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18 months in Shanghai: March 2012 - August 2013 (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter McMadd
- Start date
Jeff Hopkins
Just another...observer
I have a picture of the farmer walking his ducks, too!
thirudevaram
Trapped in mist ***s
Great coverage Mark!
Your habitat pics explains the filthy piece of garbage scattered everywhere. No wonder that the habitat for the chinese endemics and the migrants are shrinking.
Your habitat pics explains the filthy piece of garbage scattered everywhere. No wonder that the habitat for the chinese endemics and the migrants are shrinking.
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
Fuzhou Frolics...Saturday 19th May...PM
It's a week later and I'm just back from a stunning morning's birding that I want to write up but first an epic attempt to get up to date...I feel like Hunter Thompson sitting looking at the “mojo wire” waiting to be fed...(Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72...a great read...)
So...lunch over and we headed off to the Northern edge of Fuzhou and drove into the Fuzhou Forest Park where we parked up next to the “birder's guest house” and went birding...immediately the sound but not sight of Fork-tailed Sunbird high in the canopy got me focused on the forest birding...
We spent the remainder of the day around the lower reaches of the park walking the paths and exploring the more obscure corners. A rain shower sent us scurrying back to the car where we picked up brollies and I decided to leave the camera in the dry...oh foolish boy...almost the first thing we see is a stunning male Fork-tailed Sunbird perched up in a small ornamental tree...picture perfect and I paid the price...
That said, I did manage to get half decent pictures of Red-biilled Blue Magpie for probably the first and only time...
A secluded road promised much but delivered a solitary goody...a single Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush paused on the ground under the canopy, hopped onto a roadside rock and...shot off into the impenetrable gloom.
Also new for me was a solo, juvenile Black-throated Tit; a bird we were to see larger flocks of next day...larger as in one of 30-40 birds. Way up high a twittering sound resolved into stunning Scarlet Minivet's...what a family they are...and as the dusk approached we lazed on a footbridge across the river searching for the owners of the Chinese Bamboo Partridge call we'd heard to get us ascending the hump-backed, out-of-bounds (or so it seemed) structure...no joy there but a Cattle Egret stalking the rows of plant pots in the tree nursery won the bizzaro award. A lone male White Wagtail sat atop a building; two Kingfishers hurtled upstream under our feet...a Plain Prinia played hide and seek and the day's final species was a distant singing (silently for us) Himalayan Black Bulbul on overhead power cables...
...and so to bed...well...evening meal and an early night...the accommodations, as Forest predicted, a little less salubrious than HoJo the night before...but...and this is the important thing...a whole lot closer to the birds for tomorrow's dawn raid on the upper car park and it's avian riches...
It's a week later and I'm just back from a stunning morning's birding that I want to write up but first an epic attempt to get up to date...I feel like Hunter Thompson sitting looking at the “mojo wire” waiting to be fed...(Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72...a great read...)
So...lunch over and we headed off to the Northern edge of Fuzhou and drove into the Fuzhou Forest Park where we parked up next to the “birder's guest house” and went birding...immediately the sound but not sight of Fork-tailed Sunbird high in the canopy got me focused on the forest birding...
We spent the remainder of the day around the lower reaches of the park walking the paths and exploring the more obscure corners. A rain shower sent us scurrying back to the car where we picked up brollies and I decided to leave the camera in the dry...oh foolish boy...almost the first thing we see is a stunning male Fork-tailed Sunbird perched up in a small ornamental tree...picture perfect and I paid the price...
That said, I did manage to get half decent pictures of Red-biilled Blue Magpie for probably the first and only time...
A secluded road promised much but delivered a solitary goody...a single Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush paused on the ground under the canopy, hopped onto a roadside rock and...shot off into the impenetrable gloom.
Also new for me was a solo, juvenile Black-throated Tit; a bird we were to see larger flocks of next day...larger as in one of 30-40 birds. Way up high a twittering sound resolved into stunning Scarlet Minivet's...what a family they are...and as the dusk approached we lazed on a footbridge across the river searching for the owners of the Chinese Bamboo Partridge call we'd heard to get us ascending the hump-backed, out-of-bounds (or so it seemed) structure...no joy there but a Cattle Egret stalking the rows of plant pots in the tree nursery won the bizzaro award. A lone male White Wagtail sat atop a building; two Kingfishers hurtled upstream under our feet...a Plain Prinia played hide and seek and the day's final species was a distant singing (silently for us) Himalayan Black Bulbul on overhead power cables...
