10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 14, 2021

Located about 2 hours from Xining by car, Qinghai Lake is China’s largest lake. Pallas’s Gull also breeds at Qinghai Lake, though the numbers are sadly much reduced: “The numbers breeding at L Qinghai, China, has apparently fallen from > 87,000 in 1970s to c. 15,000 in 2006” (HBW). I cannot understand why.

China

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 19, 2024

Hongbenghe, a small village right at the border of China’s Yunnan province and Myanmar, has a number of woodpeckers. They also received the seal of approval from the Audubon Society, which designated woodpeckers as keystone species for their crucial role in… Source

Woodpeckers

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 13, 2021

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.

China

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 25, 2021

Species formerly referred to as P. One recent study found that this species was sister to P. perdix , and also that race przewalskii (sometimes subsumed within suschkini , but generally paler) was basal to other taxa included within the present species. barbata , but present name has priority. So, I later looked this up.

China

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 24, 2020

That means it also has many tropical birds that a foreigner living in China can see without risking to leave the country (which would mean 2 weeks of quarantine on reentry at best and complete exclusion at worst, depending on the ever-changing regulations). Predictably, the flowers attract several species of sunbirds.

China

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 5, 2021

China’s massive investment in infrastructure has indirectly benefited birders. Mid-May to Mid-Jun is the best time to see some of the most exciting species here, as this is the prime breeding time. On Balangshan, two species of accentors similarly utilize different levels of altitude. And it is a great place for birding.

China

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 1, 2024

What is your favorite bird species? Sid Francis Dujiangyuan, Sichuan, China Black-necked Crane What are the main regions or locations you cover as a bird guide? Crested Tit-warbler, Leptopoecile elegans What is your name, and where do you live?

China

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 6, 2024

What is your favorite bird species? The whole of China How long have you been a bird guide? Reeve’s Pheasant What is your name, and where do you live? Steven An, I live in Nanjing City. What are the main regions or locations you cover as a bird guide? 15 years How did you get into bird guiding?

China

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 3, 2019

Spoon-billed Sandpiper at Tiaozini, Jiangsu, China. The Spoon-billed Sandpiper is probably the most iconic bird species in China – to the point that some bird guides I know are quite tired of looking for it. And yet, I have now birded China for almost 5 years without ever really trying to see one.

China

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 20, 2023

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. Sir James McGrigor (1771-1858) Director Gen.

China

10,000 Birds

JULY 11, 2019

I suspect the bird was looking for conspecifics, as the other times I encountered the species they always seemed to show up in slightly larger groups. The post Amur Paradise Flycatcher in Jixi, Anhui, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. A village about 1.5 Red-billed Blue Magpie. Collared Finchbill. Ashy Drongo. Red-billed Starling.

China

10,000 Birds

MAY 9, 2022

The Beautiful Sibia is one of 11 bird species listed in the HBW with the word “beautiful” in its name. However, the Latin species name is desgodinsi after Auguste Desgodins, a French missionary whose sole claim to fame seems to be that he attempted to enter Tibet in the early 1860s. Nationalism still sucks.

China

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 7, 2022

The Spring Festival – or Chinese New Year – is a big period for traveling in China. This species seems to enjoy being in mixed flocks with the White-shouldered Starling. While not on the scale of bird migration, it is routinely and somewhat lazily described as the biggest annual migration of humans in the world.

China

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 27, 2021

High up at almost 4500 meters, some Alpine Accentors were posing in the sunshine, justifying the description in the HBW as “large, attractive accentor” (though eBird seems to disagree, instead characterizing the species as a “stocky, stout, and unobtrusive bird”). I side with the HBW on this issue.

China

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 19, 2024

Quite a few bird species have crests. Their main use is to display – either to communicate with other members of the species or to scare other species, as a raised crest makes the bird appear larger. In fact, crests occur in at least 20 of the 30 orders of extant birds, and in all major groups of passerines.

South Africa

10,000 Birds

JUNE 20, 2022

Or would be, had I encountered more of them – so far, I have seen only a very small share of the approximately 233 woodpecker species, and got decent photos of an even smaller number – not much more than 10% of all of them. T he Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker (Tengchong, China) is a tiny bit bigger and looks much soberer.

Woodpeckers

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 21, 2022

A nicer name for the species is Chinese Painted Quail (since when are kings so diminutive in size?). Quite successfully, it turned out (note: to be honest, successful does not mean that I found the birds but that somebody else found them and I got to see them as well). The King Quail is cute and surprisingly small.

Lemurs

10,000 Birds

JUNE 29, 2025

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Vietnam

10,000 Birds

JUNE 13, 2019

These days, quite a few species are breeding at Nanhui, Shanghai. But not all species do this in such a spectacular fashion as the Barn Swallow. One would think that this is not easy for a relatively colorful species as the Barn Swallow. The post Air Show at Nanhui, Shanghai, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds.

China

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 14, 2023

In 2022, the 10,000 Birds eBird Collaborative submitted 1,837 checklists from 9 countries ( Australia , China , Costa Rica , Mexico , Saint Lucia , Serbia , Trinidad and Tobago , United Kingdom , and the United States ) and observed 1,273 species. The Collaborative life list increased to 4,140.

