cbryan

A very fruitful morning at TPK today starting 0745.

welcomed by a huge flock of scarlet minivets over the sky near the warden's post. followed by a pair of forktail sunbirds and oriental magpie robinsat the management centre.

entering the outdoor study garden was the ever-present blue whistling thrush.  just when i thought of leaving the garden a very large bird wave arrives including japanese white-eyes, silver eared mesias, rufous capped babblers, yellow browed and pallas's leaf warblers, and chinese bulbuls, each in great number, and among them a grey headed flycatcher, an asian brown flycatcher, grey throated minivet, a couple of blue winged minla, a velvet fronted nuthatch, yellow cheeked tit, and a couple of great tits, while a common tailor bird skulks on the ground.  they kept me entertained for an hour and at some point many of them came down to the ground after the bugs and came as close as less than 2 metres away from me.  i guess they're desparate for breakfast under such cold weather they're too occupied with their feeding frenzy without noticing me. (interesting though nobody else was around in all that time)

heading for the red/blue trail i met a tourist birder who saw earlier buff bellied flowerpecker and black winged cuckoo shrike.  the trail was very quiet that we saw only great tits, yellow cheeked tit, chinese bulbuls, yellow browed and pallas's warblers and a couple of others warblers that we couldn't recognize, white rumped munia, grey headed flycatcher, grey cheeked fulvetta, and plenty of japanese white-eyes.  i spotted a tit sort of bird with unmistakable white cheek and olive back but it lacks any yellow on its underparts so it's not certain if that's a green backed tit.  we also saw this bird which spent us quite some time before we could conclude it's a mountain bulbul, probably a junvenile.


back to the garden there's no bird wave anymore but most of the birds i saw earlier were there resting among the trees.  added to the list was the chestnut bulbul, a japanese thrush and a black naped monarch.  saying goodbye to us at the gate was the pack of ever-present black throated laughingthrush and the voice of a large billed crow.

[ Last edited by cbryan at 7/12/2008 16:18 ]

cbryan

oops!  just checked that great tits could have their mantle or back washed with a green tint.  so i think the suspected green backed tit was actually a great tit.

thinfor

I would also like to add my birding record (as well as my friend) on 6Dec08 with a loop of an anti-clockwise direction of the red trail.
我也想發表我和朋友在08年12月6日的觀鳥紀錄.  路程為逆時針沿紅徑走一圈.

Birding time 觀鳥時間: 0800-1630

Entrance 入口
067 Black Kite 黑鳶 (麻鷹)   x6            
194 Spotted Dove 珠頸斑鳩   x3
323 Asian Stubtail Warbler 鱗頭樹鶯   x1 (unsure)
391 Velvet-fronted Nuthatch 絨額鳾   x2
394 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker 朱背啄花鳥   x1
395 Fork-tailed Sunbird 叉尾太陽鳥   x1

Outdoor Study Centre 野外研習園
022 Chinese Pond Heron 池鷺   x1
260 Olive-backed Pipit 樹鷚   x2
265 Black-winged Cuckoo-shrike 暗灰鵑鵙   x2
298 Blue Whistling Thrush 紫嘯鶇   x1
319 Blue-winged Minla 藍翅希鶥   x1
354 Yellow Browed Warbler 黃眉柳鶯   x4
383 Grey-headed Flycatcher 方尾鶲   x1

Along Red Trail 紅徑沿路
310 Rufous-capped Babbler 紅頭穗鶥   x2
313 Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush 黑領噪鶥   x2
317 Silver-eared Mesia 銀耳相思鳥   x15
318 Red-billed Leiothrix 紅嘴相思鳥   x2
390 Yellow-cheeked Tit 黃頰山雀   x5
439 Ashy Drongo 灰卷尾   x1   Leucogensis亞種
755 Grey-cheeked Fulvetta 白眶雀鶥 / 灰眶雀鶥   x2

Near river/dam 河口水壩附近
257 Grey Wagtail 灰鶺鴒   x1

Throughout the whole journey 全程經常出現
268 Grey-chinned Minivet 灰喉山椒鳥   x20
270 Red-whiskered Bulbul 紅耳鵯   x10
271 Chinese Bulbul 白頭鵯   x2
273 Chestnut Bulbul 栗背短腳鵯   x5
287 Oriental Magpie Robin 鵲鴝   x10
347 Common Tailorbird 長尾縫葉鶯   x8
389 Great Tit 大山雀   x8
397 Japanese White-eye 暗綠繡眼鳥（相思）   abundant

Also, we have been heard from other birders that Orange-bellied Leafbird(275) and Bay Woodpecker(243) have been seen just outside and in the outdoor study centre respectively.
另外, 其他鳥友在野外研習園入口對出及裡面分別看到橙腹葉鵯(275)及黃嘴噪啄木鳥(243).