...and so to bed...well...evening meal and an early night...the accommodations, as Forest predicted, a little less salubrious than HoJo the night before...but...and this is the important thing...a whole lot closer to the birds for tomorrow's dawn raid on the upper car park and it's avian riches...
Attachments
thirudevaram
Trapped in mist ***s
Lot of "Red" species. At this rate, you will be running out of red captions. Kudos to you! The red billed blue magpie brings out my memories of the species which i got in February this year. Have to dig them up.
I'm sure there will be few more "red captions" coming up. Waiting for them!!! Need a treat for that piece of raptor. I have tried my best to spot them in India but the chances were very thin.
I'm sure there will be few more "red captions" coming up. Waiting for them!!! Need a treat for that piece of raptor. I have tried my best to spot them in India but the chances were very thin.
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
Fuzhou Frolics...Sunday 20th May...0500-1400
Lulled to sleep by the sounds of the grandfather of the guest house hacking his lungs up, the alarm came all too soon next morning. Slowly Forest and I roused ourselves and figured our way out of the locked guesthouse. Straight into the car for the short journey up to the upper car park.
Stepping out into the fresh, cool air we birded the car park area and quickly added Grey Treepie; Black-throated Tit; a fly-over Black-crowned Night-heron and Spotted Dove to our tally and then I spotted the first of the goodies...two small black and white “things” chasing each other up and down the stream...but these were no wagtails...oh no...these were only juvenile Slaty-backed Forktails...whoot, whoot! Stunning...unlike my pictures but you get the idea...it seems a universal exclamation: “Forktails...brilliant” but I'm happy to trot the cliché out for one more airing..want to be seeing more of these please!
One Grey Wagtail struggled to get appreciated (but it was) after their showing. Hwamei and Blackbird also put on decent showings...then it was all about sounds as we spent some time on the trails surrounding the car park...this trip was not the one to let me see White-necklaced Partridge or Chinese Bamboo Partridge but I think I can say they were conclusively heard...! Ditto the frustrating Great Barbet that was always just out of vision...
Forest went to collect the car as we'd travelled downstream a little way and I busied myself listening for gamebirds, scanning the waters for more “forkies” and picturing the incongrous Little Egret stalking the manicured lawns of a deserted hotel...bizarro part the second...A Great Tit (how singular...) kept me amused as did a few dueling Oriental Magpie-robins.
Forest appeared and we continued our, failed, quest for Plumbeous Water-redstart that wasn't playing ball and refused to be seen all day on it's “always occupied” territory...them's the breaks and why we love/hate birding by degrees!
I did, however, spy something new to me on a telegraph pole and in the low, flat...bloody awful light it took a few seconds for us to put a name to the seemingly grey-backed bird...a change of position revealed it was rather more brightly coloured than first impressions gave...Orange-bellied Leafbird...a singing male...I was soon distracted as a pair of Collared Finchbill busy with nesting material caught my eye...new birds coming tick and fast...
Back to the vacant water-redstart territory and...no sign but compensations in the forms of White-breasted Waterhen and a brown, Brown Shrike (not sure what race this bird is but not the same as those I'm familiar with from Beidaihe in '08 which were much paler/sandier birds...input welcome...) A Hwamei busied itself bathing while we carried on not seeing them pesky water-redstarts.
The final act of the day was to walk a trail back to the lower park which was fairly bird-free but for a couple Chestnut Bulbul showing off on a snag” as the Americans insist on calling bare branches... followed further along by a pair of Grey-cheeked Fulvetta at mid-height in the canopy and then a pair of Himalayan Black Bulbul posing in a pine tree.
