"Historical post" - Ilsan, April 2008

Black-faced Bunting Emberiza spodocephala

Jeongbalsan, Ilsan, April 28-29, 2008
  Six Black-faced Bunting were seen next to a parking lot. A Yellow-browed Warbler was spotted drinking in a drainage ditch in a scrubby area. One Asian Stubtail was in the same spot, and several others were heard nearby. The highlight was a Eurasian Wryneck hiding in a large scrubby bush. It was calling noisily, making a repeated metallic ‘creaking’. It was briefly but well observed. A single male Yellow-rumped Flycatcher was seen on April 29.

Notes from 2012: (I honestly don’t remember writing these reflections over five years ago – I guess I was planning on putting up these historical posts when I started up SOL. They make me cringe a bit – who was that guy?)
  Spring migration at my secret spot on the mountain was spectacular! A great turnover of species, with new species being spotted every day. The Eurasian Wryneck was possibly the bird of the month. An amazing-looking member of the woodpecker family, the Wryneck is fairly rare in Korea, most commonly seen on Yellow Sea islands during the spring migration season.

left: Tristram’s Bunting Emberiza tristrami  right: Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus

Temminck's Mole Mogera wogura

Jeongbalsan, Ilsan, April 25, 2008
  Barn Swallows have returned to Ilsan, with several seen overhead at any time. The Olive-backed Pipits appear to have moved on – they were not seen all week. About a dozen Tristrams’s Buntings were seen feeding at the forest’s edge. A tree held a large mixed flock of about 40 Eurasian Siskins and Tree Sparrows. Several female Red-flanked Bluetails were seen nearby. A dead Temminck’s Mole was seen, perhaps killed by a cat that inhabits the area.

Eurasian Jay Garrulus glandarius

Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni

Grey-backed Thrush Turdus hortulorum

Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata

Lake Park and Jeongbalsan, Ilsan, April 20, 2008
  On a hot and sunny day in Lake Park, a pair of Mandarin Ducks (a personal first for Ilsan) stayed in the centre of the ‘lake’ for a few hours with the usual dozen Spot-billed Ducks, before flying off. A group of about eight unidentified smallish shorebirds also passed through the park. On Jeongbalsan, a clearing held at least a dozen Olive-backed Pipit. Mingling with several White’s and Pale Thrushes was a single Grey-backed Thrush. A Eurasian Jay perched in a tree, after being mobbed by several Brown-eared Bulbuls. A female Red-flanked Bluetail was also seen.

2012 notes: I’d seen a pair of Mandarin Ducks on the other side of Ilsan, flying towards Lake Park. I’m convinced I saw the same pair the next day. Lake Park, in spite of being extremely congested with foot traffic, was a great place for birding, with a decent range of habitats. Unfortunately, the extensive reedbeds around the north side of the ‘lake’ (favoured by Moorhens and Eurasian Wrens) were regularly trimmed down to the ground. The picture of the Eurasian Jay was noteworthy for me because it’s a notoriously shy bird, and I got pretty lucky to get a decent shot of one. 

Brown-eared Bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis

Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major

White’s Thrush (Scaly Thrush) Zoothera aurea

Varied Tit Sittiparus varius

Grey-headed Woodpecker Picus Canus

Siberian Chipmunk Eutamias sibiricus

Jeongbalsan, Ilsan, April 12, 2008
  On a pleasant overcast and warm day, a large flock of about 40 Black-crowned Night Herons were circling over the mountain and settling noisily into the tree tops in smaller groups. A small blue bird was seen from afar and poorly photographed - I convinced myself it was a Hill Blue Flycatcher, until later study of the blurry pictures revealed the white chin and throat that identified it as a male Red-flanked Bluetail. The White’s Thrush invasion has hit Ilsan, with about two dozen seen on the mountain, pulling worms out of the ground. Several Pale and Dusky Thrush were also seen associating with the White’s Thrush. Some Brown-eared Bulbuls were feeding on bees and wasps in blossoming trees. Other birds seen include several Vinous-throated Parrotbills, Goldcrests, Japanese Pygmy, Great-spotted, and Grey-headed Woodpeckers, and plentiful Great,Varied, Long-tailed and Marsh Tits. Several Pheasants were heard but not seen. A Siberian Chipmunk was also seen busily feeding.

