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The HBW even mentions the importance of Ruoergai for this species: “Key sites for migrants include the Ruoergai Plateau (China), which is also an important breeding area” Common Mergansers also seem to use these wetlands as breeding area. The post Birding Ruoergai, Sichuan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds.
In China, wherever there is one real tourist attraction (like the Great Wall), the local strategy seems to be to add some fake attractions – replicas of palaces or tombs, amusement parks, shopping centers – in order to maximize the income from tourists. This included recording a total of 77,760 minutes of video.
Wikipedia has a paragraph on their interesting mating system : “Home ranges are occupied by breeding groups of 3 or 4 males with 3 or 4 females. DNA fingerprinting has been used to show that, within broods, there is often mixed paternity, although the female is always the true mother of the nestlings raised within her nest.
Other researchers apparently tried to get their universities to fund their drone toys, resulting in papers with titles such as “The use of drones to study the breeding productivity of Whooper Swan “ Another finding does not come as a surprise to birders watching birds both from cars and on foot.
While I am still not so sure about China’s sense of humor – though admittedly, the issue is mostly a mismatch between what I think is funny and what the average Chinese thinks is funny, an issue that I have had in other countries as well – the country sure has its fair share of Laughingthrushes.
Yibin is a typical smallish Chinese city (which in China means slightly above 850,000 people in the metro area, which would make it the fifth-biggest city in Germany but does not get it into the top 100 in China). What a pity.) But then, would a lady pheasant be pleased to be described as “large”? What a weird world.
Black Drongos must be breeding here – this juvenile was terrorizing his parents with constant calls for food. Presumably, the parents of black drongo chicks sometimes meet with Red-billed Starlings to sympathize with each other about the challenges of raising chicks these days. Black-tailed Gulls , I think.
Today, I invite you to join me, Kai Pflug, on an extraordinary avian expedition as we explore the vibrant cityscape of Shanghai, a hidden gem for birdwatchers in the heart of China. Birding Beyond the City: For the more adventurous birder, Shanghai serves as a gateway to explore the diverse landscapes of eastern China.
I soon found the pair of Pied Oystercatchers that I was looking for and they had two failed attempts at breeding this year. They have only once successfully raise a chick on Cable Beach in the territory they have chosen and that was incredible to follow the fast progress of a small feathery bundle to a flying juvenile. Echidna tracks.
That paper raises an interesting question: “When less attractive people accept less attractive dates, do they persuade themselves that the people they choose to date are more physically attractive than others perceive them to be? In truth, it is present in many parts of China (not mentioned) but not really in Tibet.
Each animal they raise to adulthood is a step away from extinction, with the ultimate challenge to return them to the wild. We’ll see ambitious programs to save diverse species from the outback of Australia, the savannahs of East Africa, the Brazilian Amazon and some of the most successful zoo breeding programs in the world.
I am not sure about the security situation in Iraq these days but at least some people do ornithological research there – resulting in papers such as one titled “Breeding observations of the Black-winged Kite Elanus caeruleus (Desfontaines , 1789) in Iraq” Impressive.
qn Archaeopteryx-like theropod from China Runner-up: The Bald Eagle that swooped around over the Big Gay Race in Minneapolis in October, which I didn’t get a picture of. This year I watched them from the day they arrived , until two chicks successfully hatched, the northernmost breeding record for the species.
A paper starts as follows: “Dongtan (or East Tideland) on Chongming Island in China is an important wintering site of Grus monacha ( hooded crane )” This is exactly where these photos were taken. The global population of the Hooded Crane is about 8000 individuals – it is listed as Vulnerable.
. … Nest dismantling by the Hair-crested Drongo may be an adaptive behavior to increase fitness by reducing risk of future predation and competition for nest sites in the following breeding season” ( source ). The Brown Crake is not that easy to see in Shanghai even though it is breeding here. ” ( source ).
White-browed Tit Warblers breed in high-altitude scrub, with a preference for junipers. Unfortunately for them, this is what raising chicks requires. Siberian Rubythroat (Nanhui, Shanghai, China). The White-capped Redstart is quite common in China, including Balangshan. And it is a great place for birding.
The fields near the Tiaozini mudflats look very much like a lunar landscape, but this does not seem to keep a number of species from breeding there, sometimes directly on dirt roads. But now back to birds … Little Ringed Plovers also seem to like to breed directly on the road. Blandness sells.
With regard to the Grey-backed Thrush , “further research should focus on identification of nest predators, implications of nest exposure and begging calls on nesting success, and breeding habitat requirements at different spatial and temporal scales of Grey-backed Thrush in fragmented landscapes of northeast China.”
The White-shouldered Starling is not very common in Shanghai or even in China in general, despite its species name sinensis. Maybe it was raised by some caged birds in close proximity to humans, though I lack any proof of this theory whatsoever. Soldiers could probably learn a lot about camouflage from this species.
Fortunately – as this is China, not the US – there is no “Three shrikes and you are out” rule here (and if this is not the worst joke you have ever heard, then your life really sucks). The third shrike seen in Shanghai this month was the Tiger Shrike. Maybe the males were not that impressive.
For example, without this blog, would you know that the Barn Swallows of Nanhui are now having their own housing boom, ignorant of the overinvestment that has characterized China’s construction industry? As with Chinese male humans, having your own building is still vital to raising young. You should try it too.
Hopefully, the winter time in Shanghai gives the Black-faced Buntings some time to relax from the challenges of the breeding season. In contrast, the females need to make sure not to get duped into raising actual cuckoos – the buntings are a targeted host species ( source ). No wonder no species are named after me.
Shanghai parks are rather crowded and noisy places, but the goshawks – who unlike me have lived in China all their lives – apparently do not mind. The likely explanation is that she may still carry sperm from a previous mating with another male, and he wants to avoid raising chicks he has not fathered ( source ).
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