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

The Magic Roundabout (1 Viewer)

Wow, the isle looks great. Do you get any white-morph pacific reef egrets there Mike? Mainland din't have any Dolphin watch otherwise Yangtze river dolphin would have lasted for a while. Good luck for the pelagic cormorant ;-)
 
I didn't get properly onto the patch on Monday , but did get Chinese Blackbird, Stejneger's Stonechat and an adult Black-crowned Night Heron from the bus on the way into work in the morning.

Today I did get there, but had one of those days when the thrushes chose not to behave. I had at least four different birds, but only the most fleeting glimpses of two of them, neither which I could even stringily put a name to.

Additions to the list for the quarter included a Great Tit, the skulky Brown Shrike and a couple of Large-billed Crows.A new high count of a round dozen Scaly-breasted Munias was probably the highlight of the session.

I did get the three sisters (I've got bored of typing them out each time and will use this collective name for the Daurian Redstart, Stejneger's Stonechat, and Asian Brown Flycatcher were on various perches the grassy verge along with the regulation four Olive-backed Pipits and the usual two leucopsis White Wagtails.

I did also hear a Dusky Warbler, searched half-heartedly through the Japanese White-eyes for a Chestnut-flanked, and had the usual flyover Crested Myna a male Magpie Robin and the rather drab Chinese Blackbird lurking troll-like under the flyover.

And finally (well, penultimately) the munia flock had pulled in . . . wait for it . . . a couple of Tree Sparrows!

And really finally some more pix of the patch plus, long overdue, my record shots of the King

Cheers
Mike
 

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Pictures or it didn't happen!

When you thinking of BEP Mike...maybe we could sync?

Cheers
Mark (M not that 'fowl 'un ;D)
 
More birds than ever today, largely due to a flock of 130 Tree Sparrows feeding on the grassy verge, along with 20 Japanese White-eyes, three Scaly-breasted Munias, eight Chinese Bulbuls and Crested Mynas, two leucopsis White Wagtails and a Dusky Warbler. The three sisters were also all present and correct.

It is not unusual to find birds feeding on the ground in cold weather, but it is not common to see such a mix of sizes and species, so I'm guessing some tiny chironomid fly was hatching, but really don't know what they were feeding on.

Other birds included a Yellow-browed Warbler, a noisy and flighty male Grey-backed Thrush and a Chinese Blackbird that came into the tree above my head just as the Long-tailed Shrike lurked ominously on a branch in deep cover.

Cheers
Mike
 
Wednesday was a quieter day, with highlights being the return of the distinctive leucopsis x alboides Whites Wagtail and brief views of the champion lurker - the overwintering Brown Shrike.

The Japanese White-eyes were again feeding down on the lawn, but the munias and Tree Sparrows were not, and the female Stejneger's Stonechat was absent for the first time in a long time.

A female Daurian Redstart with almost no white wingspot had me going for a while, but never really had enough to convince me it was anything except Daurian (how I'd love to be wrong about that!)

Cheers
Mike
 
A swift twenty minutes both today and yesterday were not very productive - we've had settled weather for too long and its all gone a bit quiet.

New for the year list were a House Swift yesterday and a couple of Crested Bulbuls today, while I'm a bit worried that there no sign of either the Daurian Redstart or the Stejneger's Stonechat.

Bird of the day today was a Large-billed Crow that sat in the tallest Brisbane box calling way to its mate, that called back from out of sight, while the small flock four of Olive-backed Pipits were again on the grassy verge yesterday.

Today I twice had the back end of what was probably a male Japanese Thrush, a Grey-backed Thrush and a Chinese Blackbird the day before, while on both days the Long-tailed Shrike was lurking menacingly in the canopy and a single Yellow-browed Warbler was knocking about.

Yesterday a fly-by out the window of the officeBlack Kite added some interest to a meeting and some 30-odd Tree Sparrows and a dozen Japanese White-eyes were again feeding on the grass by the flyover with a half-dozen Crested Mynas and the usual couple of White Wagtails in casual attendance.

Cheers
Mike
 
Was expecting some mammals in your update :C

Black Kites are plenty back in India, the most common raptor everywhere. Miss those raptors n corvids.