[ Last edited by thinfor at 8/12/2008 00:37 ]

sken

Thanks for the great post.... I love these.  YES, the pictures are nice on most posts, but certainly good to hear what people are seeing where.
Cheers!
Ken

thinfor

Thanks Ken (if you refer to both Bryan and my posts).  I've tried my best to record in this way, though there may be some discrepancies (since this time I just used my memory with absence of keeping notes).

Maybe a long time for me to save some money to equip myself to take bird photos.  I am planning to do this, but you may have to wait.  Undoubtedly, bird photos really give us great visual effect when browsing the posts.

Happy birding!

Beetle

Seems there still isn't record of the Straited Yuhina 栗耳鳳鶥 in Tai Po Kau (but present in Ng Tung Chai) this winter. Strange?

kpokuen

Dec 9, morning

-Black-naped Monarch
-Grey headed Flycatcher
-Blyth's Leaf Warbler
-Ashy Drongo
-Black-winged Cuckoo Shrike
-Bay Woodpecker (female)

kmike

First pic of Bay Woodpecker in HK - congratulations Kwan!

. . . and referringto Beetle's post  - I would swap one bay Woodpecker for the whole flock of 30 Striated Yuhinas in Ng Tung Chai!

Cheers
Mike K

twallace

Congratulations~~ Mr.Kwan

ypakwai

Congratulations~~ Mr.Kwan

YES

kpokuen

Quote:

Original posted by kmike at 9/12/2008 22:47
First pic of Bay Woodpecker in HK - congratulations Kwan!
...

No this is not the first picture record, Mr. Wong of AFCD has the first picture of a male posted some times ago.

cbryan

Quote:

Original posted by kpokuen at 10/12/2008 08:38


No this is not the first picture record, Mr. Wong of AFCD has the first picture of a male posted some times ago.

btw, whereabout in TPK is this pic of the woodpecker taken.

thinfor

I'd also like to ask this question!

BTW, side track stuff.  We also saw a wild boar on that day when walking along the red trail horizontally at 180m contour.

vkym

Ah~ yes, a wild boar was seen on both 3 Dec 2008 and 6 Dec 2008 during the anit-clockwise walk of red trail. Beware!!

1.jpg (68.06 KB)

11/12/2008 00:11

cbryan

20081213
1515-1730

welcomed by yellow browed warbler high up above the trees at the gate.  met a bird wave half way up before reaching the warden's post, including grey throated minivet, black winged cuckooshrike, chestnut bulbul, red billed leiothrix, velvet fronted nuthatch, red capped babbler, blue winged minla, yellow bellied yuhina, great tit, yellow cheeked tit, japanese white eye and ashy drongo.  the bird wave was so large and fast moving that i just couldn't id them all.  among the crowd is a very distinguished bird with a cuckoo/thrush structure, dull brownish upperpart, dark brown to black primaries, brownish but paler underpart with scales.  it's a shame that i couldn't see the tail and the rest of the features more clearly before it took off into the valley.

the garden was basically empty so i headed to the red walk before it gets too dark.  heard but not seen throughout the walk were yellow browed warbler, pallas's leaf warbler, dusky warbler, forktailed sunbird and chestnut bulbul.  a pair of black throated laughingthrush ignored my presence when skulking in the undergrowth past where the blue and red diverged.  didn't take a loop since it's getting dark that i u-turned at picnic 3 where plenty of great tits were enjoying supper.  the trail was a bit disappointing except the discovery of several very noisy white browed laughingthrushes near picnic 2, all quieted down when i tried to imitate their calls.

bidding me farewell this time was the voice of a blue whistling thrush and a large billed crow.

not sure if it's the ghost of my heart, i thought i heard the voice of wild boars and the scene of confronting them kept flashing up on my mind throughout the walk.

