An Extraordinary Lunar New Year

This lunar new year has been like no other I have experienced.  With the emergence of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan and the subsequent lockdown of most of Hubei, including the shutdown of flights and trains to and from the stricken Province, people everywhere – including Beijing – are fearing to venture to public places and, on the rare occasions they do head beyond their own four walls, for example to stock up on groceries, face masks are worn, tasks are completed in a hurry and every sneeze or cough is greeted by fellow shoppers with looks of horror.

As I write this post, there are 7,736 confirmed cases nationwide and a further 12,167 suspected, with 124 recoveries and 170 deaths so far.  In Beijing alone, there are 111 confirmed cases, 4 recoveries and 1 death.  Given the rapid increase in cases and the likelihood that many millions of people will be returning to their workplaces at some point over the next few days and weeks, it seems as if this could be just the beginning.

In this context, birding seems trivial and inconsequential.  However, in some ways, it’s a good distraction to have..

Having fortuitously arranged the rental of a car before the start of the lunar new year, I have been able to get out and about for a few days over the past week or so without relying on public transport, of which most people are, quite sensibly, steering well clear.  It was refreshing to get outside, enjoy some exercise and, of course, see some good birds, with almost nobody else around.

The main destination was a classic winter site in Beijing called Shidu (十渡), literally “ten crossings”, a small village on the Juma River in southwest Beijing’s Fangshan District, just 4km from the border with Hebei Province.  Here, a series of bridges offer great vantage points from which to scan the winding river, which almost never freezes due to its relatively fast flow.

The location of Shidu(十渡) in Beijing Municipality.
The minor road running northwest of Zhangfangzhen follows the Juma River and a series of bridges offer excellent vantage points from which to scan for the area’s special birds.

It is a spectacular place, winding through stunning canyons and gorges, and is well-known for its Black Storks.  But it’s much more than that.. ..species that are local or hard to find in Beijing but that can be found here include Wallcreeper (regular in winter near bridge 6), Brown Dipper, Crested Kingfisher, Long-billed Plover, Plumbeous Water Redstart and White-capped Water Redstart. And, if you look up, you can often see the impressive Cinereous Vultures soaring overhead, scanning for carrion.  Grey Herons breed on the steep cliffs and, if you are really lucky, you may encounter a Solitary Snipe or even an Ibisbill, although it’s a few years since either have been seen here.

Shidu is a site I once had the pleasure of birding with none other than former UK Chancellor, the Right Hon Kenneth Clarke and his late wife, Gillian, during one of his official visits to Beijing.  It was that special day that we recorded not only Wallcreeper but my first ever Solitary Snipe.

Taking notes at the Wallcreeper site. The Rt Hon gentleman is a true birder…

And on this latest visit to Shidu, the Wallcreeper didn’t disappoint, coming down to head height to take advantage of the meal worms put out by photographers.

We were also fortunate to enjoy the company of a spectacular Crested Kingfisher, a scarce resident in the capital.

Having dropped off the hire car and returned home, it’s been fascinating to see the online conversation about China’s wildlife trade, thought to be responsible for the current outbreak of novel coronavirus in Wuhan.  With the government announcement of a temporary ban, many citizens are calling for it to be made permanent.  For a summary of the situation, there is an excellent article by Natasha Daly from National Geographic.

Seizing the moment, Peking University is running an online questionnaire (Chinese only) to gauge public opinion on the wildlife trade with a view to submitting the results to policymakers.  With China due to host the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in October, what better time to announce a permanent ban!

The next few days – and likely weeks – will involve voluntary ‘self-quarantine’ with trips out only to buy essentials.  It’s going to be a strange start to the year of the rat.

Winter is coming…

It’s that time of year again.  As temperatures plummet and the days shorten, many people might think it’s time to stay indoors with a real fire, put on that favourite woolly jumper and sip a warm cup of (green) tea.  However, for birders, it’s worth putting on the thermal underwear and braving those icy temperatures – winter can be a brilliant time.

