subbuteo

Nice change in the weather today, so out on my roof this evening and saw a total of nine snipe (flock of eight and a single bird).  They flew from the Hong Lok Yuen direction up towards Kadoorie Farm.  I only had them in silhoutette but hey called in flight and I think they were Pin-tailed Snipe (from listening to recordings on xeno-canto).

I have never seen a flock of snipe here before apart from flushing two or three of them down towards She Shan.

Also Brown Wood Owl and Asian Barred Owlet calling this evening.

Dylan

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 6/09/2013 19:42 ]

subbuteo

I flushed an immature Striated Heron this morning and saw a Crested Serpent Eagle, the first in a while.

Dylan

subbuteo

Lam Tsuen, HK-
08-Sep-2013 07:00 - 09:45
Protocol: Traveling
4.0 kilometer(s)
Comments:     24C, bright and sunny, dry.  Mostly up at Ng Tung Chai a few birds picked up on the way.
26 species

Crested Goshawk  2
Besra   1
Great Barbet 1
Mountain Tailorbird  8
Oriental Magpie-Robin  2
Hainan Blue-Flycatcher  1 immature male moulting into adult plumage

Dylan

subbuteo

Ng Tung Chai, 8 September 2013

Crested Goshawk and a Besra(?), although from size, pale colour and the "straight" trailing edge of the wing, could it be a Japanese Sparrowhawk?  I only got the one good shot, I was photographing a butterfly and these just came into view briefly!

Dylan

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 8/09/2013 14:04 ]

kmike

A cool shot!
Looks like Japanese to me Dylan

Cheers
Mike

subbuteo

Thanks, Mike.  I didn't get long to look at them so glad to have the photo, lucky I got one in focus.

According to the 2011 bird report, this would be the earliest record by eight days.

Dylan

subbuteo

6am, Pak Tin Kong, 9 September 2013

Eurasian Hobby
White-cheeked Laughing Thrush

Dylan

subbuteo

6.10 am, 11 September 2013

Dollarbird

Dylan

ddavid

She Shan area September 15 4.20-5.30 p.m.

Green Sandpiper 1
Oriental Dollarbird 1
Golden-headed Cisticola 1
Zitting Cisticola 4
Pale-legged/Sakhalin Leaf Warbler 1
Scarlet Minivet 1
Grey Wagtail 2
Lesser Coucal 1
White-browed Laughingthrush 2
Blue Whistling Thrush 1

David

subbuteo

6.05 am.  16th September 2013

Nothing of real excitement today but out before the birds had left their roost behind Lung A Pai.  I counted 530 crested bulbuls in eight minutes as they passed through a tree they use as a gathering site before dispersing.  There were more to come but I had to go and get organised for work.

Dylan

wgeoff

Hi Dylan

If you mean Red-whiskered Bulbul, it's a record count.

Geoff

ajohn

A fairly birdy yesterday (15th) at Ng Tung Chai.

Siberian Blue Robin x1 (first winter male)
Pale-legged/Sakhalin Leaf Warbler x3
Arctic Warbler x2

Lesser Shortwing x2 (one seen)
Red-billed Leiothrix x8+

And regular flocks of the more common resident species - Silver-eared Mesia, Blue-winged Minla, Rufous-capped Babbler, etc.

Another highlight for me was watching Hong Kong Cascade Frogs hopping across the rocks at the waterfalls

subbuteo

Yes, Geoff, sorry,  Red-whiskered.  That's great to know, the count could go higher if I had spent longer, still a good few birds to move through.  I'll try and do an early morning count on a weekend.

A good day at Ng Tung chai, John!

Dylan

lrichard

Nice one, Dylan It's also a highest count for China, I think.

subbuteo

It's great to get something significant from a common bird!  Better get a grand total this weekend.

Dylan

subbuteo

Lam Tsuen, HK-
22-Sep-2013 06:30 - 09:00
Protocol: Traveling
5.0 kilometer(s)
Comments:     T3 up, 30C, overcast turning to drizzle. Light breeze developed.
37 species (+1 other taxa)

Dusky Warbler (Phylloscopus fuscatus)  2     in dry grass and scrub beside the river channel; two together; calling and moving about.
White-browed Laughingthrush (Ianthocincla sannio)  3 at Tin Liu Ha and seen again near She Shan
Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)  3     in the new drainage channel.
Richard's Pipit (Anthus richardi)  0     kicked through the long grass at She Shan and didn't get any.
passerine sp. (Passeriformes sp.)  1     possible bunting flushed off burnt ground.

