The Shanghai Student (1 Viewer)

Prantincole!

Today, while out on the field conducting a physics experiment with my friends, I saw a strange-looking bird winging out over the southern end of the field. As it came closer, I noted its long, pointed wings and rather buoyant flight- not, however, a kestrel, I thought, as its tail was pointed, not square, the silhouette it cut didn't fit a kestrel either. And as it came overhead, my suspicions were confirmed- it was an Oriental Prantincole! By no means a lifer, but certainly a new bird for this year, and definitely a new bird for my campus!

Have you guys been seeing Prantincoles lately? Last year, I saw a few of these at Nanhui during this time as well. Lovely birds, quite distinctive in flight- without the erratic flight of swallows and swifts, and more buoyant in flight than a raptor. Overall, a nice bird :t:

Good work fella! Haven't seen them recently but it was about time to see them ;-) Will try to get you the details of Little Curlew. The ponds near the flood gates still have good no of waders as of last week. A Peregrine was creating a havoc among them. Be on the look out, you might get Oriental Plovers as well in your campus as they like the dry grass as the Pratincoles.

Cypselurus92, remember we were talking about how quality of camera isn't the most important thing? Well, here's an example. I found bird netting on Xiao Yangshan yesterday. Using my iPad, I photographed the poor Japanese thrush I found in the net. I used another photo taken with my iPad of the area where the netting was. Next time you're out at Xiao Yangshan, I hope you too will be on the lookout for bird nets.

Dev., Thanks! I'm always happy to find new birds for my 'patch', if I can call it that. I had a brief glimpse of a pheasant there today, too. One of the perks about having an area near a golf course...
Cool, thanks, looking forward to the info about the Little Curlews. They're neat birds, and I hope to see them again this season. I'm not sure if I will head out to bird this weekend, as I do have a bit of schoolwork and a math test next Monday, but all those good birds at Nanhui and Yangshan are just too tempting... o.o

By the way, has anyone seen Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler and Manchurian Bush Warbler at Nanhui? Or are those only in the Yang Shan area. I've chased after both of the former species where they were numerous, but the little devils remained hidden. I hope to finally see one or the other (or both, if possible) this year.

Did the Peregrine catch any of them? I've seen a Peregrine (an immature) fighting against two Eastern Marsh Harriers- they are so quick and nimble in the air! (and in case you're wondering, yes, the Peregrine won!

I've been trying to find Oriental Plovers here actually, but have not seen any. They passed by already though, right? They're usually one of the earlier migrators (at least that's what it might seem from the shwbs 'Bird Reports'). Nonetheless, I will keep my eyes pealed for migrators, plovers or not. Thanks for the advice

Craig, its great to hear that you took down the nets. There have even been nets reported at the Nanhui Magic Parking Lot recently, but luckily, they were taken down too.
I will definitely take my phone along on my birding trips, to take photos of habitat degradation over time, as well as to record any nets, if I find any. Thanks for the heads-up! I'll definitely be on the lookout for any bird nets.

I sucked at maths, "totally". My dad still makes fun of me about my score:C

Right now the Manchurian Bush Warbler is everywhere, even in People's park. Me n Kevin heard a Brownish-flanked in the car park but the little bugger dint show up. Plenty of disturbance(loud discussion, songs on loud speaker), so i guess the fella misunderstood us as "Captain America & Co" and did not want to risk showing up. o
We also kept our "Peregrine Hunt" streak alive. Unfortunately, it din't make a successful strike. Some photos for ya!

Oriental Plovers are the early to arrive n leave, i last saw them on first week of March 2012. Usually, the adults will be in the urge to reach the breeding grounds fast, the 2cy birds will just relax and take their ease while going north.

Wow really? o.o Math is my worst subject too :/ I have A's in pretty much everything else, but a B in math..its quite sad, considering my friends are all great at it.

Really? o.o I will try and look for them next Sunday, then, if I can. Are they merely passing over or will they stay for the summer? And Brownish-flanked does that to me every time- always calls once or twice in an area with a lot of people, and then shuts up until I turn my back and leave- and when I'm far, far away, it starts calling again..

Cool! I don't think I've seen the first one before- very interesting size comparison between the two species

Yeah, from what I've heard, they mostly pass by in March, earlier than the other waders. I haven't heard about the 2nd cycle birds being later though, that's new information to me, thanks

Any advice on birding Qinghai Lake and vicinity?

Hey guys!

Sorry, haven't really updated lately, but schoolwork's been heavier than usual for a bit, as the end of the school year is drawing to a close. Projects and tests have begun to pile up, and get in the way of any idle weekend birding for now, at least. However, there's a school trip going to Qinghai that I'm on- one that leaves on May 19th. We're headed to Qinghai Lake, and I'm curious as to how many of you have been there? The easier birds like Bar-headed Goose, Brown-headed and Pallas's Gull etc. should be easy, but I'm also curious as to whether Hume's Groundpecker, Hume's Short-toed Lark, and Beautiful Rosefinch are possible?

