Urchin's Birding
Friday, December 7, 2018
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
Hong Kong 13 May to 18 May 2016
Ruddy Cuckoo-dove and Purple-tailed Imperial Pigeon |
Having enjoyed our November
trip to Hong Kong it was an easy decision to revisit when we found a March
promotional offer on SIA .
Although early summer may not yield the birds we saw in winter, we were quite happy to experience a
different season. We followed the November itinerary booking the same
hotel Harbour Plaza Resort at Tin Sui Wai but opted for a shorter stay as we
did not visit Maipo this time. We booked Evergreen near Jordon as we
found the area convenient to do some shopping and to visit one of the
islands. Lioe and Linda joined us for the trip but we split up for
the second day as Lioe and Linda visited Maipo, while we
visited Shek Kong and Kadoorie Farm.
From
our previous trips we were familiar with the local buses and used them most of
the trip. On arrival at Hong Kong airport we bought the 8-day SIM card (HKD118)
which was more than enough for our 6 days trip. The bus E34A at the
public bus Ground Transport Center – HKD13.90 per pax was punctual and within
80 mins we arrived Tin Shui Wai Town Centre and walked next door to check into
Harbour Plaza.
After
a quick lunch at the shopping mall we took bus 276B opposite Ginza shopping
centre to Sheung Shui, a 20 mins ride and crossed over at MRT station to the Minibus station for bus 51K, 15 mins ride (HKD5.40) to Hor
Sheung Heung. We walked over the bridge to Long Valley. During summer
the vegetables grown were the “Kang Kong” not the “Water-cress" we saw in
November. The egrets and herons were there with a Brown Shrike on the
wire. Except for the Chinese Pond herons in breeding plumage we saw none of
the migratory water birds that had been there in winter.
Hwamei |
We went back to the hotel and met up for dinner which was a trip
on the LRT to Tsuen Wan West; took bus 234A to Sham Tseng, and had roast
goose at Yue Kee Roast Goose restaurant. There were other roast goose
restaurants in the area but Yue Kee was where we had previously eaten at and had found the food
good.
On
Saturday 14th May while Lioe and Linda went to Maipo Nature Reserve , we we took the LRT / MRT to Kam Sheung Lu
Station. It was then a taxi to Shek Kong Airfield Road (HKD45) a 10 min
drive where we alighted near the canal and did our birding back to Kam Sheung
Lu Station. We were not disappointed as quite quickly we saw a few
Red-billed
Blue Magpies feeding on the papaya tree behind some bushes.
Red-billed Blue Magpie |
After walking
back to Kam Sheung Lu we took mini 64K to Lam Kam Road, it was an uphill ride
and the bus stop was just opposite the Kadoorie Farm & Botanic Garden. As there was a queue we enquired, and it was
to buy tickets for the shuttle bus up to the hill garden. We bought the 11 o’clock bus and the bus
stopped at the different sections of the hill for visitors to alight and explore. You can then return to wait for the next
shuttle to go further.
We decided to
alight at the Raptor Sanctury and saw a few Black Kites in the sky. There
were a few raptors that were rescued and being cared in big avairies.
We
walked down the hill and took our lunch at the one and only cafe which serves
only vegetarian food. We left at 1.30pm and took the bus to Tai Po Market
to change to MRT back to Sheung Shui and bus 276B back to hotel for a rest
before meeting up for dinner which was at Yuen Long, taking the
LRT. We tried another roost goose Tin Hung 天鴻燒鵝飯店 but had to wait as it was a
small shop at Yan Yee Bldg, 88 Kin Yip St. On our way
back we
bought wife biscuits from Hang Heung.
Masked Laughingthrush |
On
15 May – Sunday – we had dim sum breakfast at the Hotel’s restaurant and then
took the bus 276B to Sheung Shui, followed by mini bus 51K to Hor Sheung Heung,
to give Lioe
and Linda a preview of Long Valley. After birding at the farm land, we returned to
Harbour Plaza for a 1 pm check out. We took a taxi (HKD112) to our next
hotel, Evergreen Hotel at Woo Sung Street.
Harbour Cruise |
Harbour Cruise |
We then took a bus No.2 to
the Star Ferry to buy our tickets for Duk Ling, a 1 hour harbour cruise with
light show at 7.30 pm Duk Ling is an authentic Chinese Junk
restored to its original design https://www.dukling.com.hk/en/order/. We also checked
out information on the ferry to Lamma Island. It was a late lunch before
we took a slow walk to the Star Ferry, to wait for our 7.30 pm cruise.
