South Korea and Taiwan - 8th February (Day 14)

We were up early to get to the top of Hehuanshan Mountain before the crowds of selfie-takers and hopefully before the fog arrived at the summit to, hopefully, find the endemic subspecies of Alpine Accentor. We left at just gone 06:00 and wound our way up the mountain. First we stopped in a car park just below the summit, here we recorded White-whiskered Laughingthush, Daurian Redstart and Taiwan Rosefinch but no Accentor. The pass was again fog bound and thronging with selfie takers even at this early hour and so we desended to the Song Shue Lodge area on the the east side of the pass. The sun was shining and we had high hopes for finding the accentor but despite spending at least an hour here there was no sign and all we saw were 25 Asian House Martin as well as the usual species. We then made a brief stop at a small car park at the foot of the climb to the peak of the mountain and immediately located a fine Alpine Accentor of the endemic subspecies fennelli foraging in the car park. The bird gave great views down to a few metres in the sunshine. My eBird checklists for the area can be viewed here and here.

Alpine Accentor - Song Shue Lodge, Hehuan Shan Mountain, Wuling, Taiwan 

Alpine Accentor - Song Shue Lodge, Hehuan Shan Mountain, Wuling, Taiwan 

Alpine Accentor - Song Shue Lodge, Hehuan Shan Mountain, Wuling, Taiwan 

Alpine Accentor - Song Shue Lodge, Hehuan Shan Mountain, Wuling, Taiwan 

With our target species secured we began the descent of the mountain winding around hairpin bends and dodging Taiwanese drivers cornering on the wrong side of the road. A stop at the Blue Gates trail for one last try for Taiwan Shortwing produced relatively little but for Taiwan Cupwing, Eurasian Jay, Yellow Tit and three adult Taiwan Partridge with a very small downy chick. We returned to our hotel, packed our bags and set off on the 3.5 hour drive to Firefly Lodge. My eBird checklist for the Blue Gates Trail can be viewed here.

Taiwan Barbet - Bluegates Trail, Wushe, Taiwan

Black-throated Tit - Bluegates Trail, Wushe, Taiwan

Black-throated Tit - Bluegates Trail, Wushe, Taiwan

On arrival at Firefly Lodge we were whisked at high speed through the forest up a steep track to the bird hide where over the next couple of hours we enjoyed good views of up to six Taiwan Partridge and five Swinhoe’s Pheasant. At 17:30 we were taken back to the lodge where we settled into our Pink Panther themed room, showered and ate and did the log in the garden getting views of Collared Scop's Owl and hearing Mountain Scop's Owl and Collared Owlet. My eBird checklists for the area can be viewed here and here.

Taiwan Partridge - Firefly Lodge, Dingben, Taiwan

Swinhoe's Pheasant - Firefly Lodge, Dingben, Taiwan

Links to Other Days of the Trip (Click to View)

South Korea

26th January (Day 1 and 2) – International flight then Han River area.

28th January (Day 3) – Songdo Tidal Flats and Korea National Arboretum.

29th January (Day 4) – Seosan Reclamation.

30th January (Day 5) – Seosan Reclamation then Geum River.

31st January (Day 6) – Yubu Island, and Han River.

Taiwan

1st February (Day 7) – Fly Seoul (South Korea) to Taipei (Taiwan) then Dasyueshan Forest Reserve.

2nd February (Day 8) – Dasyueshan Forest Reserve.

3rd February (Day 9) – Dasyueshan Forest Reserve.

4th February (Day 10) – Dasyueshan Forest Reserve.

5th February (Day11) – Dasyueshan Forest Reserve then Huisin Forest Reserve.

6th February (Day 12) – Huisin Forest Reserve then Blue Gates Trail.

7th February (Day 13) –  Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area.

8th February (Day 14) – Hehuanshan National Forest Recreation Area then Firefly Lodge.

9th February (Day 15) – Alishan.

10th February (Day 16) – Alishan, Kenting National Park and Pintung University. 

11th February (Day 17) – Pingtung University then international flight.

