10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2022

The Spring Festival – or Chinese New Year – is a big period for traveling in China. Covid turned out not to be too much of a hindrance – I had to show a negative PCR test upon arrival on Hainan from Shanghai, and while many Chinese hotels currently do not accept foreigners, I could leave this issue to my guide.

China 193

China Pythons Birds Rabbits 193

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 29, 2022

The Crimson Chat is a species found in arid inland areas – for example, densities of up to 3·7 birds/ha were recorded at the delightfully named Lake Disappointment in Western Australia. Nice to encounter a quail that is not as shy as the ones here in China! As usual, the male looks quite a bit flashier than the female.

Australia 147

Australia Birds Sheep Zebras 147

10,000 Birds

JUNE 22, 2023

The best female strategy seems to be to mate with as many of the males as possible, as this means more help in feeding the chicks by all the potential fathers (I guess the fathers do not have easy access to paternity tests). The Tibetan Snowcock at first glance looks a bit like Obelix to me – I guess it is the stripes.

China 130

China Science Birds Mongolia 130

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 19, 2023

Fulvettas are kind of the LBJs of some parts of Southern China – even though they look more interesting, such as this Rusty-capped Fulvetta. Finally, I will use the example of the Yellow-cheeked Tit to illustrate the difference in bird descriptions between eBird, Wikipedia, and the HBW (first few words of each entry only).

China 192

China Burma Afghanistan Taiwan 192

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 17, 2023

But the looks of the adult male Golden Pheasant make it an attractive bird for animal parks, zoos, and similar places – for example, it has its own webpage at Seaworld and at a place called Marineland on the Cote D’Azur. I guess in China, there is always money for research related to Giant Pandas.

Pandas 130

Pandas Phoenix Research Science 130

10,000 Birds

JULY 4, 2022

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? One of the established ways to evaluate self-cognition in animals (including humans) is the mirror test.

Birds 176

Birds Sparrows Mountain Goats Protection 176