Cattle Egrets |
16th May morning
we went to Star Ferry Pier 4 and took the Ferry to Lamma Island choosing
to land at Yung Shue Wan pier. It was a 30 mins ferry ride (HKD20)
As
we walked onto the island, very noticeable were the Black Kites flying around
the hill. Its a small village and a stroll through the narrow street we
were soon at the small Tin Hau Temple. There were some Japanese
White-eyes in the trees and Black Crown Night Heron and Little Egret on the
rocks waiting to catch their breakfast. We had coffee at the Green
Cottage and later Lunch at the dim sum restaurant near the pier .
There are many places where you
can stay, and it seems a quiet and tranquil place for a future stay as there
are no vehicles on the island. In the afternoon we took the 12 noon ferry
back to Central and took bus 15 to Pacific Plaza and went up the escalator to
Hong Kong Park which is behind the Island Shangri-la Hotel.
At the aviary the birds
were so close and friendly, we stayed for 3 hours before going off at 4pm.
We then went back to the
hotel to drop off our equipment and took the MTR to Sham Sui
Po, Exit A1 for
some outdoor wear shopping at Nam Cheong Street. Bought a few things at shop 133
Hengchanghang and at 133C Anata Fashion. We then took the MTR to Northpoint,
Exit A1 cross over to Java St market for dinner at Tung Po restaurant, another
revisit for us to this local eatery.
Little Egret |
Black-crowned Night Heron |
While Lioe and Linda left that evening, we
stayed another night, before we came home on 18th.
Singapore
East Asia
Sunday, April 24, 2016
Birding in the Highlands of West Malaysia - Fraser's Hill, Bukit Tinggi and Genting - April 2016
Our last visit to Fraser’s Hill was 2 years ago during the 2014 Bird Race June 20-23 so it was time to revisit the Hill Station and it seemed a good idea for a respite from the hot weather. We decided to include a new site, Kuala Selangor Nature Park in the April 3-7 trip. As usual we started early and were on the road at 5.30 am. With a short coffee stop at Pagoh R and R, we arrived Exit 601 Shah Alam at 10.05 am. Following the signs we arrived in Kuala Selangor town at 11.30 am. As it was too early to check into Sun Inns, we had lunch at the nearby coffee shop before driving to the Kuala Selangor Nature Park (KSNP).
Coppersmith Barbet |
Mangrove Blue Flycatcher |
As we arrived at the car park, we saw monkeys sitting around. It was next morning that we saw vendors’ signs selling food to feed the monkeys. No wonder the animals were waiting to be fed. The office was open and the lady who attended to us was friendly and said if we wanted to enter early in the morning we could come at 7 am while the office will not open till 9 am, and we can pay the entry fee on our way out. As we were already at the park we decided to explore the front part and return next morning for the wetland section. As we entered we saw 2 birds fighting on the ground and they turned out to be 2 Coppersmith Barbets using their beaks grabbing each other’s beak but did not peck at any other parts of each other. The behaviour seemed like a friendly match of trying to hold each other’s beaks as long as possible. Other than this unusual pair, there were not many birds around that afternoon. So we left for look at the town and checked into Sun Inns for a rest from the drive.
Next morning at 6:30 am we had breakfast at MacDonald's, which was on the way to KSNP. We arrived 7:15 am at KSNP and walked into the forest track and saw some bulbuls and monkeys grooming each other. We crossed the bridge and walked along the bunds towards the wetlands. The call of the Abbot’s Babbler was very loud but we could not see the bird. The mangrove forest was dry and it was already humid in the morning. At the pond only a couple of egrets were in the water.
Laced Woodpecker |
We walked onto the boardwalk and saw 3 Laced Woodpeckers and a couple of Yellow-bellied Gerygones. On our way out we saw the Mangrove Flycatcher and some Tailorbirds. By 10:30 am it was too hot already and we returned to check out from the hotel. On the way to Fraser's we stopped by the Sekichan ricefields. Although there were munias and some herons flying about, no other birds were seen. We continued to Sungai Burong, a coastal village and saw a nesting Collared Kingfisher but the weather was hot and the birds seemed to be hiding.