Here are five reasons why winter is a good time for birding in Beijing:

  • First, with the leaves down, birds are easier to observe
  • Second, winter is the only time we can see certain species (for example, those that breed to the north of Beijing, including as far north as Mongolia and Russian Siberia, and spend the winter here). These species include: Ruddy Shelduck, Common Crane, White-tailed Eagle, Rough-legged Buzzard, Merlin, Mongolian Lark, the winter thrushes (Naumann’s. Dusky, Red-throated and Black-throated), Goldcrest, Guldenstadt’s Redstart, Siberian Accentor, Brambling, Pallas’s Rosefinch, Japanese Reed Bunting, Lapland Bunting and Pine Bunting.
  • Third, many mountain dwelling species will move lower into the valleys and even into cities in the winter, making them easier to see. For example: Winter Wren, Beijing Babbler, Plain Laughingthrush and Yellow-throated Bunting.
  • Fourth, depending on the seed crops and weather, especially the extent of snowfall, some species ‘irrupt’ in large numbers to areas where they would normally not occur in significant numbers. Pallas’s Sandgrouse, Japanese and Bohemian Waxwings and Redpolls are examples of species that sometimes ‘irrupt’ into Beijing.
  • Finally, there is always a chance of finding something special. The discovery of wintering Jankowski’s Buntings in winter 2015/2016 by Xing Chao and Huang Mujiao was exceptional.  Who knows what else might occur – maybe a Snowy Owl at Lingshan?  Or a Gyrfalcon at Ma Chang?
2016-03-07 Jankowski's Bunting, Miyun5
One of the wintering JANKOWSKI’S BUNTINGS at Miyun Reservoir in winter 2015/2016.

The best winter sites?

Most good birding sites in the capital (e.g. Yeyahu, Lingshan, Huairou, Miyun and Shahe Reservoirs (if accessible)) are worth visiting all year round.  And, within the city itself, the Botanical Gardens, with its berry-laden shrubs, is often one of the first sites to host groups of Japanese or Bohemian Waxwings during a ‘waxwing year’.  The Olympic Forest Park can host Beijing Babbler in winter and is often a good place to see Brown-cheeked Rails and Great Bittern.  It has also played host to some very scarce winter visitors such as ‘caudatus’ Northern Long-tailed Tit and Chiffchaff.  For me, personally, two of the best winter birding sites are Donglingshan and Shidu.

Donglingshan (东灵山)

2015-11-01 Red-throated Thrush male in flight, Lingshan2
Red-throated Thrush usually winters in good numbers at Lingshan.

The site of Beijing’s highest peak (2,303m), around 110km west of the city along the G109, Donglingshan is a superb winter birding site.  It is the only reliable site in Beijing to see the high-altitude specialist, Guldenstadt’s Redstart, and the scarce Pallas’s Rosefinch.  In most winters, tens of the former spend the winter feeding on the sea buckthorn berries in the many gullies and valleys below the peak and small flocks of the latter can be found foraging under stands of silver birch.  Other reliable species here include Chinese Beautiful and Long-tailed Rosefinches (interestingly, the latter are of the subspecies lepidus from central China and not the more northerly ussuriensis that has occurred in other parts of Beijing), not to mention Siberian and Alpine Accentors, good numbers of thrushes, Cinereous Vulture, Golden Eagle and, in some years, Asian Rosy Finch.  Rarities at this time of year have included Lesser Spotted Woodpecker and Black and Przewalski’s (Alashan) Redstarts.

At around 2,000m, a visit to Donglingshan in winter can be bitterly cold, especially if the wind is blowing.  However, if you time your visit on a day with light winds and sunshine, it can be surprisingly pleasant and hugely rewarding.

A downloadable PDF guide for Donglingshan (Lingshan) can be found here.