Beetle

White-browed laughingthrushes?! interesting! i thought it is only present in HKZBG on HK island.

It seems that a wild boar has always been present near red walk recently.

cbryan

the wb laughingthrushes were seen to the right of the trail just right past picnic 2 heading towards picnic 3.  very noisy pack of birds with that unmistakable cackling calls and striking white brow and cheek.

it's very funny watching them freeze their moves when they heard you imitate their calls, instead of getting flushed and dispersed, and then back to their own business after a while.  very entertaining.

kmike

This record is intreesting because White-browed Laughingthrushes are usually birds of open country (such as around She Shan, above Wun Yiu and Chau Tau).

Cheers
Mike K

Beetle

some highlights today.

At around 8:45 there was a flock of 25+ Striated Yuhinas mid way above the entrance. (sorry they were on high trees so no photo.)
After that i heard the noisy little mice...Pygmy Wren Babbler at the picnic area(large one) and got an unclear photo. Hope i will get a clear and sharp one one day.

at about 12:45 a bird wave at the same picnic area: Grey-chinned minivets, Chestnut bulbul, Minlas, Rufous-capped babbler, Nuthatches, Grey-headed Flycatcher, Goodson's Leaf Warbler, Pallas's Leaf Warblers, Tits, and etc.. and the most attractive one was a Black-naped Monarch, this one having a white patch on its wings - which was different from the ones some time ago. It was quite entertaining to watch it bathing at the little stream next to the picnic area.


[ Last edited by Beetle at 16/12/2008 20:13 ]

kmatthew

20/12/2008 Morning

A good day for babblers and a bad day for flycatchers and thrushes, though it was a nice day of birding with plenty of bird waves which kept us occupied.

Species includes: a Striatd Heron at the dam, a Crested Goshawk at the botanic garden, one Bay Woodpecker heard on the way down at 1:00pm, Great Barbet heard, Grey-throated Minivets, Pallas's Leaf Warbler, Yellow-browed Warbler, Mountain Tailorbirds amongst bird waves(at least 2 in each), Red-billed Leiothrix, Rufous-capped Babbler(a flock of 20 two feet away from me at one point!!), Grey-cheecked Fulvetta, Blue-winged Minla, Striated Yuhina(flock of 20-30), White-beliied Yuhina, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch, Yellow-cheecked Tit, Fork-tailed Sunbird, Flowerpecker sp. & a "Short-tailed Shrike". The only thrush sp. we saw was a possible Brown-headed Thrush but it was too quick for us to identify clearly!!

"Short-Tailed Shrike"


Striated Yuhina


Yellow-cheecked Tit


Grey-cheecked Fulvetta



[ Last edited by kmatthew at 20/12/2008 15:56 ]

thinfor

Like Matthew, I visited TPK in the morning on 20Dec08 with a loop of an anti-clockwise direction of the red trail but left in the midway down to the end point through the shortcut steps.
和Matthew一樣, 我在08年12月20日早上也到了大埔滘觀鳥.  路程為逆時針沿紅徑走一圈, 但中途沿梯階小路捷徑回程.

Birding time 觀鳥時間: 0730-1230

Entrance 入口
271 Chinese Bulbul 白頭鵯   x2
287 Oriental Magpie Robin 鵲鴝   x1
352 Pallas’s Leaf Warbler 黃腰柳鶯   x2
354 Yellow Browed Warbler 黃眉柳鶯   x1
389 Great Tit 大山雀   x3
940 Pygmy Wren-babbler 小鷦鶥   x1 (very clear) (but no photo!)

Outdoor Study Centre 野外研習園
268 Grey-chinned Minivet 灰喉山椒鳥   x1 (female)
269 Scarlet Minivet 赤紅山椒鳥 x1 (male)
317 Silver-eared Mesia 銀耳相思鳥   x10
383 Grey-headed Flycatcher 方尾鶲   x1
394 Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker 朱背啄花鳥 (heard)
395 Fork-tailed Sunbird 叉尾太陽鳥   x2