Campbell's Hill Partridge |
At 2pm we arrived at Kuala Kubu Bharu’s Wong Ng Kee for lunch. After lunch we continue to Fraser’s Hill stopping by the waterfall but did not see the Chestnut-naped Forktail. At the Gap we saw a group of 5 photographers and later we found they were from Hong Kong with a local guide who was friendly. We met them the next couple of days and the guide told us some sites to check out. We also met Durai who has opened a shop at Shahzan Inn. He gave us some tips where to look for the Campbell's Hill Partridge also known as the Malayan Hill Partridge, and we were lucky to see a female with 5 young ones near Richmond Bungalow which has recently closed for business.
Buff-breasted Babbler |
Mountain Imperial Pigeon |
The next day we were up early at the Selangor side and saw the Verditer Flycatcher and other birds feeding near the roof of the Selangor Bungalow. Back at Shahzan Inn for breakfast we ran into Valerie and Jerry, whom we had met during our Mt Kinabalu Park trip in December. They were visiting for a week with Val’s sister and friend. During our 3 days we birded at the Telecom Loop, Jeriau Waterfall, the abandoned Jelai Resort and High Pines and found fewer birds than we had seen in previous trips. Durai thought the hot weather was the reason for the lack of birds.
Kuala Selangor Bird Photos Fraser's Hill Bird Photos
Birds Seen At Kuala Selangor Nature Park
1) |
Forest Wagtail
| 6) |
Olive-winged Bulbul
| |
---|---|---|---|---|
2) | Coppersmith Barbet | 7) | Mangrove Blue Flycatcher | |
3) | Oriental Magpie Robin | 8) | Asian Brown Flycatcher | |
4) | White-throated Kingfisher | 9) | Laced Woodpecker | |
5) | Pied Thriller |
Birds Seen At Fraser's Hill
1) |
Pacific Swallow
| 20) |
Rufous-browed Flycatcher
|
---|---|---|---|
2) | Silver-eared Mesia | 21) | Pygmy Wren Babbler |
3) | Buff-breasted Babbler | 22) | Crested Serpent Eagle |
4) | Streaked Spiderhunter | 23) | Striped-throated Bulbul |
5) | White-throated Fantail | 24) | Mountain Fulvetta |
6) | Javan Cuckooshrike | 25) | Orange-breasted Leafbird |
7) | Mountain Bulbul | 26) | Mugimaki Flycatcher |
8) | Large Niltava | 27) | Black-throated Sunbird |
9) | Little Cuckoo Dove | 28) | Long-tailed Sibia |
10) | Black & Crimson Oriole | 29) | Blue-winged Minla |
11) | Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo | 30) | Campell's Hill Partridge (Lifer) |
12) | Grey-chinned Minivet | 31) | Fire-tuffed Barbet |
13) | Asian Brown Flycatcher | 32) | Black-crested Bulbul |
14) | Sultan Tit | 33) | Barn Swallow |
15) | Golden Babbler | 34) | Black & Crimson Oriole |
16) | Chestnut-capped Laughing Thrush | 35) | Golden Babbler |
17) | Mountain Imperial Pigeon | 36) | Yellow-vented Bulbul |
18) | Black-browed Barbet | 37) | Orange-bellied Leafbird |
19) | Verditer Flycatcher | 38) | Oriental Magpie Robin |
After a couple of weeks home we drove to Bukit Tinggi which we last visited 3 years ago. During this trip, April 18-21, we also visited Genting’s Awana bird site but found there was construction going on and could not drive into the forest trail. Near the golf course we found a Blue Whistling Thrush and at the garden just outside Awana’s car park we saw a young Black-browed Barbet being fed by its parents.
Blue Whistling-thrush |
Black-browed Barbet |
At Bukit Tinggi we stayed at the Colmar Tropical which was convenient for the morning drive up to the Botanic Garden and Japanese Garden where we visited early at 7 am. Although it was quiet and the birding site to the forest trail was blocked due to a mud slide, we were lucky to see a rare visitor, a Blue-capped Rock Thrush at the Japanese Garden. While there were no sign of nests of the Silver-breasted Broadbill we were happy to see 2 pairs fly into the trees at the nursery, the same tree we last saw the nests.
Blue-capped Rock Thrush |
Silver-breasted Broadbill |
In the afternoon on the second day we drove to Janda Baik and saw the Spectacled Spiderhunters and Sunbirds feeding on the flowering trees near the river. We also visited the Hutan Lipur Konifer nearby Kampong Bukit Tinggi and were surprised to see the Sultan Tit at this low level forest.
