Yeyahu NR is the only known breeding site for Chinese Penduline Tit (Remiz consobrinus) in Beijing. I have found 2-3 nests at this site in Springs 2011 and 2012. They are also a regular passage migrant, sometimes in good numbers, and an occasional winter visitor (in the winter of 2010-2011 up to 10 birds were present at Yeyahu but there were none in 2011-2012). They can be quite elusive in the reedbeds and scrub but their presence is often given away by their distinctive call. Listen here.
Last week, during my visit to Yeyahu, I enjoyed several encounters with these charming birds and watched a group of 6 birds extremely well from the boardwalk. Below are a few images. Chinese Penduline Tit used to be considered conspecific with Eurasian Penduline Tit, which I first saw at Rainham Marshes in the UK, but now it is considered a separate species.
On Saturday I led a tour of Yeyahu NR with a group from the British Embassy in Beijing. It was a fun day out that will hopefully inspire a new generation of birders and we also raised GBP 75 to help save the Jankowski’s Bunting!
Given that the embassy bus wasn’t going to leave Beijing city centre until 0900, Libby and I plus good friends, Sarah and John Gallagher, decided to travel up early morning under our own steam and meet the group when they arrived late morning (hopefully having scouted out a few birds!).
The four of us arrived around 0800 and we enjoyed a very ‘birdy’ few hours. The weather was clear and sunny, allowing stunning views of the mountains to the north and south.. The only downside was a strong north-westerly wind that was blowing straight from the Mongolian steppe, making it feel cold.
Despite the wind, it was clear that migration was happening all around us. Flocks of Brambling regularly wheeled overhead, interspersed with groups of Skylark, Little Bunting, Daurian Jackdaws and Olive-backed and Buff-bellied Pipits. A young Hen Harrier gave us exceptional views as it hugged the leeward side of a hedge and then a flock of at least 17 calling Hawfinches flew low over the treetops… my first sighting of this chunky finch at Wild Duck Lake. A little further on we stumbled across 2 Siberian Accentors – my first of the autumn and hopefully a sign that numbers will be back to normal this year after being pretty scarce in the capital last winter.
We stuck to the sheltered side of the hedge and had planned to make it as far as the tower hide at the edge of the reservoir before heading back to the car park to meet the embassy bus. However, our progress was slow given the number of birds we were seeing and we ended up circling back long before the tower. Just as we turned, a large flock of Daurian Jackdaws came low over the fields, almost flying in between us as they headed fast south-west. Stunning.
Highlights of the return included a young Saker patrolling one of the lakes on which domesticated ducks have been released.. causing a panic.. and a Tolai Hare flushed by Sarah as we walked through a grassy field.
The embassy bus had, not unusually for a Saturday morning, been caught in heavy traffic on the G6, the main highway from Beijing to Badaling (one of the most popular stretched of the Great Wall) and it wasn’t until 1130 that they arrived.
The British Embassy minibus arriving at Yeyahu NR. With Libby and chief spotter, Joe Wild.
First priority was to find a sheltered spot for the picnic lunch.. It was pleasant out of the wind so we chose a spot on the eastern side of a row of poplar trees with a wide vista of the mountains and open fields..
Picnic time at Yeyahu with the British Embassy group
The picnic lunch also provided an opportunity for the youngsters in the group to get to grips with birding optics for the first time… It was clear early on that Joe was going to be chief spotter! Here he is looking at a group of Common Cranes that flew in from the east during lunch.
Joe using a telescope for the first time..Sam lamented the weight of my Nikon binoculars…!
After lunch we split into two groups – one staying by the lake to feed the domesticated ducks and one that would follow me on a walk to the reservoir to look for wild birds.
To add a bit of extra fun to the day, we had arranged a competition to guess how many species we would see on the day. Guesses cost 20 Yuan each (GBP 2) with the winner receiving a copy of “Birds of East Asia” by Mark Brazil (easily the best field guide for birds in the Chinese capital). The proceeds would go to BirdLife International’s JustGiving page to help save Jankowski’s Bunting.
With only a couple of hours at Yeyahu in the middle of the day, and with a strong wind, I was expecting a relatively low total. Guesses ranged from 15 to 50. We saw 22, with the best of the bunch a flock of Common Cranes that arrived from the east and a Short-toed Eagle hunting briefly near the entrance to the reserve.
A fun day out and money raised for a good cause. Thanks to everyone involved, especially Feian Downing and Jon Baines from the embassy who made the logistical arrangements.
Finally, I should add that the British Embassy in Beijing has an association with birds. Former Ambassador (1997-2002) Sir Anthony Galsworthy was a keen birder and regularly set up mist nets in the garden of his residence to trap and ring birds.. I am trying to get hold of his records.. would be fascinating to see what he caught in his central Beijing garden!
The Japanese Swamp Warbler, or Marsh Grassbird as it is sometimes known, is only found in east Asia and has a restricted and local distribution. BirdLife classifies it as “Near Threatened”. I saw and heard my first one in a reedy field at Dandong, Liaoning Province, this May and it was the memory of the song that came flooding back this morning when, on arrival at Wild Duck Lake, I could hear a bird singing from the reedbed close to the yurts at the western end of Ma Chang.
I was surprised that it was singing, not just because it is now mid-October (some warblers do sing occasionally on autumn migration) but because it was -2 degrees Celsius!
Nevertheless, it sang for over half an hour, just after sunrise, allowing me to make a recording of its song with my Canon EOS 7D. This bird won’t win any awards for its vocal repertoire, the song being rather repetitive, but it’s a distinctive sound and a joy to hear on a stunningly beautiful, still autumnal dawn at Wild Duck Lake.
Occasionally, it also clambered to the top of a reed, allowing me to capture an image. At the time I thought it must be a good Beijing record. After speaking to a couple of locals, it turns out that it is either the second or third record for the capital. Cool.
Japanese Swamp Warbler (Marsh Grassbird), Locustella pryeri, Ma Chang, Wild Duck Lake, Beijing, 11 October 2012.
Sadly, it is still relatively common to find illegal mist nets in China. Most appear to be erected by poor people who will likely either eat the birds caught or sell them as cagebirds, if they are popular species. For me, it is always with a heavy heart that I try to render the nets unusable, knowing on the one hand that they are illegal under Chinese law but, at the same time, that for some people, bird trapping may form an important part of their income.
Encouragingly, the practice of trapping birds seems to be declining, with the market for cagebirds predominantly being driven by a slowly shrinking older generation, so hopefully in the not too distant future illegal mist nets will be a thing of the past in China.
Whilst at Laotieshan for several days last week we bumped into a few members of the Panjin Birdwatching Society (from northern Liaoning). The group, led by the famous Mr Zhang Ming (a very talented photographer) was predominantly interested in bird photography and were visiting to take advantage of the raptor migration at Laotieshan. Mr Zhang told us about the sighting of a Band-bellied Crake on a very small pool near to Dalian city.. Having never seen this species, Mr Zhang and his friends offered to take us there.. so off we went in a small convoy of 4x4s for the short journey to the site. After stopping for a delicious lunch, during which Mr Zhang showed us some stunning images of rare and difficult to see Chinese birds, including Jankowski’s Bunting, we arrived at the site and began to look for the specific pond. It wasn’t long before we found it but, despite observing the weedy fringes for close on 2 hours, there were no signs of any crakes and we were forced to assume that the bird had moved on. Whilst exploring the site we came across several illegal mist nets, some of which held live birds. It was pleasing to see the Panjin Birdwatching Society members rescue the birds, take down the nets and destroy them. And much better that they were taken down by Chinese birders and not ‘interfering foreigners’..!
Members of the Panjin Birdwatching Society proudly displaying their society’s flag, alongside Paul Holt and Wang Qingyu, Dalian, Liaoning Province.Mr Zhang, who must be one of China’s most talented bird photographers (and a very nice guy).Mr Zhang junior saved this Common Kingfisher from one of the illegal mist netsThis Brown Shrike was also released from the illegal mist nets.This Yellow-browed Warbler, although released, was very poorly and, sadly, probably didn’t make it.