Thanks,

Cypselurus

Cypselurus92 said:

Hey guys!

[T]here's a school trip going to Qinghai that I'm on- one that leaves on May 19th. We're headed to Qinghai Lake . . .

Click to expand...

Congratulations on this opportunity! I was at Qinghai Lake last July. You may find my report useful, especially pp. 4-8.

Hey Craig,

Thanks for the report! Its very informative, and helps me a lot with my planning for the trip :t: Great photos too.

Do you still remember around what section of the Lake area you saw the Black-necked Crane? Those are one of my target birds species for the lake area, and the species I'm researching for my school project.

Qinghai Lake is great in spring/summer!

I've seen the cranes at the western end of the lake. There is a big marsh here that also hosts Pallas's Fish Eagle.

Cheers
Mike

Hey Mike,

Thanks! We are headed to the western sector, so I'll keep that in mind. Were they in a specific habitat (marsh, meadows, etc.) or just walking along the lakeshore?

Pallas's Fish Eagle is completely new to me :eek!: I had no idea they were found there! Thanks for the info :t:

Cypselurus

Qinghai Day 1: Plateau Provisions

The first sight I saw when I looked up from my novel was (as any person who opens a plane window suddenly would know) blinding light. I hastily shut the window and rubbed the whiteness out of my eyes (in vain). Maybe after another chapter, I would open it again...?

But then the plane began to tilt slowly on one side, the way it does when its gliding around an airport, poised to land. Now, when I peered out of the small circular window, I didn't see blinding white light, but a strange sort of landscape: rolling, peaked hills the color of desert dust. They rolled seemingly endlessly, punctured only by a few houses, and sparse pools. Occasionally, as the plane continued to turn, glimpses of massive snow-capped ridges, rising about the smaller hills, were caught. But then tall, soft-topped clouds drifted between the plane and the peaks, and they were lost to sight. And after that, there was only the endless, rolling, baked hills of the Tibetan plateau. At first, they seemed none too pleasing to the eye, but as the plane glided ever lower, I realized that there was a kind of stark beauty in them- the curving lines of the hills, and the soft, olive-colored growth that covered them like velvet.

The plane landed with a bump in the Caojiabao Airport of Xining City. Hurriedly, my classmates and I gathered our luggage, and headed off after the teachers. The bus ride was long and rather dull. The first bird seen was, rather anti-climatically, a Common Magpie. Two were sighted on the bus trip, and apart from a Shrike sp., very little other birds were seen. The setting sun and our rushed trip to the hotel prevented any chance of seeing much else in the rural area, and we soon entered the dusty city of Xining. It wasn't too impressive as large cities go, but considering the area and the still-in-progress buildings, it wasn't too bad. Our hotel was, rather surprisingly but pleasingly, quite posh, and we all settled in for a spot of hot pot before dinner. With bellies full and eyes heavy, we returned up to our rooms, to retire for the day....

Bird Species
Shanghai (while we were heading to the airport)
1. Eurasian Blackbird
2. Spotted Dove
3. Light-vented Bulbul
Qinghai
1. Common Magpie

Hoping for more productive days soon :t:

Look out for vultures, eagles Saker and possibly even Lammergeyer from the bus

Cheers
Mike

And I believe Tibetan grey shrike is possible on the wires. It's not split by all authorities yet, but it could be one for the "bank."

Hey Mike and Jeff,

Thanks, I did keep a lookout on the wires, and got a few good species from it. Aside from the expected Black Redstart, Hume's Groundpecker, Snowfinches, etc., I also saw at least 3 Upland Buzzards and what might've been a Little Owl.

The default shrike here seems to be Grey-backed (?), but I will definitely keep an eye out for Tibetan Grey. Thanks for the headsup!

Grey backed is indeed the default shrike, but watch out for migrating Brown Shrikes. I saw Tibetan Grey in the dunes at the East end of the lake in 2000 and is a monster that you won't mistake for anything else.

Little Owl would not be unexpected.

If you get the slightest opportunity to get into the juinper scrub on the hills above the lake then go for it - wonderful birds here including Przewalski's and other Rosefinches, and I saw my first ever wolf here in 1991.

Cheers
Mike

Hey Mike,

I've been keeping a lookout for both species, but have not seen either yet. I'm heading to a mountainous area today, and hope to see some mountain species and maybe some roadside birds along the way.

Yeah, they're apparently not too uncommon in the area, but the bus was moving quite fast, and I couldn't confirm the ID.