Also seen a warbler species at open end of drainage channel on below She Shan; calling chak-chak, dusky warbler like.  Pale colour, fine bill, long white eyebrow demarcated by dark above and below. Watched for about 30s; moving about in a small tussock surrounded by flowing water.  Initially thought it was Manchurian reed warbler from the illustration in Viney's book but after looking at images online, I'm now sceptical.  It wasn't a Dusky Warbler but I don't know what it was!

Dylan

subbuteo

23 September 2013, post-Usagi!

Quality birds for my short dog-walk this morning!

Black-winged Cuckoo-Shrike
Verditer
Asian Brown Flycatcher

Dylan

subbuteo

6.15am, 25 September 2013

Dollarbird perched in a much-diminished bare tree- there is a serious lack of standing dead trees around my patch now.

Dylan

ajohn

The lower part of Lam Tsuen valley seems to have been badly hit by the typhoon - much more tree damage than in the upper part of the valley (Ng Tung Chai) or the Kam Tin/Mai Po area.

subbuteo

The tree the bulbuls move through is about one third the size, I counted 367 red-whiskered bulbuls in ten minutes this morning (6.18 -6.28 am).  It may just be they were not all up yet but they may flying out differently following the damage- less room in the tree?  Certainly doesn't sound like there are less when they start calling when they rouse.  

It was simple to count them against light sky as they flew into the tree but seeing the flocks against the forest vegetation is much harder in the low light.

Dylan

sdavid

It just makes that count of 530 look a bit more stringy Dylan, that's all! ;)

subbuteo

Indeed! They are there, honest! 530 and then some :-)

Dylan

subbuteo

And I had a summer/autumn high count of Chinese bulbuls yesterday- 2!  There are just none about my village at the moment.

ajohn

There seemed to be good numbers of Red-whiskered Bulbuls coming out of the roost in Ng Tung chai this morning - maybe some of Dylan's birds have moved up the valley. Dylan, maybe we should try a co-ordinated count at both roost sites.

subbuteo

6.30am; 28.9.13

Barn Swallow 2 (first in a while)
Grey-chinned Minivet 36 in one flock

I regularly (almost daily) see a few Scarlet minivets, Grey-throated less often; this was a large flock and not combined with other species.  They were in the little valley behind Lung A Pai.

Dylan

[edit]PS- happy to do a joint count John- let me know; want to do it this Tuesday?

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 28/09/2013 18:41 ]

wgeoff

Re the flock of Grey-chinned Minivets.

Largish flocks of Grey-chinned Minivets like this are regularly recorded in Hong Kong in early autumn through into January.
John Allcock and I recently had a discussion about these flocks, whether they were of Hong Kong origin or winter visitors from outside. We were trying to decide how to describe them in the HK Bird Report.

We eventually decided the current evidence suggests they are post-breeding flocks of local origin rather than from outside, although the possibility that some are true winter visitors cannot be excluded.

This behaviour is rather different to that of Scarlet Minivet which, as you note, tend to be seen in fairly even numbers throughout the year.

subbuteo

6.10am, September 29 2013

Thanks, Geoff, that's interesting.  I encountered the flock of Grey-throated Minivets again, 51 birds this time. I also had a go at choosing a different location to count the Red-whiskered Bulbuls.  It didn't really help the count but did confirm they are gathering away from the bare tree.  Got my first Ashy drongo of the year too.

Grey-throated Minivet 51
Ashy Drongo 1
Red-whiskered Bulbul 327
White-cheeked Laughing thrush 6 (three separate pairs)
Dusky Warbler 1

Dylan

subbuteo

30 September 2013

Ashy Drongo 1

A mystery bird which was approximately Scarlet Minivet sized but heavier built, backlit but seemed grey wit light barring on chest and belly.  Bill long and fine, straight. Tail end a deep V; tips of V rounded.  I attached a dreadful photo- binoculars and iphone combo in bad light!

I though possibly plaintive cuckoo or a cuckoo-shrike?

Dylan

ajohn

Sounds like a cuckooshrike (and looks a bit like one too, but hard to tell!). Tail shape is a bit odd but might be due to missing tail feathers or unusual position. Did you notice whether the tail had white tips like on a cuckooshrike?

subbuteo

I thought cuckoo-shrike too but could not get enough to be definitive. Terrible photo but pretty much all I could make out is in the photo!

subbuteo

1 October 2013

Pak Tin Kong

Dollarbird  1
Stejneger's Stonechat 1

Dylan

Also Cattle Egret and Blue Magpie which are both unusual around my village.

