Eastern Himalaya

Eaglenest, Mishmi Hills, Assam and Nagaland

13th April - 4th May 2025

Leader: Mike Nelson

Situated along the southern frontier of the mighty Himalaya, Arunachal Pradesh was for many years cut-off from the birding circuit due to red-tape and access restrictions, and birders visited the neighbouring country of Bhutan to explore this fascinating region. With the restrictions lifted, we are finally able to reach Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary, one of the least-known yet biologically most diverse regions in the whole of Asia.

We start off in Manipur, itself largely cut-off from many years until access restrictions were lifted. Birding the scrub and roadside grassy slopes in search of one of the least-known laughingthrushes of the world; Yellow-throated Laughingthrush. A shy bird that roves around the slopes in large groups, we hope to see this elusive skulker before moving into Nagaland, to the village of Khonoma. An idyllic village that has set-up its own non-hunting zone. Here, we bird the forest and orchids above the village; Naga Wren Babbler being the main target before we sweep up through Assam, and on to Arunachal Pradesh.
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The topography is truly amazing; stretching from the Brahmaputra Valley in Assam up through tangled ridges at elevations of around 1,500m before rising to 3,080m. A jeep track runs from a pass at 2,800m down to the flood plains of Assam at 100m. This easy access, excellent forest and wide altitudinal range is a unique combination that makes Eaglenest one of the premier birding sites in the whole of Asia. The Bugun Liocichla, a completely new species to science, was discovered here and described as recently as 2006. It will be one of our main targets. However, the seemingly endless list of potential species also includes three species of tragopan, seven species of wren babbler, ten species of laughingthrush, four species of shortwing, six species of parrotbill and the stunning Fire-tailed Myzornis. Before Eaglenest we venture into remote Nagaland, where after successful scouting we have found a site to search for Yellow-throated Laughingthrush, while we also search for Naga Wren Babbler, Blyth's Tragopan, Cachar Wedge-billed Babbler and Moustached, Striped, Assam and Brown-capped Laughingthrushes.
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Following on from Eaglenest we head down into the Brahmaputra floodplain, visiting the World Heritage Site of Kaziranga and Dibru-Saikhowa. Kaziranga is famed for its population of Indian Rhinoceros and Bengal Tiger, but also has an impressive range of bird life. We will search diligently for Bengal Florican, Pallas's Fish Eagle and Swamp Francolin. Dibru-Saikhowa is home to a whole host of threatened and range-restricted species including Black-breasted Parrotbill, Marsh and Jerdon's Babblers and Swamp Prinia. A visit to the Digboi Oilfields allows an opportunity to see the range-restricted Chestnut-backed Laughingthrush, along with Collared Treepie and Rufous-necked Laughingthrush.

Finally, we bird an area that until recently was off-limits, Mishmi Hills. This area has a single endemic, Mishmi Wren Babbler, as well as being one of the few accessible sites for a range of mouth-watering species - Cachar Wedge-billed Babbler, Rusty-bellied Shortwing, Blyth's Tragopan and Yellow-rumped Honeyguide with an outside chance of Sclater's Monal and Gould's Shortwing to wet the appetite.

Day 1:
Arrivals into Imphal Airport. Following lunch and check-in, we head straight to the hill for afternoon birding in search of Yellow-throated Laughingthrush, which though a highly localised and very scarce species, we’ve recorded here in recent years. Night in Imphal.
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Day 2:
Full day birding around Imphal. Our primary target is of course Yellow-throated Laughingthrush. However, in the surrounding grasslands that are still quite extensive here, Black-breasted Parrotbill, Indian Grassbird, Slender-billed Babbler, White-tailed Stonechat and wintering species such as Baikal Grasshopper Warbler and Black-faced Bunting are possible – we only visit the grasslands once we have seen the laughingthrush however. As is Eld’s(Brow-antlered) Deer, here at one of the very few remaining locations for a species that once stretched all the way across to Vietnam. Night in Imphal.

Day 3:
Departing Imphal early for Khonoma, arriving for lunch and afternoon's birding along the road above the village. Spot-breasted, Assam and Striped Laughingthrushes, Rusty-capped Fulvetta and even Blue-naped Pitta would be our targets here. Night in Khonoma.
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‍Day 4:
Full day above Khonoma village. The villagers of Khonoma have agreed on a strict no-hunting zone in the surrounding forest. Birding above the village we go in search of Naga Wren Babbler and Blyth’s Tragopan in the morning up a steep trail, with additional possibilities including Cachar Wedge-billed Babbler and Assam and Brown-capped Laughingthrushes. Back at the forest edge in the late afternoon there is a chance of the elusive and local Spot-breasted Laughingthrush, Naga Wren Babbler and Mountain Bamboo Partridge, along with Spot-breasted Scimitar Babbler, Striped Laughingthrush and Black-breasted Thrush. Night in Khonoma.

