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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Sichuan Birding (2 Viewers)

The presence of Giant Panda is exciting - any pix?
afraid we've only got the poo pics - but last year a driver showed me a video he'd made with his mobile of a Giant Panda on the jeep track. Panda skat was also present on the boardwalk last autumn - while Roland found Giant panda skat further up behind the area where the fencing had been placed - they are there!!!!!
It seems with both Giant and Red Panda that Labahe are missing a big chance of really getting folk to come to that park for Panda tours - both at Wuyipeng and Wanglang we've never see such obvious signs of Giant Panda!!!!

I would also like to echo frogfish on praising the authorities on prompt action - 做 好了
 
afraid we've only got the poo pics - but last year a driver showed me a video he'd made with his mobile of a Giant Panda on the jeep track. Panda skat was also present on the boardwalk last autumn - while Roland found Giant panda skat further up behind the area where the fencing had been placed - they are there!!!!!
It seems with both Giant and Red Panda that Labahe are missing a big chance of really getting folk to come to that park for Panda tours - both at Wuyipeng and Wanglang we've never see such obvious signs of Giant Panda!!!!

I would also like to echo frogfish on praising the authorities on prompt action - 做 好了

Indeed, I've never found any evidence around Wuyipeng despite them being there - given the closure for the foreseeable future of Foping in Shaanxi for panda tours, Labahe could really profit, if done correctly - but it would make the park very expensive to visit.

Well done on the fast action you guys, and for the authorities for acting appropriately.

James
 
I'm just back from a trip to the very south of Sichuan - helping on a study of the Lower Jinsha Valley, where a massive, and very controversial engineering works, will create a body of water that will form China's second biggest reservoir complex after the three-gorges project.
We were surveying standard sites - farmland and plantation - in a climate that's much warmer than the normal dank, grey, foggy winter weather we get to 'enjoy' around the Sichuan Basin.
Where we birded almost none of the native forest remains - just a relic tree here and there. I'm afraid this landscape has long since been plundered for its timber. But regardless of degraded habitat a lot of nice birds, which are absent further north, can be seen in this area.
What's more the weather - sunny, warm with mild nights - makes this a good winter destination - with another great plus being the new motorway, that extends from Yaan, now making the major town in this area - Xichang - which used to be a whole day's trip, a mere 6 hours driving from Chengdu.
Although we didn't dig up anything too special, our work was to look at the common habitat of the area, I'm sure a bit of exploring after the best of the habitat could pull in some better birds.
Star bird is Brown-winged Parrotbill, while many of the other species like Rusty-capped Fulvetta, Black-headed Sibia, Sooty-headed Bulbul, Chestnut-tailed Minla, Crested Finchbill, Pied Bushchat, Grey-breasted Prinia, Hill Prinia, birds more commonly found on Yunnan lists, are all resident here.
Roland's recent sighting of Biet's Laughingthrush comes just on the border to Yunnan - 6 hours west from Xichang, at Muli - so the whole of this border area has good potential. To the East, just over the Yunnan border at Dashanboa, is one of the main wintering areas for Black-necked Crane.

Pictures - all taken by Steb Fisher
1 Black-breasted Thrush - this one was taken during the summer survey
2 Chestnut-bellied Rock Thrush - taken on our trip, a very handsome bird
3 Chestnut-tailed Minla - we ran into a big flock. This bird is really living up to its name!!!!
4 Hill Prinia - seen on our trip, but the picture was taken last summer
5 Pied Bushchat - present during winter
 

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Yes, a very nice shot of the chestnut tail! The prinia on the other hand has a rather sorry looking one (though I guess they're typically sparse).

Were you in the same area in the summer? Sounds like it was a fairly pleasant and interesting survey.
 
Spotted bush warbler

Hi,

During a visit to Sichuan in late spring I contacted Roland to recommend somewhere not far from Chengdu where I could do a moderate amount of mountain climbing, to which he suggested Jiufeng Shan. Even though the weather was terrible, raining from top to bottom, it was a brilliant trip, with the birdsong and mist all around and the remoteness making it very atmospheric.

I camped at the top which is a ridge of a much bigger mountain. All through the evening and the next morning a bird with a very distinctive song called incessantly just outside my tent. It was tame enough for me to get a decent shot by my standards, and though I thought I couldn’t forget the call I heard million times I still recorded it on my mobile.

Months later when I was sorting through the photos I could only determine that the bird was a type of bush warbler. Remembering to my relief that I had made a recording (as of course I had forgotten its call) I downloaded Sid's recordings of bush warblers to compare. To my surprise, it sounded just like a spotted bush warbler, one that I hadn't suspected. I am hoping that someone could confirm or correct this ID.

Any help much appreciated (photos and recording attached). Thanks

Ed
 

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Merry Christmas to everyone reading the China threads - today was a cold grey Sichuan Christmas day - but there are exciting birds very close to Chengdu - yesterday, at Dujiangyan, Roland saw around 300 Japanese Waxwing, which means it must be a lot colder up north.

Roland has also passed on a couple of, very sought after, calls he made this year - Gold-fronted Fulvetta (from the West of Wawu) and Streaked Barwing (from Labahe) - a present from birding Santa

Afraid that fence situation at Labahe isn't so clear cut - latest news is that the authorities can prevent the issue of license for the deer, but because the enclosure is outside the reserve area, can't force the Labahe owners to take it down. Half a victory is better than none - and since I was never expecting any kind of positive outcome, still something that makes me happy.

