Black Woodpecker

I have just returned from a week with Marie Louise Ng in China’s largest province – Xinjiang – in the far north west.  Xinjiang is vast, covering an area greater than France, Spain and Portugal combined.  And with just a handful of birders.  It’s almost certainly THE place to visit to add new species to the China list and with an avifauna list resembling that of Europe, it’s a superb place to see some species that can be found nowhere else in China.  For a European like me, a visit to this stunningly beautiful province offers an opportunity to re-acquaint oneself with some familiar birds, such as Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Nightingale, House Sparrow and a whole lot more.  We recorded over 160 species.

A full report will appear here soon.

With very little hunting, many of the birds in Xinjiang are much more approachable than I have become accustomed to in eastern China.  As a taster, here is a video of BLACK WOODPECKER….  this male devoured ants just a few metres away, seemingly oblivious to our presence.

 

4 thoughts on “Black Woodpecker”

    1. Thanks John! I am experimenting with the iPhone adaptor for the Swarovski ATX scope.. and it’s very impressive. I had to take some steps back away from this Black Woodpecker as it was initially too close!

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