Blyth’s Pipit (Anthus godlewski) is not a bird I was expecting to add to my ‘garden list’ in Beijing but that’s exactly what happened last Friday. Just before I started packing for a work trip to Italy, as it was such a beautiful day, I decided to have a walk around the communal ‘garden’ in Central Park. The workers had just relaid some of the grass on one part of the garden and were watering it with a large hose. Thinking that the disturbance would probably have flushed any birds, I was just about to move on when I noticed a pipit walking around on the small area (just 10 metres x 15 metres) of newly-watered grass, just a few feet away from the workmen. On size and posture alone I suspected it might be a Blyth’s Pipit. It was clearly smaller than the average Richard’s Pipit (Anthus richardi) and its gait was not as upright. I observed it with my binoculars for a few minutes, to the bemusement of the workmen, and after observing the hind-claw (shorter and more curved than Richard’s), I knew it was a Blyth’s. The lessons I learned on identification of Richard’s and Blyth’s in the spring – see here and here – had paid off!
Realising that this was a rare opportunity to get so close to a scarce and often difficult bird to observe, I wanted to fetch my camera.. I hurried back to the flat, hoping that by the time I returned, the bird would not have been flushed by the workmen or the dog-walkers that were now roaming the area.
I needn’t have worried. When I returned, I immediately saw the pipit in almost the same place.. it was walking around and seemingly feeding quite well. It was then that I noticed a couple of spines apparently embedded in the bird’s underparts and I began to speculate that maybe it was injured… It’s certainly unusual to see a Blyth’s Pipit so well and injury may well have been the reason. That said, it seemed to be moving easily and feeding well, so hopefully it will be ok.
Here are some images. I am including, at the end, an image of a juvenile/first-winter Richard’s Pipit taken recently for comparison. With views as good as this, the pair are easy to separate but, of course, a skulky, silent vagrant in a field of long grass in Western Europe would be a tad trickier!
Blyth’s Pipit, Central Park, Beijing, 14 September 2012. Note the hind claw (and compare with Richard’s below). The bird’s structure is also more compact and appears slightly shorter-tailed. The relatively warm, unstreaked flanks are also typical of autumn Blyth’s.Blyth’s Pipit, Central Park, Beijing. To me Blyth’s often appears mid-way in size between Richard’s and the smaller pipits.. It’s gait and ‘jizz’ also recall the smaller pipits at times.Blyth’s Pipit, Central Park, Beijing. This image shows the relatively strong and uniform dark streaking on the mantle and the dark tail.Blyth’s Pipit, Central Park, Beijing. A head-on image showing the pale throat, streaking on the chest and the dark streaking on the cap (more prominent than on Richard’s).This bird was sporting two spines that appeared to be embedded in its body. Although it seemed to be moving and feeding ok, this injury may be the reason it was so tame.Richard’s Pipit, Nanpu, Hebei Province, 27 August 2012. Note the length and curvature of the hind claw, the more upright stance, longer tail, lightly streaked flanks and the bolder supercilium.
On Wednesday morning I met up with Shi Jin and Per Alström for a spot of birding before work. We decided to visit Wenyu He (Wenyu River) on the north-east boundary of central Beijing (in Chaoyang District for those of you who know China’s capital city). It had rained hard overnight but the morning was fresh and clear with unusually fantastic visibility.
We did rather well with several migrating Oriental Honey Buzzards (never common over the city centre), several Black-naped Orioles and a good count of egrets, including at least 28 Great and 16 Little. But the highlight of the morning was Beijing’s first confirmed record of GREY-TAILED TATTLER. Found by Per feeding on the river edge (that’s the tattler feeding, not Per), it soon flew from the far side of the river (outside central Beijing) to the nearside (definitely central Beijing!). It did not need to do so to be the first documented record from Beijing Municipality but, in so doing, it also became the first for central Beijing city proper! Shi Jin could not hide his excitement at adding this bird to his local patch list and managed some great images viewable on his Chinese Currents website. A couple of my efforts are below.
Grey-tailed Tattler is predominantly a coastal bird in China and any inland record is a good one. To see one in the capital was most unexpected. Well done Per – we look forward to more finds of this quality during your stay in Beijing!
Grey-tailed Tattler, Wenyu He, Beijing, 12 September 2012. A great find by Per Alström.Grey-tailed Tattler, Wenyu He, Beijing. Showing the relatvely uniform upperparts in flight.
Observing this bird, I wasn’t sure I could separate juvenile Grey-tailed from Wandering Tattler. I asked the experts and this is what they said (with apologies for quoting their off the cuff comments!):
“Separate the two tattlers with great care. Calls are by far the best way with Grey-tailed resembling a Ringed Plover & Wandering sounding reminiscent of a Whimbrel. Juv. Grey-tailed have obvious white fringes on wing coverts – these are much narrower & less contrasting on Wandering. Wandering also has a longer primary projection with often 5, not 4, pps visible beyond the longest tertial.
You need to be really close (or have a big lens) to see whether the scaling on the back of the upper legs is ladder-like as in Grey-tailed or irregularly shaped & scaly as in Wandering. Similarly close to see that Wandering has a long nasal groove (more than half the length of its bill); Grey-tailed’s nasal groove is shorter.”
and
” juv Wandering has much more extensively dark flanks than juv Grey-tailed, if I remember correctly also darker breast contrasting more with the belly and darker upperside. ”
So, there you go. Always learning! As it happens, we did hear this bird call and it was reminiscent of Common Ringed Plover, so that’s a clincher even without the images showing the nasal groove (sounds a bit like a new trend in Indie music – can you do the nasal groove?)
Full Species List:
Japanese Quail – 1 flushed by Per and Steve in the scrubby area to the east of the riding stables.
Mallard – 120+
Spot-billed Duck – 4
Garganey – 1
Eurasian Teal – 2
Little Grebe – 9
Night Heron – 4
Chinese Pond Heron – 12 (7 adults and 5 juveniles)
Grey Heron – 5
Great Egret – 28
Little Egret – 16
Great Cormorant – 16
Eurasian Kestrel – 1
Oriental Honey Buzzard – 17 drifted south-east (9 @ 0904, 2 @ 0917 and 6 @ 1030)
Japanese Sparrowhawk – 1 probably this species SE
Grey-headed Lapwing – 3
Common Snipe – 11
Spotted Redshank – 4
Marsh Sandpiper – 1
Common Greenshank – 8
Green Sandpiper – 12
Wood Sandpiper – 6
GREY-TAILED TATTLER – 1 juvenile (a rare inland record and possibly the first confirmed record for Beijing)
Common Sandpiper – 3
Black-headed Gull – 1 juvenile/first-winter
Oriental Turtle Dove – 4
Spotted Dove – 2
Cuckoo sp – 1
Hoopoe – 3
Wryneck – 1
Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker – 1
Brown Shrike – 3
Black-naped Oriole – 5
Black Drongo – 1
Azure-winged Magpie – 15+
Common Magpie – 15+ feeding along the river
Barn Swallow – 30+
Red-rumped Swallow – 4+
Lanceolated Warbler – 1
Pallas’s Grashopper Warbler – 1 probable
Oriental Reed Warbler – 1
Dusky Warbler – 1 probable
Yellow-browed Warbler – 4
White-cheeked Starling – 4
Siberian Stonechat – 9
Taiga Flycatcher – 2
Tree Sparrow – lots
Eastern Yellow Wagtail – 2
White Wagtail – 4
Richard’s Pipit – 2
Olive-backed Pipit – 2
This autumn I have a bird on my target list. It’s a bird that, in reality, I probably have almost no chance of finding because, as far as I am aware, there have been only a handful of records from anywhere in the last few years – Streaked Reed Warbler. The paucity of records may be at least partly due to the lack of observers in its breeding areas (thought to be north-east China and south-east Russia) but, from recent reports from its known wintering grounds in the Philippines, this bird is declining very rapidly.