Hi Ed - nice Spotted Bush Warbler - always a really nice bird.
and Gretchen - I don't get to see Hill Prinia that often - and I think all I've seen have had tails like that in the picture. This was the first time I've been to this site - but hope to get free time to get out there again next year.
 

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A Happy Christmas and New Year to all the contributors to this most enjoyable thread.B :)

I see you're keeping me busy again Sid;)
 
Sichuan bird pics

Happy New Year to all (I know its Feb!).Just looking through last years visit to Sichuan with Sid and thought I would post a few photos not previously shown.Looking forward to the next visit.
Ron.
 

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Great photos Ron - they get the old birding hormones to flow in anticipation to another great spring and summer season.
We've been busy all winter, with survey work and a few winter guests. This month is now one where i can sit down and relax a bit before I'm back out for my next outings in March.
This winter has been notable for some good winter count numbers - up in my NE Sichuan birding haunt I got a flock of 24 Mandarin Duck - which were split into 12 female and 12 male. Another 3 drakes were found at a nearby site. According to news we got of the Sichuan Wetland's Survey, 24 is the largest Sichuan flock recorded this year - groups of 2 or 3 birds being normal. If the info given in MacK is still current - that the Chinese breeding population of Mandarin has fallen to around the 1000 pair level - then those 24 ducks represent over 1% of the population!!!!

Another interesting winter record was the number of Japanese Waxing I saw, together with my bird photographer guest Elizabeth Ruzich, during a trip which ended last week. We saw flocks up on Emei, which must have numbered at least 100 birds, and then at the irrigation park in Dujiangyan - where there must have been at least 150 birds.
In the past I've seen them in the very center of Chengdu - but that was around 8 years ago. However another good Chengdu City record from Elizabeth's trip was a flock of around 30 Maroon-backed Accentor at the Panda Research Center - Slaty Bunting and Chinese Bamboo Partridge were also fairly easy to find.

Although I haven't seen any - there have been records for Baird's Pochard around Chengdu. One in Qinglong Lake on eastern edge of the city - at least one in Donghu Park near Sichuan University and one at Duck River (Yazi He) to the North of Chengdu. This species - whose population has tumbled to critically low numbers - is a hot topic at the moment.

pictures -
A few of those Mandarin Duck - as commented by one of my local birding friends after seeing the picture - colourful ducks in colourful rubbish!!!!!

Elizabeths pictures of Japanese Waxwing at Emei - she is putting up more of her China and Sichuan pictures at - http://www.avianexplorer.com/
 

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During that last trip with Elizabeth we came across an interesting pipit - with that back and hint of eye-stripe I've put it down as a very streaky Rosy Pipit. Red-throated Pipit could be another suggestion, but it looks too grey and the beginning of Feb. is very early for this bird - anybody got any ideas.
One of the more interesting thrushes that turned up several times on Emei was Grey-winged Blackbird. Last summer Roland found family groups in one of the higher green areas in Dujiangyan - so hopefully we can make this into a more regular tick during our spring and summer trips.

I've also been out to look for Baer's Pochard - but its difficult when your son decides that the telescope tripod is the next best thing to a climbing frame. I'm afraid the only diving duck on view were a couple Common Pochard - Fudge Duck also seems in big decline over here - and none of them were seen either!!!
Best duck of the day was a lonely looking female Baikal that was in a group of Mallard.

Pics of that Pipit - a Grey-wingeg Blackbird - and a grainy Baikal that shows that distinctive spot just behind the bill
 

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During that last trip with Elizabeth we came across an interesting pipit - with that back and hint of eye-stripe I've put it down as a very streaky Rosy Pipit. Red-throated Pipit could be another suggestion, but the beginning of Feb. is very early for this bird - anybody got any ideas.
One of the more interesting thrushes that turned up several times on Emei was Grey-winged Blackbird. Last summer Roland found family groups in one of the higher green areas in Dujiangyan - so hopefully we can make this into a more regular tick during our spring and summer trips.

I've also been out to look for Baer's Pochard - but its difficult when your son decides that the telescope tripod is the next best thing to a climbing frame. I'm afraid the only diving duck on view were a couple Common Pochard - Fudge Duck also seems in big decline over here - and none of them were seen either!!!
Best duck of the day was a lonely looking female Baikal that was in a group of Mallard.

Pics of that Pipit - a Grey-wingeg Blackbird - and a grainy Baikal that shows that distinctive spot just behind the bill

Sid

I'm sure you're right with Rosy Pipit. There seem to very few reports of Baer's this winter - even the one in Japan has been identified as a hybrid by some.

cheers, alan
 
Looks like a Rosy to me too.

I always found Grey-winged Blackbird regular at one or two spots at Emei Shan but surprisingly didn't see it last year - a species that really looks good quality sub-tropical forest, worth looking out for where Vivid Niltava, White-spectacled Warbler and Purple Cochoa are found.

James
 
Sid

I'm sure you're right with Rosy Pipit. There seem to very few reports of Baer's this winter - even the one in Japan has been identified as a hybrid by some.

cheers, alan

We were told by LaoLin when we were at Poyang Hu last month that no Baer's showed up there this year either.
 
Nice pic of the Grey-winged Blackbird Sid. And good luck with Saker- proofing your tripod. Insurance may be the best way to go there!

There are two Baer's Pochard at Mai Po this winter Alan.

Cheers
Mike
 
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