Panay Part 1: The Best of Aningalan
Lake Holon was the last stop of my Mindanao bird-a-ganza with Larry and Pete, but Nikki and I weren't heading home quite yet. I had a work trip to Indonesia scheduled for mid-September, and Nikki had work in Manila the same week, so it didn't make sense to go all the way back to Sorsogon just to fly out a few days later. Instead, we spent the first week of September working from Iloilo City, where I had visited earlier this year and Nikki wanted a chance to visit. That weekend, the plan was to go out to Aningalan, the site I had explored earlier this year, so that Nikki could try and see Yellow-faced Flameback and I could try again for the elusive Panay Striped Babbler and some of my other needs. As I mentioned this plan to Pete and Larry during our trip in Mindanao, they both expressed interest in joining, and of course I was more than happy to extend the invitation. I also happened to mention this plan to my frequent birding companion Cheta, and he expressed interest in j...