South-east China - 3rd May (Day 13)

We spent all day birding the Dongzhai area, mainly in the nature reserve. We commenced the day in the Reeve's Phesasant hide at 06:00. Our walk to the hide produced three fly-over Asian Crested Ibis which were seen rather too briefly. Settling into the hide which cost 50 yuan per person, we watched the comings and goings of Vinous-breasted Parrotbill and White-rumped Munia and had an intimate window into the world of Oriental Turtle-dove which were feeding on the grain put out for the pheasants. Everything seemed very quiet and there was little to be seen. Then, at around 07:00 a stunning male Reeve's Pheasant wandered through the clearing in front of the hide, displayed a little and then disappeared back into the forest. The display consisted of the bird standing on top of a rock and flapping its wings loudly in a similar manner to Common Pheasant in the UK. The sound generated is fairly loud and at close range almost sounds like the thudding of a Chinook helicopter. What an amazing bird with a beautiful golden plumage, scaled black with a rich rufous breast spotted white, a black and white head pattern and a stunning 2m long tail.  Leaving the hide we birded down the track back to the vehicle getting brief views of a Mugimaki Flycatcher as it sung from the tree tops. We then headed to Linshang where Birdquest and others have seen Reeve's Pheasant and Fairy Pitta but the situation at the site seems to have changed with no access for our vehicle and only golf buggies ferrying people to a temple so we abandoned and headed back to the nature reserve where we birded a steep forested trail until lunchtime seeing relatively little but for Yellow-rumped Fycatcher, Yellow-browed Warbler, Yellow-bellied Tit, Japanese White-eye, Black-thoated Tit and Olive-backed Pipit. We headed back to the hotel for lunch and had our first siesta of the trip in the heat of the day.

Male Reeve's Pheasant - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Male Reeve's Pheasant - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Male Reeve's Pheasant - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Male Reeve's Pheasant - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Male Reeve's Pheasant - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Vinous-breasted Parrotbill - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Oriental Turtle-dove - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Demoiselle species - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Collared Crow in the rice paddies outside of Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Incense - Linshang

Siberian Weasel - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Speckled Piculet - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Fritillary species - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Apollo species - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Admiral species - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Admiral species - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Yellow-rumped Flycatcher - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Great Tit of subspecies artatus - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

After our siesta we birded a little outside the hotel where Azure-winged Magpie and Brown-rumped Minivet showed well. We then spent a little while driving the rice paddies outside of the reserve looking for Asian Crested Ibis but with no luck and so we headed back into the forest and back to the pheasant hide. We watched the love life of Oriental Turtle-dove from the hide but had no luck with the pheasant, we decided to leave by 16:00 to look for the final remaining target of the site - Fairy Pitta. We headed onto a branch of the trail that we had birded in the morning chasing a reported Fairy Pitta but we had no luck and saw little but for Oriental Scop's-owl in a pot erected for nesting birds and heard Reeve's Pheasant displaying very close by. We decided it was probably a little early in the year for the Fairy Pitta as the species is a migrant arriving in early May and we felt we were probably just a little too early for the bird. After dinner we did a little half hearted owling and we saw distant Northern Boobook and heard at least five others. After dinner we crashed at around 22:00 ready for our final few hours birding in the morning in this part of China.

Asian Azure-winged Magpie - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Black-throated Tit - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Brown-rumped Minivet - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Oriental Turtle-dove - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Blue Whistling-thrush - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

In the Reeve's Pheasant hide - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

In the Reeve's Pheasant hide - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

 Dongzhai Nature Reserve

 Dongzhai Nature Reserve

 Birding in the Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Oriental Scops-owl - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Song of Yellow-rumped Flycatcher - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

 Song of Western Koel - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Calls of flock of Brown-rumped Minivet - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Calls of Northern Boobook - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Amazing chorus of Cicada recorded at around midday - Dongzhai Nature Reserve

Links to Other Days of the Trip (Click to View)

Day 1 and 2 – International flight and Dongtai.

Day 3 - Dongtai.

Day 4 – Dongtai and Magic Wood.