I was inspired by reading some notes from La Touche at the turn of the century who described Streaked Reed Warbler as “swarming” in late August and early September at Beidaihe. But it was more with hope than expectation that I visited Yeyahu Nature Reserve this weekend with the intention of scrutinising the reed-beds for Acro warblers.
After hearing several “tack”-ing Acro warblers that revealed themselves to be the relatively common Black-browed Reed Warbler, I discovered a singing Acrocephalus warbler.. not what I expected in September! It was difficult to pick up given the noise from the earth-movers and heavy vehicles associated with the major works ongoing at Yeyahu to make it more “tourist friendly” (more on that in a later post!). Frustratingly I couldn’t see it, despite waiting in the area for around 45 minutes. Then a Chinese Grey Shrike appeared, clearly spooked the singing bird and it fell silent. After waiting around for a while just in case it started to sing again, and with no sign, I left to cover more of the reserve but with a yellow sticky note in my mind to return later.
After covering the remaining reed-beds and finding more Black-browed Reed Warblers and several Oriental Reed Warblers, I returned to the same spot in the late afternoon. Incredibly, it (or a different bird) was singing again just a few metres from the original spot. This time, without the din of the earth-movers (they had packed up for the day), I was able to record it using my video camera. It didn’t sound like a Black-browed Reed Warbler but these Acro species can sound very similar, so I wasn’t sure.
I tried ‘pishing‘ and immediately it popped up for the briefest of moments before dropping out of sight. My impression was of a very warmly coloured bird with a strikingly white throat and lacking the well-marked face and blackish ‘brow’ of Black-browed. I pished again. Again it clambered up a reed stem and looked at me curiously.. This time I was able to rattle off a few images with the camera before it dropped again. It continued to sing from its perch out of sight. I looked at the images on the camera and immediately knew it was not a Black-browed Reed Warbler. Any other small Acrocephalus warbler would be very interesting. The likelihood was that it was either a Manchurian Reed Warbler or a Blunt-winged Warbler, both rare in Beijing. Given the bird’s warm colouration, my instinct suggested Manchurian Reed Warbler as I had found a Blunt-winged Warbler in spring at Yeyahu which was much paler than this bird. However, the face pattern – with a supercilium in front of the eye but not behind and the lack of a black upper border – fitted better Blunt-winged. The wings also looked incredibly short, also good for Blunt-winged. An email exchange with Paul Holt confirmed it as a Blunt-winged. Apparently both Manchurian Reed and Blunt-winged look much ‘warmer’ in autumn after their moult. Result!
Blunt-winged Warbler used to breed at the Summer Palace in Beijing but in recent years it has become a real rarity in Beijing. With a disjunct population, Blunt-winged Warbler is also present in parts of Central Asia and north-east India. The small population in northeast China has been the subject of speculation that it could be a different species, especially given the habitat preference seems to be different. However, my understanding is that DNA analysis has shown that they are identical.
It is certainly unusual, but not unprecedented, for Acrocephalus warblers to sing in autumn. Several of the Oriental Reed Warblers on site were still chuntering away, albeit half-heartedly.
So, no Streaked Reed Warbler (yet) but the Blunt-winged Warbler was a nice consolation! Here are a couple of images.
Blunt-winged Warbler, Yeyahu NR, 8 September 2012. Note how the supercilium is strong in front of the eye but absent behind it. In Manchurian, the supercilium should also be present behind the eye with a narrow black upper border.Blunt-winged Warbler, Yeyahu NR, 8 September 2012.
Eastern Marsh Harriers breed at Yeyahu Nature Reserve in Beijing. They are one of the star birds of any visit from late March through to October. The spring males are simply stunning and quite different from the closely-related Western Marsh Harrier, some almost resembling one of the other regional specialities, Pied Harrier. Adult females also look very different from Western Marsh and, in my experience, it is only really juveniles/first winters/probable 2 cy birds that could be mistaken for Western Marsh.
I couldn’t find any literature on aging or sexing Eastern Marsh Harriers (is there any out there?). So here are some images of adult males, females, a probable first summer and juvenile birds with some personal comments. Comments from others are very welcome. Having had a bit of difficulty separating a dark juvenile Pied recently, I have much to learn about these wonderful raptors.
Eastern Marsh Harrier (adult male), Yeyahu NR, May 2012. Spring males are hard to beat!Eastern Marsh Harrier (adult male), Yeyahu NR, April 2012Eastern Marsh Harrier (adult female), Yeyahu NR, Beijing, April 2012. Paired with the male above.Eastern Marsh Harrier (first summer male or female?), Miyun Reservoir, Beijing, April 2012. Similar to juvenile plumage (below) but primaries have been moulted – note the light barring. A pale breast-band is a feature of juvenile and probable 2cy birds.Eastern Marsh Harrier (juvenile), Yeyahu NR, Beijing, September 2012Eastern Marsh Harrier (juvenile). Same bird as above showing upperparts. Compare the extent of pale markings with the bird below. Does this variation indicate sex?Eastern Marsh Harrier (juvenile – male or female?), Yeyahu NR, September 2012.Eastern Marsh Harrier (juvenile). Same as above. Do the extensive pale markings indicate sex or is the difference in juvenile plumage just natural variation?
You can now listen to my interview about Jankowski’s Bunting with Charlie Moores on the Talking Naturally website. Click here. Thanks to Charlie for giving me a platform to help raise further awareness about the plight of this unique bird.
The latest in the ad-hoc series of Guest Posts is authored by Beijing-based Shi Jin. The article is about the latest developments on “Happy Island” in Hebei Province and was originally published on Shi Jin’s excellent Chinese Currents website this Spring. It makes very interesting, if a little sombre, reading, in particular for anyone who has visited this birding hotspot. It should be added that, despite the development ongoing at this site, it is still attracting an amazing number and variety of migratory birds…!
So, over to Shi Jin..
Shedding Tiers
For some, Happy Island is now a happier place. The small island in the Bo sea has been promoted from 5th to 3rd tier. The shedding of two tiers is no small matter, particularly if you happen to be one of the Tangshan [3rd tier] government officials who can now make the most of the island’s sumptuously appointed sea-view villas. If you are an official of Laoting County [5th tier], however, the situation is not nearly as happy as it used to be.
That’s because the Tangshan city government has promoted Happy Island (Kuaile Dao) to an area that falls under its (not Laoting County’s) direct jurisdiction. And to make sure that everyone knows who’s the lord of this particular manor, Tangshan officials have re-named the place Puti Island (“Happy Island” was a Laoting County invention apparently). The locals, however, continue to refer to it by its ancient name of Shijiu Tuo. And, with a nod in Laoting County’s direction, I’ll continue to use “Happy Island” (because it’s a name that has been doing what it says on the can during the many visits I have made here over the past 18 years).
Laoting County, even though it “reports” directly to Tangshan, is actually two levels beneath it as far as the complicated matter of Chinese population and land administration is concerned. That’s because Laoting is a xian (county), not a shi (county-level city). Tangshan, a diji shi (regional city, or prefecture), controls 5 xian and two shi. China, in case you are wondering, is divided into 283 prefectures, 370 county-level cities, and 1,461 counties.
Tangshan “reports” to the provincial government of Hebei (seated in the provincial capital of Shijiazhuang), which in turn is administered by the central government in Beijing. By virtue of its provincial capital status, Shijiazhuang qualifies, in political terms at least, as a 2nd tier city (one of 27 provincial and autonomous region capitals to do so). The number of 2nd tier cities increases to 32 if you include Dalian, Ningbo, Qingdao, Shenzhen, and Xiamen – which are categorised as sub-provincial cities (fushengji chengshi) by virtue of their direct reporting line to Beijing in respect of all economic and legal matters (the only non provincial-capitals to do so). Then there are of course four 1st tier “super-cities” – Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin and Chongqing – that have the distinction of being municipalities (zhixiashi).
