China Latvia Sparrows Species 
10,000 Birds
JULY 22, 2021
With travel restrictions still in place, going on a birding trip outside of China is still not a practical option. Fortunately, China itself has a large number of bird species and habitats. I guess it is pretty common in many areas of China, but not in Shanghai, so it is still a special bird for me.
10,000 Birds
NOVEMBER 26, 2020
The Avibase China birdlist counts 7 species of minivets for China – one of which is the Ashy Minivet. For Japan, there are only two species listed – again the Ashy Minivet, but also the Japanese Minivet (mostly called Ryukyu Minivet elsewhere), a Japanese endemic which is not on the China list.
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10,000 Birds
SEPTEMBER 27, 2021
Like many birding locations in China, it has been somewhat under birded in the past 18 months or so, as travel restrictions have kept most foreigners away and only some of the younger Chinese birders actively use eBird. The post Birding Baxi Forest, Sichuan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. Progress of sorts, I guess.
10,000 Birds
SEPTEMBER 16, 2021
As often in China, the choice seems to be between terrible infrastructure and almost no people or great roads accompanied by caravans of tour buses. The post Birding Mengbishan, Sichuan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. The horrible essentially meaning half-an-hour delays for construction while the road is being upgraded.
10,000 Birds
FEBRUARY 21, 2022
To say that an update of John MacKinnon’s “A Field Guide to the Birds of China” (2000) has been highly anticipated by birders interested in Chinese birds is almost an understatement. While there are some decent Chinese-language guides, they are of limited use for (local) illiterates like me.
10,000 Birds
NOVEMBER 28, 2022
In retrospect, this weekend at Wuyuan was not exactly my finest hour as a bird photographer – hopefully, I could do better now, and perhaps one day I will, should normal traveling ever be possible again in China. Wuyuan is in Jiangxi province. I’d rather see yellow birds than yellow plants.
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.
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).
10,000 Birds
JANUARY 21, 2021
While Baihualing is much better for birds, foreigners are currently prohibited from going there, presumably as we all carry Covid-19, even if like me we have been in China the whole year. I am always happy to see Black-throated Bushtit, even though it is not really rare in China. Better safe than sorry, I guess. Does this sound bitter?
10,000 Birds
JANUARY 9, 2023
The Bar-backed Partridge is a species of partridge found in southwestern China and Southeast Asia. The Bar-backed Partridge was also one of four focal species in an investigation into illegal bird hunting in Southwestern China. If I can give you some advice: Better not be a bird in China. Unsurprisingly, it is.
10,000 Birds
FEBRUARY 6, 2023
It is listed as Vulnerable, as its range is rather restricted, though it has been found outside of China as well, e.g., in Vietnam, though the HBW does not seem to have read that paper yet. Some ornithologists are so desperate to add papers to their resumes that they write about new records of Black-crested Bulbul subspecies within China.
10,000 Birds
JANUARY 5, 2023
I also only managed to see rather common bird species at Shennongjia, a nature reserve in Hubei province, China. The photos in this post were taken in 2015 and 2016 – I was not only an amazingly attractive, almost young person then, but also a surprisingly bad photographer.
10,000 Birds
OCTOBER 25, 2021
Clinal and individual variation make delineation of races somewhat difficult; proposed race turcomana (E Turkestan) is treated as a synonym of nominate, and castaneothorax (NE China) as a synonym of suschkini. The post Birding around Chaka, Qinghai, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds.
10,000 Birds
AUGUST 19, 2021
Siberian Rubythroat (Nanhui, Shanghai, China). The White-capped Redstart is quite common in China, including Balangshan. The post Birding Balangshan, Sichuan, China (part 2) appeared first on 10,000 Birds. What do you think? Chinese Rubythroat (Balangshan). See my report on Tripadvisor if interested.
10,000 Birds
SEPTEMBER 17, 2020
Asian Brown Flycatcher: The most boring flycatcher here in Eastern China is also by far the most common one. The post Birding Tiaozini, Jiangsu, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. Proof that there is no god? If you really want to see more photos of Tiaozini birds, you can find them here.
10,000 Birds
JANUARY 20, 2022
The location not being Algiers but rather Nonggang in Guangxi province, China, close to the border to Vietnam. A very rural place, few people, and a landscape more reminiscent of coastal Northern Vietnam than most parts of China. This is just such a post.
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). The post Birding Xishuangbanna, Yunnan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds.
10,000 Birds
AUGUST 5, 2021
China’s massive investment in infrastructure has indirectly benefited birders. The post Birding Balangshan, Sichuan, China (part 1) appeared first on 10,000 Birds. Balangshan is a mountainous area in Sichuan complete with a pass at an altitude of 4500 meters. And it is a great place for birding.
10,000 Birds
SEPTEMBER 20, 2021
The post Birding Gonggangling and Dujiangyan, Sichuan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. ” Note: This trip was made with Alpinebirding , a Chinese tour company with very knowledgeable, English-speaking, and friendly guides – highly recommended to overseas birders despite the occasional question regarding music appreciation.
10,000 Birds
AUGUST 26, 2021
The post Birding Ruoergai, Sichuan, China – The Raptor Edition appeared first on 10,000 Birds. Note: This trip was made with Alpinebirding , a Chinese tour company with very knowledgeable, English-speaking, and friendly guides – highly recommended to overseas birders. See my report on Tripadvisor if interested.
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.
10,000 Birds
FEBRUARY 7, 2022
The Spring Festival – or Chinese New Year – is a big period for traveling in China. 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. Being somewhat allergic to crowds, I usually avoid traveling during the peak of this period.