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 1/10/2013 18:37 ]

ajohn

A good morning at Ng Tung Chai today:

Asian Paradise Flycatcher 1
Arctic Warbler 1
Yellow-browed Warbler 1 (possibly a second in village)
Grey Wagtail 6

Grey-chinned Minivet 65 (minimum count, including 62 in one flock - 40 seen at the village in the late morning may have been the same or different)
Scarlet Minivet 3
Lesser Shortwing 6 (one seen well)
Pygmy Wren Babbler 5
Mountain Tailorbird 10
Brown-flanked Bush Warbler 3
Red-billed Leiothrix 6
Hair-crested Drongo 4
Crested Goshawk 1
Crested Serpent Eagle 4

Also, for those interested in more than the birds:
Barking Deer 1 seen near the village in the afternoon, with another heard nearby

Hong Kong Cascade Frog 4 (middle fall and top fall)
Hong Kong Newt 1

Painted Lady 1
Indian Red Admiral 1
Metallic Cerulean 11+
Angled Red Forester 1
Plain-banded Awl 1

subbuteo

2 october 2013

I am yet to see a barking deer! And I must look out for the cascade frogs too.

This morning:

Ashy Drongo 1

Dylan

subbuteo

3 October 2013

Ashy drongo 2
Dusky Warbler 1

One of the Ashy drongos was clearly a leucogenis as I could see its face.  The second had a different tail shape, the fork starting further down, and the tail tips curving out sharply at the end.  It was almost an inverted capital T.  It was in silhouette at a distance so it was hard to distinguish features (similar to the cuckoo-shrike earlier in the week).  Both drongos were calling loudly, the leucogenis doing a very good imitation of Crested Goshawk.

Dylan

subbuteo

6.10 am, 4 October 2013
Pak Tin Kong, HK-
22C, misty and hazy, heavy dew on vegetation.
17 species

Grey-chinned Minivet 28
Scarlet Minivet   5
Ashy Drongo  2
Red-whiskered Bulbul  547     counted from 6.19 to 6.35; probably a few more to come but I am late for work!
Stejneger's Stonechat 2

The bulbuls stream in and gather in the bare tree and seem to reach a critical number them move off in a flock.  I am still missing birds that fly behind me or low so the count could be a bit higher yet.

Dylan

PS picture of the tree for illustrative purposes...

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 4/10/2013 08:27 ]

ddavid

She Shan Area - October 3 1530-17.30

Greater Paintedsnipe 1
Green Sandpiper 1
Red Turtle Dove 17
Common Emerald Dove 1
Velvet-fronted Nuthatch 1
Blyth's Pipit (probable) 1
Richard's Pipit 5
Grey Wagtail 1
Black Drongo 4
Dusky Warbler 11
Stejneger's Stonechat 2
Zitting Cisticola 2
Golden-headed Cisticola 1
Oriental Dollarbird 1

She Shan area October 4 15.00-17.00
Unfortunately, there was  no sign of the probable Blyth's Pipit today. However, there was:

Black-headed Bunting 1
Buttonquail sp. 1
Asian Brown Flycatcher 1

David

subbuteo

5 October 2013

Pak Tin Kong

Dollarbird 1
Ashy drongo 2
Hair-crested drongo 14
Stejneger's Stonechat 2
Dusky warbler 1

She Shan needs a visit- good birds!

Dylan

kmike

Looks like you're on a roll Dave - congratulations on the pipit and the Black-headed Bunting. The latter is the third record for the valley and the second for She Shan. Both other records were in October. This is the earliest by 14 days.

Cheers
Mike

subbuteo

06-Oct-2013 07:15 - 10:45
Traveling; 5.5 kilometer(s)
Comments:     21C, bright and sunny.  Walked a loop from Pak Tin Kong to bottom of Lam Tsuen via She Shan then returned along the Lam Tsuen river.

47 species

No luck with either the Blyth's Pipit, button quail or any buntings but a lot of birds and many migrants.

