Birding England, July 1-11, 2014

Tring Reservoirs

Chess Valley

Chess Valley

Shardeloes

Birding with a Yorkie at Shardeloes

Shardeloes

Tring Greylags

Tring

Grizzled at Tring

Hills of Amersham

I've been in England for almost two weeks now, birding regularly. Summer is quiet here, but I think I've picked up a respectable number of local birds in my time here so far. Bumping into a few other birders has been a bit strange for me, coming from Korea, where each birder is issued their own province, ha ha. The weather has been mostly gorgeous, but notoriously susceptible to sudden and dramatic change.
  The charming little town of Amersham, in Buckhinghamshire (Bucks) is where I'm based, and all of my birding has been in and around this area. The plentiful and low-flying Red Kites are lovely to watch, and apparently they've been reintroduced to the area relatively recently.
  Other than highly recommending the Collins Bird Guide, I have not much else to report. Oh, I'm in love with the word 'Yellowhammer'. Yellowhammer. Yellowhammer. Yellowhammer.

Brown Thrasher, Prévost, Quebec, June 21, 2014

Brown Thrasher Toxostoma rufum

Brown Thrasher Toxostoma rufum

  While staying at a friend's house in Prévost the other day, I had the pleasure of finally catching up with a Brown Thrasher - a species I've somehow managed to miss until now. Quite a striking bird to look at. I got long looks at it hopped around the edge of the garden and foraged in the scrub. Later it just lingered in a tree with an insect in its mouth - perhaps reluctant to reveal its nearby nest?
  My friend told me that last year a cat raided a Brown Thrasher nest (they nest on the ground) in his yard and killed the young.

Morgan Arboretum, Montreal, June 18, 2014

White Admiral Limenitis arthemis

Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis

White-tailed Deer Odocoileus virginianus

Mystery rump (terrible picture, I know)

Turkey Vulture Cathartes aura

Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas

Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas

Common Yellowthroat Geothlypis trichas

  A quick jaunt through the Morgan Arboretum with Dan turned into a grim death march, thanks to the clouds of voracious and merciless mosquitoes. When we weren’t waving our swollen hands around like idiots in a vain effort to fend off the mozzies, we managed to get decent looks at a few cracking summer birds. In addition to the birds listed below, we heard an interesting bird call coming from the dense treetop foliage. To my ears, it most sounded like a (Eurasian) Grey Nightjar, only slower (listen to the ‘call’, second from the top):  http://www.xeno-canto.org/explore?query=grey+nightjar What sounds like this in North America? Any input is most welcome. 

  Bird(s) of the day - Matt: Common Yellowthroat, Dan: Indigo Bunting.

Turkey Vulture – 1

Chimney Swift - 5

Ruby-throated Hummingbird – 2 briefly but well seen

Hairy Woodpecker - 2

Eastern Wood-Pewee – 2 heard

Red-eyed Vireo - 1

American Crow - 4

Black-capped Chickadee – 10+

White-breasted Nuthatch - 2

American Robin – 4+

Yellow Warbler – 2 heard, perhaps

Common Yellowthroat – 1 gorgeous and confiding male checked us out closely

Indigo Bunting – 1 cracking male calling from a treetop

Northern Cardinal - 2

Chipping Sparrow – 12+

Song Sparrow - 7

Red-winged Blackbird – 6+

Common Grackle - 3

American Goldfinch – 10+

*Update:
The butterfly was a White Admiral, and the strange nightjar-like call belonged in fact to an Eastern Chipmunk. Thanks BPQers for the input.

Montreal Merlin, June 10, 2014

 

Merlin Falco columbarius

Merlin Falco columbarius

  This Snowy Owl has migrated back to Montreal for a bit, and it's great to be home! I went for a wander around Westmount the other day, and spotted a cracking Merlin near the Oratory. Is it common to see Merlins in Montreal? No clue, ha ha, I've been in Korea for way too long.

