Birding report: Shing Mun/Lead Mine Pass, Autumn 2018
14th Sep 2018 Friday
Sunny with temperature from 25 to 30 degrees Celsius, wind blowing from E/NE
As usual, Pineapple Dam was the starting point. On the top, a White wagtail was spotted, perching on a small bare rock near the water edge, still, obviously recovering itself from a long haul flight. It was, however gone when I returned some minutes later.
It was some midway along the reservoir walk that a mixed flock of bulbuls, white-eyes, babblers and tits was met. It was among the local birds that a single Easter-crowned leaf warbler was seen, my first of the autumn.
The second mixed flock was more interesting. Dominated by some twenty or more Grey-throated
Minivets - an uncommon sight these days - it was after some hardwork that a black-winged cuckoo shrike was found.
It was some half way up the pass that another mixed flock was met. Though with less attractive local species, a second Black-winged cuckoo shrike was seen, also another Eastern-crowned leaf warbler and an Amur paradise flycatcher, the fourth of this autumn.
Twenty-five species of birds were recorded, some good change from twenty and nineteen of previous two times, all in this month.