Spectacled Spiderhunter |
Sultan Tit |
Birds Seen at Bt.Tinggi, Genting, Janda Baik and Hutan Lipur Konifer
1) |
Rhinoceros Hornbill
| 13) |
Black-browed Barbet
|
---|---|---|---|
2) | Striped-throated Bulbul | 14) | Blue Whistling Thrush |
3) | Ochraceous Bulbul | 15) | Scaly-breasted Munia |
4) | Yellow-vented Bulbul | 16) | Crested Serpent Eagle |
5) | Black-crested Bulbul | 17) | Oriental Honey Buzzard |
6) | Red-eyed Bulbul | 18) | Blue-winged Leafbird |
7) | Scaly-breasted Bulbul | 19) | Brown-throated Sunbird |
8) | Blue-capped Rock Thrush (Lifer) | 20) | Common Tailorbird |
9) | Silver-breasted Broadbill | 21) | Dark-necked Tailorbird |
10) | Sultan Tit | 22) | Tiger Shrike |
11) | Streaked Spiderhunter | 23) | Brown Shrike |
12) | Spectacled Spiderhunter |
Sunday, March 27, 2016
Tanjung Tuan Raptor Watch & Lesser Adjutant nesting at Muar
Oriental Honey Buzzard |
There were lots of visitors enjoying this fun event.
Oriental Honey Buzzard |
The drive from Singapore to Tanjung Tuan near Port Dickson took 4 hours and some friends we met had come for a day-trip, while we stayed a night at Port Dickson. One of booths was gathering signatures for a petition to save the trees in Muar town where colonies of Lesser Adjutants had been nesting for years. On our way home we went to check out the nests.
Lesser Adjutant |
On 13th March we drove early and as we approached the area we could see the Lesser Adjutants in the sky. The tall tree was behind a row of terrace houses at Jalan Hj Yunos and their nests high in the branches were at staggered levels almost like an apartment block of 5 or 6 stories in the sky.
Lesser Adjutant Nesting |
Here’s the link to the petition for more information
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
Yilan & Taipei 23 Feb to 2 Mar 2016
Hoopoe |
Having researched accommodation in Yilan we decided on Toucheng (first town) which is an hour’s drive through the mountain tunnel road from Taipei, and nearby the highland area, Shuanglienpi, which at 400 meters elevation has some wetlands and small lakes, a site we intend to explore. There is a town more popular with visitors, Jiaoxi, famous for its hot springs and spa hotels. One evening we visited, and this town was better established than where we stayed. It was bustling with shops, restaurants full of visitors.
On 23 Feb morning we took Cathay Pacific to Taipei with a stopover in Hong Kong. The fare of S$466.40 per pax was a
promotional fare worth taking even though we had to transit in Hong Kong.
We had planned to take public transport on this trip and on arrival in Taoyuan
Airport at 1.40 pm we proceeded to B1 to buy the tickets for the Kuo Kuang
Bus 1819 to Taipei Main Station (TMS) and intended to transfer to either a train or bus to
Toucheng. We bought a 10-day SIM card for NT$500
which served very well for our needs. Then it was down to B1 to take the
Kuo Kuang Bus 1819 (NT$125 per pax) there was a long queue for the 3pm bus.
We got into the 2nd bus and while the journey was within 60 minutes to TMS it
was 4.30 pm by the time we arrived, so we took a taxi instead to Toucheng.
Taiwan Barbet |
On 24 Feb after a sumptuous breakfast prepared by
Mrs Luo the taxi we booked the day before, arrived. Our 1st destination was
Shuanglienpi and on the way the driver stopped at Lung Tan Lake which proved a
good location as there were ducks, moorhens and egrets on the lake. Our
next destination was the Lanyang estuary which seemed difficult for the driver to locate. Nevertheless he understood we were looking for birds so
he brought us to the ponds and drainage channels south of Toucheng Town and
drove along the roads #2 and #191 where we saw egrets, herons, moorhens and
coots.
Brown-headed Thrush |
Taiwan Scimitar Babbler |
On 26 Feb after breakfast Mrs Luo drove us to Toucheng Train station and it was a pleasant train ride passing the mountains and towns before arriving TMS at 12:20 pm. We walked to the MRT information desk and bought our Easycards at NT$100 each that was not refundable and topped up NT$200 for our rides. Our next accommodation, Chaiin Hotel is located above the Dongmen MRT station. We took exit 8 to the ground floor and round the Post Office was the entrance to Chaiin. We were happy with this hotel, the location, spacious room, clean bed and their breakfast selection for western and Asian tastes. After checking in we went for lunch across from the hotel and it was still drizzling. As we explored the area, we found Daan Park nearby where many water birds were easily seen in the ponds, the herons, egrets well-used to visitors. We would return with camera another day.