 

Shidu (十渡)

A spectacular gorge worthy of a visit in its own right, even without any birds, Shidu is an excellent winter birding destination, offering species that can be hard to see in other parts of the capital.  A road runs through the gorge, crossing several bridges and it’s a good tactic to stop close to the bridges to scan the area.  Shidu is perhaps most famous in birding circles for its Black Storks, a handful of which can be seen feeding alongside the river.  However, many more interesting species are possible.  For the last few years, at least one, sometimes two, Wallcreepers have been reliable near bridge 6.  And Long-billed Plover, Brown Dipper, Crested Kingfisher, Plumbeous Water Redstart, White-capped Water Redstart and Cinereous Vulture are all regular in winter.  Even the spectacular Ibisbill, a species that is increasingly difficult to see in the capital, is possible.  And Solitary Snipe, another difficult-to-see species has also been recorded.

2013-11-23 Wallcreeper, Shidu
Shidu is the best place in Beijing to see Wallcreeper.

 

Ten Species To Look Out For This Winter

Beijing has many special birds in the colder months and here are a few to look out for.

1.     Merlin This small, compact, falcon can often be seen hunting flocks of small passerines, including buntings and larks.  Open spaces such as Ma Chang (Yanqing) and the edges of reservoirs are good places to look.

 

2.     Cinereous Vulture  With a wingspan of c3m, this huge bird of prey can be seen in the mountains around Beijing from November to March.  Feeding on carrion, they can often be seen patrolling the ridges of mountainous areas on sunny days, especially when there is a breeze, providing them with lift.

 

3.     Goldcrest This tiny bird is insectivorous and, somehow, it can find enough food in Beijing in winter.  The larger parks, such as the Botanical Gardens and the Olympic Forest Park, are good places to look.  Focus your search on areas with conifers and listen for their high-pitched calls.
4.     Siberian Accentor This beautiful sparrow-sized bird likes scrubby areas with lots of good undergrowth.  They can be shy but with patience and knowledge of their high-pitched call, searching in the right areas should be successful.  The Botanical Gardens and Donglingshan are two good places to look.

 

5.     Naumann’s Thrush  Naumann’s is the most common of the four classic ‘winter thrushes’ in Beijing (the others are Dusky, Red-throated and Black-throated).  With its orange-coloured tones, Naumann’s Thrush is a very pretty bird and can often be seen feeding on berries or on the ground in Beijing’s parks.
6.     Japanese Waxwing The beautiful Japanese Waxwing is an annual winter visitor to Beijing in varying numbers.  Sometimes in large flocks, they can strip berries from a bush in minutes.  Listen for their ‘ringing’ calls and look for flocks of birds that have similar silhouettes to starlings.  Can most easily be told from the very similar Bohemian Waxwing by the pinkish, not yellow, tip to the tail.
7.     Winter Wren The charismatic Winter Wren breeds in the mountains around Beijing and, in winter, it moves to lower elevations to escape the harshest winter temperatures.  In winter it can be found in the Botanical Gardens and other large parks, often near water.  The distinctive cocked tail means that it’s unmistakeable.
8.     Brambling The Brambling is a common winter visitor to Beijing.  A sociable bird, it can often be found in flocks feeding on seeds (often beech mast) at the base of trees.  Listen for its upslurred call as flocks wheel around over wooded areas.
9.     Pallas’s Rosefinch A real gem of the Beijing winter, the Pallas’s Rosefinch is one of the most sought after species by foreign birders visiting the capital.  A winter visitor in varying numbers, usually to relatively high elevations, it is most reliably found at Donglingshan in winter.  The ridge above the Botanical Gardens and sites around the Great Wall can also produce this species.  A favourite food is birch mast, so look for stands of silver birch and check the ground around the bases of the trees.
10.  Pallas’s Bunting  A winter visitor in good numbers, the Pallas’s Bunting is one of Beijing’s signature winter birds.  Found in reedbeds and any areas of rank grass and/or scrub, it can be skittish but will sometimes sit on the top of vegetation and utter its sparrow-like call, quite different to that of the similar, but scarcer, Common Reed Bunting and Japanese Reed Bunting.

Of course, the most important thing about going birding is not where you go or what you see but that you enjoy it.  Wishing everyone a wonderful winter’s birding.

 

Title image: Przewalski’s (Alashan) Redstart, Lingshan, February 2014.

This article has been translated into Chinese and appeared in the Winter edition of the China Birdwatching Society magazine.

