wgeoff

Another good week with lots of birds and different species to be seen. This has been an excellent autumn so far, up there with the best in my previous records. Let's hope it can continue.

Bird of the week was the Rosy Starling found by Allen Chan on Monday, but I was lucky to see it. I arrived late on Tuesday and was walking round to my house when I saw it flying around the lagoon area, at one point landing at the top of a tree for several seconds. It was larger than a White-shouldered and the brown colour and particularly the yellow bill were easy to see even at quite a distance. I hadn't unpacked my camera by then, I thought, it's OK, I'll get a photo later. No such luck, I never saw it again and it seemed to leave on Tuesday night.

There were so many birds around. On Wednesday, I totalled 41 non-resident species, well above my 'expected' number of 28 for 3rd October and only the 14th time I have scored over 40 non-resident land bird species in a day. New species for autumn included Black-crowned Night Heron, a juvenile near the helipad, Chinese Goshawk over-flying, Eurasian Woodcock, Oriental Turtle Dove, Olive-backed Pipit, Blackbird and many Dusky Warblers.

Eurasian Woodcock is one of most precise migrants of any species - always arriving in early October and leaving by mid-November, as the attached chart of daily counts by year shows



Other more unexpected species included the Forest Wagtail, both Pallas's Grasshopper and Black-browed Reed Warbler, the latter quite rare on Po Toi, Yellow-browed and Chestnut Buntings together around the helipad and an Orange-headed Thrush, I guess the same one as reported at the weekend. There were also high counts of Dollarbird (at least four daily), Black-naped Oriole (at least eight daily) and Hair-crested Drongo, a record count of 19 on Thursday.

Here some photos of these and others including some species not yet mentioned, Ashy Minivet, Eastern Crowned Warbler, Blue-and-white Flycatcher, the Varied Tit and a treefull of Hair-crested Drongos



  


One species conspicuous by it's absence was Japanese White-eye. When I first started counting bird numbers on Po Toi in 2006, I believed Japanese White-eye was resident so I didn't count it. I gradually realised it was not a resident, but appears in two 'waves'. The main one starts in mid November with peak numbers before the year end, then gradually falling to zero by the end of May. Then another wave from late August through to mid October, but only in some years. Late October to early November and the summer are usually blank for Japanese White-eye - see this chart showing daily counts from 2009 onwards



I guess the early autumn arrivals are breeding bird dispersals whereas the winter birds may be a northern population - winter arrivals are mentioned in Avifauna.

Anyone going to Po Toi this weekend, please report the Varied Tit if you see it. It has been seen daily since it's arrival on 16 September but was not seen on Thursday, maybe just an odd event but it could have gone.

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 5/10/2012 08:01 ]

wgeoff

I agree with John, it's probably a combination of a successful breeding season and the spell of northerly winds, which bring more migrants into the Hong Kong area.

wgeoff

It's not just the direct arrivals. The northerly winds drive some migrants further south than they would usually go. If they reach the coast east of Hong Kong, they will continue around the coast into Hong Kong. That's why we get more birds with northerly winds and it often takes a few days after the start of the northerlies before they reach Hong Kong.

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 6/10/2012 07:47 ]

wgeoff

Another great week this week, a very high total of 61 different non-resident land bird species with 46 on Thursday alone, my fourth highest ever daily total. I'm now ahead of all previous autumn species counts up to 11 October, although that probably won't last as I will not be staying on the island next week. Unfortunately most of the birds were seen after the Tuesday ferry left and before the Thursday ferry arrived so the daily punters were not so fortunate.

Bird of the week was the Alstom's Warbler on Tuesday, now confirmed by Paul Leader.



No, it's not a mistake, I found the Alstrom's near the upper school at 2pm on Tuesday after Herman told me there was a Grey-headed Flycatcher there, which there was as you can see. The two birds seemed to be together.
Note the similarity in colour of these two birds - I've previously noted in these pages (autumn 2009 I think) how a Bianchi's Warbler seemed to spend all it's time with a Mountain Tailorbird which again is bright yellow below. It may be just co-incidence but ??? - anyway, they both left Po Toi on Tuesday night and were not seen afterwards.  

Although we only have a few records to go from, it seems that, amongst the Seicercus warblers, Alstrom's passes through in September/October whereas Bianchi's and White-spectacled are November/December and winter species. Given the way almost all autumn migrants including leaf warblers follow a precise time pattern, it would not be surprising if Seicercus warblers also had one.

