Tailor Made Holidays in Papua New Guinea: In the News

Papua New Guinea Features

Southeast Asia Tribes

Visit Southeast Asia's minority groups and tribes and discover how to give something back to the areas.

Asia Afloat

From the deck of a boat view Southeast Asia's traditional waterborne ways of life, which have remained unchanged for centuries.

An Asian Affair

Jo Poole remembers how she fell for Southeast Asia.

Underwater Southeast Asia

A wealth of underwater experiences for the snorkeller and scuba diver.

Go with the Flow

The most spectacular river journeys Southeast Asia has to offer.

More Features »

Specialist View

Vanessa Coleridge, Southeast Asia Specialist “Like David Attenborough, I was entranced by Papua New Guinea’s gorgeous birds of paradise, which are the crowning glory of its teeming rainforests.”

Vanessa Coleridge, Southeast Asia Specialist, 01993 838117

'Extinct' bird spotted near Papua New Guinea: 13-03-2008

A bird long thought to be extinct has been spotted in the Pacific, just off the coast of Papua New Guinea.

Beck's petrel had only been seen twice previously - way back in 1928 and 1929 - until Hadoram Shirihai managed to photograph more than 30 of the birds while on a ship.

"I may have seen them in 2003 on a previous trip which made me eager to return. I wanted to know more about these amazing petrels and understand better how we can help them," said Mr Shirihai, whose account is due to be published in the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club.

Due to the bird's similarity to the Tahiti petrel, it has been very difficult for him to prove that it really existed.

According to reports from International Animal Rescue, the bird may only visit its nesting burrows at night - making its protection even more complex.