Wallcreeper on ice

The WALLCREEPER (Tichodroma muraria,  红翅旋壁雀) has always been a special bird for me.  I remember, as a young boy, looking longingly at the plate in my Hamlyn Guide To The Birds of Britain and Europe and wondering if I would ever see one.  So rare in the UK, I knew I’d probably need to go overseas to have a chance.  I remember my first encounter – at Les Baux in the south of France – and being surprised at just how small and delicate is this bird as it fluttered and probed on the town walls.

In Beijing, Wallcreeper is a scarce bird.  Although almost all records are in winter from one site, it probably breeds somewhere in the mountains.  Up to 3 can be seen reliably from November to March at Shidu, Fangshan District.  The most reliable spot is the cliff just to the northeast of bridge 6.  Here, photographers put out meal worms and it’s astonishing to see these birds gradually make their way down the vertical cliff face to eye-level as they grab one of the irresistible snacks on offer.

 2013-11-23 Wallcreeper, Shidu 2014-01-12 Wallcreeper

On my most recent visit to Shidu this winter with Marie, we were lucky to see one of the two Wallcreepers present fly down to the ice on the nearby river…  Although the sun was behind, making the light far from ideal, I was able to capture it on video..  Now that is something – a Wallcreeper on ice!

 

Water Pipits

On recent trips to the Olympic Forest Park and Shidu, I encountered wintering Water Pipits, described by my companions as the epitome of LBJs (little brown jobs)!  There are several races of Water Pipit and, in the Beijing area in winter, we see the blakistoni subspecies.  In the field they strike me as rather grey-headed/naped and brown-backed.

Water Pipit ssp blakistoni, Shidu, Beijing, 11 February 2012
Water Pipit ssp blakistoni, Olympic Forest Park, Beijing, 7 February 2012
Water Pipit ssp blakistoni, Olympic Forest Park, Beijing. Same individual as above.

 

 

Wallcreeper

Just back from my second trip to Shidu.  Highlight has to be the Wallcreeper.

Wallcreeper, Shidu, Beijing, 11 February 2012

Shidu looks made for Wallcreepers and I am sure there are more of these incredible gravity-defying birds along the gorge.  But this individual is a bit of a star of the Beijing birding scene.  It comes down to eye level, encouraged by the meal worms put out for it by bird photographers.  Consequently it shows extremely well, albeit intermittently.

On Saturday I took friends Nick Douse, John Gallagher and Hui Ying, a Beijing-based birder I met at the AGM of the Beijing Birdwatching Society, to Shidu.  Shidu literally means “10 river crossings” and this site, along the Juma river, is a good winter birding destination as, in addition to Wallcreeper, it hosts wintering Black Storks, Black Vultures, Crested Kingfishers and, occasionally, Long-billed Plover and Ibisbill.  We didn’t see the last two but we had a great day in cold but still conditions.

The bridges across the Juma river are numbered from south-east to north-west.  We arrived at the southern end of the gorge just under 2 hours after leaving Beijing and made our way slowly to the north-west, stopping occasionally to scan.  Our first stop, between bridges 2 and 3, produced over 100 Mallard on an ice-free section of the river plus a handful of Common Merganser (Goosander) and, our first surprise, a drake Mandarin.  Just as we were about to leave, 4 Black Storks came flying along the river and almost overhead, providing us with a great chance to study these majestic birds as they made their way downstream.

Black Stork, Shidu, Beijing

 

Black Stork coming in to land against the backdrop of Shidu gorge.

Our next stop was at Bridge number 6, a well-known ‘hot-spot’.  We immediately saw a line of bird photographers on the eastern side of the gorge with their heavy artillery trained on an area of rock face.  This had to be the Wallcreeper site.  After parking the car and taking a short walk, we were greeted by the big lens boys and began the wait for the Wallcreeper to show.  In just a few minutes it appeared and gradually made its way down the face of the rock to an area immediately in front of the photographers to feed on the meal worms.  Its stay here probably amounted to no more than 2 minutes but in that time I suspect the number of times a shutter was fired was several thousand..!

Some of the bird photographers waiting for the Wallcreeper. Check out those lenses!

