ajohn

This morning at Ng Tung Chai I encountered a Phylloscopus warbler in the tree-tops among a small flock. I only had brief views but on appearance this seemed to be one of the Arctic Warbler complex.
Unusually for the time of year, it was singing, albeit not very vigorously. The song was a tit-like repeated 3-note phrase 'ti-chew-ee... ti-chew-ee... ti-chew-ee'. I tried to take a recording but unfortunately these recordings have not come out (probably because the song was quiet in the tree-tops, and there was a lot of background noise).
Checking on-line, the closest song I could find was Kamchatka Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus examinandus, a species not yet on the Hong Kong list. Goodson's Leaf Warbler has a similar song of 3-note phrases, but from what I could tell the bird differed in terms of plumage, behaviour and details of song structure.

I am not claiming the record with any certainty, especially because I only saw the bird poorly twice, and because I do not have recordings of the song. But I thought it may be worth higlighting in case others were interested to look for the bird or in case others encountered similar birds elsewhere. If anyone wants to look, the bird was in the first patch of forest just above the village, before reaching the temple. It was in an area with a grave on the right above the path.

Any comments about ID would be welcome, especially if anyone has experience with Kamchatka Leaf Warbler.