Why is this important? Well, as a rule of thumb, the higher the tier, the more funding is available for development generally and infrastructure development in particular. In the context of Happy Island, the difference between “5th” and “3rd” tier funding is as jaw-dropping as it is eye-watering:
I first visited the island 18 years ago, when it was under the administration of Laoting County. It was low tide as the small, woodworm-riddled boat approached the landing point along a narrow channel that only a seasoned crew could navigate with any confidence. It’s impossible to say whether the crew that day were not as seasoned as they should have been, or whether it was a particularly low tide that scuppered things. One thing is for sure, we couldn’t get within 20 yards of the quay. Keen to get ashore, I decided to jump into the waist-high water to rescue the situation by dragging the boat close enough to the shore to allow a plank to be laid for my fellow passengers to make it to the island. But it wasn’t luxury that awaited us. In those days, the tin-shack accommodation didn’t even have running water, except when it leaked through the roof during heavy downpours. So much for being under the administrative umbrella of Laoting County.
Fast-forward to 2012: A fleet of shiny new tourist boats await to whisk a steady flow of day-trippers from a multi-million RMB quay development to the island’s plush new landing area. These days, there’s a deep channel that’s regularly dredged, ensuring that boats can land whatever the vagaries of the tide.
The island’s development budget has also paid for a plush restaurant with dozens of staff; a grand temple complex (that continues to get ever-grander); miles of roads serviced by chauffeur-driven electric buggies; and even something resembling a golf course. And things are just getting started. There are plans for a 300 million RMB golf and spa centre and, horror of horrors, a ghastly land-reclamation project (to enlarge Happy Island and Moon Island) that will cost a reported 1.368 billion RMB, according to the Tangshan government’s website. The impetus for development is so strong, in fact, that a link to the mainland has been built that looks like a giant’s causeway, facilitating even faster development and higher-spending on infrastructure and reclamation.
Building an island paradise fit for a prefecture-level city.
Puzzled by the number of large trucks and the size of the earth-moving vehicles, my 8 year-old daughter wanted to know how they managed to get onto the island. I too was puzzled, until I spotted the causeway. After I’d broken the news that the “monsters” had arrived here by road, her puzzlement turned to disappointment: “Dad, does that mean Happy Island isn’t an island?”
My 8 year-old makes an important observation. But please promise not to tell anyone because, from a tourist perspective, Happy Point doesn’t have anywhere the same drawing power of Happy Island. Not to mention that, without an island, there wouldn’t be the need for a car park the size of a football pitch. No need for a fleet of expensive tourist boats. And, of genuine concern, a small-army of people would be looking elsewhere for a job.
From a punter’s perspective, neither would there be the feeling that they’ve journeyed to somewhere exotic. A 30 minute boat trip tends to do more for the soul than a ten-minute bus ride. As heart-warming as the journey undoubtedly is (and there’s also the visit to the “Buddhist culture communication centre” to look forward to), it’s hard to imagine that the overall proposition would appeal to vast numbers of people.
Regardless, the visitors-per-year target for the Tangshan Bay International Travel Islands project [the other two islands are Moon Island and Lucky Cloud Island] has been set at an astonishing 2 million people [The overall investment is budgeted at 22.2 billion RMB]. But this is China, so history would suggest that you shouldn’t bet against it meeting the target. That said, it’s hard for this veteran China-watcher to arrive at any conclusion other than the “Build it and they’ll come” ethos, that has driven economic development during my time here, is being replaced by “Build it whether they come or not” desperation. This is in no small measure due to the increasing dependency on high-spending infrastructure projects to shore up the nation’s key economic indicators. In short, these projects have become the drug that enables GDP to get out of bed in the morning.
As well as testing the laws of economics, the intensity of Happy Island’s development is putting an immense strain on the area’s ecology. The island and its shoreline is an internationally-important staging post for countless numbers of migratory birds on their way to and from their northern breeding grounds (a precious few of that number are Siberian-breeding Spoon-billed Sandpipers, a species on the brink of extinction). Their twice-yearly journeys are about to get even more precarious from next year when construction of more than 100 offshore wind-turbines begins in earnest. This wind farm will be (for a while at least) China’s biggest and most costly (US$910m).
Clearly, the true cost of Happy Island’s infrastructure development, land reclamation, and so-called “green energy” project far exceeds the amount that appears in Tangshan city’s accounts.
Big hat tip to Paul Holt, not only for finding the star bird of the trip – a Common Ringed Plover – but also for somehow recording every single bird we saw or heard. Phenomenal.
Paul Holt and I have just returned from a weekend at Nanpu, near Tangshan, in Hebei Province. Nanpu is a vast area of fish ponds, salt works, reclaimed mudflats and even a prison. During migration season the area hosts tens of thousands of shorebirds. Being on the Hebei coastline, not so far from the migration hot-spot of Beidaihe, it is also on the flyway for birds hugging the coast on their journey south. So, in addition to the waders, visible migration can be superb.
I’ll post fuller details of the trip in due course, including about the resident Reed Parrotbills, the visible migration and the astonishing numbers of Brown Shrikes but this post is about the star bird of the trip – a Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula).
Common Ringed Plover, Hebei Province, 26 August 2012
Picked out by Paul, this wader is rarer than Spoon-billed Sandpiper in eastern China. With fewer than 30 records away from Xinjiang in the far west, it was a great find. Of course, when finding a ‘Common Ringed Plover’-type, it’s important to rule out the very similar North American species, Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus). Call is a great way to separate the two (Semipalmated Plover has a more Spotted Redshank-like call) but, in the absence of a calling bird, there are some subtle plumage differences that allow identification if views are sufficient.
First, one of the most reliable features on Semipalmated Plover (SPP) is that the lower dark mask in the loral area meets the bill above the gape line, whereas in Common Ringed Plover (CRP) it meets at the gapeline, or slightly below. This seems to be a trustworthy feature, provided that the birds are not in active moult.
Second, the eye-ring. SPP usually shows a clearly visible pale-yellow eye-ring.
Third, the breast-band. SPP usually shows a relatively narrow breast band compared with CRP.
Additionally, SPP usually shows a slightly shorter bill and a very small (sometimes absent) white patch to the rear of the eye.
As its name suggests, SPP has some webbing between the toes but this is extremely difficult to see in the field, especially when clinging mud or wet sand can create a similar appearance.
We were fortunate with this bird in that it called several times before we were able to sneak close enough to confirm the plumage features. Incredibly, the next day, we saw and heard a flying Common Ringed Plover some 7km from the site of the original sighting. It was probably the same bird but who knows whether this species is under-recorded in this under-watched part of the world…?
Common Ringed Plover, Nanpu, near Tangshan, Hebei Province, 26 August 2012.
Common Ringed Plover breeds on the beach close to my parents’ home in Norfolk, England, and it is a bird with which I am very familiar. Seeing one as a “rarity” was a little weird… but that’s birding!
The Jankowski’s Bunting (Emberiza jankowskii) is a very rare bird. So rare that, without immediate action, it could slip away before the end of this decade. Unfortunately this little bird isn’t big or furry and doesn’t have a spoon-shaped bill. Instead it falls into the “Little Brown Job” (LBJ) category of birds. Added to the fact that it lives in a rarely visited part of northeast China, this means that its rapid and accelerating journey towards extinction has been progressing with seemingly little effort to save it and even less public awareness. That, I hope, is about to change.