10,000 Birds
JULY 11, 2019
And then there were of course the usual birds of this part of China – not uncommon but still quite attractive birds rarely seen in Shanghai, such as Red-billed Blue Magpie , Collared Finchbill , Ashy Drongo , Red-billed Starling , Black-throated Bushtit and Mountain Bulbul. A village about 1.5 Red-billed Blue Magpie. Collared Finchbill.
10,000 Birds
MAY 9, 2022
Up until a few years ago, Baihualing in Yunnan was both a great place to see birds and open to foreigners. I am not sure about the first nowadays, as the second is no longer true. The place has been blocked for non-Chinese nationals for more than 2 years now.
10,000 Birds
DECEMBER 27, 2021
My last trip to Balangshan was in July 2021 – now I was back, three months later. Yes, I know you are not interested in boring semi-autobiographical descriptions of individual birding trips. But you may be interested in some of the most recent photos. I left out those showing merely fog (of which there was plenty at times).
Critter News
JULY 22, 2010
China is currently experiencing its biggest oil spill ever too. China's largest oil spill has spread to 430 square kilometers (166 square miles) hundreds of clean up workers struggle to cope. China Central Television earlier reported an estimate of 1,500 tons of oil has spilled. From Today Online.
Critter News
JANUARY 16, 2011
In order to offset the loss of the seal product market in Europe, Canada has made a deal with China. China as a whole still doesn't have a national conscience about these issues. I'm not surprised. Although 40 Chinese animal rights groups have protested, they don't really have any political or financial clout to change anything.
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.
4 The Love Of Animals
SEPTEMBER 13, 2009
Here is the letter: I’ve just received an urgent report that another city in China is planning a mass cull to slaughter any unregistered dogs, strays, and even registered family dogs that are over 14 inches (35cm) tall. Make a donation to help IFAW end dog culls in China and to protect animals around the world from similar cruelty.
10,000 Birds
JUNE 13, 2019
The post Air Show at Nanhui, Shanghai, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. But the chicks (or their parents) managed to find a road that – in a combination of rocks and trash – matches their appearance perfectly.
10,000 Birds
FEBRUARY 21, 2022
Julius Caesar apparently once said “I love treason but hate a traitor” My feelings with regard to a birding-related topic are similar – I love owls but hate owling. For some reason, it seems that getting older means liking the daytime more and nighttime less (at least in my case). Obviously, for watching owls, this is a problem.
Critter News
NOVEMBER 28, 2010
From TRAFFIC, Customs officers from Russia and China met last week to strengthen international co-operation in tackling cross-border smuggling of Tigers and other wildlife products. Tags: wildlife smuggling wildlife trafficking tigers china russia.
Critter News
JANUARY 4, 2010
India’s newfound partnership with China on environment issues has yielded results in the area of tiger protection as well. Tags: India wildlife trafficking poaching tigers china. From the Economic Times (part of the India Times, I think). What kind of protection do they really mean? I'm too, too cynical.
10,000 Birds
JANUARY 10, 2022
Notes on bird species and locations shown: Amur Paradise Flycatcher (Nanhui, China). Bar-tailed Godwit (Tiaozini, China). Barn Swallow (Nanhui, China). Daurian Redstart (Nanhui, China). Eastern Buzzard (Nanhui, China). Curlew (Tiaozini, China). Eurasian Oystercatcher (Tiaozini, China). Eurasian (?)
Critter News
OCTOBER 27, 2009
It's not only China, but all Asian countries that are playing a major role in reducing this beautiful animal's number. Tags: wildlife crime extinction Traditional Chinese Medicine tigers china. As this article points out , tigers are worth more dead than alive if you use humanity's flawed accounting system.
10,000 Birds
SEPTEMBER 30, 2021
Fortunately, some have found creative ways to deal with this issue: Trash indicating food ( Yellow-billed Chough , Balangshan, China). Trash as nesting material ( Upland Buzzard , Ruoergai, China). Trash as a vantage point ( Striated Heron , Nanhui, China). Trash as a bathtub ( Siberian Thrush , Nanhui, China).
10,000 Birds
MAY 27, 2021
A wet Grey-eyed Bulbul (Xishuangbanna, China). A wet Daurian Redstart (Shennongjia, China). Wet Orange-bellied Leafbird s (Tengchong, China). A wet Moustached Laughingthrush (Tengchong, China). A wet Blue-winged Minla (Tengchong, China). A wet Collared Finchbill (Shennongjia, China). Waterproof?
Critter News
JANUARY 14, 2010
Shea said by telephone from China today. That's what we're doing in China. Now there is a marriage made in heaven, two countries with atrocious records on animal issues have come together. The EU was a small market for Canada. Of course, we're disappointed in their actions," Ms. That being said, there are many other markets out there.
10,000 Birds
JUNE 20, 2022
T he Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker (Tengchong, China) is a tiny bit bigger and looks much soberer. A point in case: the Crimson-breasted Woodpecker (Tengchong, China). So, more than my usual maximum of five photos per species for the Eurasian Wryneck (Nanhui, Shanghai, China).
Critter News
JUNE 5, 2009
From China Smack (link has dead dogs picture): 2009 May 31, an indiscriminate massacre was carried out throughout the entire 3206 square kilometer county of Yangxian in Shaanxi province — the target of the massacre were dogs! Tags: dogs china.
Critter News
SEPTEMBER 13, 2009
Here is an interesting article about research out of Sweden that suggests that all domesticated dogs may have originated from China. Tags: china. That is the proposal of a team of geneticists led by Peter Savolainen of the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.
Critter News
JULY 13, 2009
From the China Daily. Eating wild animals is also a traditional practice in southern China. Tags: wildlife smuggling Traditional Chinese Medicine tigers exotic meat china endangered species. The Chinese want them for exotic foods and for medicine. Up to 20 percent of these are now considered threatened.
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