A Black-crowned Night-heron on telegraph wires and then a pair of Hair-crested Drongo's obligingly in a tree and we ambled back up towards where we'd left the car via a side “valley” where the only bird life was a distant Masked Laughingthrush and a pair of territorial Collared Finchbills. Forest busied himself with macro-photography while I got my kicks chasing...well standing still and taking pictures of...flutterbys which I've chucked into the Butterflies and Moths DI forum and linked to a couple of posts above this tripe you're reading...
All too soon it was time to be thinking of exiting to the railway station. A quick lunch and the settling of our bills at the birders guest house and then we were out of the park en route for the southern edge of the city and the vast, modern railway hub.
A quick “ta-ra” to Forest with much thanks from me to him and I was through the security barrier and before I knew it on the train for the 7 hour journey north that, of course, arrived punctually. A short taxi ride home and it was quick to bed ready for another busy week...with plans to be made for the coming weekend...dot, dot, dot...
Lulled to sleep by the sounds of the grandfather of the guest house hacking his lungs up, the alarm came all too soon next morning. Slowly Forest and I roused ourselves and figured our way out of the locked guesthouse. Straight into the car for the short journey up to the upper car park.
Stepping out into the fresh, cool air we birded the car park area and quickly added Grey Treepie; Black-throated Tit; a fly-over Black-crowned Night-heron and Spotted Dove to our tally and then I spotted the first of the goodies...two small black and white “things” chasing each other up and down the stream...but these were no wagtails...oh no...these were only juvenile Slaty-backed Forktails...whoot, whoot! Stunning...unlike my pictures but you get the idea...it seems a universal exclamation: “Forktails...brilliant” but I'm happy to trot the cliché out for one more airing..want to be seeing more of these please!
One Grey Wagtail struggled to get appreciated (but it was) after their showing. Hwamei and Blackbird also put on decent showings...then it was all about sounds as we spent some time on the trails surrounding the car park...this trip was not the one to let me see White-necklaced Partridge or Chinese Bamboo Partridge but I think I can say they were conclusively heard...! Ditto the frustrating Great Barbet that was always just out of vision...
Forest went to collect the car as we'd travelled downstream a little way and I busied myself listening for gamebirds, scanning the waters for more “forkies” and picturing the incongrous Little Egret stalking the manicured lawns of a deserted hotel...bizarro part the second...A Great Tit (how singular...) kept me amused as did a few dueling Oriental Magpie-robins.
Forest appeared and we continued our, failed, quest for Plumbeous Water-redstart that wasn't playing ball and refused to be seen all day on it's “always occupied” territory...them's the breaks and why we love/hate birding by degrees!
I did, however, spy something new to me on a telegraph pole and in the low, flat...bloody awful light it took a few seconds for us to put a name to the seemingly grey-backed bird...a change of position revealed it was rather more brightly coloured than first impressions gave...Orange-bellied Leafbird...a singing male...I was soon distracted as a pair of Collared Finchbill busy with nesting material caught my eye...new birds coming tick and fast...
Back to the vacant water-redstart territory and...no sign but compensations in the forms of White-breasted Waterhen and a brown, Brown Shrike (not sure what race this bird is but not the same as those I'm familiar with from Beidaihe in '08 which were much paler/sandier birds...input welcome...) A Hwamei busied itself bathing while we carried on not seeing them pesky water-redstarts.
The final act of the day was to walk a trail back to the lower park which was fairly bird-free but for a couple Chestnut Bulbul showing off on a snag” as the Americans insist on calling bare branches... followed further along by a pair of Grey-cheeked Fulvetta at mid-height in the canopy and then a pair of Himalayan Black Bulbul posing in a pine tree.
A Black-crowned Night-heron on telegraph wires and then a pair of Hair-crested Drongo's obligingly in a tree and we ambled back up towards where we'd left the car via a side “valley” where the only bird life was a distant Masked Laughingthrush and a pair of territorial Collared Finchbills. Forest busied himself with macro-photography while I got my kicks chasing...well standing still and taking pictures of...flutterbys which I've chucked into the Butterflies and Moths DI forum and linked to a couple of posts above this tripe you're reading...
All too soon it was time to be thinking of exiting to the railway station. A quick lunch and the settling of our bills at the birders guest house and then we were out of the park en route for the southern edge of the city and the vast, modern railway hub.