Along Red Trail 紅徑沿路
194 Spotted Dove 珠頸斑鳩   x1
273 Chestnut Bulbul 栗背短腳鵯   x1
310 Rufous-capped Babbler 紅頭穗鶥   x2
321 Striated Yuhina 栗頭鳳鶥   x10 (own flock)
755 Grey-cheeked Fulvetta 白眶雀鶥 / 灰眶雀鶥   x2

Near river/dam 河口水壩附近
257 Grey Wagtail 灰鶺鴒   x1

Throughout the whole journey 全程經常出現
270 Red-whiskered Bulbul 紅耳鵯   x10
347 Common Tailorbird 長尾縫葉鶯   x4
390 Yellow-cheeked Tit 黃頰山雀   x4
391 Velvet-fronted Nuthatch 絨額鳾   x5
397 Japanese White-eye 暗綠繡眼鳥（相思）   x20

Most of the birds have been seen around an area of pine trees along the shortcut steps down to the point intersecting the original red trail before crossing the stream.
大部份林鳥都在沿梯階小路捷徑往下走接回紅徑, 未過小溪前的一小片松樹林錄得.

And 1 lovely scquirrel has been found along the road to the starting point of the red trail.
另外, 在往紅徑起步點的車路途中見到一隻可愛的松鼠.

cbryan

20081221 0800-1230

welcoming me today half way up the access road was a bird wave comprising mainly of yellow cheeked tits, yellow browed and pallas's leaf warblers high up on the canopy (i'm sure there're other warblers but i just couldn't id them with their bellies).

just outside the outdoor study garden a fortail sunbird 'perched' for a long time at eye level singing (never seen a sunbird that cooperative) while a pair of common tailorbbird dances underneath it.  in the garden just as a blue whistling thrush shied away from me a large bird wave arrives, including the warblers mentioned plus dusky warblers, buff bellied flowerpeckers, forktail sunbirds, japanese white-eyes, nearly 20 rufous capped babblers, silver eared mesias, great tits, a streak breasted scimitar babbler, and a grey headed flycatcher.  only when the sound of the bird wave faded away that i heard and spotted a plumbeous water redstart female perched on a boulder.

at picnic 2 on the red trail the warblers were everywhere.  near the uphill slope i spotted a radde's warbler while a pair of velvet fronted nuthatches was busy having breakfast above my head.  took the shortcut to the blue trail and spotted again the nuthatches and a couple of blue winged minlas and among them a grey cheeked fulvetta reported by another birder.  rejoined the anti-clockwise red i met packs of chestnut bulbuls now and then.

when i was waiting for a taxi to leave at tai po road an asian brown flycatcher opposite the road caught my eyes.  it was perching so prominently that i accepted its invitation to watch the aerobatics for another 15 mins.

unfortunately, no woodpecker, no boar, and no monkey this time.

bryan

Beetle

22 Dec 2008, 11:30am-4:30pm

Some note about mammals first:
Wild boars appear again in the same valley next to the Red Walk...this time in a group of 4. It was exciting watching them running away after scary roars.
Monkeys still hanging around near picnic area.



Back to birds...the Black-naped Monarch seen last week(which has a white patch on its wings) was seen again today.
And also a bright yellow Goodson's Leaf Warbler. An Ashy Drongo was seen by another birder at the access road.

franktai

23/12  上午

行啡路打算博吓.....
點知有隊咩 山龜旅行社 成幾十人,勁大聲,咩雀都嚇走哂啦!
只有:  黑喉噪鶥
       大山雀
       紅嘴相思鳥
       暗綠繡眼鳥
       栗背短腳鵯+unknown Warbler

好彩研習園往入口之間有個雀浪補數,有
赤紅山椒鳥x1(male)
黃頰山雀
絨額鳾
暗灰鵑鵙x1
長尾縫葉鶯x1
大山雀

沿路: 栗背短腳鵯
      叉尾太陽鳥
      珠頸斑鳩
      白頭鵯

[ 本帖最後由 franktai 於 31/12/2008 17:00 編輯 ]

Beetle

Quote:

Original posted by franktai at 23/12/2008 22:31
23/12  上午

行啡路打算博吓.....
點知有隊咩 山龜旅行社 成幾十人,勁大聲,咩雀都嚇走哂啦!

23/12 上午不止這些哦!

