Royle Safaris Chitwan National Park, Nepal Safari Trip Report
the first of two back to back Nepal safaris of Chitwan National Park in May 2018 resulted in a record number of rhino sightings (over 100) and some other wonderful sightings. Chitwan Safari Holiday Trip Report from Royle Safaris Highlights included sloth bears, fulvous fruit bat and Nepal grey...
Extinct gibbon skull found in Chinese tomb
https://mashable.com/2018/06/21/gibbon-tomb-extinction-by-humans/#PDhtwtOQUaqJ This is an interesting article about a new and extinct species of gibbon found in a tomb in China. Andrew
New Trip Report: Scotland -> Spitsbergen
Here’s a report of a cruise that I would love to do someday, plus a few days in Scotland beforehand. Scotland-Spitsbergen, 2018: Dominique Brugiere, 16 days and 16 species on the cruise including Hooded Seals, Walrus and Bottlenose Whales, plus another 12 species in Scotland. Jon
Trip Reports from Russia and Poland
These trip reports on cloudbirders.com might be of interest (especially the former): https://www.cloudbirders.com/tripreport/repository/MACDONALD_Russia_0506_2016.pdf https://www.cloudbirders.com/tripreport/repository/MACDONALD_Poland_04_2016.pdf Best, Ben www.tremarctos.com
RFI India Christmas Holiday 2018 TIGERS
Hello, I am John Van Niel. My wife and I suddenly find ourselves with two weeks to travel over Christmas and would like to go to India for the first time. Our main target would be tigers, with sloth bear being second and rhinos if that isn’t too much...
Amur Leopard & Siberian Tiger Tours 2018
After our very successful Amur Leopard Photography Tours in February and March 2018 we are repeating this tour for November & December 2018 and then again for early 2019. The three links below are for the three different tours we are offering for big cats in Russia. The first...
The isolated Striped Ground Squirrel in Morocco
The most known and widespread squirrel in Morocco is the Barbary Ground Squirrel (Atlantoxerus getulus) which is endemic to Northwest Africa (Morocco and western Algerian). There is however another less known and localized squirrel in the Souss Valley on the Atlantic coast of Morocco, the Striped Ground Squirrel (Euxerus...
New Trip Report: The Azores
A new whale watching trip report from John Wright. Azores, 2018: John Wright, 1 week & 7 species including Blue & Sperm Whales and an Azorean Noctule. Jon
Photos Needed For USA Mammal Guide
Dear All I am wrapping up a book project about mammals of California but need a few final pictures. Due out in spring of 2019, this book part of a series, hence its odd title: “A Californian’s Guide to the Mammals Among Us.” What it aims to do is...
Infos and pics on Arabian Tahr
The Arabian Tahr is one of the least documented bigger animals on the planet. Just a few years ago mammalwatchers have become interested to look for this species. Photos hardly exist. Wikipedia has to get on with a picture of a stuffed animal. My illustrated chapter on this great...
New Trip Report: Amazon Cruise
Here’s a list of species seen on Wildwing’s mega-trip through the Amazon last month. Amazon Cruise, 2018: Wildwings, 18 days & 50+ species, with 28 primates including Spix’s Black-heard Uacari, Lake Baptista Titi and Santarem Marmoset. Jon
2 Travel Companions Sought for 2019 Kenya Trip
My wife and I are looking for two non-smokers to join us in Kenya next year. All accommodations are private and we would have a private vehicle for the 4 of us. Of course, the final itinerary is subject to change if our travel mates prefer some changes. Here is...
Picture advice
So on Friday my wife gave me a slightly delayed birthday present – a very nice set of original drawings of three mammal species. Probably the perfect birthday present for a mammal watcher you would say. Excellent, I thought, and opened up the picture only to discover that the...
Sabah, Borneo – April 2018
Attached is my report for our recent trip to Sabah. We saw 35 species of mammals including Pen-tailed Shrew, Long-tailed Porcupine, Borneo Pygmy Elephant, Moonrat, Lesser Treeshrew, Binturong and all the other usual suspects. However, we did not see Clouded Leopard or Tarsier. Thanks to Mark Hows for inspiring...
Malayan tapir in one night at Kumbang hide!
Malayan Tapir, Malaysia June 2018
New Trip Report: Wilpattu National Park and elsewhere in Sri Lanka
Here is another new report from Chris Townend’s Wise Birding Wilpattu National Park and more, 2018: Wise Birding, 2 weeks & 16 species including Leopard and Purple-faced Leaf Monkey. Jon
New Trip Report: Chartreuse Chamois, France
Ralf Bürglin was in the Chartreuse Mountains on a successful quest for the local Chamois subspecies. Chartreuse Mountains (Grenoble): Ralf Bürglin , 2 days & 3 species including Moufflon and Charetreuse Chamois. Jon
New Trip Report: Andujar, Spain
And the last of the batch of new reports from Chris Townend’s Wise Birding is from Spain. Andujar, 2018: Wise Birding, 5 days & 8 species including Iberian Lynx and Spanish Ibex. Jon
New Trip Report: Minnesota
Here is another new report from Chris Townend’s Wise Birding, once again successful – this time exceptionally successful – in the search for a Canada Lynx. Minnesota, 2018: 10 days & 11 species including 8! Canada Lynx sightings, American Marten, Ermine and Northern Flying Squirrel. Jon
New Trip Report: Bonobos in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Here’s a report of a fabulous adventure that I would love to do some day. Congo, 2017: Birdquest, 2 weeks & 15 species including White-bellied Pangolin, Wolf’s Monkey, Black Mangabey and Bonobos. Oh and a Congo Peafowl too if you like that sort of thing. Jon
Hawaiian hoary bats on Big Island
I just spent a few hours on Big Island of Hawaii to see lava fountains produced by erupting Kilauea Volcano. While sneaking through the forest at midnight to avoid numerous police patrols and helicopters, I found an excellent place to see the local version of the hoary bat (it...
