Double the joy!

Thanks to blogging, on Monday I was able to meet Ton Yeh, a bright youngster who will embark on his study in Oxford. I gave him a tour in Lung Fu Shan Country Park. Unfortunately, only a few common forest residents turned up that day. Still, I introduced some spots where some of the most exciting records were registered.

A day has passed and I tried my luck again. I was in good mood because a reputable academic journal has accepted my article. The afternoon birding doubled the joy. The first bird greeting me was the Asian Brown Flycatcher (Muscicapa dauurica). 

But it soon flew as it was disturbed by a giant in its eyes, a Yellow-crested Cockatoo (Cacatua sulphurea). It was scrapping the wood of a dead tree, perhaps grinding its ever-growing beak. I seldom see them in the relatively denser part of the forest as they usually travel along the verge between the urban and the woodland. Is it a sign that the urban community has grown to a size that some of them have to utilized the more natural wooded area?

I walked the trail surrounding the derelict Pinewood Battery. But there were only common birds such as bulbuls, white-eyes and tailorbirds. Surprisingly, a flock of Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush es (Garrulax pectoralis) was chatting in front of me on the way back. Some of them are juveniles! They were attempting to go across a hiking trail. But the leading bird jumped back and forth indecisively after crossing. The remaining flock waited quietly. Finally the leader returned to the origin and retreated into the bamboos. Fortunately, one of them preened for quite a bit of time inside the woods. It cleaned itself thoroughly and stayed long enough for me to take some decent footage.

Near the end of the relaxing walk, some gregarious Red-billed Blue Magpies (Urocissa erythroryncha) appeared. It is easy to tell that some birds in the flock are still young. Full-grown adults are characterized by a well-defined white crown on a black helmet. 

But these clever lads, from the crow family, learn quickly as this one is able to chip away the bark of a branch and pull a larvae out.

After the Blue Magpies moved on, a rather large flock of Silver-eared Mesia (Leiothrix argentauris) revealed themselves in low shrubs. Perhaps they kept silent when the much larger Blue Magpies were nearby. After the colourful critters headed back to their roosting place, I enjoyed a concert by a Blue Whistling Thrush (Myophonus caeruleus). The hike ended with another Asian Brown Flycatcher.

Tonight, tonight.

Not only does September mark the commencement of the first semester, but also the birding season. A Hoopoe popped up in Lai Chi Kok Park but quickly left. But the urge for specialties kept going inside me. 

Cheung Chau is famous of its delicious food and the annual Bun Festival. Recently, Brown Fish Owls (Bubo zeylonensis) have turned up in the harbour. I took the ferry departing at 6:00 pm in Central and arrived at around 7:00 pm. Some photographers had taken their positions already. But the target remained hidden for about an hour. Typhoons are approaching. So some fishing boats returned to the harbour. The fishermen were busying maintaining their fishing nets. 

Out of a sudden, everyone was in awe when owl was seen on the rails of a distant boat. Nighttime photography really pushed the camera to its limits. Slow shutter speed and high ISO value nullified many of the photos. And I had to rely on manual focus. Still, there were some acceptable photos.

It caught a fish but did not eat it. Instead, it carried away the fish and vamished into the woods nearby.

The migration season starts

September marks the onset of the migration season. Lung Fu Shan is my familiar patch so I know where to find the migrants along its hiking trails. Birding is a great way to start a week. Going into the woods can be refreshing and energizing. 

This little fella greeted me with a nasty surprise. I always know the wits of the Pallas's Squirrels (Callosciurus erythraeus). They are pretty fearless among the trees. I have seen them provoking parrots and grabbing food from human. This time, it dropped an unknown fruit just in front of me, perhaps as a revenge of me interrupting his quiet teatime. I looked up and saw a great deal of these bright-coloured fruits. Does this tree belong to the Melodinus genus?

It is near the end of summer. Lung Fu Shan is littered with juvenile birds. Other than the Chinese Bulbul (Pycnonotus sinensis). Other juveniles spotted included a Blue Whistling Thrush (Myophonus caeruleus) and a Cinereous Tit (Parus cinereus). Recently, photos of a dead juvenile Crested Goshawk have been posted to a Facebook group on local ecology. The cause of death is suspectedly the streak of typhoons hitting Hong Kong hard during which the birds may have a bitter time foraging. Let's hope that the juveniles in Lung Fu Shan can make it through the year and expand the bird community here.

On the way back, two Yellow-crested Cockatoos (Cacatua sulphurea) were seen hanging around a dead tree. It is an interesting scene because they are active mainly in the urbanized area. But recent studies have pointed out the lack of suitable nests for them to breed. If these critically endangered critters settle in the country parks of Hong Kong, there will be no excuse to destroy the homes of these internationally rare birds. 

An unidentified warbler and a Dollarbird (Eurystomus orientalis) were seen but not photographed. It could be a sign that I need to sharpen my photography skills which is a fading prowess. Last but not least, are these orchids? I have gone through some threads on the HKWildlife forum. Still, it may took forever for me to identify them. Are there any readers willing to offer some help on this?