CHIFFCHAFF – new for Beijing (or not)

Beijing doesn’t have a rarities committee and the most recent municipality bird list was published in 2011.  So keeping a handle on the birds recorded in the capital requires a combination of finding birds oneself, building as many links as possible with local birders and monitoring the websites that showcase the work of the burgeoning local community of bird photographers.

It was the latter that revealed the presence of what we initially thought was Beijing’s first CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺).  Early in the new year, friend Li Xiaomai spotted some images of a CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺), taken in the Olympic Forest Park, on the www.birdnet.cn website and alerted local birders.  The photographer was apparently waiting for the appearance of a WINTER WREN (鹪鹩) when a “warbler” popped into view and he, opportunistically, reeled off some photos and posted them on the Beijing section of the website.  Little did he know that he had snapped a major rarity!

With a new smartphone “chat group” recently set up in Beijing to share bird sightings, news of the presence of this CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺) spread fast and, the next morning, there was a massive (by Beijing standards) “twitch” for the bird involving 8 birders, both ex-pat and Chinese.

After hearing the bird call once early morning from a dense reedbed, there was no sign for the next few hours in an extensive search of the ‘wetland’ area, in which it was reported to be feeding the previous day.  Reluctantly, I decided to leave as I had lots to do, and I began to make my way out of the park to the metro station with friend, Jennifer Leung.  On the way out, almost at the end of the reedbed area, I spotted a small bird feeding low down on the edge of the reeds.  It looked promising and, quickly lifting my binoculars, I could see that it was the CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺).  Jennifer watched it as I called and messaged the other birders on site, who had by now dispersed over a wide area.  I then settled down to observe and photograph the bird as it fed, very obligingly, along the base of a small reedbed just a couple of metres away.

2014-01-07 tristis Chiffchaff
CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺, Phylloscopus collybita tristis), Olympic Forest Park, Beijing, 7 January 2014.
COMMON CHIFFCHAFF ssp tristis, Olympic Forest Park, Beijing, 6 January 2014.  At the time, thought to be the first record for the capital.
CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺, Phylloscopus collybita tristis), Olympic Forest Park. The first documented record for Beijing.
Although slightly blurred, this photo shows the greenish/yellow tinge under the shoulder.

Fortunately, two local birders Zhu Lei and Que Pinjia were on the scene quickly and secured excellent views but, disappointingly, the bird soon disappeared into a dense reedbed before the others arrived.  It was seen briefly later in the afternoon and has been seen on several days since.

As expected for a vagrant CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺) in eastern China, the bird was of the ‘tristis‘ subspecies.  The greyish brown plumage, jet-black legs and bill and the high-pitched and slightly down-slurred call were all typical of this race, considered by some to be a full species.

At the time we all thought that this bird was the first CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺) to be recorded in Beijing.  It does not appear on the municipality list by Liu Yang from 2011 and there are no reports on the Birdtalker database.  However, it has since come to light that one was seen in February 2008 at Baiwangshan (in the northwest of the city) by respected local birder, Wen Chen.  So the Olympic Forest Park bird is the second record for the capital.

With thanks to Paul Holt, here is a short summary of the status of CHIFFCHAFF (叽喳柳莺) in China:

“Chiffchaff wasn’t an unexpected addition to the Beijing list as there are at least three reports from coastal Hebei (one on Happy Island on 14 May 2002; one at Lighthouse Point, Beidaihe during 16-19 May 2006 & one in the Lotus Hills, Beidaihe on 10 May 2007).  Despite the timing of the Hebei records (May – when there are lots of birders in the Happy Island-Beidaihe area), winter has always been thought to be the most likely time this species would turn up in Beijing.  

There’s at least one winter record from Yancheng NNR in coastal Jiangsu Province and seven (?) records from Hong Kong (including one recently in “Long Valley”). This form of Chiffchaff, Phylloscopus collybita tristis, winters in India & it’s sometimes split as Siberian Chiffchaff P. tristis.  In China it’s restricted to breeding in the Altai Mountains of northern Xinjiang Province (north-west China) but is a locally common passage migrant through much of at least the western part of that province. Elsewhere it occurs as a fairly common migrant in western Qinghai where Jesper Hornskov (in an unpublished report on the Birds recorded at Golmud, Qinghai Province, China, 1980-1994) recorded 256 bird-days – just one spring record (23 March 1994) but fairly common between 25 September and 21 November, plus a late straggler on the 18 December 1990. Numbers varied year on year with 132 bird-days & a high count of 10 on the 3 November in 1991 compared to just 68 bird-days and a high count of eight on the 3 October in 1993.

There’s a record from Shandong Province in the new checklist and Common Chiffchaff has apparently also been recorded in Liaoning Province (it was included in Bai Qingquan’s unpublished List of the Birds of Liaoning, Jan. 2012), Henan Province (as it was included in an unpublished List of the Birds of Dongzhai NNR, Luoshan provided by researcher Du Zhiyong on 4 January 2010), Shaanxi Province (one at Yangxian on the 15 Dec 2003 [Phil Heath] was the first, and possibly still the only provincial record), another was photographed at Yandong Lake, Wuhan on 4 December 2009 (Zhang Shuyong in China Bird Watch 71, p32) – the first record for Hubei Province.  There’s a short article on this occurrence in the same issue. The Jiangsu record is of one that was seen at Yancheng NNR by Mark Beaman & a BirdQuest group sometime in the 1990s.”

Baer’s Pochards back in Beijing!

On Saturday 12 October I visited Wild Duck Lake (both Ma Chang and Yeyahu NR) with Jesper Hornskov and Ben Wielstra.  As usual with this site in October, expectations were high as I set off at 0445 to pick up Ben, then Jesper, before heading over the mountains past Badaling Great Wall and on to Ma Chang.  

On arrival, the water level at Guanting Reservoir was the highest I have ever seen.  Consequently most of the viewing points that I have used in the past to observe the reservoir are no longer accessible, meaning that we had no opportunity to view the duck on the open water.  A couple of CHINESE GREY SHRIKES, a MERLIN, a few lingering juvenile AMUR FALCONS, some early BEAN GEESE and a flock of 23 MONGOLIAN LARKS kept us entertained at Ma Chang before we decided to hot-foot it over to Yeyahu Nature Reserve to spend some time at the new viewing tower.

2013-08-30 new tower hide at Yeyahu NR
The new viewing tower at Yeyahu NR. It offers an impressive vista over the entire reserve, and beyond, as well as providing a superb place from where to watch raptors.

As we made our way out of Ma Chang along the unpaved access track I caught sight of a raptor to the north of us, gliding west.  I slammed on the brakes (not as dramatic as it sounds when you are only moving at about 5mph) and glanced through my binoculars.  It was big.  An eagle.  I should say at this point that, only a few minutes before, I was chatting to Jesper and Ben about the potential for a STEPPE EAGLE.  I had seen GREATER SPOTTED EAGLE and IMPERIAL EAGLE at Wild Duck Lake before but never STEPPE.  As I looked through my binoculars, I could see a pale bar on the underwing and my heart raced – it looked like a first calendar year STEPPE EAGLE!  We all jumped out of the car and it began to circle, offering us superb views with the sun behind us.  I grabbed my camera and reeled off a few shots before just enjoying the bird as it gained height and eventually drifted off west.  Wow!  A new bird for me in Beijing.

2013-10-12 Steppe Eagle juv
First calendar year STEPPE EAGLE, Ma Chang, 12 October 2013.

Elated, and buoyed by our seemingly potent ability to talk up species at will, we began to chat about all sorts of obviously impossible targets for the day such as SWINHOE’S RAIL, STREAKED REED WARBLER, CRESTED SHELDUCK and, of course, BAER’S POCHARD.  

A few minutes later we arrived at Yeyahu NR and, after a celebratory cup of coffee, made our way into the reserve and headed for the new watchtower.  On the way we experienced a modest passage of raptors with NORTHERN GOSHAWK, EURASIAN SPARROWHAWK, COMMON (EASTERN) BUZZARD and, again after talking about a likely species, SHORT-TOED EAGLE.  It was turning into a very good day.

We reached the tower after about 20 minutes and set up stall, hoping that the early promise might continue.  A few more NORTHERN GOSHAWKS, COMMON (EASTERN) BUZZARDS, a HEN HARRIER and an additional SHORT-TOED EAGLE kept us interested and then another large eagle came into view from the east…  As it drifted closer, we could see it wasn’t the expected GREATER SPOTTED EAGLE (regular at this time of year) but a STEPPE EAGLE!  Given the direction and timing, almost certainly a second individual.

As the day wore on, cloud cover increased and the raptor passage seemed to stop, so we decided to head for the newly flooded area in the hope of sighting some duck, including a target for Ben – BAIKAL TEAL.

We didn’t see any BAIKAL TEAL but we did see good numbers of MALLARD, SPOT-BILLED DUCK, GADWALL, FALCATED DUCK, RED-CRESTED POCHARD and a handful of FERRUGINOUS DUCK.  As we made our way along a track through the flooded area, we encountered some COMMON REED BUNTINGS.  I don’t see many COMMON REED BUNTINGS in Beijing (it’s a case of picking out a COMMON among all the PALLAS’S REED and LITTLE BUNTINGS – I can feel your sympathy) so I decided to hang back to take some photographs as Jesper and Ben headed to a small viewing area overlooking one of the ponds.

I had a frustrating time with the buntings but did manage some record photos.

COMMON REED BUNTING
COMMON REED BUNTING, Yeyahu NR, 12 October 2013.  It’s a bind to pick these out amongst all the PALLAS’S REED and LITTLE BUNTINGS..  sigh…

Just as I was about to leave the buntings to catch up with Jesper and Ben, a pair of Ferruginous Duck/Baer’s Pochards flew past and, as I had my camera set up, I reeled off a couple of photos as they plunged down onto one of the small pools in the reedbed.  I didn’t even look at the camera to check the images as I already felt I had been too long trying to photograph the buntings – and they would almost certainly be Ferruginous. However, as I caught up with Jesper and Ben, I mentioned that I had seen two Ferruginous/Baer’s-type ducks to which Jesper replied that they had seen three definite Ferruginous..  I (erroneously, as it turned out) assumed that I had seen two of the three birds they had seen, so I didn’t think any more of it…..  ***LESSON HERE***

From the watchpoint, we viewed a small area of the pool on which ‘my’ birds alighted and it was busy – lots of Gadwall, Falcated Duck and Mallard were moving around and flying in and out.  But no sign of the ‘Ferruginous/Baer’s types’.  As the light began to fade, we left and headed back to Beijing. 