On 27 Feb after breakfast we took the MRT to
Siaonanmen Station and walked to Taipei Botanical Garden (TBG). It was
still drizzling, but we managed to take photographs of the Malayan Night herons,
Taiwan Blue Magpie and Grey Treepies, they were well used to visitors and feeding in
the light drizzle. After TBG we took the MRT to CKS Memorial Park
and checked out the ponds. The park was crowded with visitors but
the garden area had less people. The Malayan Night Heron and a couple
of Thrushes were out feeding in the light rain. After lunch we went to
Daan Park and this time the rain had stopped so we had better photos of the
birds and a Crested Goshawk was easily seen on a tree drying its wings.
Black-crowned Night Heron |
Taiwan Blue Magpie |
On 29 Feb although it was a Monday we found it was
quieter when we took the MRT to Xindian. The weather was sunny and
when we took the bus to Wulai it was
full, because 29 Feb was a public holiday. Wulai lies south of Taipei at
the northern extremity of the Syueshan range, the altitude being around 200 m
rising to 1,000 m. When the bus arrived at the terminal station we
followed signs and walked to the bridge over the Tunghou River. The area was busy and we saw the Plumbeous Redstart easily and
further along the river bank a Muscovy Duck was preening itself. We wanted
to take the mountain railway but on enquiring the rail was under maintenance
due to damage from last year’s typhoon so everyone was walking uphill. We walked along and heard the Crested Serpent Eagle calling
and sure enough scanning the rocky mountain side we saw the raptor
perched on a faraway tree. Another was seen drifting high in the
sky looking for prey. We left Wulai and queued for the bus and
instead of Xindian we took the bus to TMS a long ride but it was only NT30.
We were tired and returned to the hotel for a rest. It was a quick dinner
of “meat rice” at Formosa Chang, another nice place for simple local food.
Grey Treepie |
For our last day, 1 March, we decided to revisit TBG in the morning and then do some shopping in the afternoon before leaving the next day. The birds we had seen on Saturday 27th were not seen
but it was a nice sunny day and we managed better shots of the Taiwan Barbet and
Japanese White-eyes. We also got to see the Collared Scops Owl
family of 3 resting on a tree. The afternoon was spent at Ximenting and an IT Mall at Zhongxiao Xinsheng.
Our self-birding trip yielded 7 lifers.
Pale Thrush |
Plumbeous Water Redstart-Juv |
Link to Yilan and Taipei Bird Photos
Birds Seen:
1) Olive-backed Pipit
|
26) Black Drongo
| |
---|---|---|
2) Daurian Redstart | 27) Grey Wagtail | |
3) Common Teal | 28) Taiwan Scimitar Babbler (Lifer) | |
4) Long-tailed Shrike | 29) White-breasted Waterhen | |
5) Light-vented Bulbul | 30) Common Kingfisher | |
6) Grey Heron | 31) Grey Treepie | |
7) Brown Shrike | 32) Spotted Dove | |
8) Eastern Yellow Wagtail | 33) Oriental Magpie Robin | |
9. Common Moorhen | 34) Tiger Shrike | |
10) Little Grebe | 35) Brown-headed Thrush (Lifer) | |
11) Taiwan Blue Magpie (Lifer) | 36) Japanese White-eye | |
12) Tufted Duck | 37) Pale Thrush (Lifer) | |
13) Cattle Egret | 38) Eurasian Magpie | |
14) Emerald Dove | 39) Crested Goshawk | |
15) Little Egret | 40) Black-winged Stilt | |
16) Great Egret | 41) Black-naped Monarch | |
17) Eastern Spot-billed Duck | 42) Oriental Turtle Dove | |
18) Black-crowned Night Heron | 43) Pale-legged Leaf Warbler | |
19) Common Greenshank | 44) Plumbeous Water Redstart | |
20) Black-faced Spoonbill | 45) Mallard | |
21) Black-tailed Gull | 46) Crested Serpent Eagle | |
22) Black-faced Bunting (Lifer) | 47) Muscovy Duck (Lifer) | |
23) Great Commorant | 48) Collared Scops Owl | |
24) Osprey | 49) Taiwan Barbet | |
25) Hoopoe | 50) Japanese Sparrowhawk | |
51) Malayan Night Heron (Lifer) |
Sunday, January 24, 2016
Doi Angkhang, Doi Lang, Chiang Saen Lake & Chiang Rai 11 -16 January 2016
Last year we did a trip to the Doi’s and enjoyed birding in the cold weather so this year we arranged another
trip coincidentally on the same dates as last year. A change to the itinerary
was to include Chiang Saen Lake which is further north towards Chiang
Rai. We contacted Uthai Cheummarung Chiang Mai Birding for his availability.