‍Day 5:
Early morning birding in the forest immediately around the village for Spot-breasted Laughingthrush, or head higher in case we missed Naga Wren Babbler the previous day. After morning's birding, we head north into Assam, to Kaziranga. If we have any remaining time to spare around Kaziranga, we’ll visit the nearby tea estate, or any bamboo gulley that might harbour a Blue-naped Pitta! Night outside Kaziranga National Park.

‍Day 6:
We have the day to explore Kaziranga Tiger Reserve and its surroundings. In the morning, birding the grasslands and lakes of the Central Range from the jeeps we search for Slender-billed Babbler and Indian Grassbird, with a supporting cast of Spot-billed Pelican, both Greater and Lesser Adjutants, Black-necked Stork, Pallas’s Fish Eagle, and Black-breasted Weaver.
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In the afternoon, again from jeeps, we bird the Western Range, made up once again of grassland with two large lakes. Slender-billed Babbler is possible again should we have missed it during the morning. In addition, this is the best chance for Swamp Francolin. Huge numbers of Indian Rhinoceros, Asian Elephant, Swamp and Hog Deers and Asian Water Buffalo dominate the scene in the Western Range, though we will have seen smaller numbers of all of these during the morning too.
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The surrounding forest holds such specialties as Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Great Hornbill, Jerdon's Baza and the localised Pale-chinned Flycatcher, though we will need a slice of luck to encounter Blue-naped Pitta. After afternoon birding we drive directly from the Western Range across the Brahmaputra to Tezpur. Night outside Tezpur.

‍Day 7:
An early start to head in to Arunachal Pradesh; the gateway to the foothills of the Himalaya. We drive to the town of Dirang, situated at 1,500m, for a three-night stay. Birding along the way will give glimpses of this incredibly diverse region. After breakfast by the riverside, which often holds a few migrant and resident warblers (with a slim chance of Blunt-winged Warbler) in the bushes, and River Lapwing and Crested Kingfisher along the river, we complete formalities to cross the border, in to the ‘restricted state’ of Arunachal Pradesh. Winding our way up through a mass of bamboo, we search for White-hooded Babbler, Yellow-vented Warbler, Lesser Rufous-headed (Black-browed) Parrotbill, Red-billed and White-browed Scimitar Babblers, White-browed Piculet and Pale-headed Woodpecker. Next, we pass through some mature forest, depending on time we stop here for our first Himalayan forest birding, before continuing through the open landscape, eventually arriving at Dirang in the late afternoon, giving our drivers a good rest for the following days early start. Night in Dirang.

‍Days 8-9:
During our two days birding around Dirang we visit up to three sites, including the scenically spectacular Se La. At 4,200m above sea-level it is one of the few areas at this elevation accessible by road. We spend the day here searching for some classic Himalayan species; Fire-tailed Myzornis, Himalayan Monal, Blood Pheasant, Rufous-breasted and White-browed Bush Robins, Alpine and Himalayan Forest Thrushes, Himalayan White-browed Rosefinch, Collared Grosbeak, Fire-tailed Sunbird, Plain and Brandt’s Mountain Finches, Tibetan Blackbird, Solitary Snipe and the stunning Grandala. Visiting the nearby Sangti Valley could provide us with Long-billed Plover, if time allows.