2012 notes: I can’t believe it took me so long to find the ‘magic patch’ of Jeongbalsan! I’d lived in Ilsan, a brand new city wedged between Seoul and Gimpo for almost a year before I discovered it. When I say ‘new’, this place was farm fields 20 years ago. It’s one of the few Korean cities to be laid out in a grid pattern - I always described it as ‘an urban planner’s wet dream’. Smack dab in the centre of Ilsan is a small mountain – a hill, really. There are several well-worn trails on Jeongbalsan (‘san’ can mean mountain in Korean), usually packed with groups of noisy Korean hikers, many with little radios strapped to their belts, blasting out some pretty bad and pretty loud Korean music. I’d done some winter birding on these trails, and I’d seen a good mix of woodpeckers, buntings, thrushes, tits, and creepers.
  In April, I followed a Eurasian Jay across what I thought was a dead-end field, often frequented by Korean picnickers. Well, this Jay led me up a small, unused trail up a steep ridge and through a doorway of pines, and led me to my magic patch! In an area the size of perhaps three football fields was a great mix of habitats – a mixed forest of older trees with a great defined edge; piles of old cleared branches covered in weedy scrub; an old cement drainage ditch with a trickle of water, and even a big patch of reedy weeds. It was in the scrub around the trickling ditch where I picked up a ton of lifers throughout April and May. I loved this spot, and I rarely saw anyone else there. Surrounded by millions of Koreans in a gleaming new monstropolis, I had found a quiet bit of paradise. I fear that someday soon, some bright bulb will decide to clear it all and put in a mini-golf course or hotel, or something equally stupid. It’s happening all over Korea.
  I heard the White’s Thrush rustling around in the underbrush from quite some distance away, and from the racket, I assumed I was looking for a Pheasant. When I finally saw it, at a distance of maybe 15 feet, I was impressed with both its size, and the effectiveness of its camouflage. The male Red-flanked Bluetail, glimpsed at long range down in a steep valley, threw me for a loop. I’d never seen such a bright blue bird, and I was convinced it was something extremely rare, as I tend to do at times! As it turns out, this male was the only male Red-flanked Bluetail I’ve ever seen in Korea, in spite of having seen females many times over the years. I’m not sure what explains this.

(*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.)

"Historical post" - Ilsan and Deokjeok-do, March 2008

Stejneger's Stonechat Saxicola stejnegeri

left: Siberian Accentor Prunella montanella  right: Bull-headed Shrike Lanius bucephalus

Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops

Yellow-bellied Tit Pardaliparus venustulus

Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius

left: Light-vented Bulbul Pycnonotus sinensis  right: Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea

Far Eastern Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus

Deokjeok ferry in Incheon harbour

Excited to hit Deokjeok with my Cracker Jack binos, giving the Korean "Fightiiiiing!" gesture

Testing out my new lens on my first Siberian Accentor, using a glove as high-tech rain shield

Why check in when you can bird in the rain?

Deokjeok-Do, March 29-30, 2008 
  Great birding weekend on DeokJeok-Do (‘Do’ can mean island in Korean), with a good mix of Winter and Summer visitors crossing paths, and several surprises (cool and steady rain on Saturday, cool and cloudy on Sunday.) Super spotter Blaine Jones helped greatly. The 200-year old pine trees that line the beach were exploding with large numbers of Yellow-throated Buntings, as well as Great Tits. Long-tailed (magnus), Varied, Coal, and Marsh Tits, as well as Meadow and Rustic Buntings were also seen, in much smaller numbers. White Wagtails (lugens) have also seemingly taken over the island, with large groups seen in many areas.
  A Bull-headed Shrike (whose white wing patch was obscured by ruffled feathers) surveyed a valley from a treetop. About five male, and two female Stejeneger's Stonechats were active among some reeds and bushes. A flock of a dozen Chinese Grosbeaks noisily flew between trees. Four Siberian Accentors, a Green Sandpiper, three Hoopoes, several Daurian Redstarts, plentiful Eurasian Magpies and Brown-eared Bulbuls, and several Naumann’s and Dusky Thrushes were also seen on Saturday. The beach was quiet apart from a raft of about 30 Mallards and Spot-billed Ducks, as well as some Black-tailed Gulls. A presumed Black-crowned Night Heron was briefly seen, and heard on Saturday night.
  Sunday, March 30 started with two mysteries – a large, unidentified brown owl was briefly seen flying between some cliffs and a narrow valley. Later on, a loud, mournful and piercing whistle was heard every 8 seconds coming from a stand of pines. Two Eurasian Wrens, a pair of Blue Rock Thrush, a Goldcrest, a pair of Temminck’s Cormorants, a male Brambling in summer plumage, several noisy Jays and Rufous Turtle Doves were seen near the beach. At least 15 Ring-necked Pheasants conspired to repeatedly startle anyone walking on a path next to a weedy field.
  A major highlight was a group of four Light-vented Bulbuls spotted near some bamboo. Another surprise was a pair of Eastern Oystercatcher (possibly two pairs, as two were seen on opposite sides of the island within a short period of time.) The biggest surprise was a Yellow-bellied Tit (it appears to be a male in breeding plumage), which was associating with a large flock of at least 100 Great Tits. It was seen only briefly, and could not be relocated. A Grey Wagtail was seen near the ferry port. A smallish black and white bird was briefly but clearly seen through binoculars next to the moving ferry. It was flapping rapidly, very close to the water, and after consulting pictures, I’m 95% confident it was an Ancient Murrelet in winter plumage.