Saint Lucia

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 12, 2020

China is not that well-known for its hornbills, but in Yunnan province, on the border to Myanmar, some species can be found.

Myanmar

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 4, 2021

The Purple Swamphen now is considered a superspecies, with each of its six races are designated full species – and in the strange world of birding, a superspecies is rather less than a species, not more. This is despite the most likely African origin of the species. Swamphen yes, but Grey-headed? Again: Grey-headed?

China

10,000 Birds

MARCH 6, 2022

The first four were seen in Trinidad and Tobago and the last in China. The Collaborative’s all-time country with the most species observed is Costa Rica , with 784 species, out of 911 observed on eBird overall! Costa Rica has 1,264 hotspots , and the top hotspot ( Rancho Naturalista ) has a remarkable 517 species observed.

Costa Rica

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2021

A typical description of the family is that of “a tropical African and Asian songbird that typically has a melodious voice and drab plumage”, another is “small, dull-colored passerine birds of Asia and Africa”, yet another states that they are “often rather plain” Individual species get even harsher reviews.

South Africa

10,000 Birds

APRIL 27, 2023

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). The Latin species name alphonsiana refers to Prof. What a pity.) And it doesn’t even have a forked tail.

Italy

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 23, 2020

At my regular birding spot at Nanhui, Shanghai, five or six species of buntings can be seen fairly regularly, and about the same number very occasionally. Yellow-breasted Bunting (critically endangered due to trapping in Southern China – what a shame!). In other words, they are my kind of birds. Yellow-browed Bunting. Yellowhammer.

South Africa

Critter News

JULY 13, 2009

From the China Daily. Eating wild animals is also a traditional practice in southern China. Illegal trade in tiger meat and bones is also alive, continuing to threaten the extinction of an already depleted species, he said. The Chinese want them for exotic foods and for medicine.

China

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 18, 2021

A number of species use Chongming as a wintering spot, not just the Cinereous Vultures I already mentioned in a previous post. The many small ponds and waterways attract quite a few ducks, though presumably due to their China experience, they are extremely wary of people. The morning light helps. Black-faced Bunting. Rustic Bunting.

China

10,000 Birds

MAY 6, 2012

Are you or do you know someone who is currently anywhere between the north of Australia and the Bohai Sea in China? Even if you are somewhere on the coast in China…have you seen any Red Knot ? Some appear to go directly to China, but are they stopping somewhere like Sarawak? Have you seen any Red Knot ?

China

10,000 Birds

MARCH 5, 2020

Shanghai is located on the coast of the East China Sea and lies right on the East Asian–Australasian Flyway. In addition, some vulnerable bird species such as the Reed Parrotbill live in Shanghai year-round and rely on the reedbeds for survival. By some measures, Shanghai is the most populated city in the world. And yet it is.

Wildlife Reserve

10,000 Birds

MAY 23, 2022

At this moment, Baihualing is the eBird hotspot in China which has by far the largest number of species – 486. With 398 species, Nanhui is trailing far behind despite being covered by a much larger number of checklists (2225 compared to 608). So, it is certainly justified to cover this spot in more than one post.

Litter

10,000 Birds

DECEMBER 19, 2019

And here in Europe, they are the real deal, an indigenous species and not domesticated animals gone wild. Annex II of the Bern Convention lists 45 of Beljarica’s bird species, with a further 91 species in Annex III. Finally, 24 species in Annex I of the EU Bird Directive were recorded in this area.

Serbia

10,000 Birds

MAY 16, 2022

As this African Green Pigeon shows, the color should offer good camouflage for species living on trees. In case you do not know that brimstone is sulfur, the Brimstone Canary brings the point home by having the Latin species name sulphurata. Due to a misunderstanding, this species is currently banned in Russia ( Swift Tern ).

South Africa

10,000 Birds

MARCH 18, 2012

Oriental Plovers Charadrius veredus are a species of shorebird that we see in varying numbers around Broome and they may be on the beach, feeding on insects across the plains or at the ephemeral lakes. During February there have been astonishingly high numbers some years and this has been as a result of insect activity.

Mongolia

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 23, 2014

We saw a lot of great birds but only one truly rare one, a species that everyone on that trip will long remember. Unfortunately for me, that special species spotted in the bay separating Hong Kong from China was Red-breasted Merganser. I met the Hong Kong Birdwatching Society in the Nam Chung area for their weekly outing.

2014

10,000 Birds

MARCH 23, 2014

Big news about a small bird broke earlier this month when bird researchers from several nations announced that the species formerly known as Spotted Wren-Babbler ( Spelaeornis formosus ) — a tiny, secretive bird of montane forests from the eastern Himalayas to southeast China — is not a Spelaeornis wren-babbler at all.

Family

10,000 Birds

MARCH 21, 2022

Jianfengling National Forest Park is a park in the West of Hainan – the tourist websites claim that it is “the largest and best-preserved tropical original forest in China”, which – if true – is a rather sad statement given the wide inroads that commercial agriculture has made into the park. But then, who knows?

Birds