-Ashy Drongo 灰卷尾
-Blyth's Leaf Warbler + Goodson's Leaf Warbler 冠紋柳鶯+華南冠紋柳鶯
-Greenish Warbler 暗綠柳鶯 (see my ID post)
-Black-naped Monarch 黑枕王鶲 (same one again with white patch.)

kpokuen

Dec 24

-Black naped Monarch
-Grey headed Flycatcher
-Asian stubtail
-Rufous tailed Robin
-Eastern Crowned Warbler
-Blyth's Leaf warbler X2, one Goodsoni type
-Scaly Thrush
-Grey backed Thrush
-Red Flanked Bluetail
-Chestnut Bunting


[ Last edited by kpokuen at 25/12/2008 11:48 ]

gary

Hi Kwan,

Given that Eastern-crowned Warbler is not usual in winter and a suspected one was photoed and posted on other thread, can you share with us your observation on that bird, e.g. any crown stripe shown?
Have we overlooked/misdentified this species in previous winter?

Thanks

Gary

kpokuen

It is an individual with bright green upper, white under, yellowish vent, strong head patterns but a faint median crown stripe, a thin wing bar.
I have the following record of Eastern Crowned Warbler this winter at TPK.
-Nov 9, Nov15, Dec 13 n Dec 24.
So may be one stayed in TPK this winter.

FYI my latest record of Eastern Crowned Warbler at TPK last year is Oct 12, 2007

[ Last edited by kpokuen at 25/12/2008 12:08 ]

cbryan

20081225
0730-1230

welcomed by a pair of black throated laughingthrushes at the gate and monkeys at the warden's post.

entering the garden i bumped into a flock of blue winged minlas, mingled with a couple of japanese white-eyes.  going deeper a blue whistling thrush heralded the arrival of a swarm of rufous capped babblers.  some of them getting just feet away from me that i gave up using my bino to watch them.  following them was a streak breasted scimitar babbler.  i find the two babblers are good friends and quite punctual that it's more or less at eight that i met them every time in the garden.  the garden then turned into a bazaar with several silver eared mesias, yellow browed warblers, forktail sunbirds, a grey headed flycatcher and a scarlet minivet female arriving.  leaving the garden a grey backed thrush male waved me goodbye.

picnic 2 and 3 were basically empty.  took the shortcut from red to blue and met another bird wave of yellow cheeked tits, great tits, blue winged minlas(again), chestnut bulbuls and yb warblers, while a pack of greater necklaced laughingthrushes hop underneath like chinese vampires.

crossed the creek on anticlockwise blue there were a pair of blue winged minlas (again!) grooming side by side.  then sprinkled along the rest of the blue were a pair of mountain bulbuls, chestnut bulbuls, scarlet backed flowerpecker male, pallas's leaf warblers, white-eyes, grey chinned minivets, streak breasted scimitar babblers (a pair this time) and a possible greenish warbler.

the large billed crow was everywhere keeping its voice heard now and then.

[ Last edited by cbryan at 25/12/2008 15:32 ]

gary

Thanks for Kwan's reply.
I've kept my eye on this bird　today but no result.

Late arrival today, but still not bad for common forest birds.
Have a feeling for long time that every winter (Dec - Feb)the forest birds come very low level. Today again I had close encounter with minivet and Chestnut Bulbul. Some Chinese Bulbul even descended to ground level for foraging. I interpret this as result of becoming scarce of food items(insects) in winter which in turn push the birds to expand their foraging niche to lower vegetation level. I have a strong feeling for this today, as I saw a Chestnut Bulbul descended to very low level and ate the fruit of　Psychotria asiatica　九節。
Does any one have similar observation?

Gary

kpokuen

Dec 27

-Black naped Monarch (male)
-Grey headed Flycatcher
-Greenish Warbler
-Blyth's Leaf Warbler
-Pallas's Leaf Warbler
-Striated Heron
-Striated Yuhina 30X
-Bay Woodpecker 2X

cbryan

20081228
0700-1000

made a brief visit this morning and focused mainly on the garden.  birds haven't woken up yet until i reached the garden and it was relatively quiet today.