New Trip Reports: Western Sahara
Here are two new reports for the Western Sahara from Chris Townend’s Wise Birding Western Sahara, Feb 2018: Wise Birding, 1 week & 9 species including Sand Cat, African Wild Cat and Fat Sand Rat. Western Sahara, March 2018: Wise Birding, 1 week & 9 species including Sand Cat,...
New Trip Report: Sabah and Sarawak
Here’s a new – and typically thorough – report from Stefan Lithner who was in Sabah and Sarawak earlier this year. Though this was primarily a bird tour he recorded up to 50 species in 2.5 weeks. Sabah and Sarawak, 2018: Stefan Lither, 2.5 weeks & about 50 species...
Hog-nosed Skunking
I’ve been looking for an American Hog-nosed Skunk since the late 1990s. I’ve looked several times in Texas, New Mexico and Mexicowithout success, and was contemplating a trip back to Nicaragua primarily to see this species. And so a quick (not really a mammal) trip to SW Texas last...
New Trip Reports: The Maldives
Here are two new whale watching reports from Chas Anderson at the Whale and Dolphin Company. I would love to do one of these trips someday: I tried to get on the 2017 trip but was too late and now I am kicking myself hard. Maldives, 2016: Chas Anderson,...
New Trip Report: Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, 2018: Mark Hows, 12 days & 58 species including Rusty-spotted and Fishing Cats, Grey and Red Slender Loris and Bryde’s Whale. Jon
New Trip Report: Arizona
Here are some useful notes from Curtis Hart who spent 2-3 months in Arizona this year. Arizona, 2018: Curtis Hart, 2 months and 46 species including Mexican Vole, Cactus and Pinon Mouse and Arizona Woodrat. Jon
Latest Global Mammal Checklist now online
Hello I’ve just uploaded the latest iteration of my global mammal checklist. This incorporates changes made by the IUCN’s Redlist since I updated this last in September 2017. I have also included a few other changes that the IUCN has yet to adopt. There are relatively few changes since the...
Armenia 2018
Report_Armenia2018
New Trip Report: Poland
A new report from John Wright, back on the trail of a Eurasian Lynx. South East Poland, 2018: John Wright, 6 days & 14 species including Wolf, Brown Bear and European Wildcat. Jon
Safia Reserve and other places in Western Sahara/Morocco
It looks like I’ll have about a week in Morocco and Western Sahara in July. Has anyone been able to contact/visit Safia Reserve recently? How’s the road? They reportedly have a few dama gazelles and addaxes outside of the enclosure already, although there’s high mortality from poaching and feral...
Two squirrel books for North America and the World
You may or may not have heard of these two books on squirrels. I just got a used copy of both Squirrels of North America by Tamara Eder and Squirrels of the World by Richard Thorington, et al. Both are wonderful books in my opinion. I have another of...
Shrew Identification (Spain)
Last July, I photographed the following Shrew in my hotel room in Sallent de Gallego, Spain (1305 meters elevation, just across the border from Lac d’Ayous). Does anyone have thoughts on the identification? My impression was that it was significantly larger than the shrews I see in the US,...
New Trip Report: Pyrenean Desman in France
Desmans are surely one of Europe’s coolest mammals, and yet two years ago it was extremely hard to know where reliably to look for them. Ben Schwienhart’s 2017 report changed that. The details propelled Phil Telfer to his 1000th mammal last year and hopefully others have been too. Samuel...
36 hours in the Midwest (USA)
Some expiring frequent flyer miles prompted a 36 hour excursion to the USA’s midwest over the weekend. It is an area not often visited by mammalwatchers and I drove through four states – Oklahoma, Arkansa, Kansas and Missouri – that don’t as yet have any trip reports on mammalwatching.com. In...
Mammalwatching.com: More than just trip reports!
Dear Mammalwatchers Charles Foley’s recent post on mammalwatching gear prompted me to send a quick post about the hidden depths of mammalwatching.com. Charles, who is one of the more avid and long-standing, members of the community was unaware of some of the other material on the site beyond the trip reports....
Central African Republic, Dzanga Bai 2018
Here’s my write-up from a trip that I did this April with some friends to Sangha Lodge and Dzanga Bai. It really is a stunning part of the world. CAR Foley 2018
Latest on New England Cottontails in Rhode Island
Just finished talking to a biologist at Ninigret NWR in Rhode Island who told me as far as they know there are only New England Cottontails in Great Swamp WMA north of the refuge and there may be a few in Ninigret which was the last confirmed place but...
Javan Rhino Expedition 2019 – Spaces Available Now
Royle Safaris is now opening our Javan Rhino Expedition for 2019. We have managed to special permits that allow our group to enter the core region of Ujong Kulon National Park. We will be camping inside the park and basing our search along a little known river deep inside...
Trip Report: Mexico City Area and Veracruz (Rodent-fest)
I was back in Mexico earlier this month to spend the weekend looking for stuff – mainly rodents – with Juan Cruzado Cortes (who helped me out in Oaxaca back in March). I was following in Venkat Sankar’s footsteps, visiting three sites he went to in 2016: Milpa Alta...
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