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I’ve seen Greater Lophorina display a few times in different places, but usually only briefly. Most of the time, I’ve seen them displaying on horizontal trunks around mid-level, and the sites seemed rather random. Vogelkop Superb Bird-of-Paradise is a different story. At Arfak Mountain, its display site seems much more predictable, often centred around a dead log lying on the ground. So imagine my excitement when Mike, one of the young local landowners I’ve been working with, recently found a Greater Lophorina display site that looks remarkably similar — a dead log on the ground — and, even better, the bird appears to use this one spot consistently. The site was discovered just two weeks ago. Mike and I have been working together since last year. I’ve shared what I’ve learned about birds-of-paradise, bowerbirds and other fascinating New Guinea birds, while he has been exploring his land, learning, watching and putting that knowledge into practice. And I always want to give credit to the local people who make these discoveries possible. Mike has become one of my favourite local guides and landowners, especially after we worked together to locate the Black Sicklebill display site a few weeks ago. I genuinely believe people like Mike are going to be a huge part of the future of PNG birding. A huge thank you to Paiya Tours for supporting the resources needed to explore new areas and discover new birding sites. And my PNG brother Pym deserves special credit too. He understands something that is sometimes overlooked: building a tourism industry isn’t only about making money today. It’s about investing in tomorrow. Invest in local people. Invest in new birding sites. Invest in communities. Invest in the birds and forests that make PNG so special. Do that, and tourism can create jobs, change attitudes towards wildlife, give landowners a reason to protect their forests — and ultimately turn amazing birds into ambassadors for conservation. There are still so many secrets hidden in the forests of PNG. Book Mamindi Pym for Papua New Guinea birding experience WhatsApp +675 7223 4067