More cringe-worthy, over-enthusiastic notes from 2012: 
  I’d been to Deokjeok-do a few times with friends over the years, and every time, I spent a little less time socializing on the beach, and a little more time birding. This was my first time going with a camera, and my new binoculars. I picked up some little Bushnells at a reasonable price in Seoul, and they made a huge difference. I had been using crappy (like looking through two straws) little 10$ binos I bought off the street in Taiwan, and they were garbage, but I guess I never noticed until I got the Bushnells! So I was pretty excited to get birding with my new gear, and especially since it was late March, a great time of year to catch the start of the big-time spring migration season. 
  I went for a long walk in the afternoon, from the beach area, up through the scrubby woods and bamboo thickets to the base of Bijobong Mountain, and back the long way, through farmer’s fields and past tidal reed beds on the harbour side of the beach. A great little mix of habitats.
  In the hills near the base of the mountain, I spotted a few Siberian Accentors flitting around in the weedy scrub in some abandoned greenhouses. I managed to get a decent shot of one of them, in spite of the heavy rain at the time. I used a glove to try to protect my precious new lens! The Siberian Accentor is quite a handsome bird, and unfortunately I haven’t seen any more since that day. Other highlights from that walk were my first Chinese Grosbeaks (spotted in a flock of about 20 in a berry tree), first good look at the stunning Hoopoe, and my first Stejneger's Stonechats. I spotted a female in a reedy area near the beach, and in spite of having studied my Birds of Korea guide, I couldn’t figure out what it was. The picture became clearer when the crisp male made an appearance. Great bird, I’d come to see hordes of them in Jeju farm fields later on.
  The second day blew the first day out of the water! I woke up very early (I’m not a morning person!) and spotted what had to have been a Eurasian Eagle Owl near the beach. A huge bird! After spotting some decent stuff near the beach, I went back up towards the bamboo patches at the base of the mountain. It was there that I saw a small group of birds in the scrub. Light-vented Bulbuls! I had a hard time steadying my hands enough to take a few pictures. The Light-vented Bulbul had only been seen a few times in Korea at that point, usually on other Yellow Sea islands. It’s been colonizing eastward into Korea from China lately. If that was the last bird I saw on this trip, I would have been happy.
  The best bird of the trip was the result of a happy twist of fate. Our original ferry back to Incheon was delayed due to technical issues, so we had an extra couple of hours on the island to kill. After taking a break at the pension where my friends and I were staying, I went for another walk down towards the beach and harbour area. On my way down the beach, I noted clouds of Great Tits teeming in the pines along the beach. As I was leaving the beach, a tit dropped out a tree and landed on the sand about ten feet in front of me. I saw the flash of yellow and froze – Yellow-bellied Tit! I managed to get my camera up and got a picture or two before it flew back up into the trees. The bird was actually so close that the lens couldn’t focus properly. This record was among the first few for Korea. This is another bird that is said to be colonizing Korea. The stunning red eyes of the Eastern Oystercatchers (another lifer!) on the way out were the cherries on top of what was truly an epic birding weekend.