A full day at Mandala, a long, winding road going through forest, bamboo and eventually reaching patches of rhododendron. A huge ranch of species are possible here despite the mass destruction of the habitat here, but our main targets include Bar-winged Wren-babbler, Black-throated and Brown Parrotbills, Rusty-flanked Treecreeper, White-collared Blackbird, Broad-billed Warbler, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Blue-fronted Robin, Golden and White-browed Bush Robins, Rufous-fronted Bushtit, a variety of laughingthrushes including Spotted; Crimson-browed and Gold-naped Finches, Blanford’s Rosefinch, Hume’s Bush-warbler and Slender-billed Scimitar-babbler. Nights in Dirang.
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Day 10:
All morning, and early afternoon if required around Dirang – we might even revisit Se La if required, before we drive back south to Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary to begin our five-night camping, starting at Lama Camp.
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‍Days 11-14:
We have four full days inside the fabulous Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary, made famous by the discovery of the Critically Endangered Bugun Liocichla, described as recently as 2006 and currently known only from this area. We will spend our time along several different sections of a jeep track which cuts through this rich forest from the pass at 2900m descending to the scrappy though productive foothills at 800m. Our accommodation will be in serviced tented camps, where we split our time between two camps.
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Starting from high altitudes and working our way down the track to the lowlands, we pass through a wide range of avifaunal zones and the bird life will vary noticeably during our descent. The bird list for the sanctuary is huge, and includes many species which can no longer be considered Bhutan specialities.
Among the huge list of potential species are such mouth-watering possibilities as Blyth's and Temminck's Tragopans, Chestnut-breasted and Hill Partridges, Kalij Pheasant, Rufous-necked Hornbill, Ward's Trogon, Pale-headed Woodpecker, White-hooded Babbler, Collared Grosbeak, Blue-fronted Robin, Green and Purple Cochoas.
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There are also a whole host of laughingthrushes with Grey-sided, Blue-winged, Chestnut-crowned, Scaly, Striated, Bhutan, Spotted all possible and, of course, the recently discovered Bugun Liocichla and its commoner cousin, the Crimson-faced Liocichla. Both Coral-billed and Slender-billed Scimitar Babblers favour the tracts of bamboo, seven species of wren babbler, the amazing Sikkim Wedge-billed Babbler, Himalayan Cutia, Beautiful Nuthatch, Yellow-rumped Honeyguide, Black-headed Shrike Babbler, six species of parrotbill and a whole host of sibias, tits, flycatchers, warblers, yuhinas, niltavas, flowerpeckers, sunbirds, accentors and finches. Nights camping.

‍Day 15:
Following a mornings birding the lowest elevations inside Eaglenest WLS we head down into Assam, crossing the mighty Brahmaputra and venture east till we hit Kaziranga. Night outside Kaziranga National Park.

‍Day 16:
Early morning at Kaziranga once again, with our targets depending how we did on a previous visit. Once finished here, we drive to Dibru-Saikhowa for late afternoon birding, if time allows. This little-known site is a biodiversity hotspot situated in the alluvial flood plains of the Brahmaputra. We will search the swamp and grasslands for two threatened species - Marsh and Jerdon's Babblers.
While searching for these localised species, we will come across a large variety of other species which might include lingering winter visitors such as Baikal and Spotted Bush Warblers and Smoky Warbler. Night at Tinsukhia.

‍Day 17:
We start today by heading for a small patch of lowland forest inside the Digboi Oilfields complex in search of three species unlikely to be seen elsewhere on the tour; Collared Treepie, Rufous-necked Laughingthrush and the rare and local Chestnut-backed Laughingthrush. Other possibilities include Blue-throated Flycatcher, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Blue-bearded Bee-eater and an outside chance of White-cheeked Partridge.
After our morning here, we spend the afternoon driving north-east, across the Brahmaputra to the town of Roing, situated at the base of the Mishmi Hill. Night at Roing.

‍Days 18-20:
Three full days birding along the road in Mishmi Hills.
Birding along the forest-clad roadside will be reminiscent of Eaglenest, with fine Himalayan birding throughout – just with more vehicles driving past. We have a different suite of specialities to find here, as well as more of the same in case we have missed some earlier in the tour; Mishmi Wren Babbler, Cachar Wedge-billed Babbler, Yellow-rumped Honeyguide, Rusty-bellied Shortwing, Blyth’s Tragopan, Sclater’s Monal (very unlikely), Bar-winged Wren Babbler, Gould’s Shortwing, Himalayan Forest Thrush, Large Blue Flycatcher, Beautiful Nuthatch, Black-headed Shrike Babbler, Ward’s Trogon and Blue-fronted Robin.
We also visit two different areas of grassland. One for the Critically Endangered Bengal Florican, and the other for Black-breasted Parrotbill, along with Jerdon’s and Marsh Babblers – when we fit these in exactly depends on all the other species and our successes. Nights at Roing.

‍Day 21:
After a final morning, birding we depart Mishmi, and head back south across the Brahmaputra, to Tinsukia.Depending on what we have left to see, we either return to Dibru-Saikhowa, or spend more of the morning at Mishmi. Night in Tinsukia..

‍Day 22:
Optional early morning birding, likely returning to Digboi Oilfields, or to Dehing Paktai for those able to. Departures from Dibrugarh Airport.