A quick “ta-ra” to Forest with much thanks from me to him and I was through the security barrier and before I knew it on the train for the 7 hour journey north that, of course, arrived punctually. A short taxi ride home and it was quick to bed ready for another busy week...with plans to be made for the coming weekend...dot, dot, dot...
Attachments
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
Fuzhou Frolics...Sunday 20th May...0500-1400
and some more pics from this morning...including a Kingfisher I forgot to mention but that maintains my high photographic standards with this species...
and some more pics from this morning...including a Kingfisher I forgot to mention but that maintains my high photographic standards with this species...
Attachments
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
Listening the sound of wind, twiffering the birds and Sightseeing the green hills...
...or...Stoked in the Temple...
“Shall we?”
“OK. I'll check at work if we can just rock up and grab a train”
“Yep...they tell me there's many so I'll see you at Hongqiao Saturday afternoon”
“Yep...what about somewhere to stay?”
“I've found this place...”Daji Resort and Spa”. It's on the western edge of the park so only about 10km from “The Temple””
“Perfect”
...and it all was...perfect...
Now read on...Saturday afternoon and I made my way out by Shanghai's efficient Metro system to meet Jocko (of this parish) for a hit and run on Nanjing and a certain temple...intelligence received earlier in the week from mcaribou confirmed that “they” were back...game on!
Quickly Jocko located me and we had the good fortune to pick the ticket window with the pretty girl...who also spoke more English than I do Chinese...tickets bought and some refrescos for the journey and we were swiftly on the train and heading north. An uneventful journey and we arrived on time (I may get tired of writing this about rail journeys in China...) and with the aid of a phone call to our Spa resort so the taxi driver could get his bearings and we were off...soon arrived without mishap and then the only fly in the weekends ointment...check-in at the Daji Resort and Spa...and it all started so well...she recognised us “long noses” for what we were and had our prepared package of room key and “stuff” to hand...then there was the photocopying of passports (a struggle) followed by the paying of the deposit which got a little lost in translation resulting in a failed card swiping that seemingly crashed the whole phone system (much swapping of wires) and a substitution of cash. The there was the negotiation of a taxi for 0430 and directions to the food “thing”...downstairs...where we immediately headed having wasted 30 minutes of our lives...
The food “thing”...the dining room was empty...one group of salarymen leaving as the last of the toasts was downed in one...Jocko having the needed language skills ordered up some sustenance and we watched the floor show which consisted of a concerted attempt to remove a 2m/8 foot-ish diameter glass “lazy susan” from a table top...a game of “How many waiters and waitresses does it take to nearly trash an immense circular piece of glass?" that nearly had fatal consequences for all as one enterprising youth hopped onto the tabletop only to bring the whole thing crashing down...luckily the waitresses took the strain and the boys melted away...that I'm writing this now is due to those little ladies...I had visions of being “segmented” in the “GREAT LAZY SUSAN ACCIDENT OF '12” which is a way of checking out I'd not previously considered...
...and so to bed...Jocko opted for a pre-snooze massage and found the rest of the hotels clientelle frolicking in the mineral-rich spa waters...I stayed home and played with the nifty “Thing” that switched every light and appliance on or off from the comfort of the your bed...alarms set and 0415 was the agreed rising time...
...and I quote “Resort & Spa Nanjing open ecological spa covers an area of ten thousand square meters, is located in the kite down the mountain side of blue lake, like a pearl inlaid in the tree flowers in the spring, large spa water directly poured into in addition also operates like fairyland Tianchi, touches every cell of the body, it is feel fresh, indulge in pleasures without stop”
...now you know...
...now read on...
...or...Stoked in the Temple...
“Shall we?”
“OK. I'll check at work if we can just rock up and grab a train”
“Yep...they tell me there's many so I'll see you at Hongqiao Saturday afternoon”
“Yep...what about somewhere to stay?”
“I've found this place...”Daji Resort and Spa”. It's on the western edge of the park so only about 10km from “The Temple””
“Perfect”
...and it all was...perfect...
Now read on...Saturday afternoon and I made my way out by Shanghai's efficient Metro system to meet Jocko (of this parish) for a hit and run on Nanjing and a certain temple...intelligence received earlier in the week from mcaribou confirmed that “they” were back...game on!