Evidence of a drop in water levels

Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos kizuki 
(bizarrely, a major conservation group 'borrowed' this image last year and misrepresented it as having been taken by a member of an Asian royal family...)

Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata

Chungju, March 22, Danyang, March 23, 2008
  Managed to sneak in some birding on a ‘non-birding’ trip, this rainy and warm weekend. In Chungju near the dam, the highlight on the quiet lake was a pair of Mandarin Ducks, sticking close to the shore. Five Common Mergansers were also on the lake (the water level of which has dropped by about 50 feet since September - perhaps let out of the dam?), along with a Little Grebe. An unidentified buzzard circled high over a nearby mountain, while two Meadow Buntings fed in a lot next to a road. A vocal and bold Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker searched for food in the nearby trees. Several Daurian Redstarts were loudly singing and calling. Also seen was a fast-moving brown lizard about 10 cm long (the first lizard I’ve seen in Korea). In Danyang, four Grey Herons, a Common Sandpiper, and a Japanese Wagtail were spotted on rocks next to the river. Later in the day in East Seoul, a Daurian Jackdaw was seen perched on a light post near the bus station.

2012 notes: I was happy to sneak in some birding in on this trip, including my first Mandarin Ducks. I was five feet off the ground after seeing them – a truly spectacular bird. I would later regularly see huge rafts of 30-300 of them on Jeju! I never got tired of Mandarin Ducks.

left: Chinese Grosbeak Eophona migratoria right: Pale Thrush Turdus pallidus

Chinese Nuthatch Sitta villosa

Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus

Brown-eared Bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis

Long-tailed Tit left: Aegithalos caudatus caudatus  right: Aegithalos caudatus magnus

Ilsan Lake Park, March 15, 16, 2008 
  A Warm and hazy morning and afternoon in Ilsan. Shortly after entering the park, a flock of eight Chinese Grosbeaks flashed by. The unexpected highlight was a Chinese Nuthatch, which hung upside down at the top of a tree for a few seconds, before flying off.
  A female Pale Thrush lurked in a ditch. The resident Moorhen swam near a pair of domesticated Swan Geese.
  About 50 Spot-billed ducks, a Little Grebe, five Naumann’s Thrush, and three Daurian Redstarts were also observed over the weekend. There were flyovers on both days of several ‘V’ formations of Greater White-fronted Geese, heading away from the river. Also seen were several flocks of singing Yellow-throated Buntings, several Brown-eared Bulbuls, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and some Eurasian Magpies busily gathering nesting materials. Interesting to watch was a small mixed group of tits, including both magnus and caudatus Long-tailed Tits, as well as Great and Marsh Tits.
  A prolonged attempt to re-find the Chinese Nuthatch and Chinese Grosbeaks on Sunday was unsuccessful. Birds present in the park a week ago, but not seen this weekend include six lugens White Wagtails, several Goldcrests, and eight Tufted Ducks.

2012 notes: I was walking around in a daze after seeing my first Chinese Grosbeak, a striking bird when you get a good look at it. I was also quite excited about getting a picture of two subspecies of Long-tailed Tit together. Far south on Jeju, I only ever saw the trivirgatus subspecies, and Long-tailed Tits were much less common overall (seen only scarcely in steep, remote valleys), when compared with the Seoul Area (seen regularly in most wooded area in the winter).
  The day got a whole lot better when I spotted a small bird dangling from the top a tree, as I was headed out. I looked at it for a while through the binos, and realized I was dealing with a nuthatch, but a strange one. The Eurasian Nuthatch is blue-ish gray, and skulks along tree trunks in a manner very similar to North American nuthatches. This nuthatch was swinging listlessly from the branches, and seemed to be coloured differently. I thought it looked good for a Chinese Nuthatch, but had to rely on some help from fellow birders on Birds Korea’s identification forum. I don’t think I trusted myself enough to say ‘This is a Chinese Nuthatch.’ They’re pretty rare – I think this was maybe only the second seen in Korea that year. More fuel for the theory that a lot of ‘rare’ birds are actually just under-observed in places like Korea. It’s definitely interesting to have an entire area of a country essentially to yourself when it comes to birding. I like it. 

Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus

left: Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus  right: Grey-capped Greenfinch Carduelis sinica 

Vinous-throated Parrotbill Sinosuthera webbiana

Asian Comma Polygonia C-aureum

Fields and stream near Baeksok Station, Ilsan, March 8, 2008 
  A walk through some farmer’s fields on a warm sunny day produced a sure sign of Spring: butterflies (Asian Comma). Two Common Kestrels patrolled the fields, flushing nine twittering Grey-Capped Greenfinch. Several inquisitive Vinous-throated Parrotbills weaved in and out of some reeds nearby. Also seen was a Grey Heron, several Great and Marsh Tits, about 30 Rufous Turtle Doves, and a pair of Common Teals. No sign of the Ruddy Shelducks from two weeks ago.

2012 notes: My last bird-walk with the little 70-300mm Sigma lens (until the Canon needed repairs a couple of years later). I remember having a couple of good-natured chats with smiling farmers on this gorgeous day. I got a good picture of a Vinous-throated Parrotbill, which is no easy feat! These tiny pinkish-brown birds zip around endlessly in the underbrush in large groups, rarely sitting still. They don’t stray as far south as Jeju Island, which is a shame, because they always cheered me up when I saw them near Seoul. I got a picture of a butterfly, and Andreas Kim and I had a little email discussion about what kind it was. For a second, I thought to myself ‘Should I take up butterfly watching?’. The answer was no.

(*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.)

"Historical post" - Ilsan, Paju, Paldang, and 'Northeast River', February 2008

Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus & Rough-legged Buzzard Buteo lagopus

Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons

Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea

Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea

Paju, February 27, 2008 
  Warm, sunny and windy in Paju. Ducks seen on the river today included eight Ruddy Shelducks, nine Common Teals, close to 70 Spot-Billed Ducks, about 90 Mallard, and six Pintails. Three pairs of Common Merganser mingled with the ducks. Several ‘V’ formations of Greater White-fronted Geese made slow and noisy passes over the nearby fields. Two lugens White Wagtail paced the river banks, while two Cinereous Vultures circled high overhead. At least five Common Kestrels took turns hovering over the fields. Interesting to watch was one of the Common Kestrels, flying wingtip to wingtip with what appeared to be an juvenile Rough-legged Buzzard for several minutes, before they parted ways. Two Pallas’s Reed Buntings perched quietly atop some reeds next to the river. Several Far Eastern Skylarks were heard but not seen. Also seen were five Grey Herons, seven Great Egrets, and five Large-billed Crows. Two possible Hill Pigeons were briefly seen under a bridge - I plan to return soon to get a better look at them.

2012 notes (I honestly have no recollection of writing this series of notes back then, I may be losing my precious mind): I finally got a closeup look at the handsome Ruddy Shelduck, and once again, I left the encounter feeling quite proud of my evolving fieldcraft. I worked my way down to the river crouching through a low grassy runoff culvert. I ended up popping up quite close to the ducks, but managed not to flush them. I hate flushing birds, and I’ll do anything I can to avoid it, even if it means not getting a good look at the bird. The Common Kestrel and Rough-legged Buzzard show was stunning to watch – they really did fly wingtip-to-wingtip for a couple of minutes, there was no mobbing or aggression involved. And I never did return to check out those pigeons, but from the quick look I got, they looked good for Hill Pigeon, with a white stripey tail. I wish I had gone back, because I’ve yet to see one!
(2017 note: Hill Pigeons have recently been spotted in that same area, according to top secret intel...)

Scaly-sided Merganser Mergus squamatus

Japanese Wagtail Motacilla grandis

Brown Dipper Cinclus pallasii

Northeast River, February 24, 2008 
  A frigid morning in the river valley. The highlight was two pairs of Scaly-sided Merganser. Nearby, five Goldeneyes, and three Tufted Ducks fed near the river bank. Further down the river, six Spot-Billed Ducks and four Little Grebes drifted in the current. In a nearby stream, a pair of Brown Dippers fed and dunked each other in a small waterfall. While their alarm call is short and harsh, when calling to one another they have a beautiful, complex warbling song. Two Japanese Wagtails were also in this stream.
  All day, large, noisy mixed flocks of 20-50 Rustic and Yellow-throated Buntings moved through the trees and underbrush along the river. Groups of Vinous-throated Parrotbills were also evident in the scrub. A Eurasian Nuthatch and a Great Egret were also seen.