Seogwipo, Jeju, June 1, 2014

Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha

Fairy Pitta Pitta nympha

Black Paradise Flycatcher (Japanese Paradise Flycatcher) Terpsiphone atrocaudata

Black Paradise Flycatcher (Japanese Paradise Flycatcher) Terpsiphone atrocaudata

Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus

Striated Heron Butorides striata

juvenile Varied Tit Sittiparus varius

juvenile Varied Tit Sittiparus varius

  At a relatively undisturbed (yet) spot near town, three individual Fairy Pittas (or maybe two pairs) called from the treetops, mostly unseen. One of them had a strange three-note call, instead of the more familiar two-note call. Listen here:
https://soundcloud.com/mat-poll/fairy-pitta-triple-call

  Two Northern Boobook called from nearby, but remained frustratingly out of sight. It was hard to hear other birds at times over the manic refrain of the Common and Lesser Cuckoos. A pair each of secretive Yellow-rumped Flycatcher and Yellow-throated Bunting fed busily and appeared to be bringing food back to nests. Great, Long-tailed, and Varied Tits (including some interesting grey-bellied juveniles) were also seen, as well as a White-backed Woodpecker. At least three pairs of Japanese Paradise Flycatchers were active and vocal along the trail, giving some good views. Elsewhere around Seogwipo, I’ve found a further four pairs on different stream beds.

  Back in town, a Striated Heron (perhaps the same individual that has been overwintering in this park) paced the bank of a stream in a park. Last week in the same park I saw a pair of Asian Brown Flycatchers that were acting like there was maybe a nest nearby.

  Last night I heard a Fairy Pitta calling from the stream behind my apartment at about 2 a.m. It was heading north towards Halla Mountain. I heard a similar late-night phenomenon on June 6^th of last year – is this stream a nocturnal highway for fresh-in Fairy Pittas?

Hado-ri, May 7, 2014

Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta

  At Hado, a gorgeous Pied Avocet fed in the company of three Black-winged Stilts, and 33 Black-tailed Godwits. I got long, if distant looks as it fed by swimming and upending repeatedly. Also at Hado, and nearby Ojo-ri, were single-digit numbers of Marsh, Common, and Wood Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Common Redshank and Falcated Duck.

  Several Rufous-tailed Robins have been heard in Seogwipo over the past few days, and several Tristram’s Buntings and a male Mugimaki Flycatcher were seen in local parks.