olive backed pitpits have just woken up to the alarm clock of the forktail sunbird at the garden entrance.  in the garden the ever-present blue whistling thrush was there as usual.  business started only at about eight when a pair of hwamei sneaked into the hedges beside the pavilion and stayed there till i left.  great tits tried to fight them for feeding territory but were not successful while common tailorbirds remained neutral between the two parties.  chestnut bulbuls came out from the woods to get a good vantage point but left soon realising the show was long over.  a pack of about 20 rufous capped babblers swarmed the valley near the garden.  but it seems that the streak breasted scimitar babbler and the mesias overslept and missed the train this time.  in the undergrowth of the slopes was found an asian subtail and a lesser shortwing.  heard but not seen were the usual suspects--the yellow browed warblers, the pallas's leaf warblers, the dusky warblers and the forktail sunbirds.

at the dam a grey wagtail was busy looking for breakfast.  picnic 2 was empty and picnic 3 was packed with the outing group so i moved straight to the short cut from red to blue.  there a grey backed thrush female was grooming herself up on a tree while packs of great tits and chestnut bulbuls made her company.  in the background voice of a large flock of grey chinned minivets was heard.  time ran out for me that i u-turned there and left, keeping an eye on the monkeys at the access road wary that their poo might drop right on my head when there's already smell of it everywhere.

[ Last edited by cbryan at 28/12/2008 20:27 ]

twaiyi

There was about 5 to 6 Grey-headed Flycatcher(方尾鶲) on the 26 Dec at the Outdoor Study Centre(研習園)

kmike

Bay Woodpecker was seen at the Outdoor Study Centre, Tai Po around 9:30 this morning, but not by me.

I also heard that the Brown Wood Owl was heard early one morning last week in Tai Po Kau.

Cheers
Mike K

kmatthew

I guess I was lucky enough to see the female this morning briefly!! Shame I was not quick enough for a photo...

franktai

1/1/2009  黃昏

研習園往入口之間有個雀浪,
暗灰鵑鵙x1
大山雀    few
赤紅山椒鳥x1(male)
絨額鳾    few
暗綠繡眼鳥few
灰喉山椒鳥x1(female)
方尾鶲x1
黃眉柳鶯x1
紅耳鵯   few
銀耳相思 many
紅頭穗鶥 many

之後沿路
長尾縫葉鶯x2
珠頸斑鳩

野外研習園
藍翅希鶥
紅頭穗鶥
紫嘯鶇

紫嘯鶇是在我跟著叫聲追尋另一隻雀時,突然發覺它就在我左手邊一米左右水平距離,
因為太近令我不知如何是好 ,它還對着我,把身體傾前後張開尾巴,做了幾次後才跳走。
可惜我不是拍友,不過也是一次難忘的經歷!

LCY

Today got chance to meet several birds waves in TPK but didn't pay much attention on them as they were not "my cup of tea" today. My cup of tea was this BAY WOODPECKER close encounter:

LOOKING FOR FOOD




DIGGING MOMENT


The bird was seen at the "Giant Rock" between picnic area 1 and 2, where Red road and the nature education trail inter-crossing. It was quite close to us (Mr. Tai and another birder)that we can clearly heard wood-pecking sound from it. We enjoyed watching this bird very much. What a good start in 2009.

Louis

cbryan

20080104
0800-1100

overslept and started a bit late today.  the pack of rufous capped babblers and silver eared mesias i see most of the time at the garden has already descended down to midway of the access road.  among them i also found several blue winged minlas.  while trying to id the flowerpecker sp. female sharing breakfast with a common tailorbird at 俊苑居 i was surprised by the presence of a pair of hwaimei.  a flock of striated yuhinas was in a hurry uphill when i reached the warden post.

the garden was pretty quiet today (maybe because i reached there late). those not letting me down include the ever-present blue whistling thrush, a grey backed thrush female, a pack of chestnut bulbuls, common tailorbirds, a forktail sunbird male, several warblers including yellow browed and dusky, and a velvet fronted nuthatch.  while the garden was lack of birds i suspect that some kind of mammal is making use of the thickets (near the scarlet sterculia 假萍婆 by the pavilion) as its den as i could hear strange chatter not belonging to birds and shadows within it.

picnic 2 was empty but i was rewarded with a pair of orange bellied leaf birds at picnic 3 feeding on the fig kind of tree, though they were soon replaced by a noisy lot of hikers feeding on tangerines they brought with them.