2012 notes: What a bitterly cold morning this was! So cold that when I tried to switch out memory cards, the card ejector failed and snapped, brittle from the cold. Funny story, when I brought it to the local Canon repair place in Ilsan, they fixed the card ejector, but since then, the flash doesn’t work (never used it, no problem), and when I turn on the camera, an error message appears. After much swearing and fumbling, I discovered that this message goes away only when the door to the memory card slot is opened and closed. I think of it as a security password for my camera.
  I was instructed to list the location as the vague ‘Northeast River’, to protect the endangered Scaly-sided Mergansers from disturbance by the Korean bird paparazzi, who apparently harassed a nesting pair so much that they left the area.
  The Brown Dipper picture was similar to the Winter Wren story, in that it took me a long, cold time, sitting on a very cold rock to get the picture.

Field near Baekseok Station, Ilsan, February 22, 2008 
  About 24 Ruddy Shelduck were seen in the fields near Baekseok Station on Friday. 

2012 notes: I spotted these unmistakable ducks from a bus, and it was the first, but sadly not my last, occasion where I got a lifer from a moving vehicle. Thankfully, in all of these cases, I got a better look at the bird at a later date. One of them was a Hoopoe, also unmistakable, also spotted from a bus, in 2006 in Gimpo. The Hoopoe has got to be one of the coolest-looking birds of all time.

Eurasian Magpie Pica pica

spot the Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago

Naumann's Thrush Turdus naumanni

Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos canicapillus

Manchurian Sika Deer Cervus nippon mantchuricus

Stream and hill near Baekma station, Ilsan, February 20, 2008
  On a warm and sunny day, two Green Sandpipers were still present at the stream, as were two scruffy lugens White Wagtails. At least six Common Snipes were also there, showing the white trailing edge to their secondaries, as they were repeatedly flushed by regular foot traffic along the river. Two Naumann's Thrush with quite different plumage were seen next to the stream. One had a dark gray tail and rump, while the other had a rufous tail and rump. 
  An odd sight was a Eurasian Magpie that was missing its tail. It had an understandably hard time balancing on branches, and presented a strange silhouette. On a nearby hill, two Grey-capped Pygmy, and a Grey-headed Woodpecker (I didn't realize at the time how rare they are in modern Korea) were present. I was also quite startled to come face to face with a large buck deer, that didn't seem too happy to see me!

2012 notes: My excitement at having spotted some solid birds on this day (four lifers – they all were for me in those days!) turned to terror, when my exit from the tree-covered hill was blocked by a beast of a deer. I was hoping it would back down, but it didn’t – it just stared at me with a decidedly nasty look on its deer face – just look at the pic! Then it made a move to advance towards me, so I raised my hands high, and started flapping them around, making loud, lower-primate-like hooting sounds. It stopped, blinked angrily, but didn’t back down. I started to feel dizzy and nervous, as I looked at its pointy antlers, which were conveniently at eye-level. Then, without warning, it took off so fast I barely had time to turn my head. I’m not proud to admit that I almost had to check my drawers after that excitement. 
  The Manchurian Sika Deer, by the way, has been extirpated from the wild in Korea for several decades, so this feisty guy must have been an escaped meat deer. There were several deer meat restaurants in the area, but when invited to one a few months later by a friend, I instantly declined, figuring this deer would somehow hear about it, and come looking for me.

Bull-headed Shrike Lanius bucephalus

Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus

 Han River and Lake Park, Ilsan, February 17, 2008 
  A poorly planned walk to the Han River on a sunny, windy, and pleasant day. Didn’t stay long, because there was no direct access to the river, as the whole area was fenced off and guarded by wary soldiers. In a large field next to the river was a flock of about 150 Greater White-fronted Geese, and six Cinereous Vultures circled nearby. In Lake Park, a Bull-headed Shrike sat on a fence, while nearby a Pale Thrush was creeping around in the undergrowth on a hill, the first I’ve seen in winter. One male and one female Daurian Redstart were mingling with a group of Tree Sparrows. Nearby, three Varied Tits did their best woodpecker imitations, pecking at tree bark. Three Japanese Quail are still in a large field adjacent to Lake Park, flushed twice by a very small dog. Also in this field was a flock of at least 30 Far Eastern Skylarks, flying erratically together after being spooked by a female Eurasian Sparrowhawk.

