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Message: <blockquote data-quote="china guy" data-source="post: 1609180" data-attributes="member: 6819">Well we're still out on our survey - nothing earth shattering - but we had a couple of good days with raptor counts (pics on the Q/A forum - where I try to mutate a Oriental Honey Buzzard into a Juv Bonelli's Eagle). The rest of the birding has been quiet.Yesterday we got a couple of harder to see birds - both of which can be easily confused with a common species - Grey-cheeked Fulvetta.First is Dusky Fulvetta - we got three birds in a large flock of GC Fulvetta - you have to look hard, since the way these birds skulk around, a quick glance often isn't enough to register the differences between the species. The pic shows well that that Dusky lacks the white eye-ring of our Sichuan Grey-cheeked - and has a distinct but not very easy to see crown pattern. Those orangey-flesh colored legs are also a bit of a give-away.the second is Green Shrike a Babbler - a bad pic, but its of yesterday's birds and illustrates well how you see these birds in the field. Our Sichuan birds have that grey breast and a large white eye ring. Usually very-active these birds can be difficult to focus on and its that white eye-ring that draws most attention. Since this bird can also join mixed flocks, is about the same size, and has similar plumage color to Grey-cheeked Fulvetta - then again a cursory glance is often not enough. What strikes you most with our Sichuan version of Green shrike Babbler is how distinct that eye-ring is - far bolder than the GC Fulvetta. Field guide pics - especially in the the MacK China field-guide - are next to useless for identifying this bird.That third pic is of Grey-cheeked Fulvetta - a seen everywhere bird as soon as you start to hit any forest/small plantation/ dense tall scrub - over the 500m mark. That's a typical Sichuan bird with a faint but noticeable white eye-ring.</blockquote>

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