kmike

There were two Bull-headed Shrikes in Lam Tsuen this morning! Both were females.

One was at Tai Yeung Che, just in front of the row of three old houses. The other, a brighter and cleaner bird, was in the flower fields near the path that goes south from the left hand side of the She Shan Road.

Other good birds today, which was spent mostly in the open field areas because it was so dark included a Blue Rock Thrush in Tai Yeung Che, a Magpie on a nest  above the abandoned school, five Fantail Warblers together near She Shan, and a Bright-capped Cisticola nearby, five Little Buntings near the pond where Common Teal, now showing the plumage of a breeding male continues to hide. Over 30 Hair Crested Drongos may have included some newly arriving birds.

It was good to see a flock of five White-browed Laughingthrushes, having missed them completely in the bird race, and to have 6 or 7 Dusky Warblers - I thought they'd thinned out over the last couple of months.  Apart from that there were the usual winter regulars, but 4 Greater Coucals was a good count, and I enjoyed the Common Buzzard perched in the tree in front of my house and the distinctive zree-but.zree-but.zree-but song of a Russet Bush Warbler from the same area at dawn, and a Black-winged Cuckooshrike with delusions of grandeur hanging on the coattails of a couple Hair-crested Drongos.

Altogether I had 52 species, and missed the Plumbeous Redstart Dylan saw at Tai Yeung Che!

Cheers

Mike K

kmike

A quick visit to day to Tai Yeung Che and finally saw the Plumbeous Redstart on the river  between the Lam Kam Road and the bridge.

This is an interesting bird - a first winter male - which is starting to grow the red tail feathers of the adult plumage and the back is more uniform than a female I saw yesterday at Bride's Pool (below the beautiful waterfall on Mirror Pool).

I also saw the Bull-headed Shrike - again in front of the row of stone houses with the large fung shui trees behind.

Cheers
Mike

kmike

The Bull-headed Shrike and Plumbeous Redstart at Tai Yeung Che showed well again today, But the light on the shrike was much better than on the Redstart.

However you can still the beginnings of red in the tail, as mentioned yesterday

Cheers

Mike K

[ Last edited by kmike at 16/02/2010 00:09 ]

subbuteo

In the same location today at around 1 pm, a second Plumbeous Redstart joined the one Mike photographed - an adult plumaged male.  

Dylan

kmike

Checking back at the photo of the first Bull-headed Shrike it is of course a male (black mask), which mans that there have now been at least 3 individuals in Lam Tsuen this winter.

Cheers
Mike K

John Holmes

2010-February-16th
Id MKIV + 800mm + 1.4x

Seen and enjoyed today as well..

lalan

I took this on 31/1/2010 in Ma Po Mai

Male?

kmike

Hi Alan

I thin this is the same bird that is  at Tai Yeung Che - the two villages are close-by,  The most distinctive feature of male I photographed was a black mask through the eye.  Your bird has the uniformly orange brown head of a female.

Cheers

Mike

subbuteo

At Pak Tin Kong this morning, I watched an Ashy Drongo picking off honeybees brave enough to face the cold and rain.

Dylan

kmike

The Bull-headed Shrike was again at Tai Yeung Che this morning, but there was no sign of the Plumbeous Redstarts by the bridge.

Other birds there included a Red-flanked Bluetail, Dusky and Yellow-browed Warblers, a Common Kingfisher  and a Green Sandpiper.

Cheers
Mike

kkoel

At She Shan this evening there's a Grey-headed Lapwing flying around.

kmike

Today I went up to Ng Tung Chai for what turned out to be a rather quiet morning's walk. The highlights were 5 Red-flanked Bluetails, a female Black-naped Monarch, cracking male Siberian Rubythroat and a male Tristram's Bunting. Apart from that the major interest was that the Pallas' Leaf Warblers have started singing - in bold defiance of the coldest day of the year!

I also found a bundle of quills where a porcupine met its end, but by what predator I'm not clear. Answers on a postcard.

While waiting for the bus I had terrific views of a male Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker in a tree just below the road.

The Eurasian Buzzard which had disappeared for a couple of weeks is now back in residence on the trees around the marshy grassland at Ping Long and the female Daurian Redstart is back on the veggie patch.

Cheers

Mike K

kmike

I had a great start to the morning with two female Bull-headed Shrikes chasing each other around the car park at Tai Yeung Che.  

I hard a harsh chattering call I didn't recognize from a small bush and just as I was thinking "I wonder if that's the Bull-headed Shrike".  Immediately one popped out of the bush and landed on a nearby frame, but no sooner had it landed when another came screaming after it, and chased it up into the tall trees along the Lam Kam Road, before returning across the river.

My best guess is that the bird from the other side wandered into the territory of the Tai Yeung Che bird, and was chased away by the furious territory-holder.  About an hour later I saw one of them in the cherry orchard at the Ping Long  bus stop (Yuen Long direction).

Other good birds in the Tai Yeung Che area included a calling Blue Magpie, an Emerald Dove, and a Mountain Bush Warbler. The Crested Bulbul was on a convenient perch near the path.

The day before a Grey-backed Thrush sat up long enough for this record shot.

Cheers
Mike K

[ Last edited by kmike at 20/02/2010 20:45 ]

Carmen

19th Feb, afternoon
Common Rosefinch x2

kmike

A swift hour between 0800 and 0900 this morning near Siu Om Shan and Pak Tin Kong:

Brown Wood Owl - heard by Dylan Saturday night around 19:20pm

Black-winged Cuckooshrike - 2
Scarlet Minivet 4

Daurian Redstart - 1f
Siberian Rubythroat - 2 heard

Common Blackbird - 3
Grey-backed Thrush - 1f

Taiga Flycatcher - 1
Verditer - 1f

White-browed Laughingthrush - 3

Hair-crested Drongo - 2


Cheers
Mike K

subbuteo

An early walk this morning (6.10 am 26/2/10).  I heard Savannah Nightjar calling over Ping Long / Tai Om Tsuen village. Disappointingly, and despite a lot of trying at different times, I have not heard the Brown Wood Owl since last Saturday.

kmike

Savannah Nightjar was calling again last night; and today a swift 90 minutes on the patch paid off with a Black Kite chasing a Crested Honey Buzzard above Tai Om, while I was trying to photograph the Blue Whistling Thrush, and the Bull-headed Shrike is still at Tai Yeung Che despite the rise in temperatures.

A little later there were also a couple of Pacific Swifts in with a flock of 40-50 House Swifts and Barn Swallows obviously taking advantage of a hatch of winged insects over Tai Om woods.

More signs of spring . . . and this will be the last posting of the winter - March is definitely spring!


Cheers

Mike K