Samar Island Natural Park, Samar

Samar Island National Park—one of my personal favorite sites to bird—is home to the Philippines’ passerine crown jewel: the Celestial Monarch. Although this species can be found elsewhere in the Philippines (spanning the north of Luzon all the way down to Mindanao), Samar has become the most reliable spot for it in recent years. One thing I love about birding here is that the accommodations are right by the start of the trail, which means less time travelling and more time birding! It’s amazing being able to wake up, put on your birding gear, and within five minutes, run into some fantastic species like the Visayan Broadbill, Mindanao Bleeding-heart, and Black-faced Coucal. Deeper in the trail, Azure-Breasted Pittas, Visayan Blue-Fantails, and Celestial Monarchs are active, although the thick forest cover can make them difficult to photograph at times. A newly constructed viewing platform a few dozen meters above the canopy serves as a great spot to view the sunrise and catch some of the samarensis subspecies of the Southern Rufous Hornbill, which have flat casques unlike their counterparts outside of Samar.