This beautiful bunting, sometimes known by the more descriptive, but less endearing, name of Rufous-backed Bunting, was once described as locally common across its range including Far Eastern Russia, North-eastern China (Heilongjiang, Jilin and Inner Mongolia) and North Korea. But in the last couple of decades, in particular, it has suffered a calamitous population decline. It is now thought to be extinct in Russia, its status is unknown in the small historical range in North Korea and there are only a handful of known individuals hanging on at a few sites in northeast China. Although there are probably some sites yet to be discovered, the total number of individuals seen in 2012 so far is, as far as I am aware, under 30.
Jankowski’s Bunting (Emberiza jankowskii). An adult male at a breeding site in northeast China. Photo by Lei Zhu.
Habitat destruction is almost certainly the main cause of the decline. Jankowski’s Buntings just love grassland peppered with Siberian Apricot (Prunus sibirica) bushes. Over-grazing and a devastating, long-term, drought in the region have decimated its habitat. This, combined (pun unintended) with the cutting of grassland for hay during the breeding season, is thought to have been responsible for the precipitous drop in numbers of Jankowski’s Buntings in recent years. And, on top of that, although northeast China regularly experiences cold winters with temperatures down to -30 degrees C, a particularly harsh winter in 2000-2001, during which unusually deep snow covered the region, is thought to have hit hard the already vulnerable population.
Hope.
Despite the alarm bells, all is not yet lost. BirdLife International, in partnership with local groups, has recently begun a project to raise awareness of this bird’s plight and establish a robust conservation action plan. Following the first conservation workshop dedicated to the Jankowski’s Bunting in June 2012 in Jilin Province, there is now a glimmer of hope that some of the pieces of the jigsaw needed to help preserve this species are being put in place. A growing number of local people are interested in doing what they can to protect the bird’s habitat through more sympathetic land management, an education and awareness programme is planned for local schools, and more widely via social media, and population surveys are being conducted by the Beijing Birdwatching Society at known, and potential new, sites to try to establish a more accurate picture of population levels.
Despite being thought to be mostly sedentary and/or a partial migrant (even this is not fully known!), there are historic records of the Jankowski’s Bunting from Beijing and it is also the “Endangered” species with a population closest to the Chinese capital. Living in Beijing, I certainly feel a sense of responsibility to do something to help protect this bird before it slips into extinction. I hope others will, too. The resilience of nature is such that, given the right support, species can return from the brink. If man shows the will, nature will find a way.
Jankowski’s Bunting was first described by Polish zoologist Wladyslaw Taczanowski in 1888 from a specimen of an adult male collected by fellow Pole, Michal Jankowski during an expedition in 1886. Michal Jankowski (1840-1903) was a Polish exile sent to Siberia 1864 and worked with other prominent ornithologists Dybowski and Godlewski (of Godlewski’s Bunting and Blyth’s Pipit fame) on several expeditions to Far Eastern Russia, northeast China and Korea.
Many thanks to Jim Lawrence, Mike Crosby, Vivian Fu and Simba Chan from BirdLife International for their input to this blog post and to Martin Hale for use of the Jankowski’s Bunting image. Exceptionally, this post has been simultaneously published on Birding Beijing and Birding Frontiers.
After a superb juvenile Little Curlew was seen and photographed at the Old Summer Palace in Beijing last week, and a report of a male Narcissus Flycatcher in the grounds of the Xiyuan Hotel, I was motivated to get out this weekend to check a local park for early migrants. And so on Sunday, in the excellent company of Paul Holt and Wang Qingyu, I headed for the Olympic Forest Park, one of the best parks in Beijing for birds. After cycling up to the park, I met Paul and Qingyu at the southern gate at around 0645 and spent the next 7-8 hours birding both the southern and northern sections on a gorgeous sunny (but hot and humid) day.
In total we logged 35 species, not a bad haul in August in central Beijing.
Full species list (courtesy of Paul):
Mallard 22 in Olympic FP on 19/8/2012. 19 of these (86%) were adult males with just one definite female
Yellow Bittern 7, including two juveniles being fed by a parent
Black-crowned Night Heron 6, including at least three juveniles & one adult
Chinese Pond Heron 5, including at least two juveniles and one second calendar year
Grey Heron 1 juvenile
Great Egret 4, at least one of which was an adult.
Little Egret 5
Amur Falcon 1 adult female flew south. Apparently a record early date for a bird in the process of migrating. Migrants are often difficult to distinguish from breeding birds but the location, well away from known breeding sites, and the bird’s behaviour are both strongly indicative of this bird being a migrant. Note that another bird, suspected at the time to have been an early autumn migrant was seen at Wild Duck Lake on this same date in 2003 (an unattributed record in the 2003 CBR). Note however that WDL is now known to hold breeding birds – and possibly did so back in 2003.
Common Moorhen 3 adults
Green Sandpiper 1 adult.
Common Sandpiper 1 was heard
Spotted Dove 4 singles
Large Hawk-cuckoo 1. Known predominantly as an uncommon, rather local breeding summer visitor in Beijing it’s always scarce away from breeding sites. What’s more this often unobtrusive species apparently stops singing before the middle of July and there are remarkably few encounters in Beijing after then. Note however that specimens were procured at Liangxiang on 5 September 1961 & Baihua Shan on 23 September 1976 (both Cai 1987) and an exceptionally late bird was reported at Baiwang Shan on 17/10/2009. (aiyuanyang wanggangge via BirdTalker)
cuckoo sp. 1 bird, probably either a Common or Indian Cuckoo, was seen briefly & in flight.
Common Kingfisher 1
[Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker 1 bird, possibly this species, was seen poorly]
Great Spotted Woodpecker 3, including an adult female
Grey-headed Woodpecker 1
Brown Shrike 8, including one presumed family group of five birds
Black-naped Oriole 1.
Black Drongo 5
Azure-winged Magpie 20, including several locally fledged juveniles
Common Magpie 25, including several locally fledged juveniles
Light-vented (Chinese) Bulbul 32, including several locally fledged juveniles
Barn Swallow 40, including several presumably locally fledged juveniles
Red-rumped Swallow 5
Yellow-browed Warbler 2 singles (one seen & the other only heard). These are apparently the earliest of the very few August reports from Beijing.
Oriental Reed Warbler 11, including several locally fledged juveniles
Vinous-throated Parrotbill 12 together
Crested Myna 3, two adults and a juvenile together
Eurasian Tree Sparrow 50
Yellow Wagtail 2 separate juveniles, one apparently macronyx & the other apparently simillima.
Grey Wagtail 1
[White Wagtail 1 bird, possibly this species, was glimpsed in flight]
Richard’s Pipit 1 was heard flying high to the south. Richard’s Pipit is one of the first passerine migrants of the autumn in Beijing with birds that are definite migrants i.e. birds away from breeding sites starting to be seen towards the end of the the first week of August (the earliest autumn records involve one near Hou Ba Jia Zhuang, Miyun reservoir on the 6/8/2009 & two singles that flew south there on the 7/8/2010 [both PIH]). However it’s at least towards the end of the third week of August before sightings become anything close to being regular.
Olive-backed Pipit 1 was heard over. There is perhaps only one other August record of this species from Beijing – an exceptionally early bird near the Xin Zhuang bridge over the Chaohe, Miyun on the 7/8/2010 (PIH).
Grey-capped Greenfinch 5, including at least one presumably locally fledged juvenile
Bunting sp. 1 was heard.
[Escape: Scaly-breasted Munia 2 in the reed bed just to the north of the ‘Underground Corridor’.]
It is clear that autumn migration is underway. And whilst passerines are only just beginning to move, shorebird migration is now in full swing. Next weekend, Paul and I will be heading for the coast to check out a site in the north of the Bohai Bay. Watch this space!
Last week Martin Garner invited me to join the Birding Frontiers team. Of course, I was delighted and privileged to accept, joining some illustrious names including Nils van Duivendijk, Chris Gibbins, Roger Riddington, Yoav Perlman, Andrea Corso and many more. My first post – Discovering Birds in Beijing – has now been published and I will be contributing 2-3 posts per month for this popular site. Look out for them!