Quickly Jocko located me and we had the good fortune to pick the ticket window with the pretty girl...who also spoke more English than I do Chinese...tickets bought and some refrescos for the journey and we were swiftly on the train and heading north. An uneventful journey and we arrived on time (I may get tired of writing this about rail journeys in China...) and with the aid of a phone call to our Spa resort so the taxi driver could get his bearings and we were off...soon arrived without mishap and then the only fly in the weekends ointment...check-in at the Daji Resort and Spa...and it all started so well...she recognised us “long noses” for what we were and had our prepared package of room key and “stuff” to hand...then there was the photocopying of passports (a struggle) followed by the paying of the deposit which got a little lost in translation resulting in a failed card swiping that seemingly crashed the whole phone system (much swapping of wires) and a substitution of cash. The there was the negotiation of a taxi for 0430 and directions to the food “thing”...downstairs...where we immediately headed having wasted 30 minutes of our lives...
The food “thing”...the dining room was empty...one group of salarymen leaving as the last of the toasts was downed in one...Jocko having the needed language skills ordered up some sustenance and we watched the floor show which consisted of a concerted attempt to remove a 2m/8 foot-ish diameter glass “lazy susan” from a table top...a game of “How many waiters and waitresses does it take to nearly trash an immense circular piece of glass?" that nearly had fatal consequences for all as one enterprising youth hopped onto the tabletop only to bring the whole thing crashing down...luckily the waitresses took the strain and the boys melted away...that I'm writing this now is due to those little ladies...I had visions of being “segmented” in the “GREAT LAZY SUSAN ACCIDENT OF '12” which is a way of checking out I'd not previously considered...
...and so to bed...Jocko opted for a pre-snooze massage and found the rest of the hotels clientelle frolicking in the mineral-rich spa waters...I stayed home and played with the nifty “Thing” that switched every light and appliance on or off from the comfort of the your bed...alarms set and 0415 was the agreed rising time...
...and I quote “Resort & Spa Nanjing open ecological spa covers an area of ten thousand square meters, is located in the kite down the mountain side of blue lake, like a pearl inlaid in the tree flowers in the spring, large spa water directly poured into in addition also operates like fairyland Tianchi, touches every cell of the body, it is feel fresh, indulge in pleasures without stop”
...now you know...
...now read on...
If the ending scores as high on the happy-ometer as I'm hoping it might, I'll be tempted to break my "no-twitching in China" rule (hold on a minute, just remembered that "known breeding areas" - not to mention nymph-lands - are thankfully exempt...)
And so to bed, McMadd, and perchance to dream.
Shi Jin
And so to bed, McMadd, and perchance to dream.
Shi Jin
Last edited:
McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
Listening the sound of wind, twiffering the birds and Sightseeing the green hills...
Stoked in the Temple...part the second...the bit you wanted to read right?
0415 and the alarm gets us up and at 'em...opening the room window and we hear Indian Cuckoo and the “brain fever bird” aka Large Hawk Cuckoo welcoming the dawn...swiftly downstairs and check out is accomplished a little quicker than check-in...outside we head to wait for the promised taxi which arrives about 10 minutes later...during which time the staff have returned my phone...left in haste in reception...and we have clocked roving Azure-winged Magpie; over-flying Black-crowned Night-heron and “aigrets” and been startled by startled Blackbirds. As we leave the premises with car windows open we hear a Common Pheasant and a Common Tailorbird...
The journey to the Temple is mostly uneventful with only one requirement to remind the driver he's driving not sleeping. The initial plan to retain him at the Temple while we bird is dismissed...as is he...to his bed hopefully...upon arrival and we set about figuring our bearings out. A brief encounter with the Temple dogs and the sound of monks praying as our background and we find our way to an area of mature woodland adjacent to the temple walls where we begin our search...
First up among the buildings is Blue Whistling Thrush...at least 1 pair are present in and around the site. Low light and skittish birds do not make for great photos but record shots were obtained. Red-billed Starlings were in evidence. Crested Mynas also.