Another good bird was a small cuckoo very early on Thursday morning which I think is a Lesser Cuckoo - although I didn't get very good front views, it looks very much like the one last year



Also passing over on Wednesday and Thursday early mornings, two Amur Falcons and a single Eurasian Hobby



Many leaf warblers this week, Yellow-browed and Arctic in good numbers plus a few Greenish, Pale-legged and Eastern Crowned. Also very many Dusky and a single Radde's, seen at long distance over the lagoon. Plus Yellow Bittern, more Woodcock, a Collared Scops Owl calling at night, a Minivet which might have been Swinhoe's, a few early Siberian Rubythroats calling, two Lanceolated and one Pallas's Grasshopper Warblers in the South Peninsular grasslands, the Orange-headed Thrush seen daily at the Upper School, a Chestnut Bunting, the only one identified from several buntings heard calling, large numbers of Black-naped Orioles (single flocks of 12 and 7 seen migrating) and, not least, Blue-and-white and two Japanese Paradise Flycatchers



As I mentioned above, I won't be staying on the island next week as I have visitors. But I may manage a single day visit.

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 12/10/2012 09:19 ]

wgeoff

Wow, it's still there!

Where was this photo taken?

wgeoff

I think it's the same bird but a photo from the other side would show better

wgeoff

It has been reported occasionally but with no photo support.

wgeoff

Another good week this week with lots of interest and some unexpected species, although perhaps not quite as many birds as a few weeks ago. The early autumn birds have mostly left as the weather cools down and the late autumn species have yet to arrive.

I arrived late on Tuesday as I usually do on public holidays so I missed the Tuesday birds but heard reports and saw some photos. The Varied Tit was seen in the large trees behind the restaurant, a Green-backed Flycatcher was around the helipad and just one of the Siskins was also still around the helipad. All these birds were missing for the rest of the week, I believe the Flycatcher and Siskin left Po Toi on Tuesday night but the Varied Tit was off to wherever it's been hiding for the last two weeks. Weekend visitors please report if they see it.

Another and perhaps even more unexpected returnee was the Rosy Starling from September. I saw it poking it's head out of a rubbish pile early on Thursday morning but only a fleeting view. I put it down on my list, then ten minutes later thought - are you really sure? So I crossed it off. One hour later Allen Chan (again!) came up to tell me he'd photgraphed it - see here

http://www.hkbws.org.hk/BBS/view ... 7212&highlight=

Where has that been for the last four weeks?

(PS - having studied photos of the first (October 1) http://www.hkbws.org.hk/BBS/view ... ;highlight=starling and second Rosy Starlings (October 25), I think these are different birds. The head pattern and bill are different. And this week's bird has a very ragged tail, which suggests it might be an escape)

Another great bird but regrettably without a photo was a female/immature? Japanese Robin in the gully on Green Pigeon Lane. I was attracted to this bird by its call - a fast group of 'tuck tuck' notes which made me think it was a flycatcher - until I saw it's bright red tail. It was sitting very low down in a bush and flying down to the ground intermittently to feed. But it was moving through and by the time I knew what it was, it was off into some impenetrable jungle.

Other new birds for autumn (for me) were Common Buzzard, Brownish-flanked, Japanese and Russet Bush Warblers, Radde's Warbler, Daurian Redstart (in high numbers this year, mostly males), Red-billed and White-cheeked Starlings and Little and Black-faced Buntings. Buntings are everywhere on Po Toi at the moment, mostly Chestnut with Black-faced, Little, at least one Yellow-browed and a Tristram's reported on Tuesday. They are their usual frustrating self, incredibly difficult to see for long enough to ID with photos almost impossible. Here a Black-faced with male and female Chestnut



Also two Bramblings near the sister's cafe, rather easier to photograph. Brambling is a very beautifully feathered species, as you can see from this close-up.



Finally, two commoner species on migration - Black-crowned Night Heron, usually seen in migrating flocks flying around the harbour at dusk and dawn, and Chinese Bulbul, now in large flocks everywhere but particularly the south peninsular



Rain is forecast for next week - much needed on Po Toi, the reservoirs are running dry.

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 26/10/2012 09:20 ]