At home, as I uploaded my photos from the day, I had a double-take when I saw the two images of the Ferruginous/Baer’s type duck I had seen.  One appeared to have a green tinge to the head and, structurally, they looked wrong for Ferruginous.  They were BAER’S POCHARDS!  

BAER'S POCHARDS, Yeyahu NR, Beijing, 12 October 2013
BAER’S POCHARDS, Yeyahu NR, Beijing, 12 October 2013
2013-10-12 Baer's Pochards2
Another image of the BAER’S POCHARDS from Yeyahu NR yesterday. Poor photos but the structure, colouration and underpart markings all fit with Baer’s.

Having known that Ben was particularly keen to see BAER’S POCHARD, I felt terrible.  If only I had looked at the photos at the time, I would have realised that there was a pair of BAER’S POCHARDS on that pool and we could have stayed longer in the hope that they reappeared.  But as it was, we left in ignorance and it was only when I got home that I realised.  Sorry Ben!  

The silver lining is that I will almost certainly take Ben to Wild Duck Lake again while he is in Beijing and I have even offered to take him to the breeding site in Hebei Province to hopefully see them there…   It’s a lesson learned.

In any case, it was another superb day at this brilliant site.  Is there a capital city in the world with birding as good as this?  If so, I want to know about it!

Full species list below.  Thanks to Jesper and Ben for their company on the day.

 

Common Pheasant  Phasanius colchicus  – 6+

Bean Goose  Anser fabalis serrirostris  – 15

Ruddy Shelduck  Tadorna ferruginea  – one (plus a couple of possibly captive ones…)

Gadwall  Anas strepera  – 60+

Falcated Duck  Anas falcata – 17+

Mallard  Anas platyrhynchos  – 400+

Chinese Spotbill  Anas zonorhyncha  – 75+ 

Northern Pintail  Anas acuta  – two

Common Teal  Anas crecca  – two

Red-crested Pochard  Netta rufina  – 14 (both males & females ‘scoped)

Common Pochard  Aythya ferina  – eight

Baer’s Pochard  Aythya baeri  – a pair photographed [TT]

Ferruginous Duck  Aythya nyroca  – three

Smew  Mergellus albellus  – four brownheads

Little Grebe  Tachybaptus ruficollis  – nine

Great Crested Grebe  Podiceps cristatus  – three

Eurasian Bittern  Botaurus stellaris  – one (in flight, giving ‘pao!’ call)

Chinese Pond Heron  Ardeola bacchus  – one

Grey Heron  Ardea cinerea  – six

Little Egret  Egretta garzetta  – three

Great Cormorant  Phalacrocorax carbo  – two

Common Kestrel  Falco tinnunculus  – one

Amur Falcon  Falco amurensis  – 12+ (excellent views of several 1st c-y birds)

Merlin  Falco columbarius  – two (adult male; unaged female)

Eurasian Hobby  Falco subbuteo  – one

Short-toed Eagle  Circaetus gallicus  – two

Eastern Marsh Harrier  Circus spilonotus  – one 1st c-y (an unusually dark individual, with hardly any pale on crown, no noticeable pale rump, effectively no pale on forewing & an at most very faint breast band)

Hen Harrier  Circus cyaneus  – four 1st c-y

Eurasian Sparrowhawk  Accipiter nisus  – eight

Northern Goshawk  Accipiter gentilis – two

Common Buzzard  Buteo buteo japonicus  – 7+

Steppe Eagle  Aquila nipalensis  – 1-2 (a 1st c-y circling & gliding 10h42 as we were leaving Machang & probably another – in identical plumage, as far as we could tell – over YYH reserve at 12h20…)

Common Moorhen  Gallinula chloropus  – two

Common Coot  Fulica atra  – 16

Northern Lapwing  Vanellus vanellus  – 70

Pacific Golden Plover  Pluvialis fulva  – eight 1st c-y

Common Snipe  Gallinago gallinago  – one

Common Black-headed Gull  Larus ridibundus  – 15+

Oriental Turtle Dove  Streptopelia orientalis  – three

Eurasian Collared Dove  Streptopelia decaocto  – four

Great Spotted Woodpecker  Dendrocopos major  – five

Chinese Grey Shrike  Lanius sphenocercus  – four (mostly showing very well…)

Azure-winged Magpie  Cyanopica cyanus  – two

Common Magpie  Pica pica  – 60+ (not counting birds en route!)

Daurian Jackdaw  Corvus dauuricus  – c390 (main event a flock of c325)

Rook  Corvus frugilegus  – one (up close, feeding in a field)

Eastern Great Tit  Parus minor  – three

Yellow-bellied Tit  Parus venustulus  – nine

Marsh Tit  Parus palustris

Chinese Penduline Tit  Remiz (pendulinus) consobrinus  – five (incl a juvenile sitting up nicely)

Long-tailed Tit  Aegithalos caudatus  – 5+ heard (presumably ssp vinaceus)

Mongolian Lark  Melanocorypha mongolica  – 23 (one flock taking off from harvested maize field,then flying around allowing nice views before dropping back down distantly)

Asian Short-toed Lark  Calandrella cheleensis  – two

Eurasian Skylark  Alauda arvensis  – 155+

Chinese Hill Warbler  Rhopophilus pekinensis  – three

Chinese Bulbul  Pycnonotus sinensis  – 13

Black-browed Reed Warbler  Acrocephalus bistrigiceps  – 17

Pallas’s Leaf Warbler  Phylloscopus proregulus  – five

Yellow-browed Warbler  Phylloscopus inornatus  – two

Vinous-throated Parrotbill  Paradoxornis webbianus  – 50+

Northern Wren  Troglodytes troglodytes  – one seen, didn’t call [BW]

White-cheeked Starling  Sturnus cineraceus  – c50

Eurasian Starling  Sturnus vulgaris  – four

Naumann’s Thrush  Turdus naumanni  – two

Northern Red-flanked Bluetail  Tarsiger cyanurus  – two

Daurian Redstart  Phoenicurus auroreus  – six

Eurasian Tree Sparrow  Passer montanus  – v

Siberian Accentor  Prunella montanella  – seven

White Wagtail  Motacilla alba  – five (two ocularis; three ‘?’)

Olive-backed Pipit  Anthus hodgsoni  – five

Buff-bellied Pipit  Anthus rubescens japonicus  – 70

Water Pipit  Anthus spinoletta blakistoni  – one

Brambling  Fringilla montifringilla  – 20

Oriental Greenfinch  Carduelis sinica  – 12

Eurasian Siskin  Carduelis spinus  – heard

Pine Bunting  Emberiza leucocephalos  – nine migr

Little Bunting  Emberiza pusilla  – 115+

Yellow-throated Bunting  Emberiza elegans  – five

Black-faced Bunting  Emberiza spodocephala  – eight

Pallas’s Reed Bunting  Emberiza pallasi  – 40+

Common Reed Bunting  Emberiza schoeniclus  – 11 (several seen well & heard calling)

 

Mammals:

Siberian Weasel Mustela sibirica  – one [JH]

 

Seeing Double

On Friday I visited Ma Chang with Global Times journalist Jiang Yuxia (writing an article about birding in Beijing) and Jennifer Leung.  After a few days of cold and windy weather, the forecast was for a change in the wind from a cold northerly to a light southerly and for temperatures to soar from the recent chilly highs of 10-12 degrees Celsius to over 20 degrees C.

After a 0500 start we reached Ma Chang at around 0630.  It was a stunning morning with good visibility, clear skies and almost no wind, disguising the -2 early morning temperature.  Along the entrance track we encountered Jesper Hornskov with a couple of clients.  They were watching a party of Bohemian Waxwings feeding on the buds of some large trees – a nice start to the day.  At Ma Chang, as expected at this time of year, we soon spotted a group of ORIENTAL PLOVERS and a count revealed over 60 birds present – a fantastic total.

Oriental Plover, Ma Chang.  The flock now exceeds 60 birds.
Oriental Plover, Ma Chang. Getting bored of these yet??  The flock now exceeds 60 birds.

We moved on to the spit and settled in alongside the local fishing folk for a little visible migration.

Yuxia speaks to the local fishermen about life at Ma Chang...
Yuxia speaks to the local fishermen about life at Ma Chang…

A few Buff-bellied and Water Pipits, with the odd White Wagtail, flew overhead and a couple of tightly packed flocks of Greater Short-toed Larks wheeled around the remnants of last year’s maize stubble.  A Black (eared) Kite lumbered past and two female Eastern Marsh Harriers caused havoc among the flocks of Eurasian Teal.

With not much happening we decided to move on and, after a short stop at a flooded field to admire two stunning BAIKAL TEAL, we headed to the ‘island’ to the north of the desert area to look for duck…  Jesper and his clients were already in situ and, although quite distant, it was clear that there were lots of duck present.  Two relatively close (but distant to photograph!) Red-breasted Mergansers represented bird species number 299 for me in Beijing… result!

Red-breasted Mergansers, Ma Chang.  A scarce bird in the capital.
Red-breasted Mergansers, Ma Chang. A scarce bird in the capital.  Looks as if this pair has had a quarrel…

With the duck distant, I knew that moving to the location from where I had seen the Baer’s Pochard last Sunday would again be a good vantage point.  We headed to the spot and, sure enough, we were treated to stunning views of a large mixed raft of duck with the sun behind us and no wind…  perfect, and very unusual, conditions at Wild Duck Lake.

We quickly found a drake BAER’S and, almost immediately, spotted another drake.  There were two!

