Here Asian Elephants are the star attraction and many were seen during a jeep excursion including one endearing youngster accompanied by seven adults enjoying a bathing session in a lake. Among the many bird sightings, a male Pallid Harrier was an unexpected bonus as was the brief appearance by a Brown-backed Needletail, a wanderer from the distant hills.
Travelling on minor roads through increasingly hilly and extremely picturesque countryside the group eventually reached the final tour destination of Sinharaja Forest for a 2-night stay at the ideally situated Blue Magpie Lodge. Sinharaja is a magical place where so much of the flora and fauna is endemic to Sri Lanka including most of the 33 bird species unique to the island. Inevitably our visit did not reveal all the forest secrets but before activities were curtailed by an afternoon thunderstorm the group enjoyed a wealth of superlative birding including appearances by several Red-faced Malkohas, arguably the most striking of all the forest residents, Malabar Trogons, Sri Lanka Blue Magpies, Sri Lanka Woodpigeon, Orange-billed Babblers and White-headed Starlings.
After this memorable finale, most of the group headed back to Colombo using a new network of motorways which were only recently completed and serve as tangible evidence of the island's continued financial recovery after the civil war. Six tour members took a post-tour extension whale-watching from Mirissa on the south coast and enjoyed sightings of Blue and Humpback Whales before they too returned to the capital for a return flight to London. Sri Lanka never disappoints and this tour, under the brilliant local leadership of gifted Sri Lankan naturalist Susantha Weerappulige, was voted a great success by all participants.
Read more about our 'Sri Lanka - Wildlife & History' holiday.