Great Egret 3
Little Egret  4
Green Sandpiper  2
Rock Dove  1
Long-tailed Shrike  6     one at She Shan imitating plaintive cuckoo, koel, blue magpie and hair-crested drongo.
Black Drongo 14     maximum 8 in one flock, migrating up the valley
Ashy Drongo   1
Dusky Warbler 26; all through the valley but mostly concentrated at the lower end of the valley in the scrub that borders the fenced area of the new drainage channel. I think I counted low!
Yellow-browed Warbler  2
Fan-tailed Warbler 8     conservative count as they kept popping up in the long grass in She Shan
Golden-headed Cisticola  1
Stejneger's Stonechat  7     3 together at She Shan, then singles along the walk.
Chinese Blackbird   1
Grey Wagtail  4
Richard's Pipit  8     8 in one flock then raised singles or pairs later.


Dylan

View this checklist online at http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S15332324

This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 (http://ebird.org)

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 6/10/2013 15:56 ]

ajohn

Interesting - I walked down the valley from Ng Tung Chai to She Shan via Tai Om, covering pretty much the same time period (07:15 - 10:30) and was disappointed because it seemed not very birdy.

Migrants were:
Black-naped Oriole - a nice adult at She Shan
Black Drongo - 5
Stejneger's Stonechat - 6
Dusky Warbler - 5
Yellow-browed Warbler - 1
Pale-legged/Sakhalin Leaf Warbler - 2
Zitting Cisticola - 5
Bright-capped Cisticola - 1

Richard's Pipit - 0 It seems everyone sees these at She Shan except me. I'm not sure I've ever seen one there.

subbuteo

The Richard's Pipits were in the short grass/scrub that has been recently cut by the rough road down to the drainage channel (opposite the tree nursery).  They tend to stick to the shorter grass, I kicked all through the longs stuff and didn't see any.  I'm surprised at only five Dusky as the scrub along the drainage channel was bouncing with them.  I was in the grassy area from about 7.45 to 8.45 and then walked on to the river.  There were no dog walkers in She Shan when I was there which may make a difference.

Dylan

ajohn

Just realised that I forgot to mention an Asian Stubtail at Ng Tung Chai yesterday morning.

subbuteo

9 October 2013

No much to report, things have quietened down.

Ashy Drongo 1 seemingly the same bird in the same tree.

There was a skulking warbler scolding in some Micania covered bushes but absolutely refusing to show, guessing a Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler but no way to be sure!

Dylan

subbuteo

10 October 2013

Ashy Drongo 1

Looks like the drongo is set to stay through the winter.  I also saw a distant small falcon, from its silhouette I would guess a Kestrel (it seemed very long winged) but couldn't rule out Hobby or Amur.  It was flying up near the Lin Au pylons where Mike picked up Amur last year.

Dylan

subbuteo

11 October 2013

31 species this morning, almost double yesterday's species total.

Ashy Drongo 1
Dark-sided Flycatcher 1
Dusky Warbler 1
Yellow-browed Warbler 1

Dylan

subbuteo

12 October 2013

Through the day around Pak Tin Kong

Stonechat 2
Asian Brown Flycatcher 2
Dusky Warbler 6
Olive-backed Pipit 1 (first I have seen this year)

I had an odd looking stonechat early this morning- enormous white wing flashes, I thought it was a Daurian Redstart at first.  It popped up singing, sat momentarily then flew off showing pale rump and large wing flashes.  I only saw it for a couple of seconds. I have been back a couple of times for another look but no luck.  Is there much variability in the white visible in the wing?

Dylan

ajohn

The white in the wing is related to age and sex - males show more than females, and adults show more than young birds. Maybe yours was an adult male?

subbuteo

Yes, could've been but I had the impression of immature / female  Didn't get a good look at it. I was worried I'd missed an immature pied bush chat!

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 12/10/2013 20:08 ]

subbuteo

6.30-7.30, 13 October 2013

Ashy Drongo 1
Black-winged Cuckoo Shrike 2 (perched together)
Dusky Warbler 2

Dylan

[ Last edited by subbuteo at 13/10/2013 13:26 ]

subbuteo

6.25-7.00am, 14 Oct 2013

Red-whiskered Bulbul 641
Black-winged Cuckoo Shrike 1
Ashy Drongo 1
Dusky Warbler 1
Yellow-browed warbler 1
Stejneger's Stonechat 1

It is just a waiting game for the bulbuls.  This is the longest I have counted for.  The last hundred took at least five minutes to emerge.  My ankles couldn't take any more mosquito bites but I don't think there were too many more to come out at that point.

Dylan