The two BAER'S POCHARDS at Ma Chang on Friday
The two BAER’S POCHARDS at Ma Chang on Friday.  With Ferruginous Duck, Gadwall and Common Pochard.

As on Sunday with the single drake, the two Baer’s were consorting with Ferruginous Duck and both were seen displaying…  fabulous!  It was from here that we also enjoyed some stunning views of Falcated Duck (including one very unusually marked male which sported a yellow mark on its lower cheek), Tufted Duck, Common Pochard, Smew, Shoveler, Gadwall, Mallard, Common Teal, Spot-billed Duck, Coot and Little and Great Crested Grebes.  It was a great morning’s birding!

The gang at Ma Chang after seeing the two Baer's Pochards...
The gang at Ma Chang after seeing the two Baer’s Pochards…

A short time later, a couple of Black Kites appeared and, as our eyes began to be distracted from the duck to the skies, it wasn’t long before I spotted an aquila eagle some distance away…  My instinct was that it was probably a Greater Spotted Eagle, the most common aquila eagle at this site at this time of year.  However, as it soared, Jesper immediately suspected it was an IMPERIAL EAGLE… and he was right!

It circled distantly and was soon joined by a second, but smaller, eagle..  This second bird had a notably square tail, pale markings on the upperwing coverts and mantle and, as it turned, it was even possible to glimpse the ‘landing lights’…  wow.. A BOOTED EAGLE!  Two very good eagle records for Beijing in the same scope view!

Both appeared to drift away and were lost from view without allowing me to capture any photographic record.  However, fortunately, the Imperial soon re-appeared, this time closer, and I grabbed the camera to capture a few record images before it drifted into the mountains to the north.  The bulging secondaries, typical of immature Imperial Eagle, can be seen very well, as well as the pale markings on the under- and upperwing.  The ‘jizz’ was slightly different to Greater Spotted, too.  A useful lesson for me (I have only ever seen one Eastern Imperial Eagle before).

Immature Eastern Imperial Eagle, Ma Chang.
Immature Eastern Imperial Eagle, Ma Chang.
Imperial Eagle (upperparts).
Eastern Imperial Eagle (upperparts).

Unfortunately the BOOTED EAGLE didn’t return but maybe it will linger in the area.. it’s a fabulous Beijing record with only a handful of previous sightings in eastern China.  It also represented my 300th species in Beijing [NB Stop Press: Booted Eagle seen at Miyun Reservoir on Saturday by Jan-Erik Nilsen – the same bird?]  It’s hard for me to see new birds in the capital now, so to see two new species in one day was pretty special..

The infamous NW Wild Duck Lake wind suddenly got up at around 1130 and Jesper and his clients decided to head off to check Yeyahu NR.  We decided to stay and enjoy the Baer’s Pochards a little longer.  We gave it another hour or so before calling it a day and heading back to Beijing..  another cracking day at this world class site.

Full Species List (71 species):

Common Pheasant – 2
Swan Goose – 14
Bean Goose – 12
Ruddy Shelduck – 36
Gadwall – 30
Falcated Duck – 100+
Eurasian Wigeon – 10
Mallard – 32
Spot-billed Duck – 8
Shoveler – 12
Garganey – 2
Baikal Teal – 2
Eurasian Teal – 87
Common Pochard – 78
Baer’s Pochard – 2 drakes
Ferruginous Duck – 18
Tufted Duck – 15
Common Goldeneye – 6
Smew – 20
Goosander – 2
Red-breasted Merganser – 2
Little Grebe – 13
Great Crested Grebe – 14
Great Bittern – 2
Grey Heron – 8
Little Egret – 1
Great Cormorant –
Eurasian Kestrel – 1
Osprey – 3
Black-eared Kite – 3
Eastern Marsh Harrier – 5
Eurasian Sparrowhawk – 1
(Common) Eastern Buzzard – 2
Eastern Imperial Eagle – 1 immature
Booted Eagle – 1
Coot – 39
Common Crane – 70+
Black-winged Stilt – 14
Grey-headed Lapwing – 3
Northern Lapwing – 48
Little Ringed Plover – 18
Kentish Plover – 35
Oriental Plover – 62
Common Gull – 4
Mongolian Gull – 7
Black-headed Gull – 27
Oriental Turtle Dove – 3
Collared Dove – 2
Fork-tailed Swift – 3
Common Kingfisher – 1
Hoopoe – 10
Grey-headed Woodpecker – 2
Chinese Grey Shrike – 1
Azure-winged Magpie – 6
Red-billed Blue Magpie – 2
Common Magpie – lots
Daurian Jackdaw – c85
Carrion Crow – 2
Large-billed Crow – 2
Bohemian Waxwing – 11
Barn Swallow – 3
Red-rumped Swallow – 1
Greater Short-toed Lark – 110
Asian Short-toed Lark – 2
Eurasian Skylark – 2
White-cheeked Starling – 2
Tree Sparrow – lots
White Wagtail – 12 (11 leucopsis, 2 ocularis)
Buff-bellied Pipit – 18
Water Pipit – 6
Pallas’s Bunting – 12

First for Beijing: White Wagtail ssp personata

On Saturday I visited Wild Duck Lake (Ma Chang and Yeyahu) with Jesper Hornskov, Hui Ying (James) and his friend ‘Leila’.  We enjoyed another fantastic spring day and recorded some excellent species including 31 Oriental Plovers, single Short-toed and Greater Spotted Eagles and some spectacular views of Baikal Teal.  But the star of the show for me was a White Wagtail of the subspecies ‘personata‘ which spent some time around the yurts to the west of Ma Chang.  As far as I am aware, this is the first record of this subspecies in Beijing and, indeed, anywhere in north-east China.  According to Alstrom and Mild (authors of “Pipits and Wagtails”) the ‘personata’ subspecies breeds in Central Asia from the Russian Altay, Kuznetsk Ala Tau and Western Sayan Mountains, southwest through east &  south Kazakhstan, the Tian Shan Mountains, west Mongolia, northwest and western Xinjiang, parts of northwest Kashmir, north Pakistan, Afghanistan, northern Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. It is a rare vagrant to Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Bahrain, N Burma & Hong Kong.

White Wagtail ssp personata. The first record of this subspecies in Beijing.

The subspecies of White Wagtail we usually see in Beijing are ‘leucopsis‘ and ‘ocularis‘.  Some recent images of males of these subspecies are below for comparison.

White Wagtail ssp leucopsis (adult male), Beijing, 15 April 2012. Note black back and nape and 'clean' white face.
White Wagtail ssp ocularis (adult male), Beijing, 15 April 2012. Note grey back, black nape and black eyestripe on white face.

As well as the wagtail there were plenty of other birds to enjoy all day: the flocks of Greater Short-toed Larks, the small party of Relict Gulls, the Oriental Plovers (which unfortunately flew off strongly north before we saw them on the ground), the fantastic late afternoon display of Baikal Teal (easily my best ever views), the first Oriental Pratincoles of the year,  displaying Eastern Marsh Harriers, the newly arrived Chinese Penduline Tits, the list goes on.  Fantastic birding….

Eastern Marsh Harrier (male), Yeyahu, 14 April 2012
Eastern Marsh Harrier (male), Yeyahu, 14 April 2012
Eastern Marsh Harrier (male), Yeyahu, 14 April 2012
Oriental Pratincole, Ma Chang, 14 April 2012
Baikal Teal, Yeyahu. We enjoyed spectacular views of this special duck in the later afternoon sun as they were repeatedly spooked by the patrolling Eastern Marsh Harriers.
Eurasian Spoonbills, Ma Chang, 14 April 2012

A big thanks to Hui Ying, Leila and Jesper for their company – a thoroughly enjoyable day!

Hui Ying (James) and Leila at the viewing tower, Yeyahu.
Leila checking out an Eastern Marsh Harrier, Yeyahu, 14 April 2012

Full species list (courtesy of Jesper):

Common Pheasant  Phasanius colchicus  – nine

Swan Goose  Anser cygnoides  – two

Bewick’s Swan  Cygnus columbianus  – nine

Ruddy Shelduck  Tadorna ferruginea  – 63

Gadwall  Anas strepera  – 200

Falcated Duck  Anas falcate  – 70

Eurasian Wigeon  Anas Penelope  – three

Mallard  Anas platyrhynchos  – 100+

Chinese Spotbill  Anas zonorhyncha  – 13+ 

Northern Shoveler  Anas clypeata  – six

Garganey  Anas querquedula  – one male

Baikal Teal  Anas Formosa  – 85+ (at most 100)

Common Teal  Anas crecca  – 20

Red-crested Pochard  Netta rufina  – one pair

Common Pochard  Aythya ferina  – five

Ferruginous Duck  Aythya nyroca  – two in flight over River at YYH

Tufted Duck  Aythya fuligula  – four

Common Goldeneye  Bucephala clangula  – three

Smew  Mergellus albellus  – 11+

Goosander  Mergus merganser  – six

Little Grebe  Tachybaptus ruficollis  – 20+

Great Crested Grebe  Podiceps cristatus  – 38+

Eurasian Spoonbill  Platalea leucorodia  – seven (one strictly speaking a Spoonbill sp, heading off W     determinedly over the the main body of water, and six migr right by us)

Eurasian Bittern  Botaurus stellaris  – 4+

Grey Heron  Ardea cinerea  – one

Purple Heron  Ardea purpurea  – three

Great Egret   Ardea alba  – two

Great Cormorant  Phalacrocorax carbo  – three

Common Kestrel  Falco tinnunculus  – three (incl two on ground in newly ploughed ‘field’)

Osprey  Pandion haliaetus  – one at Machang (& possibly the same again at YYH, carrying a freshly     caught fish & mobbed by two 2nd c-y mongolicus)

Black Kite  Milvus migrans lineatus  – two

Short-toed Eagle  Circaetus gallicus  – one ‘soared up, turned to hover a couple of times, then ->N 15h01

Eastern Marsh Harrier  Circus spilonotus  – 11+

Eurasian Sparrowhawk  Accipiter nisus  – three

Common Buzzard  Buteo buteo japonicus  – 7+ (incl at least one not migr)

Greater Spotted Eagle  Aquila clanga  – one 3rd+ c-y migr at 11h30

***Eagle sp   – one ‘coming down’ 17h15 at YYH (probably Greater Spotted, but Eastern Imp ‘not eliminated’)

Common Coot  Fulica atra  – 90

Black-winged Stilt  Himantopus himantopus  – 40+

Northern Lapwing  Vanellus vanellus – 35+

Little Ringed Plover  Charadrius dubius  – c10

Kentish Plover  Charadrius alexandrinus  – 35+

Oriental Plover  Charadrius veredus  – 31 flew off (of their own volition!) before we found them on the     ground but decent views in flight as they passed @ overhead after a few turns orientating.

