Sri Lanka is relatively well explored when it comes to birds. Especially local birders know lots of specific sites for special species around the country, with some of the better-known sites like the Sinharaja rainforest hosting stakeouts so reliable that dipping on species, such as Sri Lanka Frogmouth, would be a pretty big achievement. In this regard, some of the more exciting sites on the island to me are those less thoroughly combed through. This essentially means focusing your gaze on the northern and eastern parts of the country. One site stands out in particular, namely Nilgala forest. This unique woodland site is situated on the edge of Gal Oya National Park, between the highlands and the coast. Nilgala’s main draw is that three species occur here that can be found nowhere else on the island: Yellow-footed Green-Pigeon, Painted Francolin, and Jungle Bush-Quail. This site is not unexplored, but the unique habitat and infrequent visitation compared to sites like Bundala National Park or Sinharaja means that many surprises are still possible here.
Both because of the amazing birds that I saw and the equally amazing ones that I missed on my only visit to the site, Nilgala ranks in the top three sites I would like to visit again in Sri Lanka, together with Sinharaja and Mannar. I stayed at the Department of Wildlife Conservation’s bungalow, situated just behind the reception with a view of majestic cliffs towering over the woodland. My exploration was limited to the entrance road as I didn’t have a car to enter the park, but I got the sense that all species can be found there anyways.
Nilgala is a land of cuckoos. A Square-tailed Drongo-Cuckoo was regularly calling outside of my cabin. Banded Bay Cuckoo were creeping through the foliage. The hysterical call of the Common Hawk-Cuckoo was omnipresent, while the ability of the beast to stay hidden no matter how hard you look made its call even more nauseous.
Woodpeckers are equally well represented, with Streak-throated Woodpecker being a species that is generally very difficult to see in Sri Lanka. The Yellow-crowned Woodpecker, once located, drew attention to itself by its tiny size, only to be outdone by the diminutive Brown-capped Pygmy-Woodpecker.
Since my visit, I’ve also had the privilege of a comfortable armchair tick in the form of Sri Lanka Shama. This bird was considered as a subspecies of White-rumped Shama when I saw it. I’m not complaining. Nonetheless, I cannot resist remarking that at the face of it, the heterogenous application of species concepts and polarised splitting/ lumping debates sometimes appear to be a ridiculous expression of our desire to categorise the world around. It goes without saying that most people involved in these steps know much more about the topic than I do, and that taxonomists are responsible for continually evaluating species relationships with improved technologies at hand. Either way, if this new endemic contributes to Sri Lanka’s ecotourism potential and conservation of the species’ habitat, I’m glad.
Out of Nilgala’s sought-after trio, I missed the Jungle Bush-Quail. When I find myself in Colombo again, I’ll try to make my way over or around the highlands to find this jewel alongside so many other avian treats hiding in these woodlands.
The Brown-capped Pygmy-Woodpecker has a ridiculous name but it is a nice bird! As for taxonomy, much in favour of splitting and I dislike lumping.