After about half an hour at this site, during which time we also recorded Marsh Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Daurian Redstart, Red-billed Blue Magpie and Dusky Thrush, we moved on to bridge number 10.  This was an excellent site.  Two male Plumbeous Redstarts were singing and displaying, clearly establishing territories for the forthcoming breeding season, but the real stars were the Crested Kingfishers that made several passes, calling loudly.

Crested Kingfisher, Shidu, Beijing, 11 February 2012

Bizarrely, two Crested Kingfishers flew up to a new house on the edge of the river and perched on the balconies.. one upstairs and one downstairs..

Upstairs Downstairs. These Crested Kingfishers seemed to like looking at their reflection in the window of this new house on the banks of the river Juma.

A drive further north produced a Hen Harrier, several Godlewski’s Buntings, 1 Little Bunting, 8 Hill Pigeons, 18 Daurian Jackdaws and a Wren.

The journey back down the gorge produced 2 Common Kingfishers side by side near bridge 6 and, after enjoying these 2 birds we headed off back to Beijing in time for dinner.

Friends Nick Douse, John Gallagher and Hui Ying at bridge number 10, Shidu.

Full Species list (37 in total):

Mandarin (1)
Mallard (120)
Goosander (65)
Little Grebe (12)
Black Stork (10)
Grey Heron (2)
Great Cormorant (1)
Kestrel (1)
White-tailed Eagle (1) – sub-adult
Black Vulture (1)
Hen Harrier (1) – ringtail
Sparrowhawk (1)
Hill Pigeon (8)
Spotted Dove (2)
Common Kingfisher (2)
Crested Kingfisher (2)
Red-billed Blue Magpie (7)
Common Magpie (34)
Daurian Jackdaw (18) – 2 adults, 16 immatures
Carrion Crow (12)
Large-billed Crow (6)
Marsh Tit (1)
Long-tailed Tit (3)

Chinese Hill Warbler (1)
Wren (1)
Wallcreeper (1)
Naumann’s Thrush (5)
Dusky Thrush (2)
Eurasian Blackbird (1)
Daurian Redstart (2)
Plumbeous Redstart (4)
Tree Sparrow – lots
Water Pipit (5)
Oriental Greenfinch (6)
Godlewski’s Bunting (5)
Little Bunting (1)
Yellow-throated Bunting (12)

Shidu

With the Chinese New Year celebrations still ringing in our ears (the year of the Dragon was greeted with deafening fireworks!), we set off to explore an area known as Shidu in Fangshan County, south-west of Beijing.  This area of karst limestone hills is sometimes known as the “Guilin of the north” and we could see why..  spectacular rocky outcrops rise up from the valley through which the Juma river runs..  It’s an area well-known to Beijing birders as a regular wintering ground for Black Stork, Wallcreeper and Black Vulture, with supporting cast including Crested Kingfisher, Long-billed Plover and Red-billed Chough.

Today Libby and I drove there in our rented car in convoy with friends John and Sarah Gallagher and Sarah’s visiting friend, Vic.  The air was refreshingly clear – a combination of polluting industry closing down for Chinese New Year, fewer cars due to large parts of the Beijing population visiting relatives in other parts of China and a fresh northerly wind – and we enjoyed a stunning blue sky with excellent visibility all day.   We took a slightly ’round the houses’ route to get there (taking over 3 hours) but it was worth it.  A decent road winds its way through the gorge with a number of bridges crossing the river, many of which are excellent places to stop and view the stony riverbed.  Highlights included at least 4 Black Vultures soaring over the peaks, 4-5 Black Storks including 3 young birds, 2 Crested Kingfishers, a single White-tailed Eagle and 2 Upland Buzzards.  We didn’t have time to search out a Wallcreeper but the habitat looks ideal and I am sure, with a bit of time and patience, effort would be rewarded here.  Definitely worth a return visit sometime soon!

White-tailed Eagle, Shidu, Beijing
White-tailed Eagle, Shidu. A menacing shadow for any waterbird!
Steady...
One of today's Black Vultures at Shidu.