06 Aug 2025 - 25 Aug 2025 (20 days)
USD7,195 - Spaces Available
Tour Leader: Carlos Bocos
Tour price (Per person): USD7,195 * GBP5,676 * EUR6,866 * AUD11,299
Single Supplement: USD1,120 * GBP884 * EUR1,069 * AUD1,759
Flight costs: USD760 * GBP600 * EUR725 * AUD1,194
Can be linked with: Indonesia - Bali Birding Extension 2025
05 Aug 2026 - 24 Aug 2026 (20 days)
USD7,495 - Spaces Available
Tour Leader: Adam Walleyn
Indonesia, spread across 17,508 islands and boasting over 1,600 bird species and over 600 endemics (far more than any other country on Earth!) should be at the forefront of every international birder’s destination list! Rockjumper is proud to offer an extensive suite of tours to this mind-bogglingly biodiverse region that includes this comprehensive exploration of the endemics-rich Lesser Sundas. This diverse and rugged chain of volcanic islands, stretching across the Java Sea between Bali and New Guinea, supports over 100 Indonesian endemics with more than 80 of these restricted to the Lesser Sundas. Our tour visits five of these islands (Sumba, Timor, Rote, Flores and Komodo) and targets every single one of the area’s localised and highly sought-after endemics occurring on these five islands, other than a few isolated species restricted to East Timor.
The Lesser Sundas fall within a region known as Wallacea and its avifauna is a startling mix of Asiatic and Australasian families. Starting and ending in Bali, we explore montane rainforests, lowland monsoon forests, wetlands, mangroves, coastal mudflats, grasslands, and dry scrub. We begin this epic birding adventure in eastern Sumba, where mouth-watering specialties include Red-naped Fruit Dove, Sumba Hornbill, Little Sumba Hawk-Owl, Sumba Boobook, Mees’s Nightjar, Sumba Green Pigeon, and the little-known Sumba Buttonquail. Our next leg of the tour takes us to West Timor and the tiny island of Rote, situated just off western Timor. Over the course of the next week, we hope to encounter avian specialties such as Timor and Rote Boobooks, Pink-headed Imperial Pigeon, Jonquil Parrot, Tricolored and the yet-to-be described Timor (Mt. Mutis) Parrotfinch, Flame-breasted Sunbird, Orange-sided and Chestnut-backed Thrushes, Cinnamon-banded Kingfisher, Black-banded Flycatcher, Timor and Black Cuckoo-Doves, Buff-banded Thicketbird, Timor Stubtail and Timor Sparrow to mention just a few!
We end the tour on Flores Island, where the magnificent Flores Hawk-Eagle, Glittering Kingfisher, sensational Ornate Pitta, Wallace’s Hanging Parrot, Leaf Lorikeet, Wallace’s and Flores Scops Owls, Flores Monarch and the superb Bare-throated Whistler will be among the many targets on the island. One of the undoubted highlights of the trip will be the visit to Komodo Island just off Flores, where 10ft (3m) Komodo Dragons roam this almost prehistoric paradise along with Green Junglefowl and Orange-footed Scrubfowl. Here we will also seek the beautiful and critically endangered, Yellow-crested Cockatoo. The Lesser Sundas has something very special to offer the keen birder and nature enthusiast and comprehensive, endemics-rich birding tour promises to be a classic among international birding adventures!
Red-naped, Banded, Rose-crowned & Black-naped Fruit Doves; Sumba Hornbill; Great-billed & Jonquil Parrots; Sumba, Flores, Timor, Least & Rote Boobooks; Mees’s & Timor Nightjars; Flores, Wallace's & Moluccan Scops Owls; Marigold, Leaf, Olive-headed & Iris Lorikeets; Sumba & Flores Green Pigeons; Pale-shouldered Cicadabird; Sumba & Red-backed Buttonquails; Wallacean Cuckooshrike; Sumba, Black-breasted & Rote Myzomelas; Sumba, Sumba Brown, Sumba Jungle, Flores Jungle, Timor Blue & Black-banded Flycatchers; Pink-headed & Timor Imperial Pigeons; Metallic Pigeon; Flame-breasted & Apricot-breasted Sunbirds; Orange-sided, Chestnut-backed & Chestnut-capped Thrushes; Cinnamon-banded & White-rumped Kingfishers; Buff-banded Thicketbird; Timor Sparrow; Timor Stubtail; Elegant & Ornate Pittas; Flores Crow; White-browed (Flores) Shortwing; Black, Timor, Ruddy & Eucalypt Cuckoo-Doves; Wallace’s Hanging Parrot; Flores Monarch; Cream-browed & Yellow-ringed White-eyes; Crested & Thick-billed Heleias; Bare-throated, Rusty-breasted, Yellow-throated & Fawn-breasted Whistlers; Rote, Timor & Brown-capped Fantails; Blue-cheeked, Black-fronted, Golden-rumped & Blood-breasted Flowerpeckers; Tricolored & Timor (Mount Mutis) Parrotfinches; Pale-headed, Black-faced & Five-colored Munias; Streak-breasted & Flame-eared Honeyeaters; Green Junglefowl; Orange-footed Scrubfowl; Beach Stone-Curlew; Great-billed Heron; Yellow-crested & Orange-crested Cockatoos.