The leucopsis x alboides Whites Wagtail should be interesting anytime, i got a young lugens couple of weeks before.
 
One mammal for you Dev - Brown Rat!

But there were also a few birds about today, with a fine adult Oriental Turtle Dove being the first of the year and thrushes scoring well with adult and first winter male Grey-backed, an adult male Japanese, a Chinese Blackbird and A.N. Other.

The leucopis x alboides White Wagtail was again present, but beginning to lose some of the black rear eyestripe that made it look so exciting. I'm thinking of bring my scope to work and doing some digiscoping - and this will be the first target.

Cheers
Mike
 
A Dusky Thrush with a fine necklace of black spots was on one of the lawns on the approaches to the airport yesterday, and I think - it was back-on - again this morning.

Unfortunately it was not on the Roundabout, but its definitely worth a mention.

Cheers
Mike
 
On Thursday I again saw the Dusky Thrush from the bus, but also took an extended walk around the northernmost edge of the roundabout, which delivered my first, overdue, Red-flanked Bluetail, and on a very good day for thrushes and chats, an extension of the walk also revealed a fine male philippensis Blue Rock Thrush on the golf course.

The big debate is whether I should count this as part of the Magic Roundabout. In strict geographical terms its not, but in the spirit of the UK Patchwork concept its an extension of a circular walk from my office of an area of 250 x 300 metres. At one point it goes over a footbridge with a view of the golf course - hence the opportunity to add a larger area of short grass and the edge of a pond to the habitats on the route.

Monday 4th Feb

Fewer birds were seen on a walk restricted to the regular inner route. these did include the first "inner route Richard's Pipit on the Eastern Verge along with the leucopsis x alboides White Wagtail and a regular leucopsis White Wagtail.

I also pinned down the female Japanese Thrush, flushed a male Grey-backed Thrush, and had brief views of both Pallas' Leaf Warbler and Yellow-browed Warbler inside the core area. As I headed back to the office four Olive-backed Pipits and the Long-tailed Shrike were on the Grassy verge, and a Black Kite circled over the terminal building.

Tuesday 5th Feb

No visit to the Roundabout today, but the Dusky Thrush was again seen from the bus on the lawn by the end of the South Runway.


Cheers
Mike
 

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Those crisscross roads and the artificial parks to fill up the space are everywhere n i hate them Mike.But speaking about the results, you are pulling the best out of your small patch.
 
The big debate is whether I should count this as part of the Magic Roundabout. In strict geographical terms its not, but in the spirit of the UK Patchwork concept its an extension of a circular walk from my office of an area of 250 x 300 metres. At one point it goes over a footbridge with a view of the golf course - hence the opportunity to add a larger area of short grass and the edge of a pond to the habitats on the route.

Cheers
Mike

Looks like an entirely justifiable, compact patch, going by the map.

Best of luck with it, I shall continue to follow your fortunes with interest.

Cheers

James
 
So far one vote in favour of the expanded patch . . . Thanks James!

You must have an amazing garden to have that many species in just over a month - especially having waxwings in it!

Dev you're dead right - I bird here the for the views, not the view!

Dusky is my eighth "airport" thrush since October John:

Chinese Blackbird
Grey-backed Thrush
Japanese Thrush
Pale Thrush
Eye-browed Thrush
Blue Rock Thrush
Naumann's Thrush
(Dusky Thrush) off-patch but on-Chek Lap Kok.

It was there again today, and as I have a free lunchtime tomorrow I'm thinking about dragging the scope over to try to get some pix.

Cheers
Mike
 
The big debate is whether I should count this as part of the Magic Roundabout. In strict geographical terms its not, but in the spirit of the UK Patchwork concept its an extension of a circular walk from my office of an area of 250 x 300 metres. At one point it goes over a footbridge with a view of the golf course - hence the opportunity to add a larger area of short grass and the edge of a pond to the habitats on the route.

Nice picture of the situation. I say go for it - your patch is not too big yet :)
 
So far one vote in favour of the expanded patch . . . Thanks James!

Another vote in favour from here, a logical stroll. And changes nothing in terms of the uniqueness of the patch - i.e. a breath of life in the midst of one of the busiest airports in the world
 
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