Temminck’s Stint  Calidris temminckii  – three

Oriental Pratincole  Glareola maldivarum  – four

‘Yellow-legged’ Gull  Larus (cachinnans) mongolicus – eight (single adult & 3rd c-y, and six 2nd c-y)

Common Black-headed Gull  Larus ridibundus  – 170+

Relict Gull  Larus relictus  – c5 on main body of water ‘disappeared’

Oriental Turtle Dove  Streptopelia orientalis  – one

Eurasian Collared Dove  Streptopelia decaocto  – 6+

Common Kingfisher  Alcedo atthis  – six

Hoopoe  Upupa epops  – one

Great Spotted Woodpecker  Dendrocopos major  – two

Grey-headed Woodpecker  Picus canus  – one

Azure-winged Magpie  Cyanopica cyanus  – ten

Common Magpie  Pica pica  – too many

Carrion Crow  Corvus corone  – one

Large-billed Crow  Corvus macrorhynchos  – one

Eastern Great Tit  Parus minor  – one

Marsh Tit  Parus palustris  – one w/ nest material at YYH

Chinese Penduline Tit  Remiz (pendulinus) consobrinus  – ten

Sand Martin  Riparia riparia  – one at YYH

Barn Swallow  Hirundo rustica  – 20

Greater Short-toed Lark  Calandrella brachydactyla  – 230+

Asian Short-toed Lark  Calandrella cheleensis  – eight

Eurasian Skylark  Alauda arvensis  – ten

Fan-tailed Warbler  Cisticola juncidis  – one heard

Chinese Hill Warbler  Rhopophilus pekinensis  – three at YYH

Vinous-throated Parrotbill  Paradoxornis webbianus  – 30+

White-cheeked Starling  Sturnus cineraceus  – 15

Black-throated Thrush  Turdus atrogularis  – one female-type ‘scoped

Red-throated Thrush  Turdus ruficollis  – 2+ (‘scope views of a yawning, confiding bird)

Naumann’s Thrush  Turdus naumanni   – 4+ en route S of Badaling

Daurian Redstart  Phoenicurus auroreus  – four

Eurasian Tree Sparrow  Passer montanus  – lots

Citrine Wagtail  Motacilla citreola  – one male

White Wagtail  Motacilla alba  – 10+ (incl 2+ ocularis, three baicalensis & one personata – last of     particular interest*: seen repeatedly on ground at Yurts & photographed)

Buff-bellied Pipit  Anthus rubescens japonicus  – 22+

Water Pipit  Anthus spinoletta blakistoni  – 8+

Oriental Greenfinch  Carduelis sinica  – one (+ one en route N of Badaling)

Little Bunting  Emberiza pusilla  – three

Yellow-throated Bunting  Emberiza elegans  – one male

Pallas’s Reed Bunting  Emberiza pallasi  – 55+ (many superb looks…)  

Mammals

Hare sp  – one ‘scoped (should be Tolai Hare but ears looked short, @ length of head only)  


Wild Duck Lake with Phil and Jesper, 25 November 2011

In between leading tours to see Giant Panda in the wild in China (successful) and Tiger in India (fingers crossed), Sweden-based Phil Benstead dropped in on Beijing.  Phil is a good friend from my time in Copenhagen: we hooked up for a few birding trips in 2009 and 2010, including around Phil’s local patch in Båstad Kommune, Falsterbo in Skåne and the island of Oland.

Phil arrived on Thursday with the Townshend household in something of a crisis.  We were supposed to be cooking a turkey for 9, including two American friends, for Thanksgiving and Libby, who had planned to take the afternoon off work to prepare, was stuck at work…  I was frantically looking on the internet, in between work conference calls to London – to discover precisely how long a 9kg turkey – at that time defrosting in the laundry room – would take to cook….  Phil stepped in magnificently and, after peeling and chopping I don’t know how many potatoes, carrots and green beans, he had certainly earned his supper by the time guests arrived for the 7pm start…  And boy was that turkey good…  (after months of Chinese food, you can’t imagine how good a roast turkey with all the trimmings tasted…!).

After following this blog since I moved to China, Phil wanted to visit my regular patch at Wild Duck Lake and so I had hired a car and we had arranged to leave at 0530 the following morning (tough after a post-midnight dinner party).  We picked up Jesper Hornskov at 0600 and, after some all-too-common traffic issues on the G6 Badaling Expressway (broken down lorries), we arrived at Ma Chang around 0745, around 30 minutes after first light.

The first thing that struck me was that the reservoir was almost completely frozen over.  The weather had turned cold mid-week and it had taken just a couple of cold nights for the water to freeze.  After giving it some time at the spit by the yurts, we checked the island to the north of the ‘desert’ area, lucking in on 2 Daurian Partridges (my first of the winter) on the way, and enjoyed a flock of several hundred Ruddy Shelduck and a rather late Ferruginous Duck.  A couple of inquisitive Chinese Hill Warblers was a bonus.  A very showy Baikal Teal looked a bit lost walking on the ice in a frozen dyke and we enjoyed a couple of Chinese Grey Shrikes hunting over the grassland.  After combing the area for larks – we counted a few Eurasian Skylark and up to 12 Asian Short-toed Larks  plus a bonus Japanese Reed Bunting – we made our way to Yeyahu.  Officially, Yeyahu closed last week but we were able to use the ‘secret entrance’ to gain entry and it was here that we heard (but sadly for Phil didn’t see) a Chinese Penduline Tit,  a few Pallas’s Reed Buntings and a Great Egret.  However, the most exciting sighting of the day was a very uniformly dark medium-sized bittern that flew from the west to east end of the lake.  It was clearly smaller than Eurasian Bittern but larger than Yellow Bittern.  Initially against the light it looked uniformly very dark with longish legs and big feet.  As it flew into better light, it still looked uniformly very dark..  Phil managed to view it through his telescope and saw a pale line below and behind the eye, beginning at the base of the bill…  There were some pale fringes to the wing coverts, indicating a first winter bird.  It dropped in to a reedbed on the far side of the lake and we hurried over to see if we could see it again..  what could it be?  Little Green Heron (Striated) and Black Bittern (a bird that I have never seen) entered our minds..  Jesper didn’t think it looked right for Little Green Heron – the jizz and colour were wrong and the leg length – with clearly protruding legs – wasn’t right for Little Green.  Could it really be a Black Bittern in Beijing in late November??  That would be a very strange record.  Unfortunately, despite spending some time near to where it went down, we did not see it again.

Edit: After looking at many images on the internet, including Oriental Bird Images, Jesper’s view is that it could only have been a Black Bittern.

After seeing a Common Kingfisher literally die in front of our eyes on the ice at the edge of the lake (it was heartbreaking), we walked down to ‘eagle field’ and, on the way, enjoyed my best ever views of Pine Bunting (two birds) and watched a young Upland Buzzard soaring.  Most pleasing were two Great Bustards flying west along the reservoir.

Several decapitated Common Pheasants were a clear sign of a large predator.. possibly Goshawk but more likely an Eagle Owl…  it’s the same area where I saw an Eagle Owl last winter.

We made our way back to the car and, with Naumann’s Thrush the last bird of the day, we headed back to Beijing for dinner with Jesper and his wife, Aiqin.

Saturday morning I visited the Botanical Gardens with Phil and Nick (a friend and non-birder), where Phil scored a few new birds – Chinese Grosbeak, Pere David’s Laughingthrush and Chinese Nuthatch – before he had to make his way to the airport to catch his flight to Delhi.

It was a great couple of days and we saw some good birds.  Phil was a big hit with our friends – as illustrated by the number of offers he had for accommodation in Beijing when he returns next year to lead a similar panda trip in October – and we wish him all the best for the forthcoming trip to India for tigers..  we can’t wait to hear how he gets on.
Full species list for Wild Duck Lake below:

 

Ma Chang and Yeyahu NR 0745-1600.

 

Temp -5 at 0745 increasing to +2 or +3 by early afternoon; very light N wind increasing to force 2-3 by midday; visibility 2-3km.
Reservoir almost completely frozen with just a few small patches of open water.  Yeyahu completely frozen.

