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        Discussion Area 討論區 >> Bird Identification 鳥類辨識 >>  Fujian Niltava 棕腹大仙鶲
        
(Message started by: BERNARD on Jan 27^th, 2003, 12:36am)

Title: Fujian Niltava 棕腹大仙鶲
Post by BERNARD on Jan 27^th, 2003, 12:36am

379 Fujian Niltava 棕腹大仙鶲
Tai Po Kau 大埔滘
26/1/2003
Photographed in Tai Po Kau 大埔滘 dated 26 Jan 2003 about 3pm

http://www.geocities.com/hbirdk/F_NILTAVA.JPG
http://www.hkbws.org.hk/fileServer/PhotoG/bernade/bernadeFNILTAVA.jpg

I saw this bird standing on a tree branch for a long time. It was located down on the slope near the end of red walk and was far away. It was well below eye level and I couldn't photograph the belly and throat in detail. Autofocusing was impossible as there were so many tree branches in between. I use manual focusing and only this picture is the clearest.

Is this a Fujian Niltava or a Hainan Blue Flycatcher or one of those escaped cage birds (such as Hill Blue Flycatcher etc.) ?? Its belly seems to be in orange color all the way down. The tip of the wings and tail seems to be in black colour.

Experienced birders please help me to identify. Thanks.

Bernard.

Title: Re: Fujian Niltava 棕腹大仙鶲??
Post by Mike Turnbull on Jan 27^th, 2003, 9:38pm

It's certainly a niltava, Bernard - apart from the overall "jizz", the distribution of shining blue areas on the forehead and sides of the crown and on the rump is characteristic of that group.

It's probably a Fujian (Fukien) Niltava, though separation from Rufous-bellied (sundara) is not easy. The books that I consult most frequently (Lekagul and Round: Birds of Thailand and Robson:Birds of South-east Asia) actually disagree on the differences in the amount of shiny blue on the shoulder, and it's never easy to make a judgement on in my experience, or to judge from photos, where we don't really know what light conditions were. I'd probably attach more significance to the rather buffish tone of the orange on the lower flanks, which suggests Fujian.

I saw one syself in TPK on Saturday - on the path that rises from where the blue trail crosses the stream - identified, to my satisfaction at least, on the underpart colouration, which I saw well. I also one in Ng Tung Chai on 11 January.

Mike Turnbull

Title: Re: Fujian Niltava 棕腹大仙鶲??
Post by BERNARD on Jan 28^th, 2003, 11:23am

Dear Mike,

Thanks a lot for identifying this bird. Now I notice the buffish (or paler) orange tone on the lower flanks, which is not as solid orange as other similar Niltavas.

Next time I will try harder searching for this species and take better pictures.

Bernard