A path through the low scrubby under-storey sees us hear hints of “target number one” and we judiciously use playback to encourage this notorious skulker to show himself. We are feeling optimistic when the peace is disturbed from on high as a pair of Black Baza circle in and perch up...this disturbance is both most welcome for the stunning albeit brief views obtained as for the flushing effect it has...as if one cracking bird species isn't enough their arrival spooks (not the horse but...) a Fairy Pitta that shoots out from the tree above us and flees across the open airspace in front of us...Yes! YES!! Awesome stuff and the adrenaline rush is addictive...
Calming down to the dulcet exclamations of Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler with Vinous-throated Parrotbills slipping through the vegetation at our feet we relocate ourselves to the other side of the gully we'd been watching and observed life from the temple walls...a Grey-headed Woodpecker alights briefly then continues on it's way...the drumming of a woodpecker species, presumably this is a constant refrain for the rest of the morning. Meanwhile Jocko hears what we confirm later as a Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher but the little varmit eludes our bins...mainly as we are easily distracted by a bird that manages to eclipse “target number one”...! A flash of pure white up high and a shout from Jocko...”Asian Paradise Flycatcher”! He's not wrong...we quickly get on to male and female...the male being of the white form and totally stunning to behold!! Later in the morning the pair are still around and one of our new friends in the Chinese Bird Photography world totally grips us off with a pin-sharp flight shot of the male...let's just say it's several magnitude's better than my poor record shot!!!
All this fuss means a pair of Collared Finchbill are almost ignored despite sitting patiently on bare branches for us...with the sun behind them...silhouettes are not what we want and they remain unphotographed!
Moving position again we explore the original Pitta trail a little further...to no avail other than to come across a testosterone-charged Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler who forgets himself and poses in full view singing his little heart out!
Back at the temple some tiki-tour shots are taken and we breakfast at 0800 with Azure-winged Magpies, Oriental Turtle Doves and...Swinhoe's Minivets for company...the latter very mobile as pictures of bare branches testify. I then spot a pale drongo and raising bins find myself staring at an Ashy Drongo sitting atop it's rather exposed nest...sweet...a slightly “who me” facial expression caused, I think, by the white facial disc makes it look rather vulnerable sitting there in full view.
Next surprise is a shrike...but not just any shrike...oh no...only a Tiger Shrike! What a place this is turning out to be! Two Oriental Greenfinch and some Japanese White-eyes struggle for the recognition they to deserve. A Black-eared Kite appears above the hilltop behind the temple.
It's 0900 by now and casual visitors are starting to arrive...we figure the chances of another encounter with Fairy Pitta are slim and that we can maximise our weekend by retiring gracefully to Shanghai earlier than planned...the exit road looks promising so we begin to slowly walk down, correctly confident that we'll meet a taxi inbound that will pick us up on on it's outbound leg...before that prophesy is fulfilled we get crippling views of another Tiger Shrike and a Forest Wagtail body-swerving on a cross-branch and as we slowly walk the road a Hair-crested Drongo and a male Yellow-rumped Flycatcher complete the morning's roster of quality birds...a briefly seen male sparrowhawk got away before being resolved to species level.
Our taxi arrives as we finish negotiating our way past a couple of barking dogs and were soon on our way to the station where Lady Luck plays her final cards and delivers us a train leaving in 30 minutes...just time to grab a snack and board for the, predictably, faultless journey south. We disembark at Shanghai Station and I hop the metro home while Jocko grabs a taxi...trip done and in less than 24 hours we score several desirable species in relative comfort...all hail Lady Luck!
Stoked in the Temple...part the second...the bit you wanted to read right?
0415 and the alarm gets us up and at 'em...opening the room window and we hear Indian Cuckoo and the “brain fever bird” aka Large Hawk Cuckoo welcoming the dawn...swiftly downstairs and check out is accomplished a little quicker than check-in...outside we head to wait for the promised taxi which arrives about 10 minutes later...during which time the staff have returned my phone...left in haste in reception...and we have clocked roving Azure-winged Magpie; over-flying Black-crowned Night-heron and “aigrets” and been startled by startled Blackbirds. As we leave the premises with car windows open we hear a Common Pheasant and a Common Tailorbird...