I would really like to do that, but as its a structured school trip, I doubt I can just head off wherever I want..

As for larger mammals, we didn't see wolves, but we did spot five Przewalski's Gazelles near Bird Island.

Final Trip List

Hey guys!

Finally finished up the Qinghai school trip- great expedition! I saw some great species, and showed some of them to my friends and teachers, who seemed to be quite interested in a few of them (namely Upland Buzzard, Black Redstart, and some smaller mammals).

______________________________________________________
Anatidae (Ducks, Geese, and Swans
1. Bar-headed Goose
2. Ruddy Shelduck
3. Common Merganser
Picidae (Woodpeckers)
4. Great Spotted Woodpecker
Apodidae (Swifts)
5. Common Swift
Columbiformes (Pigeons and Doves)
6. Feral Rock Dove
7. Hill Pigeon
8. Spotted Dove
9. Eurasian Collared Dove
Laridae (Gulls)
10. Pallas's Gull
11. Brown-headed Gull
Accipitridae (Hawks and allies)
12. Black-eared Kite
13. Upland Buzzard
Pelicaniformes (Pelicans and allies)
14. Great Cormorant
Laniidae (Shrikes)
15. Grey-backed Shrike
Corvidae (Crows, Magpies, and Jays)
16. Eurasian Magpie
17. Red-billed Chough
Turdidae (Thrushes)
18. Kessler's Thrush
Muscicapidae (Old World Flycatchers and allies
19. Black Redstart
20. Daurian Redstart
21. White-capped Water Redstart
22. Isabelline Wheatear
Hirundinidae (Swallows and Martins)
23. Sand Martin
24. Barn Swallow
Paridae (Tits)
25. Hume's Groundpecker
Phylloscopidae (Leaf Warblers and Seicercus Warblers)
26. Tickell's Leaf Warbler
Alaudidae- Larks
27. Hume's Short-toed Lark
28. Oriental Skylark
29. Horned Lark
Passeridae (Old World Sparrows)
30. House Sparrow
31. Eurasian Tree Sparrow
32. Rufous-collared Snowfinch
Motacillidae (Pipits and Wagtails)
33. White Wagtail
Prunellinae (Accentors)
34. Brown Accentor
Carduelini (Greenfinches, Siskins, etc.)
35. Grey-capped Greenfinch
36. Twite

Good morning from California,

I was just reading your post over on Frogfish's thread and had a question about birding Nanhui. I will again be visiting Shanghai for a few weeks beginning September 26th and, if time allows, may try getting out to the Nanhui area. However, I am not really sure where it is you are referring to when you say 'Nanhui'. I am thinking it is Nanhuizui Guanhai Park, near Dishui lake, but is this correct? (I am looking at Google maps)

I do understand that you may not want to give up any secret locations, but is this the general area you are birding? You are welcome to PM me, as I understand there is a lot of concern about providing specific location information to the local mist netters (Yes, I will be carrying scissors with me while I am out birding in Shanghai).

Thanks much,
Bruce

Hey, good morning from Shanghai

I think I should probably update this thread, but here are some general updates which may help you as well any others visiting.

1. Yes, it is that park, but the 'park' is really itself little more than a small plaza with a big steel statue, and with a parking lot and a small patch of trees next door. This parking lot is great for picking up migrating woodland birds, and I've seen a lot of good stuff there, like Siberian Rubythroat, Japanese Paradise Flycatcher, Black-naped Oriole, all three brown flycatchers, and quite a lot of different warbler species. Others have seen better birds, birds like Brown Hawk Owl and Grey-headed Canary Flycatcher, was well as vagrants to Shanghai like Grey Treepie and Rufous-faced Warbler.

2. For the mudflat-preferring waders, go to the south. Check along that stretch of coastline generally. If the tide is low, many waders will be spread out over the flats, foraging. Birds like Sanderling, Red-necked Stint, Terek Sandpiper, Grey-tailed Tattler, two Sand Plovers, three Curlews, two Godwits, etc. If the tide is high, they will be forced onto the ocean side of the seawall, which is what happened yesterday for me, and you can observe them more closely. They do tend to be timid in this area though, so be careful there.

3. The once-good-for-waders 'Wader Ponds' have been flooded and are now used for farming fish, so unfortunately nothing there except Little Egrets and domestic ducks.

4. The area to the north has a road with signs along it. Its flooded with a lot of reeds, and its good for a lot of things. I had Reed Parrotbill right by the road last visit, and also at least two Tern species. Both grebes breed here, along with Moorhen and Coot. Its very active in winter too, with Penduline Tits, Reed Buntings, etc.

5. There are usually fewer mist netters at Nanhui due to it partially being a preserve. However, taking scissors is definitely a good precaution if you do find nets.

Hope I've been of some help