 

Highlights: 1 juv/first winter BLACK BITTERN; 2 Great Bustards, Upland Buzzard, 2 Daurian Partridges, 550+ Bean Geese, 200+ Common Cranes, Japanese Reed Bunting

 

Full species list:

 

Daurian Partridge – 2 at Ma Chang
Common Pheasant – 25
Bean Goose – at least 870, probably more.  Most in flight along the north edge of the reservoir with some on the ice itself
Whooper Swan – 42 on the ice, swimming on the open patches of water and in flight
Ruddy Shelduck – 550 at least, mostly on the ice and on the northern side of the reservoir
Eurasian Wigeon – 3
Mallard – 850
Chinese Spot-billed Duck – 12
Baikal Teal – 4-5 seen, including one drake incredibly well in a frozen dyke; probably many more in the distant tight flocks of duck on the patches of open water
Ferruginous Duck – 1 seen from the island north of Ma Chang, possibly with injured wing
Common Goldeneye – 3 seen from Ma Chang but probably many more
Smew – 5-6 seen but probably many more
Goosander – 40 seen
Great Bittern – 3 seen well, including one walking on the open ice
BLACK BITTERN – one juvenile/first winter seen in flight through binoculars for around 30 seconds over the lake at Yeyahu at around 150-200m range.  Initially seen against the light but gradually into better light, this bird was clearly larger than Yellow Bittern but smaller than Great Bittern and uniformly very dark.  Phil managed to see it through the telescope and saw a pale line starting at the base of the bill running back below and behind the eye; streaking below not seen.  Legs were relatively long with large feet.  Slight pale margins seen on the wing coverts, indicating a first winter.  Little Green Heron ruled out on size, colour and leg length; Cinnamon Bittern ruled out on colour and size.
Grey Heron – 1
Great Egret – 1
Kestrel – 1
Merlin – 1 at Ma Chang
Hen Harrier – 3 (two ‘ringtails’ and one imm male)
Eurasian Sparrowhawk – 1
Northern Goshawk – 1 (Phil only)
Upland Buzzard – 1
Great Bustard – 2 in flight from ‘eagle field’ heading west
Common Crane – 200+
Large White-headed Gull sp – 1 seen by Phil at Ma Chang
Black-headed Gull – 3 at Yeyahu
Oriental Turtle Dove – 3
Eurasian Collared Dove – 31
Common Kingfisher – 1.  Seen sitting forlornly on the edge of the ice at the base of some reeds.  After a few minutes, its head dropped onto the ice and, after a brief flapping of its wings, it sat motionless and appeared to die – an early victim of the winter.
Great Spotted Woodpecker – 2
Grey-headed Woodpecker – 2
Chinese Grey Shrike – 3
Azure-winged Magpie – 6
Common Magpie – lots
Rook – 8
Carrion Crow – 6
Large-billed Crow – 1
Great Tit – 4
Marsh Tit – 3
Chinese Penduline Tit  – 1 (heard only)
Asian Short-toed Lark – 13 at Ma Chang
Eurasian Skylark – 6
Chinese Hill Warbler – 4, including 2 on the island north of Ma Chang
Vinous-throated Parrotbill – 40+
Naumann’s Thrush – 1 ssp naumanni at Yeyahu
Tree Sparrow – many
Pine Bunting – 4, including 2 showing exceptionally well at Yeyahu
Pallas’s Reed Bunting – 30+
Japanese Reed Bunting – 1 at Ma Chang.  Flushed from short grass 2-3 times and seen only in flight.  (Very bad) photo attached.
Japanese Reed Bunting, Ma Chang, 25 November 2011: wildlife photograph of the year?
Chinese Grey Shrike hunting at Ma Chang, 25 November 2011

Great White Pelican!

Well, we talked that up!

After Brian Jones’s post about Wild Duck Lake and his comment that there was always a “Yeyahu surprise” I guess I should not have been shocked that my next visit in prime migration season should produce a Chinese mega in the form of a Great White Pelican!  Even so this record, the significance of which I only realised after returning home, was way beyond my wildest expectations.

Great White Pelican (GWP) is a very rare bird in China.  In fact any Pelican sp (Dalmatian is more frequent) is a rare bird in this part of the world.  Jesper Hornskov, of 20 years experience in China, has only seen one other GWP in Xinjiang over 15 years ago.  And Paul Holt has just informed me that my sighting is the second record for the Beijing area, the first being at Miyun Reservoir in October-November 2009.  Fortunately, given I was not able to secure any images of the Wild Duck Lake bird and the fact it was only present for around 90 minutes, Jesper was also coincidentally in the vicinity and saw it in flight.

This is the story…

With Libby in Shanghai with her visiting sister, I decided to take the opportunity to travel up to Yanqing on Friday evening and stay over to allow a dawn start at WDL.  After enjoying a Friday night in the happening town of Yanqing (or rather being in bed by 9pm), I arrived at Ma Chang at first light (about 0545) and, after checking the ‘desert area’ for Oriental Plovers (no sign) and enjoying the flocks of Greater Short-toed Larks that were wheeling around, I made for the narrow spit to the west (complete with yurts) to check the reservoir.  On arrival here, at about 0705, I immediately saw a large white bird with the naked eye at the far side of the reservoir and thought it must be a late swan.  But it looked big.  I set up the telescope and was shocked to see a pelican sp swimming on the water!  It was resting on the far side of the reservoir among a large flock of some 250+ Black-headed Gulls.  I immediately sent SMSs to Jesper and Brian Jones and Jesper responded to say he was also at WDL but in a different part (!) and asked for directions.  I explained where it was but wasn’t sure whether or not Jesper could see it from his vantage point.  I then watched the bird for about an hour during which time it preened and swam along the far side of the reservoir, looking settled.  At one point a small group of 8 Relict Gulls flew right over it!  On any other day, the Relict Gulls would have been the star of the show…  I knew there had been the odd record of Dalmatian Pelican in the Beijing area, so assumed it must be this species (having seen neither I was not sure of the identification criteria).  But nevertheless, I took some notes on the features I could see.  Although distant, I could see that it was large, bulkier than a swan, and the plumage was a brilliant white with a yellowish bill.  At about 0830 I left the reservoir to do my normal walk to Yeyahu.  Jesper was further north and east of me and I assumed, as I had not seen or heard from him, that he had been able to pick it up.  Then, at 0845, as I was walking east, Jesper sent me a text to say the pelican was in flight over the reservoir.  I picked it up easily in my bins and then watched it through my telescope as it circled, gained height and, after a few minutes, was lost to view in the murk.  I took some notes about the features I could see.  In flight, it looked a brilliant white against the mountains as it soared, with intermittent wingbeats.  On the upperside, there was a clear and sharp contrast between the black wing tips and black secondaries and the brilliant white plumage.  I did not clearly see the underside.  Jesper then sent me a SMS to say the wing pattern fitted Great White.  It was only when I returned home and looked at the literature that I realised, from my notes, that it was definitely a Great White and just how rare it is in northern China.  Unfortunately, at no time did it come close enough for me to obtain a photo.  I am just very pleased that Jesper saw it too!

I am assuming that it was a wild bird but, of course, there is the possibility of it being a free-flying escape from some park.  I’ll try to do some digging about this possibility.

Wild Duck Lake just keeps on producing….

Guest Post 3: Brian Jones – The Magic of Yeyahu NR and Ma Chang (Wild Duck Lake)

The third in the series of guest posts on Birding Beijing is from Brian Jones. Brian was kind enough to take me on my first visit to Wild Duck Lake (covering the areas of Ma Chang and Yeyahu Nature Reserve) soon after I arrived in Beijing and his enthusiasm for the place, as well as the great birds, made it a fantastic introduction to birding in China. That enthusiasm was infectious and I have since made regular visits to what is surely the premier birding site in the Beijing area. Brian visited WDL almost every week over a period of three years and thus has an unrivalled understanding of the birding in all seasons at this site and he has racked up an impressive list of records, including an amazing sighting of a Leopard Cat (with photo!). And so, with that short introduction, it’s over to Brian to tell you more about this wonderful place….

The Magic of Yeyahu Nature Reserve and Its Environs of Ma Chang

The viewing tower at "Eagle Field", Yeyahu Nature Reserve

This is my spiritual birdwatching home and somewhere I would recommend to any birder visiting Beijing.  It is good at all times of the year but perhaps marginally less so during June and July.

Yeyahu NR and neighbouring Ma Chang are, to my mind, the premier birdwatching sites in the Beijing area. Surprisingly the area is grossly under-birded and in the three years that I lived in Beijing having visited the site more than 160 times, apart from regulars like Jesper Hornskov, the highly respected China guide and his parties, I have probably seen no more than 30-40 birders.

The reserve lies approximately 80kms to the NW of Beijing and is reached by the Badaling expressway. The trip, depending on delays caused by trucks breaking down, normally takes about one and a half hours. But this can become over two and a half hours with delays so I got into the habit of busing out on Friday evening and staying overnight in Yanqing. My ever-reliable taxi driver Li Yan would look after me like a surrogate mother and pick me up at all hours.

My regular birdwatching companion Spike Millington and I would normally start at Ma Chang which is an open sandy desert-like area surrounded by crop fields mostly Maize and Peanuts.This is a haven for Cranes (Common, White-naped, Hooded, occasionally Demoiselle and Siberian) as well as the elusive Oriental Plover in the Spring (end of March-beginning of May and very occasionally in the Autumn), Great Bustard and raptors.

Demoiselle Crane, Wild Duck Lake

This is a wonderful location for raptors and it is not unusual to reach double figures of species during a day’s birdwatching. Larks are also plentiful including the much sought-after Mongolian Lark which, in the very cold winter of 2009/10, could be found in flocks of 200 birds. That particular winter also produced an irruption of Pallas’s Sandgrouse – one day I counted over 300 birds – and the extraordinary record of a dark variant Gyr Falcon. It is worthwhile exploring the area surrounding the wind turbines to the west of Ma Chang for Great Bustard, which are normally seen during the Autumn and late winter.

Mongolian Lark, Wild Duck Lake
Great Spotted Eagle ssp fulvescens, Wild Duck Lake
Pallass Sandgrouse, Wild Duck Lake, winter 2009/10

You can walk from Ma Chang to Yeyahu NR either through or round the fence that divides the two areas and it is certainly more worthwhile to do so as you will see far more birds than taxi cabbing from one to the other. Daurian Partridge are present in small numbers as well as Japanese Quail. During Winter and Spring time, the walk produces many Buntings, including the occasional irruption of Pine Buntings (one flock of 300 seen in 2010). I have also recorded the rare Streaked Reed Warbler along the edge of the reservoir.

Yeyahu NR produces a remarkable number of species considering the lack of any forested areas. If you want to find large raptors then head for the area we call Eagle field which lies between the lake and the reservoir to the north. Late morning in the Spring and Autumn will normally produce something special. Short-toed Eagle, which is a scarce bird in north China, is easily found here as well as Greater Spotted Eagles. During the winter White-tailed Eagles are commonly seen but, surprisingly, Golden Eagles are rare at Yeyahu. We have also found Booted and Terry Townshend this year saw an Imperial Eagle. I recorded Himalayan Griffon (2010) at this location. I believe it is the only Beijing record and I am quite sure a Steppe Eagle and Lammergeier will one day put in an appearance. Accipiters and Falcons are plentiful depending on the time of year with Saker Falcons being more common than Peregrines and an occasional Siberian Goshawk amongst the Northern Goshawks, being found. During migration it is not unusual to see migrating flocks of 50+ Amur falcons sometimes with small parties of Lesser Kestrel (best location at the bottom of Ma Chang). I found a flock of over 30 Lesser Kestrels one morning.