at the shortcut between red and blue, skulkers were everywhere though i could not locate them.  chestnut bulbuls were everywhere as well.  there i met a series of bird waves comprising of blue winged minlas and striated yuhinas again.  there were also yellow cheeked tits, pallas's leaf warblers and grey headed flycatchers.  an asian brown flycatcher and a black winged cuckoo shrike was feeding quietly far down and behind the crowd.  when the crowd's gone, all i could hear was the penetrating sound of grey throated minivets in the background.

u-turned there and hurrying downhill i didn't notice anything interesting further but the voice of the streak breasted scimitar babbler who's having difficulty to locate its friends along the access road.

cbryan

btw, another birder on the red told me that there's a tiny warbler sized bird with a black head, red chest and a yellow belly.  flipping all over my textbooks including mackinnon i don't see a bird with such size and colour combination.

my closest bet would be a mrs. gould's sunbird.  the black head could be its metallic blue head appearing black at particular angles to the sun.

well, that provides me with another good reason to pay frequent visits to TPK, other than the woodpeckers which i have yet to meet.

kmike

HI Bryan

The bird you mention may be a male Buff-bellied Flowerpecker.

Cheers
Mike K

cbryan

Mike

i thought and suggested it to the other birder but he said its belly was bright yellow instead of being a yellowish wash.  anyway i really wish i could bump into a mrs. gould soon.

cheers
bryan

tmichael

Is it not possible this just refers to a Fork-tailed Sunbird?

Not exactly "bright yellow" I know, but it is more "warbler-sized" than Mrs G's, and a LOT more common.

Here's one I photographed last week in Sai Kung, by way of attempting my first photo attachment.

Mike Turnbull

[ Last edited by tmichael at 6/01/2009 22:40 ]

franktai

this is absolutly a Fork-tailed Sunbird! In the photo the Fork-tailed is very clear. which black-throated or Mrs Gould's did not have fork but just one.  You can see the picture of Mrs Gould's Sunbird in this web. Go to landbirds and clik in to sunbids. You can find some great picture there. You can clear see there just one tailed.

tmichael

Yeah, I know it's a Fork-tailed Sunbird - I posted it to show:

(a) FtS has a dark head - darker I'd have thought than Mrs G's
(b) FtS has a very obvious red throat/chest
(c) FtS has yellow underparts - though not perhaps bright yellow, they are clearly yellow most of the time.

Mike Turnbull

cbryan

haha.  i really can't believe this is your first attempt of posting a pic, mike.  anyway i got your point and it's really hard to speculate on the id of a bird just based on descriptions of another birder.

cheers
bryan

kpokuen

Jan 8

-Blyth's Leaf Warbler
-Sulphur Breasted Warbler

cbryan

20090110
1530-1730

kind of quiet today with hwameis being the major player whom i've seen thrice.  saw a pair first at the access road just past 俊苑居.  highly shy but the sound they make turning the leaf litter betrayed them.  up above them were forktailed sunbirds, japanese white-eyes, yellow browed and chestnut bulbuls.  by the pond a long tailed shrike was enjoying its supper.  common tailorbirds were everywhere this late afternoon as well, escorting me all the way to the toilets where i met a pack of olive backed pitpits which were quite tame and they ignored my presence (i find them kind of like sparrows or pigeons in the park).

pallas's warblers and yellow browed warblers were plenty in the garden.  the 'feeding club' of rufous capped babblers and silver eared mesias descended from the northern slope but their affiliates this time was not the scimitar babbler but a pair of hwameis, again!

heading up the hill past picnic 1 i met the feeding club again but this time the hwameis were too slow, or too shy, to follow them.  returning from the empty picnic 2 at 'the rock' i heard the voice of a blue whistling thrush trying to reach out for its friends relentlessly.  i have to thank it for it's when i tried hard to locate it that i spotted a dodgy pygmy wren babbler just feets away from me.

on the access road leaving, i met the hwameis for the third time.  i wonder if they were all the same pair...

cbryan

20090111
0715-1215

it was very quiet at the beginning with only common tailorbirds , olive backed pitpits and yellow browed warblers accompanying me to the garden.  the silence of the garden was broken by a small birdwave comprising of a grey headed flycatcher, a velvet fronted nuthatch, japanese white-eyes and yellow browed warblers.  among them was a bird with a dull brownish head, a yellowish belly and a greyish brown vent and tail, which i couldn't quite recognize.  a pair of hwamei hopped away just when i get near the pond, beyond which i found and forktailed sunbirds and chestnut bulbuls coming down to feed on fruits.  but there was no sign of the feeding club i met every time i visited the garden in the morning recently.