Jeju, April 26-May 2, 2014

Yellow-browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus

female Black-faced Bunting Emberiza spodocephala

Narcissus Flycatcher Ficedula narcissina

juvenile White Wagtail Motacilla alba being fed

Common Rosefinch Carpodacus erythrinus

Asian Stubtail Urosphena squameiceps

Tristram's Bunting Emberiza tristrami

juvenile White Wagtail Motacilla alba

male Yellow-browed Bunting Emberiza chrysophrys

female Yellow-browed Bunting Emberiza chrysophrys

  It has been a dynamic week on Jeju, with 85 species of birds observed. The mostly quiet week was punctuated by several busy and very birdy days midweek, right after heavy rain and SSW winds.
  On April 26th, I visited Mara-do and Jeju’s west coast. Mara-do was extremely quiet, with most notable being several Richard’s Pipits, Grey and Brown-headed Thrushes, and Narcissus Flycatchers. At least a dozen Streaked Shearwaters were seen from the ferry (which seemed relatively empty for a weekend).
  Farmer’s fields on nearby Jeju were buzzing with singing Far Eastern Skylarks, Far Eastern Cisticolas, Stejneger’s Stonechats, and several noisy but frustratingly unseen Japanese Quail.
  At a quiet Yongsu Reservoir, a pair of Garganeys and a Chinese Pond Heron were notable. Pairs of White-cheeked Starlings were seen building nests in the supports for large highway signs at several west coast locations. A single Chestnut-cheeked Starling was following one pair around. Further down the road, the encouraging sight of a Red-billed Starling seen with nesting materials.
  On April 29th, I was surprised when I opened to the door to my fifth floor apartment and heard a familiar call coming from the stairwell above. When I got upstairs, I saw a shaken Asian Stubtail that was trying to free itself from the building by bashing repeatedly into the closed window. I opened the window wide and left it alone, and happily it was gone 20 minutes later. One year ago on Gageo I had to rescue an Asian Stubtail from a small abandoned chicken coop, and several other birders have relayed their similar ‘Stubtail in distress’ stories to me. Why do Asian Stubtails seem to get themselves into these sorts of predicaments?
  I visited Jeju’s south coast around Jungmun on April 30th, looking for some evidence of migration after the rain. I tried out a new spot on a hunch and found a small oasis filled with flycatchers and warblers. On the quiet stream I found a pair of Blue-and-white Flycatchers, a shy male Yellow-rumped Flycatcher, several Asian Brown Flycatchers, and Yellow-browed Warblers. A few active Black-faced Buntings were also seen, with two females feeding in the open, as a male sang from a nearby treetop. Also seen were two Striated Herons in crisp breeding plumage, and a presumed Swinhoe's Snipe.
  Encouraged by the rise in bird activity, I returned to these new spots on the first of May and one of the first birds I encountered was a Common Rosefinch. In a tree teeming nervously with flycatchers, white-eyes, and warblers, I saw a drab bird notable for its lack of movement. It was clearly a finch, with a strongly notched tail, (very) heavy bill, and streaked underparts. The overall drabness, heavy bill, light 'string-of-pearl' markings on the wings, and even the faint eye-ring were noted in the field, before it headed north, one tree at a time. I also heard my first Oriental Reed Warbler of the year nearby.
  Nearby, I watched a juvenile leucopsis White Wagtail being fed and watched over by an attentive pair of adults (do they breed earlier on Jeju than elsewhere?). On the 30th, the juvenile didn't fly, instead choosing to amble around and stretch its wings. Today it made several short, ungraceful flight-hops. A Eurasian Magpie that watched the young bird too closely was sent off by one of the adult birds, in a dramatic attack.
  In a nearby park, I quickly picked out at least six Yellow-browed Buntings and two Little Buntings mixed in with about a dozen Black-faced Buntings. A dozen Cattle Egrets paced nervously in the ponds. This park was very 'unbirdy' for the first several years of its existence, probably due to the intensive and gaudy maintenance - bushes and weeds were whacked down as soon as they grew past the ankles, and the grass was kept golf-course short. This year, however, for whatever reasons, the vegetation in the park has been allowed to grow more naturally and unchecked, and probably as a direct result, the feeling this year is drastically different. This park now feels like a functioning system filled with predators, prey, viable and varied habitat, and an impressive range of flora and fauna - as opposed to a sterile and unchallenging place to have a picnic. Inevitably though, the site is flanked on two sides by new and massive construction sites. The development on Jeju over the past few years has been both staggering and thoughtless.
  On May 2nd, the two spots that were buzzing with birds were ghostly quiet. At dawn on a tourist-ridden islet in Seogwipo’s harbour, best were an Asian Stubtail, Narcissus Flycatcher, and two Tristram’s Buntings. In a field near Jungmun, I spotted two Chestnut-eared Buntings.

Jeju: Mara-do April 11, Seogwipo April 12-23, 2014

Blue-and-white Flycatcher Cyanoptila cyanomelana

Narcissus Flycatcher Ficedula narcissina

Grey Thrush (Japanese Thrush) Turdus cardis

'Mandarin Muscovy'

Jeju: Mara-do April 11, Seogwipo, April 12-23

Mara-do

1.    Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris

2.    Ancient Murrelet Synthliboramphus antiquus; two from the ferry

3.    Pacific Swift Apus Pacificus

4.    Eurasian Magpie Pica pica

5.    Great Tit Parus major

6.    Far Eastern Skylark Alauda japonica; several remain

7.    Barn Swallow Hirundo Rustica

8.    Japanese Bush Warbler Horornis diphone

9.    Japanese White-eye Zosterops japonicus

10.   White’s Thrush Zoothera aurea; one remains in the woods

11.   Grey Thush Turdus cardis; two males in the woods, one female on the rocks

12.   Pale Thrush Turdus pallidus

13.   Brown-headed Thrush Turdus chrysolaus; three in the woods

14.   Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus; still a dozen females

15.   Stejneger’s Stonechat Saxicola stejnegeri

16.   Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius

17.   Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus

18.   White Wagtail Motacilla alba

19.   Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni; two on the rocks

20.   Grey-capped Greenfinch Chloris sinica

21.   Yellow-throated Bunting Emberiza elegans

Seogwipo, April 12-13

  Seogwipo’s parks are buzzing with flycatchers! Cracking male Narcissus Flycatchers were spotted in two riverside parks, with six seen in total. Blue-and-white (5), Asian Brown (3), and Dark-sided (1) Flycatchers were also seen gorging themselves on insects. Also notable in these parks was a freshly-marked Eastern Crowned Warbler, and a Striated Heron on a familiar patch of stream (where I’ve seen Striated Herons overwintering in the past, but not this past winter). A presumably escaped Muscovy Duck was also seen here, with a head and bill structure strongly recalling a Mandarin Duck.