When Dave Bakewell and Peter Kennerley published an article on Surfbirds called “Malaysia’s Mystery Plover” back in December 2007, it caused quite a stir in the birding community. Was it really possible that a small plover, not described in any modern literature, was living on the beaches of southeast Asia?
The so-called “White-faced Plover” (Charadrius alexandrinus dealbatus) was first described as distinct from Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) by the great ornithologist, Robert Swinhoe, in 1870, hence the preferred usage of the name “Swinhoe’s Plover” (used in this post).
The great Robert Swinhoe (1836-1877). This photo was taken in 1863.
However, despite Swinhoe’s observations, dealbatus seems to have been ‘lost’ due to confusion about the characteristics of this form, and it has not been represented in modern field guides. Here is an extract from a paper published in November 2011 (see reference at end of post):
“Over the past few decades, most authorities have followed Hartert & Jackson in recognizing dealbatus as a wide-ranging but morphologically indistinct East Asian subspecies of the Kentish Plover. Only recently, field observations of unusual, distinctly pale-colored plovers in the wintering grounds of the Malayan Peninsula led to the recognition that the original description of dealbatus referred to a distinctly different plover that has been overlooked for more than a century. Its name has been misapplied to birds that largely fall within the range of variation of nominate alexandrinus. True dealbatus are now known to differ not only in their much paler overall plumage, but also in important details of facial coloration in breeding plumage and a range of other traits.”
Considering this form had been ‘lost’ for many decades, Dave and Peter did an exceptional job in picking out these birds, studying them and communicating their findings to the wider birding community, causing much renewed interest in these charismatic birds and speculation that they may deserve full species status. At the time, only wintering birds had been seen and, although some of these birds attained breeding plumage on the study grounds in Singapore and Malaysia, they soon disappeared in Spring and there was only speculation as to where the breeding grounds might be.
Following publication of Dave and Peter’s article, Chinese/HK birders reported breeding Swinhoe’s Plovers on the beaches of Fujian Province in 2008. Later, one of my friends and fellow China-based British birder, Brian Jones, moved from Beijing to Shenzhen in 2011 and soon began to explore the coast nearby. It wasn’t long before Brian discovered some ‘strange Kentish Plovers’ breeding on sandy beaches at Dahu, Haifeng. Having taken some images, Dave and Peter soon confirmed that Brian had stumbled on a breeding site for Swinhoe’s Plover on China’s southern coast.. On just two beaches, Brian found around 270 of these ‘rediscovered’ birds, many with young. They have since been found at several sites in southern and southeastern China, and are now known to breed from Hainan to Fujian Province.
One fortunate coincidence for any birders going to see Chinese Crested Terns near Fuzhou is that several pairs of these plovers breed on the beaches nearby. During my visit last week we counted 5 pairs along a small stretch of beach.. the real number breeding there is surely much higher. This was my first opportunity to see this distinctive bird and I was pleased to see the presence of advanced juveniles, as well as males and females. Here are a few images:
Swinhoe’s Plover (male), near Fuzhou, Fujian Province, July 2012. Note the pale lores, pale legs and the ‘milky tea’ colour of the upperparts.Swinhoe’s Plover (male), near Fuzhou, Fujian Province, July 2012Swinhoe’s Plover (worn male). Note the extensive white on the inner primaries.Swinhoe’s Plover (worn male). Note the extensive white in the tail and the relatively prominent wingbar.Swinhoe’s Plover (female), near Fuzhou, Fujian Province, July 2012
Of course, there is a question as to whether or not these birds are a separate species. They are certainly distinct – longer, paler legs, more white on the face, more white in the wing etc (see Dave and Peter’s article for the full suite of features) – but initial studies of DNA (taken from museum specimens) have shown that they are not distinct enough to warrant separate species status. This is the relevant passage from the recent study:
“The most likely conclusion of our data is that the White-faced Plover is probably a young lineage whose phenotypic traits are encoded by a limited number of genes, whereas few additional genomic differences have so far accumulated. Its diagnostic plumage traits may additionally be governed by differences in gene expression that would be undetectable by sequence analysis.”
In short, initial research suggests that “Swinhoe’s Plover” is probably a subspecies of Kentish Plover. However, further research is ongoing. This spring and summer Jonathan Martinez, in collaboration with Professor Fasheng Zou from the South China Endangered Animals Institute, has been ringing, colour-flagging and taking blood samples from birds on China’s southern coast. Analysis of the DNA taken from these live birds is expected soon, although it is unlikely to return different results. Here are some images of one of the birds being colour-flagged. If you see any of these birds this autumn/winter, Jonathan would be delighted to hear from you and can be contacted via this blog.
One of the Swinhoe’s Plovers colour-flagged by Jonathan Martinez and Professor Fasheng Zou. If you are in East/Southeast Asia this autumn/winter, look out for flagged birds!The same bird in the field, Guangdong Province, China.
To me, it matters little whether or not the Swinhoe’s Plover is a species or a subspecies.. it is a beautiful and charismatic bird that is a joy to watch. It is clearly very limited in its distribution and it must, therefore, be (another!) priority for conservation.
Many thanks to Dave Bakewell, Peter Kennerley, Jonathan Martinez and Brian Jones for providing information and images included in this blog post.
Quotations above taken from:
Rheindt FE, Székely T, Edwards SV, Lee PLM, Burke T, et al. (2011) Conflict between Genetic and Phenotypic Differentiation: The Evolutionary History of a ‘Lost and Rediscovered’ Shorebird. PLoS ONE 6(11): e26995. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0026995
Roughly one in eight of the world’s 10,000 bird species is facing extinction. To be precise, 727 are classified as “Vulnerable”, 389 “Endangered” and 197 “Critically Endangered”. See here. Scientists estimate that the natural extinction rate for birds is one species per 100 years. In the last 30 years alone we have lost 21.
Threatened birds are spread throughout the world. China is home to 87, of which 62 are classified “Vulnerable”, 16 “Endangered” and 9 “Critically Endangered”.
Since arriving in Beijing in August 2010, I have been fortunate to see 27 of China’s threatened birds, including 4 “Critically Endangered” – Baer’s Pochard, Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Siberian Crane and Chinese Crested Tern. Although two of the “Critically Endangered” species were seen on dedicated trips to specific locations where they are almost guaranteed, I have been fortunate enough to find two myself in Beijing – Baer’s Pochard and Siberian Crane.
Watching a Baer’s Pochard on a small reservoir in Beijing, I couldn’t help but think about the threats that this bird faced on its lonely journey north – whether it would find a mate and, given the long-term drought in northeast China, whether it would find a suitable breeding site. And if it did, would breeding be successful? It seemed to me a perilous situation for this bird. At the same time I felt inspired to do what I could to help halt the slide towards extinction of this species and others like it. I am constantly surprised and encouraged by examples of the resilience of nature, if given a chance. The contributions of Chinese ornithologists to save species such as the Crested Ibis, Spoon-billed Sandpiper and Chinese Crested Tern are all good examples of dedicated efforts giving these species a fighting chance. I am hopeful that the Baer’s Pochard, and others like it, can be saved with a combination of modest resources, targeted action and dedicated people on the ground.
After exploring how best I could make a difference, I decided that the first step would be to support the Preventing Extinctions Programme by becoming a Species Champion. BirdLife International is the largest international partnership of conservation organisations and is the authority for birds on the IUCN Red List. It is therefore well placed to initiate and coordinate action plans, in direct collaboration with local organisations, to help save the most threatened species. You can see examples of their ongoing work here.
Of course, I have a particular interest in China’s birds and I will soon be launching an appeal for one species in particular that BirdLife needs urgent help to save… watch this space!