All the Harriers can be found with good numbers of Eastern Marsh (which breed both at Ma Chang and on the lake), Hen, Pied and on four occasions I have seen Pallid Harriers. Relict Gulls in the Spring and occasionally a Pallas’s Gull will show. Bitterns are common, I estimate there maybe as many as 30 breeding pairs of Great Bitterns in the area as well as good numbers of Von Schrenck’s, a rare bird in most areas of China, and the ubiquitous Yellow Bittern. If you walk along the boardwalk at Yeyahu early in the morning in May you will probably find Crakes or Water Rail. The reedbeds also hold breeding Chinese Penduline Tits, one of the very few places where they breed in the Beijing area, perhaps the only location and last year we recorded the first breeding pair of Chinese Grey Shrikes at Yeyahu for the area. Chinese Grey Shrikes, which are uncommon elsewhere, are common at Yeyahu during the winter.

One of my birdwatching friends Richard Carden from Singapore who has visited the site with me on several occasions has a habit of setting me lists of target birds to find. There have only been two glaring misses to the “list”, Great Bustard and Eagle Owl neither of which is normally that hard to locate at the appropriate time of the year. However Yeyahu made up for these deficiencies by producing an extralimital male Desert Wheatear and a Baird’s Sandpiper (yet to be ratified but the id of which we are both quite certain is correct) as well as a female Pallid Harrier. Peter Ericsson, the well-known guide from Bangkok was also present on one of the red-letter days. I would happily take an oath, that there is no such thing as a bad day during a visit to Yeyahu/Ma Chang. You can always count on the “Yeyahu surprise”.

Yeyahu also supports a considerable bio-diversity especially for lepidoptera, diurnal moths, amphibians and flora. Unfortunately to study lepidoptera you need to look down while birdwatching you are looking up so a choice must be made. I was also very lucky one morning to find myself walking down a track undetected behind a Leopard Cat which are rare now and usually strictly nocturnal.

Leopard Cat, Wild Duck Lake

There are of course aspects which are less favourable not least the “cavalry and dune buggies” who are out all year except during winter in the Ma Chang area.These are riders who charge hither and thither, yelling like cowboys, but falling off with great regularity. It is quite common to see riderless horses heading back to the corral followed some minutes later by a limping vacquero. Dune buggies have a nice habit of getting bogged down as do the cars full of photgraphers who spend much of their time chasing Lapwings. This is why it is worthwhile arriving at Ma Chang by 0700hrs before the Oriental Plovers etc. have been disturbed by the “Charge of the Light Brigade”. There used to be a problem with boatloads of shooting parties, mist netters, snare trappers and long-doggers, all illegal activities in China. But many of these activities have been curtailed because we took a very pro-active stance and “destroyed” all that crossed our path. You can never entirely limit poaching in China because there is a lack of understanding and caring amongst the local population but you can keep it under control by making a big fuss whenever you catch somebody setting up nets etc.
Finally I would recommend to any birder that they walk and not drive round the area. It will prove to be so much more rewarding. If you consider that the area has practically no trees and is mostly flat grassland, the 260 odd species that we have recorded in the reserve is, by China’s birdwatching standards, quite remarkable. I have rarely exceeded 60 species in a day at Yeyahu, but the list will always be full of unusual and exciting birds.

Brian Jones is a 66 years-old Art & Financial consultant who worked at Sothebys for ten years. He has spent three years in China, mostly in Beijing but now based in Shenzhen, working as an independent consultant with a Chinese metals information board and industrial re-cycling group as well as a Chinese investment company.  Brian has a great interest in all aspects of the environment, is a keen ornithologist and entomologist and an avid Scuba diver. He is also an ex-falconer, hence his excitement anytime something with a hooked beak flies past!.

Brown Eared Pheasants

China is pheasant heaven. Most are concentrated in western China, in particular pheasant hot-spots such as Sichuan Province. However, there are one or two in the Beijing area, including the rarely seen Brown Eared Pheasant (BEP). There used to be a site not far to the west of the capital where one could see these shy birds but, as with many good birding spots, a road was built right through it and now, if they are still there (I am not aware of any recent sightings), they are much more difficult to see.

So it was with excitement that some Chinese birders recently discovered that the BEP could be seen quite regularly at a small temple on a hilltop in Jiaocheng in Shanxi Province (west of Beijing). Here the monks feed the pheasants in the winter and they can be seen around the temple, which lies in prime juniper-forested mountains. Around this time of year the birds tend to pair up and move up the mountain side to breed, so it was taking a chance that I decided to make the journey last weekend with Jesper Hornskov and visiting British birder, Richard Gregory.

Brown Eared Pheasant (as opposed to Brown-eared Pheasant) is unusual in pheasants in that the sexes are very similar, the main difference being that males have large round ‘spurs’ on the backs of their feet. It is endemic to northern China and, being resident in small numbers only in Shanxi and Hebei Provinces (and probably also some remain in Beijing municipality), it is listed as “Vulnerable” by the IUCN.

We were VERY fortunate during our visit. Within 15 minutes of arriving at the temple at dawn, we heard at least one calling from the juniper wood above the temple. Shortly afterwards two (almost certainly different birds) flew in to the partially cleared area just below the temple and began to probe around for food. The male delivered an almost Common Snipe-like drumming call at regular intervals and there were at least two other birds above the temple responding. One of the locals told me that there are around 20 birds in the area, many of which come to the temple in winter to take advantage of the food put out by the monks but, at this time of year, most have already moved further up the mountain to prepare to breed. The one pair that is still frequenting the temple treated us to spectacular views as they gradually gained confidence and moved up to the area from where we were viewing, even hopping onto the wall only a few metres away. Brilliant!

After enjoying these birds for around an hour, and sensing that the activity was over for the morning, we decided to take a walk up the track above the temple to look for other birds (both Long-tailed and Chinese Beautiful Rosefinches were seen in the area recently as well as Nutcracker and Songar Tit). The walk took us up through some fantastic original juniper forest habitat where we saw, after a bit of effort, at least 10 Long-tailed Rosefinches (of the subspecies lepidus – which look quite different to the siberian birds I have seen in Dalian) and double figures also of Chinese Beautiful Rosefinches, the latter unfortunately restricted to flight-only views. Nutcrackers of the eastern race were our constant companions and these birds looked very different to the birds I have seen previously in Scandinavia. This race of Nutcracker has a very tan base colour with reduced spotting underneath and much white in the tail – in fact the tail was almost completely white with dark central feathers.

Above the junipers, on the more open ground we expected to see a few raptors. We did, but only a few Eurasian Sparrowhawks, two Kestrels, a single Common Buzzard and a migrating Eastern Marsh Harrier. The walk in itself was fantastic as the sun gradually heated us up from a chilly 2-3 degreed C in the early morning to a balmy 13 or 14 later in the day. A Black Stork circling overhead just as we were leaving was a nice bonus. We left feeling well-exercised and very lucky to have enjoyed such spectacular views of these special birds.

Big thanks to Jesper for making the arrangements and to both Jesper and Richard for their excellent company on the trip. Below are a few images and I will soon post a link to a short video of the pheasants, including their strange call…

Brown Eared Pheasant, Jiaocheng, Shanxi Province, China
A very cooperative male Brown Eared Pheasant
Check out my hair-do
Watching you, watching me..
The light back and tail helps to break up the BEP's shape when snow is on the ground in winter
Can it be any easier?

Another looker..

Now I know many people in the UK have had their fill of Red-flanked Bluetails in the last few months, with the unprecedented influx last autumn. But I bet none of them looked like this…!

Red-flanked Bluetail - smart, eh?

RFBs are beginning to arrive in the Beijing area now and the adult males are absolute stunners. Forgive me for posting a few more images….

STOP PRESS: Jesper Hornskov just sent me a SMS to say he has just seen a GREAT BUSTARD flying over the Summer Palace.. A great record. Spring is here.. let the big migration commence…

A newly arrived RFB
Note the white brow (which the Himalayan form lacks)

Guest Post 2: Jesper Hornskov in Guangxi

The author of the second in the series of guest posts on Birding Beijing is unlikely to need an introduction for anyone who is interested in birding in China. But for the benefit of those not lucky enough to have gone birding in the distant corners of this vast country under his guidance, Jesper Hornskov is a China-based Danish birder who has been living, birding and guiding birders in China for around 20 years. His full profile is at the end of this post. Having had the pleasure of birding with Jesper on my very first birding trip in China, the day after I arrived in Beijing (to see Ibisbills!), and several times since – including an awesome trip to Yunnan Province – I can honestly say that he is one of the best field birders I know (what is it with the Scandies, eh??). He is also a great guy with a very Brit-friendly sense of humour… Enjoy.

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A Relaxed Family Holiday (With a Few Birds!) by Jesper Hornskov

By January the novelty value of N China’s largely agreeable winter – with blue skies the norm and temperatures in Beijing, even with a windchill factored in, never below the ‘bearable’ range – had worn off. Though there was really little cause for complaint except that the continued lack of snow made the Chinese capital increasingly bleak we found it prudent to plan a turn in the south: bring on leafy trees and soft, moist air!

Its outstanding birdwatching opportunities made Yunnan – China’s SW-most and biologically richest province – seem a tricky place to pull off that longed-for ‘relaxed family holiday’ so my wife and I settled for neighbouring Guangxi – nice and green, but without the birding potential that finds one falling into the habit of being on distant hilltops before sunrise!

We reached Nanning, the provincial capital, by plane PM on January 12th, 2011 and caught a taxi to the hotel in town which friends had recommended (and indeed booked for us at a favourable rate!).