montane rainforests, lowland monsoon forests, wetlands, mangroves, coastal mudflats, grasslands and dry scrub
mostly hot and humid in the lowlands, being very cool to warm in montane areas. Some rain can be expected in the highlands
8 with 1 Rockjumper leader & local birding leader
Moderate to challenging birding, some basic lodging, one difficult hike (optional) & hot, humid conditions are taxing. Our Mega tours are very fast-paced birding adventures designed for the dedicated lister and serious birder. The focus of the tour is to see as many of the endemics and area specials as possible in our given time. In order to cover the necessary route to maximise the species list we tend to spend a single night at most sites and travel large distances. There is very little down time aside from that spent driving from one site to the next. These tours are not suitable for dedicated or avid photographers; inexperienced or new birders; as well as anyone with serious mobility or health challenges.
Most accommodations are reasonable to comfortable, but those in the Lewa area are basic.
Birding can be demanding at some locations. Low density of several key species. Others require repeat efforts. Several late evening/early mornings for nocturnal species.
200 to 240 depending on time of year. Over 100 Indonesian endemics & over 80 endemic to Lesser Sundas
large tracts of forest, rolling forested hills scenery, beautiful beaches and tropical island scenery, 10ft (3m) Komodo Dragons!
Photography can reasonable, despite the lack of hides & predominant forest birding.
Glen and Paul did a fantastic job on this tour. Glen is an excellent birder, guide and a wonderful personality. This is the second trip I have done with Glen and hope to join many more in the future.
Glen Valentine and Adam Walleyn were superb guides — honestly, they saw birds before they appeared! The local guides were outstanding and the logistics and accommodations were exceptional given our locations.
Both my husband and I found Lev to be an excellent guide. He was both personable and knowledgeable. I especially appreciated his calm demeanor when I was unable to immediately get on a bird in the field. His photographic skills also assisted in occasionally clinching an ID of a far-off bird. And, I and others on the Tour appreciated his willingness and ability to digiscope special birds - to be be later airdropped with each other! Lev is a real, and multi-faceted, gem.
My thanks to Keith and Glen Valentine for taking so much time in getting me on the birds. They are so patient and really nice.
My thanks to Keith and Glen Valentine for taking so much time in getting me on the birds. They are so patient and really nice.
Indonesia - Buru Extension II 2024 - November 2024
Indonesia - Remote West Papuan Islands Cruise II 2024 - November 2024
Indonesia - Remote West Papuan Islands Cruise I 2024 - October 2024
Indonesia - Sumatra & Java 2024 - August 2024
Indonesia - Lesser Sundas Endemics 2024 - August 2024
Indonesia - Bali Birding Extension 2024 - August 2024
Indonesia - Sulawesi & Halmahera: Wallacean Endemics 2024 - July 2024
Indonesia - Highlights of the East: Sulawesi, Moluccas & Papua 2024 - July 2024
Indonesia - Buru Extension II 2023 - November 2023
Indonesia - Remote West Papuan Islands Cruise II 2023 - November 2023
Indonesia - Buru Extension I 2023 - November 2023
Indonesia - West Papua: Arfak Extension 2023 - October 2023
Indonesia - Remote West Papuan Islands Cruise I 2023 - October 2023
Indonesia - Remote West Papuan Islands Cruise IV 2023 - October 2023
Indonesia - Buru Extension III 2023 - October 2023
Indonesia - Kai Islands Extension 2023 - September 2023
Indonesia - Banda Sea Cruise 2023 - August 2023
Indonesia - Allanson - Flores Endemics 2023 - August 2023
Indonesia - Sulawesi & Halmahera: Wallacean Endemics (Small Group) 2023 - July 2023
Indonesia - Highlights of the East: Sulawesi, Moluccas & Papua II 2023 - July 2023