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Message: <blockquote data-quote="MKinHK" data-source="post: 3020837" data-attributes="member: 21760">My disappointment was mitigated by the fact that this was our day to go to the Tiger Leaping Gorge.  The world’s deepest gorge – with an average drop of some 4,000 metres – is an impressive sight, which was made even better by the breeding Crag Martins and Salim Ali’s Swifts – a fairly recent and not yet universally recognized split from Pacific Swift. The martins gave great views as they came into the nest in a sheltered cleft just above the path, spreading their tails to show the distinctive pale spots, and rested on the rockface about eight feet above the path. The swifts were doing what swifts do best  - swirling around in screaming groups and diving into vertical clefts in the rock face where they were obviously nesting.Despite the quality of the views of these birds the real highlight was an astonishingly green hawk moth from the callumbulyx family, which was doing an appalling job of hiding itself on the marble rock-face of the gorge.Other birds seen in the gorge and on the journey included a male Blue Rock Thrush singing from a high thin branch, a good forty Russet Sparrows that were tumbling about in the willows below the path, singles of both Blue Whistling Thrush and Plumbeous Redstart, and three different Black Bulbuls. Anyone considering a trip here should also be aware that Wallcreeper winters in the gorge – my Mum pointed one out to me on my previous visit here in November 2003! CheersMike</blockquote>

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