  In my neighbourhood, small groups of Ashy Minivets have been heard twice more in the past week, with a single bird spotted circling aimlessly around the area for several days.

Mara-do and southwest coast, Jeju, April 6

Red-flanked Bluetail Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus - they were EVERYWHERE on Sunday

Mara-do

1.     Streaked Shearwater Calonectris leucomelas; one seen from         the ferry

2.     Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica; two groups of roughly 10 seen heading towards Jeju

3.     Red-necked Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius; 11 from the ferry between Mara and Gapa

4.     Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris

5.     Pacific Swift Apus Pacificus

6.     Eurasian Magpie Pica pica

7.     Great Tit Parus major

8.     Far Eastern Skylark Alauda japonica

9.     Barn Swallow Hirundo Rustica

10.   Japanese Bush Warbler Horornis diphone

11.   Japanese White-eye Zosterops japonicus

12.   Pale Thrush Turdus pallidus

13.   Brown-headed Thrush Turdus chrysolaus; several skulking in the woods

14.   Dusky Thrush Turdus eunomus

15.   Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus; at least 20, mostly females

16.   Stejneger’s Stonechat Saxicola stejnegeri; numbers up to almost a dozen

17.   Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius

18.   White Wagtail Motacilla alba

19.   Buff-bellied Pipit Anthus rubescens

20.   Brambling Fringilla montifringilla; the most numerous migrant on Mara, over 40 seen

21.   Grey-capped Greenfinch Chloris sinica

22.   Yellow-throated Bunting Emberiza elegans

  Back on southwestern Jeju, I encountered groups of 12-20 Red-flanked Bluetails at 4 different patches of coastal woods. There were more males in the mix compared to Mara, and they were all feeding on sunny paths at forest edges. Also notable on ‘mainland Jeju', one Japanese Quail, and a group of shorebirds made up of nine Kentish Plover, two Dunlin, and one Red-necked Stint. Nearby, another Brown-headed Thrush was heard, and a White’s Thrush and personata Black-faced Bunting were seen.

On Saturday April 5^th, in spite of a full day of birding in the hills, the most notable birds were encountered before I got out of bed - two groups of Ashy Minivets flew past my window during the early morning, heading towards Halla Mountain.

Mara-do, Jeju, March 30, 2014

Mara-do

Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica

Rough seas

On a blustery day filled with low scudding clouds and rough seas, there was some interesting movement and turnover on Mara-do. Although most birds were perhaps sheltering from the winds, and despite the fact that I only had an hour on the island, there were some birds about. The feeling was decidedly different from the previous week, with winter birds clearing out, and more migrants and breeders moving through.

  Notable on Jeju’s nearby mainland were several Garganey mixed in with Spot-billed Duck and Eurasian Teal. Also, Barn Swallows have returned in force.

1.     Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax; presumably the same three individuals from last weekend

2.     Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus; one prowling the rocks where tired migrants often shelter

3.     Eurasian Woodcock Scolopax rusticola; one flushed silently in front of me, flying straight and low – noticeably larger than snipes, with large ‘kestrel-colored’ rump very evident

4.     Black-tailed Gull Larus crassirostris

5.     Pacific Swift Apus Pacificus; at least 30 engaged in aerial ballet low over the island

6.     Eurasian Magpie Pica pica

7.     Great Tit Parus major

8.     Far Eastern Skylark Alauda japonica

9.     Barn Swallow Hirundo Rustica

10.   Japanese Bush Warbler Horornis diphone

11.   Japanese White-eye Zosterops japonicus

12.   White-cheeked Starling Spodiopsar cineraceus

13.   White’s Thrush Zoothera Aurea; one spotted in the woods with a Pale Thrush

14.   Pale Thrush Turdus pallidus

15.   Stejneger’s Stonechat Saxicola stejnegeri; one in a grassy field

16.   Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus 

17.   White Wagtail Motacilla alba

18.   Hawfinch Coccothraustes Coccothraustes; one seen on the rocks

19.   Grey-capped Greenfinch Chloris sinica

20.   Yellow-throated Bunting Emberiza elegans