The Chinese Crested Tern has a fascinating history… first described in 1863, it was probably locally relatively common on the eastern coast of China in the early 1900s where more than 20 were ‘collected’ at a site in Shandong Province in 1937. However, it has since suffered a massive decline, probably due to a combination of egg-collection, disturbance and the loss of coastal wetlands. Its decline was so dramatic that it was even thought by many to be extinct, with only two records – Hebei Province in 1978 and Shandong in 1991 – between 1937 and 2000, when four adults and four young were discovered on an island in the Matsu Archipeligo off the east coast of mainland China.
Today its population is perilously low, very likely below 50 individuals and possibly as low as 10 pairs and it is known to breed at just two sites – the Matsu Archipeligo off Fujian Province and some small islands of Zhejiang Province to the north.
It is classified as “Critically Endangered”. The fact it is here at all is in no small part due to the conservation efforts of local ornithologists supported by Birdlife International. The Matsu colony and the surrounding islands were declared a national nature reserve in 2000 and nobody is allowed to land on eight of the islets during the breeding season. Taiwanese patrols apparently seize the nets of fishermen caught egg-collecting, the deterrent effect of which appears to have much reduced this activity. Talks and exhibitions in local schools and communities have also helped to increase awareness of the special bird they have on their doorstep.
For the moment, at least, it is relatively easy to see Chinese Crested Terns during the summer at a high-tide roosting/resting site on the Minjiang Estuary in Fujian Province. Even so, it still requires a short boat trip to reach the island from which these birds can be viewed, so the site remains relatively undisturbed. That said, as with many places along China’s coast, the threat of ‘development’ is looming large and, even though this site is officially a nature reserve, a large channel has just been dug through the middle to divert water to a proposed fish farm. Thankfully, this site is not a breeding site and there are almost certainly alternative sites nearby to which the birds could relocate to rest if the current site becomes unattractive. Whether they will be accessible or not is a question.
I visited Minjiang with local birder and friend, Tong Menxiu, who I first met in September 2010 at Rudong when I went to see the Spoon-billed Sandpipers. Menxiu is from Fujian so knows the area, and its birds, intimately. After a short boat ride out to the island at high tide we scanned through the mixed flock of terns. Most were Greater Crested with superb large yellow bills and dark mantles. Menxiu soon picked out the first Chinese Crested and a scan of the rest of the flock produced at least 4.
Local transport at the Minjiang EstuaryTong Menxiu (foreground) scans for Chinese Crested Terns as his friend (a former illegal hunter turned birder!) practises his photography skills.The sandbanks at the Minjiang Estuary at high tide. The terns congregate on the distant sandbar
After enjoying good, albeit distant, views of the terns, we walked along the island to look for Swinhoe’s (White-faced) Plovers. They will be the subject of my next post.
As the water began to drop, we walked back towards the sandbar and, given the lower water levels, we were able to make a closer approach, at all times being very careful not to flush the terns.
It didn’t take long before we were enjoying spectacular views and I was extremely fortunate when two Chinese Crested Terns took off from the group and dropped down on the shore just a few metres away… allowing me to capture a few images.
Chinese Crested Tern, Minjiang Estuary. What a stunner.Chinese Crested Tern in flight. Note the very pale plumage and the contrasting dark tips to the outer primaries.Chinese Crested Tern in flight.
Sitting on the sand watching these terns was a real privilege and I enjoyed every moment. The Greater Crested Terns also put on a show.
Greater Crested Tern. Note the all yellow bill and darker upperparts.Greater Crested Tern preening. They have an almost comical appearance with their crests…Greater Crested Tern in flight.Greater Crested Tern.Greater Crested Tern with fish. Some were still courting with presumably males bringing offerings of fish to their partners.
With overcast conditions, the light was pretty good for photography. Menxiu even managed to take a photo of a Chinese Crested Tern with me in the background (thankfully he focused on the tern – much better looking!).
Me and the Chinese Crested Tern… Photo by Tong Menxiu.
At one point, a pair flew in and began to display.. the male strutting around the presumed female and occasionally calling. I noticed the slightly darker mantle of one of the birds and, on looking at the photographs later, the bill appears a slightly different shape (the upper mandible appears more curved, like a Greater Crested) and colour. We speculated that this could be a hybrid of some sort… possibly a second generation? Or maybe it’s just natural variation. With the population size so small, I am not sure we will ever know..
Chinese Crested Tern and possible hybrid. Note the darker mantle, more curved upper mandible and more yellowish bill.
After about 3 hours on site and enjoying the spectacle of these birds until they gradually drifted off as the tide fell, we headed back to the boat. I was elated and privileged to have spent so much time with these incredibly rare and endangered birds. We counted a minimum of 5 Chinese Crested Terns, a significant proportion of the known global population. The Minjiang Estuary is a fantastic site and I hope, that with the ongoing efforts to try to save this species, it will be a place where one can see Chinese Crested Tern for many years to come..
Huge thanks to Tong Menxiu for making the arrangements and his excellent company during the visit..
I am delighted to publish another guest post from Jan-Erik Nilsen who has been systematically exploring the mountains around Beijing this summer…. Here is a report of his visit to Lingshan, west of Beijing City.
Trip report from Lingshan mountain, Saturday, July 14th.
Lingshan is located west of the capital and, reaching a height of 2303 m, it is the highest peak in the larger Beijing area.
Driver Mr Lu picked me up at 6.30 and, via Starbucks at Guo Mao for coffee, we went towards the west, first along the 3rd ring road, then along the G109 road. The road follows a river through a valley and gives some nice mountain views, especially the last part before reaching Lingshan. The villages along the road looked comparatively prosperous, every fence and house was recently painted, the bricks in the walls in perfect order. Quite different from along a similar river valley road to Baihua Shan, just some 20 km to the south where I went the weekend before, where the villages looked rather poor. At 10.30 we reached the parking at the end of the road, at an altitude of 1500 m, on the eastern side of Lingshan.
A Claudia’s Leaf Warbler sang in a strange way at the parking, kept me busy until it uttered more familiar calls. A Yellow-streaked Warbler sang, a male Chinese Beautiful Rosefinch, and a male Russet Sparrow jumped among the cars and contributed to a good birding start.
Russet Sparrow, Lingshan car park
There are two options to get to the top. A 3-hour hike, or a 20-minute ride by cable car to 1900m followed by only a 1-hour hike. Loudspeakers on the cable car were screaming Chinese heavy metal music – this Chinese band could rather have left this particular music genre to the British and American bands who know how it should be done. The hiking track ran just beside the cable car, so the choice actually became 20 minutes of Chinese heavy metal or 2 hours. A simple choice – cable car of course. The slope is covered by birch trees, except a wide alpine meadow with flowers and butterflies under the cable cars and on both sides of the hiking track. From 1900m to the peak, it is mostly rocky alpine meadows, and a few patches of birch trees. Cattle, horses and yaks keep the grass short and other vegetation low.
The view from the cable car at LingshanAn alpine meadow at Lingshan
I hiked towards the peak, which had so far been obscured by clouds, but after a while the sun broke through and the peak was revealed. I spent more than an hour up there, and enjoyed spectacular mountain views. New clouds passed all the time, some touched the peak and it became very foggy during shorter intervals, else min. 20 km visibility. It’s cooler in the mountains than in the city, a main reason why this Scandinavian enjoys doing mountain trips during the 35C hot Beijing summer.
Lingshan peak in the clouds
On the way down, a group of yaks had approached the track and a group of 20 Chinese tourists took pictures of them. So did I, and in my search for the perfect angle I happened to come close to the leader bull. So far it had been lazy resting on the ground, with all other yaks feeding around it. The bull stood up and began to walk firmly towards me. I ran away and it stopped after a few meters, but it continued to stare at me. The 20 tourists may have been more scared than I was, but I don’t recommend anyone to assume a 1000 kg yak bull will be a particularly friendly animal, however cosy they may look.
I saw some passerines that briefly jumped up to a big rock 200 m up on the mountain, so I went up there to check them. A group of 5 Beautiful Rosefinches. The strange thing was that the group of yaks continued to stare at me when I went up there, and even though there was a group of people much closer to them. It seems I had been labelled of ‘bad standing’ among the yaks on Lingshan.