As it turned out he had recently visited Doi
AngKhang and had seen the Rusty-naped Pitta which last year we had a poor view
of as it had kept itself partially hidden in the bamboo groves.
Rusty-naped Pitta |
On 11th we flew into Chiangmai and Uthai picked
us at 2 pm and drove to Doi AngKhang. He told us the accommodations at
the mountain were tight with the "cold snap" and the flowers in full bloom, many visitors were there photo-taking and enjoying the cold weather. The
only accommodation he managed to book was Ang Garden Resort
which is behind the town. As it turned out, Ang Garden is just next to
AngKhang Villa where we stayed last year. Here the room is bigger but similarly basic conditions of the local hotels outside of the AngKhang Nature Resort.
Chinese Blue Flycatcher |
The next day 12th at 6.30 am we left after a
quick breakfast and entered the King’s Project and headed to the bamboo
garden. The White-tailed Robin was flying out to check out the morning’s
business. There were 4 WT Robins and they were engaged in territorial
fights with each other and disturbed other birds like the Siberian Blue Robin and the Chinese Blue Flycatcher that came to investigate the hide’s offerings. To our surprise not too long after, the Rusty-naped Pitta appeared and being bigger size,
the Robins backed off. Then another Pitta showed itself to our delight, to see 2 of them together.
An hour later as we were leaving the hide, we saw 3
Thrushes feeding among the bamboo nursery boxes and they turned out to be an Eye-browed
Thrush with 2 Grey-sided Thrushes. Uthai was excited as the Grey-sided is
considered a rare sighting. Unfortunately the thrushes were skittish and
moved further into the bamboo and did not return. We
left to try the area near the restaurant kitchen for the Black-breasted Thrush. Indeed
a pair was feeding in the garden among the rose bushes.
Grey-sided Thrush |
On Wed 13th it was another early morning to the mountain roads to check out the pheasants but there was burning
of rubbish near the cemetery area and no sign of any pheasant
crossing. We returned to the King’s project to take in the flowers
and checked for the thrushes but they did not show at the bamboo
groves. After lunch we left Doi AngKhang for Tatton to check out the
Jerdon’s Bushchat at the rice fields. Someone had seen this rare species but it did not show although we saw a Blue-throat which is also a rare visitor. Then
it was an hour's drive to Fang and we checked into Vieng Kaew’s Resort before going for
dinner by the river.
Daurian Redstart |
On Thu, 14th it was an early drive at 6.15 am to Doi Lang.
As we reached the mountain road we were surprised we were not the earliest,
3 vehicles were already parked by the road side and photographers were having their breakfast in the early dawn light. Further along another photographer
had put up his hide by the side, they were all at different stages waiting for Mrs Hulme's Pheasant to cross. Thus we decided to move
further to the shrine area and waited for the morning to light
up. During the half hour's wait a few more vehicles passed so we decided
to go where they were headed which was the Cutia area. As we arrived we were
lucky to see the White-browed Laughing Thrush and stopped to take some
photos. We then walked up the slope and along a long path to a clearing
higher up where at least 10 photographers were sitting comfortably in their
foldable stools waiting for the Cutia to come feed at one particular tall tree.
Indeed after 20 mins of waiting, the flock of
birds came, it was a quick wave and the Cutias were obscured from view behind the leafy tree. A second wave came 10 mins
later and preceding the Cutias were a small flock of Blue-winged Minlas.
After this second wave it was another long wait but most of the photographers
who had taken the Cutia the day before had now their “best or better”
shots and left. We stayed for a while and went down
to the main road to look for the Sapphire Flycatcher which had also been
sighted but high in the trees. We did not see it but got good
shots of the Siberian Rubythroat, Rufous Gorgeted and White Gorgeted Flycatcher and
the Slaty-blue Flycatcher. Later in the afternoon it was quiet and
we walked to the army post where the Chestnut-flanked White-eyes and Mrs Gould Sunbirds were feeding on the pink flowers.