Day-to-day (in brief):

13 January: Took a taxi to Qingxiu Shan, a large, ridgetop park/scenic area on the edge of the city. It was a pleasant place for a walk (all the while breathing the hoped-for ‘soft, moist air’): not hard to get away from people, and not crowded; in particular the section over towards Longxiang Pagoda had some decent forest, and a couple of bird photographers whom we later ran into at Shiwan Dashan told us that Qingxiu Shan indeed is the provincial capital’s prime site. Yellow-browed Warblers were calling everywhere, Japanese Whiteeyes were flying back and forth giving their rather Siskiney calls, and in one particularly away-from-people gully we even found a group of Hwameis, a species of Laughingthrush sometimes refer’d to as ‘Melodious Laughingthrush’. This name is well deserved – but its varied, powerful song has made it probably the most popular cagebird in China, much sought by illegal (but widely tolerated) bird trappers as an especially able songster is worth serious money once it has made its way to one of China’s affluent cities.

14 January: We visited ‘Guangxi Botanical Garden of Medicinal Plants’ (there’s apparently another botanical garden as well) in the morning, finding the grounds dense with greenery and with considerable birdwatching potential – we did not do it full justice (but did find several smart Black-breasted Thrushes) as not only were we being picked up by friends at noon but we took time to seek out the clinic’s herbal specialist and purchased various remedies (the miraculous effects of which we are still waiting for at the time of writing!).
In the afternoon we walked along the Yong River on a newly constructed promenade – pleasant enough, but not especially rewarding bird-wise, though we did get close encounters with the ubiquitous Japanese Whiteeyes.

15 January: We caught the 11:30 Longzhou bus from Langdong bus station (busses are @ hourly and we would undoubtedly have got seats even if we hadn’t bought tickets the previous day). The bus was ten minutes late getting underway and then we had half an hour’s drive W across the city before turning S onto the highway – exit for Longzhou, 30-odd kilometers from the town, at 14:20. The further S we travelled the nicer the surroundings – planted bamboos swaying in the breeze; water buffaloes grazing by a river; karst hills in wintry sunshine.

Upon arrival we were met by our host, catching motor tricycles (one for each – what with our bulky luggage we couldn’t both fit into one of the tiny contraptions) to the nearby Longjia hotel while our host followed on his own motorcycle. After a very late lunch we walked over to Zhongshan Park, which turned out to be attractively diverse if somewhat lacking in dense tangles: ‘some tall trees, very few flowers’ – among the highlights were wintering Black Bulbuls (white-headed morph birds are very attractive!), an obliging Red-flanked Bluetail, a close-up Brown Shrike still in immature plumage, and a smart female Japanese Thrush.

16 January: Our host picked us up in a microbus. Stopping briefly at a market to purchase provisions it took barely an hour to reach the Nonggang reserve, where we’d planned to spend three to four days getting acquainted with an area that would perhaps – despite its longstanding status as a National Nature Reserve – have remained of minor importance to birdwatchers had it not been for the recent discovery there of a species new to science, Nonggang Babbler.

After a brief hotpot breakfast (‘To warm up; brrrrrr…’ explained our host: to us, coming from N China, it was at most chilly but to the locals it was cold!) we started on foot into the reserve, admiring the karst hills which looked very lovely, their beauty enhanced under the continuing, not-to-be-taken-for-granted winter sunshine. Finding our bird took a little longer than our host had expected (and the hunt – along obscure tracks – unfortunately cost my wife a twisted leg); indeed, finding any birds at all was comparatively hard work despite the pristine state of the forest away from the valley-bottom maize fields. Nonetheless we managed good looks at a number of more or less widespread species, including Streak-breasted Scimitar Babbler, Streaked Wren Babbler, the recently split (thanks to the advancing techniques of DNA untangling) Schaeffer’s Fulvetta, and a vocal Lesser Racquet-tailed Drongo.

17 January: Even with a good novel to read, even re-read, the welcoming but chilly reserve hostel wasn’t the place to hole up for several days and nurse a leg injury, so we adjusted our plans – ‘another day of seeing what we can, then back to Longzhou’.

As on the previous morning, things were slow initially but little by little our host and I wrung some birds from the quiet forest – and some mammals: a trip highlight was a roving band of Crab-eating Mongoose. Half a dozen Red-flanked Bluetails, a superb male Japanese Thrush, several Bianchi’s Warblers (another split shored up by DNA analysis – how long will we have to wait before a device is marketed that beeps when we get to within a hundred meters of an unusual combination of amino acids? I’d like mine blue, product designers kindly take note!), and a diurnal Barred Owlet.

18 January: Back in town since the night before, we returned to the park after breakfast at the hotel (adding Puff-throated Babbler to our list for our adopted Local Patch), and in the afternoon visited nearby Xiaoliancheng, six kilometers out of town on Bus 2 (leaving across the square from the hotel). Jaded travelers might consider the price charged for access the most remarkable thing about this temple/hilltop fortification (over which several House Swift hung on the breeze), but we’d both seen less interesting places – the uneven steps up to the top were, however, not exactly what the doctor recommended to ease the pain of a leg injury, and so we returned to town to fit in a final stroll in the park before the farewell dinner with our host and his family.

19 January: We departed for Shangsi, gateway to the Shiwan Dashan reserve, on the 8:10 bus – there was just the one direct bus a day, but it would have been possible to catch any of several other busses and change at Chongzuo…

The recommended hotel, the Changcheng, was full so we found ourselves in the not-quite-so-recommended (but entirely adequate) Nanyuan hotel. The desk staff proved friendly and helpful, but the town itself was ‘dreadfully messy’ (the sort of place where you should think twice about visiting the local market if you’re not wearing wellies) as well as chilly.

20 January: Before breakfast I visited the park spotted as we were coming into town yesterday. At the top end of Zhonghua Road it was a ten minute walk from our hotel, straight up the road; the park, covering a minor ridge of topsoil-less, hard earth, has a nine-tier pagoda, some waste grass in erosion gullies, and planted eucalyptus trees (whose flowers attracted hordes of Japanese Whiteeyes and one lovely male Crimson Sunbird), pines, and a tangle of bamboo (home to at least one Hwamei) at the bottom. To find the last walk left along the wall behind the basketball courts when past the pagoda… however, the park is – diplomatically speaking – of limited interest: the sort of place one would not visit except on a morning when ones companion insists on a lie-in!

As in Nanning we took the time to search for miracle cures: this time we picked up some medicinal plasters – newly developed and locally produced, they were the subject of an intense advertising campaign on the local TV channel – before heading off for Shiwan Dashan at 11:30. The desk staff had helpfully organized a car for us.

Upon arrival we checked-in at the all but deserted hotel. We felt it was prudent to keep the TV switched off rather than risk coming across a channel that was showing ‘The Shining’: it was quite enough that the carpeted corridor looked oddly familiar, and that clicks echoing round the cavernous reception area (really only the sound of the receptionist’s chattering teeth) sounded very much like someone hard at work on a typewriter…
According to the locals it was, following a couple of days of grey, drizzly weather, the coldest day of the winter – fortunately, as elsewhere we stayed, the room had a heater/aircon device so once inside we warmed up quite nicely.

‘Misty mountains w/ intermittent drizzle PM. Walked easy-to-walk trail upstream along river from hotel [where a trail map was obtained free of charge] – we went as far as the spot quite reasonably designated Fairyland on Earth’. Before dark I did the open area around the hotel/park entrance while my wife returned to our room to make sure that the heater hadn’t given up the ghost; then we had dinner across the river (the hotel’s dining room being shut there was little choice!). Several Eurasian Siskins were perhaps of greatest interest in a local context, but we felt it justified to spend more time on a pair of showy Slaty-backed Forktails!

21 January: The weather improved considerably – the clouds were higher at dawn, and by early afternoon the sun ‘kind of almost came out’. Before breakfast I again worked the open area near the hotel and was rewarded with unbeatable views of a male Grey-backed Thrush, a single Chinese Blackbird (one really doesn’t need the DNA kit to realize there was never any justification for considering this conspecific with Eurasian Blackbird – as still done by Handbook of the Birds of the World!), several Puff-throated Bulbuls, and a fast-flitting Besra. Later we walked beyond where we’d been the night before, my wife’s leg having by now so benefited from miracle cures that we could do most of the climb up towards ‘Nine Dragons Pine’, adding Silver-eared Mesia and a cooperative orange-and-glowing-blue Fukien Niltava.

22 January: The weather remained vastly improved compared with the day we arrived. Before breakfast I again worked the open area and forest edge around hotel/reserve entrance, adding a slightly out-of-range Orange-bellied Leafbird to what I’d seen previously. Then I tried a different track up towards ‘Nine Dragons Pine’ through lovely forest, getting a tempting view of the summits – one would want an early start to get there: maybe on our next ‘relaxed family holiday’, if my wife’s leg has recovered by then! – and good looks at both Grey-headed Parrotbill and several hard-to-beat Long-tailed Broadbills that were feeding quietly in the canopy of trail-side trees.

Back in Shangsi by 6 PM – we’d hoped to continue on to Dongxing without returning to what we’d considered a charmless town, but the first bit of road was reported to be dodgy.

23 January: Taking the direct bus would have allowed us to see some reportedly superior scenery. Unfortunately, today’s bus might or might not, on account of another dodgy road made dodgier by overnight rain, arrive from Shangsi in time for the scheduled 13:30 departure, and the grumpy lady at the ticket counter would not sell any tickets until she’d personally seen the bus. Hmmm! Well, if the road was that bad it’d be a tough, uncomfortable ride, and it could even get dark before we reached the last, most scenic section (which even if it weren’t dark wouldn’t look its best on a gloomy, drizzly afternoon).
Thus we caught the 12:00 bus to Fangcheng (en route ‘hardly any trace of worthwhile habitat’), from where busses on to Dongxing, on the border with Vietnam, run every quarter of an hour.