“What are you lookin’ at?”
The mountain tracks were crowded, lots of tourists, some of them bringing their dogs, some people supplying horse rides for the tourists, a few vendors along the track, and at the peak they regularly fired off firecrackers. Despite that, some nice birds were seen. Rosy Pipits on the way, and a pair of Rosys close to the peak carried food in their bills, proving they are breeding here. A Red-billed Chough called. I counted 8 singing Chinese Leaf Warblers along the way and the total count of Chinese Beautiful Rosefinches was 12. How could you not fall in love with a bird with such a beautiful name?
Back at the parking again, I found more Russet Sparrows. The total count became 5, one carrying food in its bill so they must be breeding there, too. It’s too far north, outside their area according to the books, but it’s not the first time Chinese birds have different ideas of their breeding area than what the books teaches. Ref. Spike Millington, he has observations of Russet Sparrow from Baihuashan and Lingshan and Jesper Hornskov in an e-mail says it is fairly common north of Huairou, so it seems it is not very remarkable in the Beijing mountain areas anymore. McKinnon writes it ‘lives in flocks in upland open forest, woodland or scrub near cultivation, and in the absence of House Sparrow it becomes a bird of towns and villages’. For the Beijing area Tree Sparrows could replace House Sparrow in this statement. Tree Sparrows are normally just about everywhere where there is a house or a human, but I saw none of them up here, giving the space to Russet Sparrows.
On the way home, east of Lingshan, we stopped to take pictures on some dramatic slopes, and saw three Red-billed Choughs.
Let me try a not very scientific assessment of the four mountain areas, all in the larger Beijing area, I have visited in June and July this year; from SW to NE Baihuashan, Lingshan, Haitoushan and Wulingshan. Wulingshan and Haitoushan have deeper, more diverse and lush mountain forests and larger areas of coniferous forests, which will likely provide more species. Wulingshan is the best for birding, but based just on what the forests look like, I think Haitoushan is in the competition, and could deserve more attention. Baihuashan and Lingshan have more birch forests, and they have alpine meadows of a kind not found on the other two – especially Lingshan which has vast alpine meadows.
Wulingshan and Haitoushan have forests in a character of their own. They are more virgin and deep enough to bring a certain mysterious feeling. A kind of feeling difficult to describe but I think many who have wandered into a deep forest in Scandinavia is familiar with it. Even if you are alone, deep into the forest, it feels like someone is watching you. Entities from ancient myths will soon not seem so unlikely anymore. You begin to feel uncomfortable. You get lost. You cannot find the way. When you finally come out of the forest you are far from where you thought you would be. Some people, me not included, are scared of walking alone into such forests.
No one should hesitate to go to Lingshan because of the many tourists or the heavy metal loudspeakers. The alpine meadows are vast and very nice, peaceful areas can be found just a hundred metres off the track. The meadows bring more Chinese Beautiful Rosefinches and Rosy Pipits than elsewhere, they can hardly be missed at Lingshan. The road to get there has some spectacularly nice views, and on the way you can have a look at Cuandixia, a village of over 70 Ming and Qing dynasty courtyard houses. I would certainly have stopped there if I hadn’t run out of time.
And if you go – don’t forget the sun-block!
Full species list:
Common Pheasant Phasianus colchicus 1 heard along the road, E of Lingshan
Rock Pigeon Columba livia ca 10
Black-billed Magpie Pica pica ca 10
Red-billed Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax 1 heard + 3 in a group seen along the road, E of Lingshan
Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos ca 15
Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus 5
Yellow-bellied Tit Parus venustulus 2
Yellow-streaked Warbler Phylloscopus armandii 3 singing
Chinese Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus yunnanensis (sichuanensis) 8 singing
Hume’s Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus humei 1 calling
Claudia’s Leaf Warbler (Blyth’s Leaf Warbler) Phylloscopus claudiae (reguloides) 1 singing
Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis 1 singing
Russet Sparrow Passer rutilans 5 (2 m 1 f 2 looked juv)
Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea 1
Rosy Pipit Anthus roseatus 4 (1+1+1 pair)
Chinese Beautiful Rosefinch Carpodacus davidianus (pulcherrimus) 12
Meadow Bunting Emberiza cioides 4
With mid-summer a little slow on the birding front in Beijing (the heat, as much as anything, makes birding uncomfortable), I decided to use the opportunity of a free sunday afternoon/evening to check out the local Common Swift (Apus apus) colonies in Tiananmen Square. The subspecies in Beijing is pekinensis and it is a common breeder in the old-style buildings and hutongs, exploiting gaps under tiles as nesting areas. They supposedly winter in Africa with the nominate Common Swifts from Europe (I don’t know if this has been proved through ringing recoveries – comments welcome).
In Beijing the only other swifts frequently seen are the Pacific Swift (Apus pacificus) and, on passage, the very different White-throated Needletail (Hirundapus caudacutus). Neither should cause any identification problems.
The pekinensis subspecies of Common Swift is a potential vagrant to Western Europe but, for me at least, picking out one would be challenging. There has been some discussion of this possibility before and, I think, a few papers in the various birding journals, some of which warn of possible confusion with the similar Pallid Swift (Apus pallidus).
So it was with this in mind that I went to check out the pekinensis swifts at Tiananmen. The first thing I learned was that they are variable and that the same individuals can look quite different in changing light conditions. Although structurally the pekinensis birds look like the nominate Common Swift, some exhibit plumage characteristics (e.g. a dark eye mask, ‘cold’ tones, a dark ‘saddle’) that, in a European context, might suggest the closely related Pallid Swift if only brief or distant views are gained.
Anyway, here are a few images from Sunday evening with some personal comments.
Common Swift ssp pekinensis, Beijing. Typical Common Swift structure with ‘scythe’-like wings and a relatively deep fork to the tail. Note also the contrastingly dark underwing coverts.Common Swift ssp pekinensis, Beijing. Again, note the contrasting dark underwing coverts. The white throat patch contrasts with the side of the head.Common Swift ssp pekinensis. This individual shows quite a distinctive dark eye patch, reminiscent of Pallid Swift, and a strong pale throat patch.Common Swift ssp pekinensis. Again, showing a dark eye mask but with dark underwing coverts and light ‘scaling’ on the underparts. Note that many birds flew with trailing feet.. I wondered if that was a reaction to the heat?Common Swift spp pekinensis. This individual appeared darker overall and with a less obvious throat patch. One thing I learned – these birds can look quite different in changing light conditions.
Another observation from Sunday was the variability of the white throat patch, linked to the crop. Compare these two images of two different birds in similar flight positions – one with a full crop, the other with an empty crop. Striking!
Common Swift ssp pekinensis with full crop. Note the striking pale throat.Common Swift ssp pekinensis with empty crop.
In conclusion, if seen well, these pekinensis birds should not cause major confusion with Pallid Swift. The combination of structure and plumage (relatively narrow scythe-shaped wings, slim body, relatively deep forked tail combined with dark underwing coverts, ‘warm’ plumage tones and a lack of an obviously dark eye mask) should be enough to make identification relatively straightforward. But beware that, in some light conditions, some pekinensis Common Swifts can display one or more Pallid-like plumage features!
However, picking out a pekinensis among Common Swifts, or identifying a single individual in Western Europe in late autumn is another challenge and one I would not be so sure about meeting!
Finally, at one point on Sunday all of the swifts suddenly stopped wheeling around the Qianmen Gate at Tiananmen and gained height fast. The reason was this Eurasian Hobby that suddenly appeared and started to hunt the swifts over Mao’s mausoleum! It made a couple of half-hearted attempts to chase a swift but, after a couple of minutes, it drifted off west and the swifts returned to lower altitudes.
Hobby hunting Common Swifts in Tiananmen Square, Beijing.