The journey to the Temple is mostly uneventful with only one requirement to remind the driver he's driving not sleeping. The initial plan to retain him at the Temple while we bird is dismissed...as is he...to his bed hopefully...upon arrival and we set about figuring our bearings out. A brief encounter with the Temple dogs and the sound of monks praying as our background and we find our way to an area of mature woodland adjacent to the temple walls where we begin our search...
First up among the buildings is Blue Whistling Thrush...at least 1 pair are present in and around the site. Low light and skittish birds do not make for great photos but record shots were obtained. Red-billed Starlings were in evidence. Crested Mynas also.
A path through the low scrubby under-storey sees us hear hints of “target number one” and we judiciously use playback to encourage this notorious skulker to show himself. We are feeling optimistic when the peace is disturbed from on high as a pair of Black Baza circle in and perch up...this disturbance is both most welcome for the stunning albeit brief views obtained as for the flushing effect it has...as if one cracking bird species isn't enough their arrival spooks (not the horse but...) a Fairy Pitta that shoots out from the tree above us and flees across the open airspace in front of us...Yes! YES!! Awesome stuff and the adrenaline rush is addictive...
Calming down to the dulcet exclamations of Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler with Vinous-throated Parrotbills slipping through the vegetation at our feet we relocate ourselves to the other side of the gully we'd been watching and observed life from the temple walls...a Grey-headed Woodpecker alights briefly then continues on it's way...the drumming of a woodpecker species, presumably this is a constant refrain for the rest of the morning. Meanwhile Jocko hears what we confirm later as a Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher but the little varmit eludes our bins...mainly as we are easily distracted by a bird that manages to eclipse “target number one”...! A flash of pure white up high and a shout from Jocko...”Asian Paradise Flycatcher”! He's not wrong...we quickly get on to male and female...the male being of the white form and totally stunning to behold!! Later in the morning the pair are still around and one of our new friends in the Chinese Bird Photography world totally grips us off with a pin-sharp flight shot of the male...let's just say it's several magnitude's better than my poor record shot!!!
All this fuss means a pair of Collared Finchbill are almost ignored despite sitting patiently on bare branches for us...with the sun behind them...silhouettes are not what we want and they remain unphotographed!
Moving position again we explore the original Pitta trail a little further...to no avail other than to come across a testosterone-charged Brownish-flanked Bush-warbler who forgets himself and poses in full view singing his little heart out!
Back at the temple some tiki-tour shots are taken and we breakfast at 0800 with Azure-winged Magpies, Oriental Turtle Doves and...Swinhoe's Minivets for company...the latter very mobile as pictures of bare branches testify. I then spot a pale drongo and raising bins find myself staring at an Ashy Drongo sitting atop it's rather exposed nest...sweet...a slightly “who me” facial expression caused, I think, by the white facial disc makes it look rather vulnerable sitting there in full view.
Next surprise is a shrike...but not just any shrike...oh no...only a Tiger Shrike! What a place this is turning out to be! Two Oriental Greenfinch and some Japanese White-eyes struggle for the recognition they to deserve. A Black-eared Kite appears above the hilltop behind the temple.
It's 0900 by now and casual visitors are starting to arrive...we figure the chances of another encounter with Fairy Pitta are slim and that we can maximise our weekend by retiring gracefully to Shanghai earlier than planned...the exit road looks promising so we begin to slowly walk down, correctly confident that we'll meet a taxi inbound that will pick us up on on it's outbound leg...before that prophesy is fulfilled we get crippling views of another Tiger Shrike and a Forest Wagtail body-swerving on a cross-branch and as we slowly walk the road a Hair-crested Drongo and a male Yellow-rumped Flycatcher complete the morning's roster of quality birds...a briefly seen male sparrowhawk got away before being resolved to species level.
Our taxi arrives as we finish negotiating our way past a couple of barking dogs and were soon on our way to the station where Lady Luck plays her final cards and delivers us a train leaving in 30 minutes...just time to grab a snack and board for the, predictably, faultless journey south. We disembark at Shanghai Station and I hop the metro home while Jocko grabs a taxi...trip done and in less than 24 hours we score several desirable species in relative comfort...all hail Lady Luck!
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McMadd
You should see the other bloke...