2012 notes: ’Poorly planned’ is quite the understatement. The Han River was so frustratingly close to where I was living in Ilsan, but the river is mostly inaccessible around Seoul, for security concerns. Something to do with North Korea, I believe. In fact, I believe a North Korean commando team infiltrated Seoul via the Han in the 70s and carried out an assassination attempt at the Blue House, Korea’s White House. 
  Anyways, to make a long story slightly shorter, I ended up walking onto a busy highway offramp in order to get a glimpse of the fallow fields that line the Han, and where I had spotted clumps of geese and vultures from cabs. When I got to the edge of the off-ramp, I leaned over with my binoculars, and started panning across the field. In the first minute of doing this, I froze when I swept my binoculars over to a guard tower, and saw a pimply South Korean soldier in fatigues looking back at me with his own binoculars. I lowered my binos, smiled sheepishly at him, then raised my finger and spun on my heel as if I had forgotten something, and made my way back to Lake Park at a high rate of speed, using a different route. Not the first time I’ve bumbled across military installations bedecked with incriminating optics.

Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis

Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus

Stream near Baekseok Station, Ilsan, February 12, 2008 
  It was a cold and sunny day, although the yellow dust was high today, burning my eyes a bit. Three scruffy Little Grebes were swimming in circles. Several Long-Tailed Tits were hanging out in some trees near the stream. A single female Common Merganser was swimming with a group of ten Mallard, eight Spot-billed Ducks, and two female Common Teal. Two Great Egrets, a Grey Heron, and an unidentified sandpiper were also seen today.

2012 notes: A few weeks after this report, a Russian researcher put out a request for a ‘sub-flight’ shot of a poeggi Little Grebe, in order to examine the wings, I believe. I happened to have a great shot of one of these guys stretching its wing, and put it up. Interestingly, the Little Grebe’s wing in the picture seemed looked different than depicted in most bird guides, with light tan secondaries contrasting with the overall buff wing. The guides all show the wing on the winter plumaged Little Grebe as being fairly solidly buff. 

Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus

Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus

White-tailed Sea Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla

Paldang, February 10, 2008
  I didn't end up writing a report for this trip, or see too many birds, for that matter. I think I felt sheepish because I walked in completely the wrong direction (got some vague directions, ha ha), and ended up missing out on most of the goodies seen there that month by other Birds Korea members, like Ferruginous Duck and Steller's Sea Eagle, for instance. It was bitterly cold on the river, froze my fingers clean down to the marrow.

Winter Wren Troglodytes troglodytes dauricus

Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus

Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus

Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos canicapillus

Naumann's Thrush Turdus naumanni

Eurasian Magpie Pica pica

Lake Park, Ilsan, February 2, 2008 
  Some interesting bird activity in Lake Park, on a partly cloudy and crisp day. Saw a shy but loud Winter Wren darting in and out of some reeds. A Common Moorhen skulked in the bushes near an unfrozen spot in the ice. A flock of agitated Tree Sparrows alerted me to the presence of a patrolling Eurasian Sparrowhawk. While walking next to a large field full of tall, dead grass near Lake Park, I was thoroughly startled when three Japanese Quail dramatically burst from the grass five feet in front of me. Several Pallas's Reed Buntings were also in this field. Other birds seen today were a single male Daurian Redstart, six Yellow-Throated Buntings, two Naumann's Thrush, and several Eurasian Magpies.

2012 notes: I spotted the Winter Wren a few days earlier, and was both amazed and confounded by how small and fast it was. It zipped around through the reeds in the park, rarely standing still, and almost never perching in the open. I watched it for about 15 minutes, and stealthily crept along a low wall and slipped into leaning position on the wall, camera aimed and focused at a clear spot between two clumps of reeds where I saw the Wren pause briefly earlier. I waited there for about 20 minutes, with no movement from the reeds, my fingers frozen. The brown ping-pong ball darted out of the reeds and perched on the exact spot where I had the camera aimed. I snapped a couple of shots before the wren vanished. When I got home, defrosted, and looked at the one decent picture of the wren, I was more than elated. I was so proud, not of my picture-taking abilities per se, but more of my fieldcraft and patience. 

(*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.)