on the way to picnic 2 was a pair of black throated laughingthrush. picnic 3 was filled with great tits, white-eyes and an orange bellied leaf bird female.  the OBLB was right above me when i rested on the picnic bench.  i was given just enough time to react when i saw through the bino poo coming out of its vent.  but the panicking movements i made were too much for the OBLB that it sounded the alarm and flew off.

on the shortcut between red and blue was a lesser shortwing searching the leaf litter along the uphill slope.  it was quite tamed that i took a seat on a log and watched it going round in loops just feet away from me for 15 mins.  the rest of the shortcut was also rewarding that synchronized with my pace were birdwaves comprising of yellow browed warblers, pallas's leaf warblers, a possible greenish warbler, a buff bellied flowerpecker male, japanese white-eyes, rufous capped babblers, blue winged minlas, great tits, yellow cheeked tits, grey throated minivets, a pair of streak breasted scimitar babblers and chestnut bulbuls.  the YC tits were very tamed that i watched them feeding on catepillar without using my bino.  and it's fun watching the scimitar babblers pumping their heads like woodpeckers trying hard to get the bugs out of dead logs.

the blue was a bit quiet but it's worth al the effort just to meet a sulphur breasted warbler along the stream.

before leaving i visited the garden again to discover a blue whistling thrush, a grey backed thrush male, a hwamei and a streak breasted scimitar babbler joined forces to draw all the attention of the photographers towards the northern slope.

cbryan

Quote:

Original posted by gary at 25/12/2008 22:05
Thanks for Kwan's reply.
I've kept my eye on this bird　today but no result.

Late arrival today, but still not bad for common forest birds.
Have a feeling for long time that every winter (Dec - Fe ...

Gary,

i saw today chestnut bulbuls descending to my eye level to feed on fruits of this plant.





i seldom see chestnut bulbuls coming down to such a low level to feed.  i'm not familiar with the diet of bulbuls but if they have a choice i guess they would opt for more energy packed insects than hard-to-digest fruits.  it's freezing cold this morning and this observation seems to concur with your theory.

Bryan

cbryan

20090117
1430-1730

met a bird 'ripple' half way along the access road, comprising of yellow cheeked tits, great tits, a blue winged minla and a couple of yellow browed warblers.  among them was also a warbler sized bird with two wing bars and eyebrow but looked very dull, almost monochrome, and obviously not a yellow browed.  but it was in sight too brief for me to ascertain what it is.  one interesting thing (interesting to me at least) is that this bird 'ripple' remained silent all the way, almost in the manner of skulking birds.  not even a single bird among them made a call, as if they had a consensus not to do so.

the lack of other birds in the garden made the voice of the fortailed sunbirds and chestnut bulbuls all the more clarion.  it was amazing to see the chestnut bulbuls coming down, this time, to ground level to feed on fruit of shrubs, like babblers.

a very shy lesser shortwing was feeding in the undergrowth just past picnic 2.  i would have overlooked it if it was not the sound of it turning the leaf litter.  as if it knew that its position was blown, it became very careful and turned its feeding into a covert operation, not making a sound thereafter, while a large flock of silver eared mesias passed quickly in the background.

three mountain bulbuls were feeding quitely on fruits at picnic 3 among tits calling relentlessly.  somehow i find the hairy projections on the chest of the mountain bulbuls kind of like the inflated belly of a blow fish.

on the shortcut to the blue was again a lesser shortwing (at the very same spot i found one last week).  but this time another one, way more tame than the one met earlier.  it was very cooperative that at one point it perched on a branch just two metres away from me, allowing me to have a very close examination of the pumping of its tail, which looks very much like a hinged stick raised, dropped and rebounds several times under gravity.  very entertaining indeed.

the usual skulkers seemed to refrain from showing themselves until on my way leaving, which includes a blue whistling thrush at the creek under 'the rock' (seems like that it's its habit to be there most dusks), and along the access road a grey backed thrush male, a hwamei, and a black throated laughingthrush respectively.