Sunday, June 20, 2010

"Historical post" - Jeju Island, June 2010

Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus trivirgatus
Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus trivirgatus
male Black Paradise Flycatcher (Japanese Paradise Flycatcher) Terpsiphone atrocaudata
male Black Paradise Flycatcher (Japanese Paradise Flycatcher) Terpsiphone atrocaudata
female Black Paradise Flycatcher (Japanese Paradise Flycatcher) Terpsiphone atrocaudata

Youngho wails on the daegeum
Oedolgae coast
Squall at Jungmun
Fortified hangar for Japanese kamikaze planes, at abandoned Altreu airfield
Bird News from Tim Edelsten, Matt Poll & Youngho Kim, Jeju, June 17-20, 2010 
(*Written by Tim)
  Additional news from Jeju concerned an oversummering Black-throated Loon in Seogwipo harbour (reported by Matt Poll on the 16th). At Gotjawal forest on the 19th, both Ussuri Mamushi Gloydius ussuriensis and Tiger Keelback Rhabdophus tigrinus were to be seen, as well as a couple of Black-spotted Frog Pelophylax nigromaculatus. A wild Siberian Roe Deer Capreolus pygargus was near the university on the 17th, as well as several captive individuals at the park. Black Paradise Flycatcher appears to be widespread and fairly common in suitable habitat (dark broadleaved forest, ravines and particularly along well-wooded streams). Lesser Cuckoo are markedly abundant on Jeju (in contrast to the mainland). On the 20th with KYH, a Fairy Pitta singing from atop a lofty forest tree and a party of trivirgatus Long-tailed Tit: also a Pacific Reef Heron and view of the distant colony on a whitewashed cliff-face.

(It actually took me another year before I laid eyes on a Fairy Pitta of my own. White whale and all that...)

(*Note: This is a “historical post.” Whereas I started birding in Korea in 2005, this blog has only been active since early 2012 - these posts are an attempt to consolidate my early birdventures from the various blogs and websites where they reside, largely from the “Archived Bird News“ section of Birds Korea’s excellent website: http://www.birdskorea.org/Birds/Birdnews/BK-BN-Birdnews-archive.shtml. Find more historical posts by clicking on the "Historical posts" tab at the bottom of this post.
  For this post, most of images are lamentably poor-resolution screensaves, as many of the original photo files were lost in the infamous computer crash of 2011.)