SANDAKAN: The Borneo Bird Festival was held at the Rainforest Discovery Centre in Sandakan over the weekend, bringing together birders from all over Malaysia and neighbouring countries to participate in numerous birding activities.
Official foreign participants represented at the Bird Festival came from Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, the US, and the United Kingdom.
Co-organised by the Sandakan Borneo Bird Club and the Sabah Forestry Department, it was the 14th edition of the Borneo Bird Festival since it was first launched in 2009.
Officiating the opening ceremony was Julinus Jimit, Chief Executive Officer of the Sabah Tourism Board, representing Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, the State Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Environment. Also attending the festival was Tim Appleton, the founder of the British Birdwatching Fair, now known as the Global Bird Fair.
The Global Bird Fair is an annual event held in Rutland, United Kingdom, and is the largest gathering of wildlife enthusiasts in the world.
Other notable dignitaries at the opening day were Dr. Anna Wong, President of the Malaysian Nature Society; Dr. Arthur Chung, Deputy Chief Conservator of Forests; YB Vivian Wong, Member of Parliament for Sandakan; and State Assembly members Calvin Chong and Arunarsin Taib.
In his speech, delivered by Julinus, Datuk Joniston Bangkuai said that the festival serves as an important platform to create conservation awareness while encouraging birding as a form of sustainable tourism.
He said, “I’m also pleased with the involvement of local communities sharing the economic benefits of birding tourism,” referring to the Bestaria community in Telupid, where birders come from all over to see the rare and elusive Bornean Peacock Pheasant.
About 4 years ago, during the COVID lockdown, a member of the Forestry Department, Raj Alferi, and Khairul Ikhwan spotted this rare pheasant in the Telupid Forest Reserve and began to habituate it for viewing. During the opening ceremony, they were both presented with a token of recognition for their effort.
As usual, the two-day weekend event kicked off at the break of dawn with the bird race and the bird photo race. This year saw 18 teams participating in the bird race, while the photo race received 28 entries. The bird race was won by the team from the Borneo Rainforest Lodge with a bird count of 123.
The festival also introduced a new contest category, the Wildlife Photography Contest. Some 100 birding enthusiasts participated in the early morning guided birding walks over the weekend.
The festival also featured nine talks and offered activities and workshops for both children and adults alike.
In his opening speech, Robert Ong, the President of the Bird Club, announced the completion of a new bird hide at the Rainforest Discovery Centre, thanking the Forestry Department for this initiative.
He also welcomed the increasing interest in the planting of fig trees as a form of habitat enrichment for wildlife, particularly birds.