At Dongxing we checked into the Wangchao hotel, c100m from the bus terminal. We had made a reservation over the Internet but discovered we needed to pay a small surcharge for an essential upgrade to a room with an aircon heater. Having grabbed a quick bowl of rice noodles we started our explorations by travelling by taxi to Waitan Park… first thing we discovered was that inside the town ‘proper’ taxis are best avoided as they don’t run by meter and the drivers really don’t want any runs except lucrative longer-distance ones. One should thus either go by public bus (and for this our hotel proved ideally situated), ‘golf cart’ (electric buggies serve as city shuttles), or motor tricycle. The park proved a waste of time – a few lost-looking trees on a tidal creek: the sort of place the natives may visit to eat seafood and drink beer in the tented restaurants (now all closed!), with no chance of anything more exciting than Japanese Whiteeye. Accordingly, we wandered upstream along the promenade past unloading fishing boats, eyeing the overgrown ground across the creek, and stopping locals to learn more about the possibilities. The far side of the creek turned out to be Vietnam, and sure enough the border bridge soon heaved into view – to get there we had to detour through an alley, passing a café (speciality: dog stew – unfortunately, on account of the rice noodles it was still too early for dinner), and numerous shops selling figurines carved out of hardwood, bulky furniture carved out of hardwood, and even gift boxes of chopsticks made of hardwood. Along the way we were accosted by pointy-hatted Vietnamese women trading in cigarettes and perfume, and by the border bridge we found the indoor ‘Vietnam market’ – we gave the various kinds of dried fish a miss (if only because how badly they’d stink up our suitcase!), likewise the instant coffee (like 3-in-1 Nescafe only much cheaper – and undrinkable!), but the mooncakes filled with durian paste proved irresistible. It was an excellent place to pick up a few presents, and we did not forget to engage in a bit of friendly haggling. Several of my wife’s friends are now proudly wearing bracelets made from polished water buffalo horn – a real bargain at two for the price of three!

24 January: After brunch we caught a tricycle to Guomao Market, a bus from there to Jiangping (on the road back towards Fangcheng; on the way out of town the bus passed in front of our hotel but by then it was full… a state of affairs which did not prevent the driver from stopping and picking up a few additional passengers!), and from there a #12 bus to Jiaodong village. A quicker way of doing this – apart from taking a taxi – would have been to get on any bus towards Fangcheng and get off on the main road at junction after the one for Ban Ai (sign posted in English). We walked the embankment E from the parking area at Jiaodong, taking in the mangrove & checking the ponds (temporary home to a scattering of commoner shorebirds such as Kentish Plover, Stilt, and Greenshank); then back past the village and W along another embankment to the main road. A newly burnt-over patch had attracted a band of Masked Laughingthrushes which – in the tradition of Laughingthrushes everywhere – vanished as soon as we’d come upon them.

Back on the main road we flagged down a passing bus back towards Dongxing and got off at the junction for Zhushan, catching a taxi motorcycle down to the village where we had a bowl of rice noodles before setting off towards the famously ancient, huge Banyan Tree. We found here a peaceful area of scattered hamlets, dense groves of bamboo, swaying casuarinas, paddyfields, vegetable plots – quite birdy with lots of Black Bulbuls, a Short-tailed Bush Warbler, a wintering Grey-headed Flycatcher plus the odd Richard’s Pipit, and, encouragingly, the area clearly had good migration season potential. We’d meant to get on the next bus (the #6 bus from Dongxing runs directly to the Banyan Tree area – another one to catch in front of Wangchao Hotel if you have no objections to standing!) but a friendly local insisted on taking us the last couple of kilometers on his motorcycle.

The mangrove here is also part of Beilun Estuary NNR. On this somewhat windy, misty afternoon there didn’t seem to be many waders about but the tideline was adorned with Little Egrets (and of course dense with fishnets), and the place ‘felt good’. It would have been possible – and undoubtedly worth the trouble – to carry on along a dam E from the Banyan Tree area.

Another place to explore would be the river just E of Jiangping: the road R for Shanxing is just before the bridge over the river – one could walk either embankment out towards the sea.

25 January: We caught the bus for Hongshigu (‘Red Rock Valley’) in front of our hotel on a clammy morning of low cloud. The bus soon climbed into the hills along the road we would have come along if we’d caught the direct bus from Shangsi – even this close to town it was quite pretty, and the bus pulled in at a small town (where market day was in progress) before reaching the terminus. We were informed that busses back run every half an hour until 19:00. We walked into the valley on a narrow concrete road, past farm houses and paddyfields, taking the 1st R turn up the hill on a newly concreted-over track, finding Shek Mun valley on the left. We followed the not-quite-finished trail (a sign warned that if we were bitten by snakes or hit by falling rocks it would be our own fault!) along the pretty stream, rejoining the track where a parking lot was being constructed. The track continued uphill as a narrower dirt track but we headed down – quite a satisfying outing: reasonable weather, pretty scenery, a fair scattering of mostly widespread birds such as Red-billed Blue Magpie, a couple of Eastern Cattle Egret mixing in with water buffaloes, Olive-backed Pipits, and Ashy Drongo. Back in town we returned to the Vietnam market by the border bridge before dinner.

26 January: Drizzle throughout the morning – ‘abandoned idea of returning to the Zhushan area for some walking/birdwatching along quiet stretch of coast (and maybe E beyond where we’d been the other day)’. We caught the 12:45 bus for Beihai, and from the bus station there a car to Zelin hotel, which we’d found and booked on the Internet. The hotel proved pleasant, with a reasonably priced, newly refurbished room and the best-yet aircon heater…

We chanced upon the nearby Zhongshan Park and went round that – nowhere near as rewarding as its Longzhou namesake but ‘quite delightful, with some huge trees’ – before strolling on to Beibu Wan Square, and finally locating a good restaurant.

27 January: Caught the bus out to Yin Tan (‘Silver Beach’) where we strolled beyond the tourist hotels and round the point. We found some casuarinas, a bit of mangrove, and behind a white wall an already largely knocked-down, largely depopulated village, the latest victim of the property development rampage… If developed as a nature reserve instead of being built over this area would be of immense value, attracting incoming spring migrants. Spring being far away (and the nature reserve just a dream soon to evaporate under the fevered gaze of speculators) we were happy – had to be! – to see several Grey-backed Thrushes, an active Dusky Warbler, and a couple of Siberian Stonechats.

Returning to town we visited the old commercial street. Dating back to around 1850 this was definitely worth seeing even if the commercial activities are now directed mainly at visiting tourists, with yet more wood carvings, assorted trinkets, scarves, plastic toys, and even Vietnamese coffee beans on offer. We also walked the chaotic, narrow residential lanes by the tidal creek.

28 January: After breakfast – again at a ‘zao cha’ place: while nothing like a Western breakfast, ‘zao cha’ has a lot more to recommend it than N China Chinese hotel breakfasts (which, it is universally agreed, have very little indeed to recommend them!), with trolleys of assorted fresh dumplings (fried or steamed; large or small), cakes, salted duck eggs, and quail eggs being wheeled around between the tables, a variety of nourishing rice gruels, and pots of freshly made tea (black, green, or flower-scented) – we again went round Zhongshan Park. This was now quite noisy with competing big-sound-system groups of dancers but nonetheless yielded another Grey-backed Thrush; this time we exited through the back into a narrow street given over to a busy, colourful Spring Festival market, and made our way the short distance over to Changqing Park, which we knew of from a map bought at the commercial street yesterday.

This park had a boating lake (with carp feeding as an alternative, land-based activity – you purchase your fish food pellets from the designated stall, and throw the empty plastic bag into the water once you’re done), a roller-skating rink, a merry-go-round, and a tall, pointy monument. Despite the lack of dense tangles we saw a couple of smart Magpie Robins in addition to yet more Japanese Whiteeyes.

Before checking out we returned to the old street for a last stroll there, as well as for some final gift-buying – with a front coming through today never really warmed up (in the morning a whistling at the aluminium window frames had informed us that it was too windy for the loo roll stuffed into the most obvious gaps to be effective), and we were glad to get a pre-departure cup of coffee.

What with a one-hour delay, we didn’t get back to our flat in Beijing until after midnight, but given that blizzards sweeping across the country were causing widespread disruption to pre-Spring Festival traffic (trips to the Yangtze basin’s famous crane and wildfowl wintering grounds are totally at the mercy of blizzards and dense banks of settled fog!) we were not complaining.

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About Jesper Hornskov
A general childhood affinity with nature and the outdoors became focused at the age of 12 (in 1975) into birdwatching: a pursuit for which Jesper’s native environment in pretty North Zeeland, Denmark, proved well suited, with migrants aplenty and as diverse breeding habitats as you could hope to find anywhere in southern Scandinavia. From early on he found enjoyment in sharing his skills, such as they were, and co-led his first trip abroad, a youth trip under the Danish Ornithological Society to southern Norway migration mecca Utsira, at the tender age of 16. Trips further afield soon followed – Israel, the southern US and Thailand/Malaysia before he was even out of high school, later long back-packing trips in Australia/Papua New Guinea, Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah, India/Nepal, the Indonesian islands of Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi, Halmahera and Timor, the Philippines (where one discovery was a site for the spectacular Steere’s Pitta) and China. It was the rediscovery of Beidaihe – on the coast of Hebei, east of Beijing – as a feasible as well as ideal place to study bird migration that brought Jesper to China. Soon, however, he stayed in the country on account of marrying locally, relocating for a while to the remote west where his wife worked and continuing all the while to study birds on passage as well as resident and breeding species of the Tibetan Plateau. A number of the places Jesper visits on his various China tours were discovered by himself during mostly independent travels. His bird tour activities got off the ground in 1994 (with a visit to Beidaihe and Happy Island!) and he has now led more than 80 trips of 1-4 weeks’ duration in China both for private groups/individuals and through established specialist operators such as KingBird Tours, Limosa, FieldGuides, Budget Bird Tours, Rockjumper Birding Tours, DOFTravel (Danish Ornithological Society), AviFauna (Swedish Ornithological Society), Norwegian Ornithological Society, and Victor Emmauel Tours (VENT). In 1997 his family moved to Beidaihe which had by then become somthing of a must-visit pilgrimage site for bird addicts from at least 4 continents. During his birding, Jesper has some time ago passed the 1,000 species mark for China.