Cutia |
White-gorgeted Flycatcher |
We left Doi Lang at 1 pm for our 3-hour drive to Chiang Saen and on arrival at the lake Uthai inquired about getting the boat next morning for the trip on the Lake. It was arranged for 9 am. We checked into the Serene Hotel next to the river for the night. On Fri 15th we went earlier to the Lake for a walk around the boardwalk area for other birds. Two other photographers had also booked the boat for an earlier slot but as there was only one boat it was suggested we go together. We boarded the boat with one of the lake’s staff and it was enjoyable to be able to see the ducks quite close with the boat stopping now and then for better views. We saw raptors – Osprey, Eastern Marsh Harrier and Pied Harrier trying to catch their breakfast too. The Lesser Whistling ducks were making a lot of noise as the boat approached and they took flight. While the lake is full of Spot-billed ducks we had sightings of the Gadwall, Northern Pintails and Garganey.
Spot-billed Duck |
We left Chiang Saen in the afternoon for another 1.5 hour's drive to Chiangrai where we checked into the Nak Nakara Hotel for our final night. On the way we visited the Nam Kham Nature Reserve, a private park but there were not many birds in the hot afternoon. We also checked out a private hospital for the Javan munia that was seen recently but none was found. We bid goodbye to Uthai who will take a 3-hour drive back to Chiangmai. We visited the Chiang Rai Flower Festival (23 Dec 15 to 14 Feb 16) on our way to dinner. It was a relaxing end to our birding trip seeing the beautiful flower and orchid displays.
Birds Seen:
1) Ashy Wood Swallow
|
38) Japanese White-eye
| |
---|---|---|
2) Black Bulbul | 39) Large Niltava | |
3) Black-breasted Thrush M & F | 40) Lesser Whistling Duck | |
4) Black-collared Starling | 41) Little Grebe | |
5) Blue-throat | 42) Long-tailed Shrike | |
6) Blue-winged Minla | 43) Maroon Oriole F | |
7) Bronze Drongo | 44) Mountain Bulbul | |
8) Brown Shrike | 45) Mountain Imperial Pigeon | |
9) Brown-breasted Bulbul | 46) Mrs Gould Sunbird | |
10) Buff-throated Warbler (Lifer) | 47) Olive-backed Pipit | |
11) Burmese Shrike | 48) Oriental Magpie Robin | |
12) Chestnut-flanked White-eye | 49) Oriental White-eye | |
13) Chestnut-tailed Starling | 50) Pied Bushchat M & F | |
14) Chestnut-vented Nuthatch | 51) Pied Harrier | |
15) Chinese Blue Flycatcher (Lifer) | 52) Plaintive Cuckoo | |
16) Cinnamon Bittern | 53) Purple Sunbird | |
17) Collared Falconet | 54) Purple Swamphen | |
18) Common Iora | 55) Red-faced Liocichla | |
19) Common Moorhen | 56) Red-whiskered Bulbul | |
20) Coppersmith Barbet | 57) Rufous Gorgeted Flycatcher (Lifer) | |
21) Cutia (Lifer) | 58) Rusty-naped Pitta | |
22) Dark-backed Sibia | 59) Siberian Blue Robin F | |
23) Daurian Redstart | 60) Siberian Rubythroat | |
24) Eastern Marsh Harrier, | 61) Silver-eared Laughing Thrush | |
25) Eastern Stonechat | 62) Slaty Blue Flycatcher | |
26) Eurasian Coot | 63) Sooty-headed Bulbul | |
27) Eurasian Pochard (Lifer) | 64) Spot-billed Duck | |
28) Eyebrow Thrush | 65) Taiga Flycatcher | |
29) Flavescent Bulbul, | 66) Western Osprey | |
30) Gadwall (Lifer) | 67) White Gorgeted Flycatcher | |
31) Green Bee-eater | 68) White-bellied Redstart M & F | |
32) Grey Bushchat M and F | 69) White-browed Laughing Thrush | |
33) Grey Wagtail | 70) White-headed Bulbul | |
34) Grey-sided Thrush (Lifer) | 71) White-tailed Robin M & F | |
35) Hoopoe | 72) White-throated King Fisher | |
36) Hulme's Leaf Warbler (Lifer) | 73) Yellow-cheeked Tit | |
37) Indian Peafowl |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)