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.

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China Birds Vietnam Fast Food 263

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.

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China Mongolia Birds Russia 173

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Grey-tailed Tattler: I already made fun of this poor species in my last post. Asian Brown Flycatcher: The most boring flycatcher here in Eastern China is also by far the most common one. Cuckoo species (Common?): The post Birding Tiaozini, Jiangsu, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. Kentish Plover: Looks like a toy.

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China Birds Fish Asia 273

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.

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China Barn Owls Birds Laos 264

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 20, 2022

Instead, they usually just describe species seen at a specific location, with the vague notion that these descriptions might be interesting to other birders. The location not being Algiers but rather Nonggang in Guangxi province, China, close to the border to Vietnam. This is just such a post.

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China Birds Vietnam Asia 206

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.

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South Africa China Africa Germany 202

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.

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China Endangered Species 2016 Species 188

10,000 Birds

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

Unfortunately, sometimes this strategy fails, when even the best two out of 100 photos of a species still are not very good. The post Birding Gonggangling and Dujiangyan, Sichuan, China appeared first on 10,000 Birds. I present to you: Chinese Fulvetta. A White-throated Redstart gave me an easier time.

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China Birds Russia Owls 213

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.

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China Birds Pythons Rabbits 205

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.

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China Breeding Owls Groups 143

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.

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China Birds Sheep Monkeys 188

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.

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China Breeding Species Birds 115

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.

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Woodpeckers South Africa China Singapore 231

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.

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Lemurs China Owls Birds 217

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.

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Saint Lucia Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad 196

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.

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Italy Birds China France 188

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.

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Costa Rica United Kingdom Trinidad United States 217

10,000 Birds

APRIL 15, 2024

And now we get to the part of the post in which I briefly and unscientifically mention a few research papers on the species to have a reason to post a few more of my photos. in migratory whooper swans ( Cygnus cygnus ) in China” And if a swan looks at you in a particularly arrogant way, show it these papers too.

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China Iceland Whales Whaling 130

10,000 Birds

NOVEMBER 6, 2023

If you want to pretend to combine learning Mandarin and learning about this species, watch this video. There is also the usual article about the first sighting of the species at a new location. If you want to guess the name of this species, please follow my instructions. How exciting. Take out a magnifying glass. Here they are.

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Birds Deer China Owls 221

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?

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China Florida Kenya India 259

10,000 Birds

APRIL 1, 2024

Any place that used to be good for an interesting species last year is likely to have been turned into another construction site this year. I don’t think many other bird species are named after Japanese citizens. Also, there are quite some variations within each species – for details, see here. One, a Ryukyu Minivet.

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Chicago Birds Asia China 144

10,000 Birds

JANUARY 24, 2022

It is now almost exactly two years that I last was outside of China. At some point, my stock of memories of birds seen outside of China will be used up, I am afraid. While I write this, the vessel is on a trip from Shekou, China to Callao, Peru, presumably to pick up some ore, most likely copper ore.

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South Africa Africa China Seals 207

10,000 Birds

MARCH 31, 2022

While I am still not so sure about China’s sense of humor – though admittedly, the issue is mostly a mismatch between what I think is funny and what the average Chinese thinks is funny, an issue that I have had in other countries as well – the country sure has its fair share of Laughingthrushes. This post shows some of them.

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San Diego Malaysia China Zoos 206

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 26, 2024

Sadly, the HBW states that the species is “almost extinct in some areas in China owing to hunting and trapping for the cagebird trade and taxidermy” The Maroon Oriole looks much more interesting, though my photos do not really do it full justice. when living in suburbia. How is that for a link?

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Nepal Birds Owls Fish 161

10,000 Birds

AUGUST 3, 2023

The Chinese Hwamei is a second-level protected species in China – as a consequence, according to Chinese law on wildlife protection, it is prohibited for local people to capture and keep the species in captivity without a permit. Still, a few spend the summer here.

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Indonesia Thailand Legislation Birds 154

10,000 Birds

JULY 6, 2022

During the second quarter of 2022 (April, May, and June), the Collaborative submitted 581 checklists from 7 countries ( China , Costa Rica , Mexico , Trinidad and Tobago , Saint Lucia , the United Kingdom , and the United States ). The 2022 year list is up to 1,124 species. 4,115: Lesser Antillean Flycatcher (Saint Lucia).

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Saint Lucia United Kingdom Costa Rica United States 147

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.

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South Africa Malaysia Africa China 225

10,000 Birds

OCTOBER 11, 2021

So, I asked around and was told that Qinghai is the place to go to for birds in China in August. Similarly, the Alpine Leaf Warbler is one of the more attractive species in an otherwise almost indistinguishable family of identical leaf warblers. (“But the difference in wing bars, Kai!”). of the Large-billed Crow.

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Birds North Korea China Woodpeckers 239

10,000 Birds

JUNE 26, 2023

There are 17 different species of them, a few of them endangered, particularly some island endemics. It is listed as Near Threatened – the HBW cites the usual reasons that are just other ways of saying that humans do not care enough for other species, such as forest loss and degradation in its winter range. not their own).

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Japan China Guinea Germany 130

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 3, 2022

Good habitat, apparently, for a Pacific Reef Heron , though the East China Sea is only a peripheral arm of the Pacific and there are no reefs to be found here. In the same location, a Blue Rock Thrush benefits from the liberal Chinese use of concrete, which seems to be a sufficient substitute for rock for the species.

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China Birds Reptiles Sparrows 178

10,000 Birds

MARCH 11, 2024

Given that according to the HBW, the species prefers dense primary and secondary montane forests, the note that the bird also forages among kitchen waste (in the same HBW entry) seems somewhat incongruous. Fish & Wildlife Service has a web page for this species – but it contains absolutely no information.

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Burma India Birds Indonesia 199

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.

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China Ducks Transported Game 163

10,000 Birds

JUNE 17, 2023

Today, I invite you to join me, Kai Pflug, on an extraordinary avian expedition as we explore the vibrant cityscape of Shanghai, a hidden gem for birdwatchers in the heart of China. The Majestic Wetlands: Within Shanghai’s boundaries lie several pristine wetland habitats that serve as vital sanctuaries for a plethora of bird species.

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China Endangered Species Sanctuary Protection 165

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.

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China Wildlife Tigers Endangered Species 100

10,000 Birds

FEBRUARY 17, 2022

According to the HBW, there are 41 species of African Barbets and 34 species of Asian Barbets. There are also 14 species of New World Barbets and 2 species of Toucan-Barbets (all in South America). T he Golden-throated Barbet (Baihualing, Yunnan) has an interesting species name, franklinii.

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South Africa Africa India China 205

10,000 Birds

JUNE 27, 2019

For a German living in China, bird names have some additional complexities. However, I know almost none of the German names of the birds here and am even a bit surprised there apparently is a German name for each species (I cannot imagine there is too much use for German names of some purely Asian species).

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China Eagles Cats Owls 189

10,000 Birds

JUNE 23, 2022

I saw two Pitta species at Hongbenghe, both among the slightly less glamourous among the pitta family: The Blue-naped Pitta … … and the closely related Rusty-naped Pitta. While it is listed as Least Concern, it is rare in China – the range map in the HBW barely touches Chinese territory.

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Birds Myanmar China Chicago 147