2019年1月4日 星期五

Fujian 25-29 Dec 2018 - an Endgame Trip of my 10th year

2018 was my 10th birding year in my life. We have been to many places, many countries in these 10 years but I can never forget my first ever birding trip is going Fujian for the Chinese Crested Tern with Koel when we both were very young and now he is Joyce’s husband already! We planned to go to Yunnan this Christmas at first, where I could meet my 1000th lifer before the end of 2018, but sadly we couldn’t visit due to my family issue. No matter, a short trip was found to be doable at the last moment, then we visited Fujian, again.

Our targets this time were very specific, the two major targets which we both missed last time - Elliot’s Pheasant and Blyth’s Kingfisher - the two specialists in Southeast China. Thanks to the guiding by Xao Xe 小謝, we could tick both at the first out of three birding days. And we were able to see two more lifers too - Koklass Pheasant and Grey-sided Scimitar-babbler! Thank you so much!

Though time was short, there were some dips too like Spotted Elachura, Grey-headed and Short-tailed Parrotbill, Pale-headed Woodpecker etc etc... Leave to next time.

10-years is a stage. My first stage in my birder’s life has ended and we shall get well prepared for the second stage - to achieve better, and explore further.

----- Our birding hearts will go on -----

Ellot's Pheasant - one of the most beautiful birds we saw in 2018


Itinerary

For anyone who aims to find the Elliot’s or Blyth’s, Xao Xe is recommended and his contact is 13859130775 or yyqdga through WeChat. He can also arrange traffic between Sanming North and Xia Fang Xiang. Two out of five days trip were used in traffic, so only 3 full birding days were available.

25 Dec
Train G6508 from HK West Kowloon to Shenzhen North at 11:50
Train D2322 from Shenzhen North to Sanming North 三明北 from 13:06-19:11
Arrived Xia Fang Xiang 夏坊乡 at around 22:00

first time to take high speed railway from HK, just around 15 mins from West Kowloon to Shenzhen North!

high speed railway with crested ibis

need a lunch in 6 hours train!

our dinner at first night

Xao Xe's house:
26.4981988, 117.0028627

26 Dec
Full day birding in Xia Fang Xiang 夏坊乡, 
the Elliot’s feeding station and the Blyth’s King’s stream, also around Xao Xe’s house

a peaceful scene outside Xao Xe's house

an Elliot's hide set up by Xao Xe

bamboo forest in early morning, feel of horror movie?

until an Elliot's came! an iPhone photo

27 Dec
Full day birding in Xia Fang Xiang 夏坊乡, transited to Tai Ling 泰寧 at around 21:00

scene of Xia Fang Xiang

this is a hide for Silver Pheasant and White-necklaced Partridge but sadly both not showing that day. Another horror movie scene?

bamboo forest sometimes can be beautiful or hopeful

a snowy flowering trees attract many Fork-tailed Sunbird

birding business can generate great economic income to the poor

and so Xia Fang Xiang is a good demonstration site

also a birdbirdbird in hostel

28 Dec
Full day birding in Emeifung 峨嵋峰, back to Sanming at around 20:00

we went up Emeifung mainly for Koklass Pheasant and other SE China forest birds in early morning, but sadly the weather was not good - rainy and foggy, only the Koklass and Elliot's were seen

bamboo forest again dominates in Emeifung, we found a family of Koklass around here (1 male and 3 females):
27.0310597, 117.0658020

bamboo forest - perfect place for Koklass to hide!

dogs in Emeifung

no doubt that our guide Xao Xe has good eyes, always found something we could never notice....

like fresh feces of pheasant - probably Silver Pheasant, but we could not see any.. sigh..

Emeifung

another peaceful town with domestic ducks and ducks, cute Plumbeous Water Redstart and two Black-winged Kite flying low!

security checks after every highway exits because of African swine fever

dinner time after 2 hours drive to Sanming

the duck, but the texture was quite hard...

of course a can of beer to celebrate the Elliot's!

29 Dec
Train D2297 from Sanming North to Shenzhen North from 08:16-14:16
Train G6527 from Shenzhen North to HK West Kowloon at 14:54

again a lunch was needed for 6 hours train to Shenzhen North, so I tried something new!

the ingredients in the lunch box

cooking in the rail...

done! though the taste was not really nice but acceptable 

and time to back to West Kowloon


Trip list

Taxonomy following HBW:

Elliot's Pheasant Syrmaticus ellioti
- 1 male and 3 females in Xia Fang Xiang; 4 males and 2 females in Emeifung

male Elliot's Pheasant - a beautiful lifer

male Elliot's Pheasant - long tail

male Elliot's Pheasant

male Elliot's Pheasant

a group of Elliot's!

Elliot's Pheasant - the glossy copper!

a pair of Elliot's Pheasant 

Elliot's Pheasant - we waited for two hours for these beauties!

female Elliot's Pheasant

female Elliot's Pheasant

female Elliot's Pheasant

female Elliot's Pheasant

male Elliot's Pheasant - bamboo forest is this species's favorite habitat

Elliot's Pheasant - you will never expect to see Elliot's rainbow in dull green!

the Elliot's Pheasant in Emeifung were far less friendlier

Koklass Pheasant Pucrasia macrolopha darwini
- 2 males and 3 females in Emeifung

the first view of our first Koklass Pheasant - it's big!

Koklass Pheasant - male in fog

Koklass Pheasant a piar

Koklass Pheasant

hiding chicken when no fog..... can you find that?

even male can be well camouflaged

female Koklass Pheasant in fog - don't ask me how to spot this in a moving car.....

Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata
- 3 flushed in Xia Fang Xiang

Chinese Pond Heron Ardeola bacchus
- 1 in Xia Fang Xiang

Little Egret Egretta garzetta
- 1 in Xia Fang Xiang

Asian Barred Owlet Glaucidium cuculoides whiteleyi
- 1 in flight in Emeifung

Black-winged Kite Elanus caeruleus vociferus
- 2 in Emeifung

Japanese Buzzard Buteo japonicus japonicus
- 1 in Emeifung

Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis bengalensis
- 2 in Xia Fang Xiang

Common Kingfisher - a kingfisher was found immediately on the branch where the Blyth's Kingfisher was seen one day before... but, this was a Common Kingfisher

Blyth's Kingfisher Alcedo hercules
- 2 in Xia Fang Xiang, probably a pair

Blyth's Kingfisher - when we returned, we saw another kingfisher on the same branch - the Blyth's! You can see the size difference

Blyth's Kingfisher

Blyth's Kingfisher - size is larger! Also bigger head and different head pattern

a fatty female Blyth's Kingfisher

Great Barbet Psilopogon virens virens
- heard only in Xia Fang Xiang

Bay Woodpecker Blythipicus pyrrhotis sinensis
- heard only in Xia Fang Xiang

Grey-capped Woodpecker Picoides canicapillus kaleensis
- 4 in Xia Fang Xiang

Grey-capped Woodpecker - the head.......

Grey-backed Woodpecker

Grey-backed Woodpecker - the commonest woodpecker in this trip

Grey-backed Woodpecker - small and cute

White-bellied Erpornis Erpornis zantholeuca tyrannulus
- 1 in Emeifung

Long-tailed Shrike Lanius schach schach

Red-billed Blue Magpie Urocissa erythroryncha erythroryncha

Sultan Tit Melanochlora sultanea seorsa
 
Japanese Tit Parus minor artatus
 
Japanese Tit - prepared for a bath

Japanese Tit

angry tit

Yellow-cheeked Tit Machlolophus spolonotus rex
   
Yellow-cheeked Tit in fog

Chestnut Bulbul Hemixos castanonotus canipennis

Mountain Bulbul Ixos mcclellandii holtii

Black Bulbul Hypsipetes leucocephalus leucocephalus
   
a real Black Bulbul

Collared Finchbill Spizixos semitorques semitorques
   
Collared Finchbill - common but cute

Collared Finchbill

Light-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus sinensis sinensis

Yellow-browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus

Pallas's Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus proregulus

Rufous-faced Warbler Abroscopus albogularis fulvifacies
   
Rufous-faced Warbler - another common species but rare in HK

Rufous-faced Warbler - a failed hovering shot

Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler Horornis fortipes davidianus
   
many Brownish-flanked Bush Warbler were calling but only a few could be seen

Black-throated Tit Aegithalos concinnus concinnus

Indochinese Yuhina Yuhina torqueola

Japanese White-eye Zosterops japonicus simplex

Grey-sided Scimitar-babbler Erythrogenys swinhoei swinhoei
- 1 in Xia Fang Xiang; 1 heard in Emeifung

Grey-sided Scimitar-babbler - we didn't expect this until I played its call randomly, then a curious bird was responding

Grey-sided Scimitar-babbler call with Streak-breasted Scimitar-babbler

another call of Grey-sided Scimitar-babbler with White-crowned Forktail

Streak-breasted Scimitar-babbler Pomatorhinus ruficollis stridulus
- 1 in Xia Fang Xiang

Rufous-capped Babbler Cyanoderma ruficeps davidi
- heard only

Huet's Fulvetta Alcippe hueti hueti

Chinese Hwamei Garrulax canorus canorus
- 1 in Emeifung, probably 2

Masked Laughingthrush Garrulax perspicillatus

White's Thrush Zoothera aurea aurea
- 2 flushed in Emeifung

Turdus sp.
- heard only

Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus
   
male Red-flanked Bluetail

Slaty-backed Forktail Enicurus schistaceus
   
Slaty-backed Forktail - very common in mainland but rare in HK

White-crowned Forktail Enicurus leschenaulti sinensis
   
White-crowned Forktail - my first time to take photos of this common species

White-crowned Forktail

White-crowned Forktail

White-crowned Forktail - a fatty ball

White-crowned Forktail - a very vocal bird

call of White-crowned Forktail

Spotted Forktail Enicurus maculatus bacatus
- 1 in Emeifung

Blue Whistling-thrush Myophonus caeruleus caeruleus
   
Blue Whistling-thrush - a shiny blue!

Plumbeous Water Redstart Phoenicurus fuliginosus fuliginosus
- 1 male and 1 female in Emeifung

female Plumbeous Water Redstart by iPhone

Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus leucopterus

Fork-tailed Sunbird Aethopyga latouchii

White-rumped Munia Lonchura striata swinhoei

Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus saturatus 

Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni hodgsoni

White Wagtail Motacilla alba leucopsis

Brambling Fringilla montifringilla
- a flock in Emeifung

a flock of Brambling

Black-faced Bunting Emberiza spodocephala spodocephala

Tristram's Bunting Emberiza tristrami
- 1 male in Xia Fang Xiang

Emberiza sp.
- heard only

Checklist 1: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50955020
Checklist 2: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50984817
Checklist 3: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50981888
Checklist 4: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50981764
Checklist 5: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S50984562
Checklist 6: https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S51012223

Finally, also thanks to Wendy, Soso and Wong Yueng for this successful trip!

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