Day 5 - Nanhui then fly to Fuzhou.

Day 6 - Shanutan Island and Fuzhou Forest Park.

Day 7 - Fuzhou Forest Park then Emeifeng Mountain.

Day 8 - Emeifeng Mountain.

Day 9 - Emeifeng Mountain.

Day 10 - Emeifeng Mountain then Wuyuan.

Day 11 - Wuyuan.

Day 12 – Drive Wuyuan to Dongzhai.

Day 14 – Dongzhai then fly Wuhan to Korlor.

Day 15 – Taklamakan Desert.

Day 16 – Taklamakan Desert then Urumqi.

Day 17 and 18 – Nanshan in the Tien Shan Mountains then fly Beijing. International flight.

South-east China - 28th April (Day 8)

We spent the entire day in dark, damp and drizzly conditions at Emeifeng today with the main targets being Elliot's Pheasant and Cabot's Tragopan. Elliot's Pheasant is, on paper, the most difficult species at Emeifeng and so we spent the morning looking for it although, having seen this previously at Emeifeng, my desire was to be looking for Cabot's Tragopan. Still, I stayed with the group and after breakfast at the lower edge of the forest and some birding here seeing Rufous-faced Warbler, Yellow-cheeked Tit, Black-throated Tit. and Masked Laughingthrush we did a couple of drives up and down the road for the pheasant but with no luck, we did see Chinese Bamboo Partridge and Silver Pheasant but little else. We then spent the rest of the day birding the mid-altitude zones seeing a moderate range of species including Red-headed Trogon, Great Barbet, Chestnut-bellied Rock-thrush, Indochinese Yuhina, Black-chinned Yuhina, Chestnut Bulbul, Black Bulbul, Rufous-faced Warbler, Golden-crowned Warbler, Speckled Piculet, White-bellied Erpornis, Grey-chinned Minivet and Sultan Tit. A male and two female Koklas Pheasant showed moderately well but briefly on the forested slope below the road and a single male was flushed from the road by the vehicle. A small gully produced a singing Spotted Elachura which showed very well as it crept about in the brash overhanging the stream that ran through its territory. Best of all though, a flyby thrush that Andy D thought may have been a Siberian Thrush seemed to land deep in the forest alongside the road. We scanned for a while then applied a little playback and Martin soon picked up a stunning male Siberian Thrush. The bird was feeding in the leaf litter deep in the undergrowth alongside the road giving good views until it flew and perched in full view allowing us all to study the slatey black plumage with pristine white supercilium - a stunning species.

The day was drawing to a close and so we headed up hill to the Tragopan zone and as we entered the prime area the driver spotted a male on one of the slopes above the road, some of those in the front of the bus had brief views of the bird but Ian, Barry and I failed to get onto the bird through the windows of the vehicle which were partly steamed and covered with rain - all I saw was a stone dislodged by the bird tumble down the slope. Rather annoyed by this, we headed back to the lodge for food and beer.

Chinese Bamboo Partridge - Emeifeng Mountain

Juvenile Black-cheeked Tit - Emeifeng Mountain

Yellow-cheeked Tit - Emeifeng Mountain

Yellow-cheeked Tit - Emeifeng Mountain

Rhododendron - Emeifeng Mountain

Rhododendron - Emeifeng Mountain

Mist covered hillside - Emeifeng Mountain

Chestnut-bellied Rock-thrush - Emeifeng Mountain

Sultan Tit - Emeifeng Mountain

Rather monotonous call of Sultan Tit - Emeifeng Mountain

Spotted Elachura. The species is the sole member of the recently recognised family Elachuridae - Emeifeng Mountain

This is the remarkable, high pitched, song of Spotted Elachura - Emeifeng Mountain

Grab of a section of Spotted Elachura song showing the simple song structure delivered at between 5.5 and 5.9 KHz

Indochinese Yuhina - Emeifeng Mountain

Montane forest at Emeifeng Mountain

Birding the montane forest at Emeifeng Mountain

Siberian Thrush, this superb bird is a first summer male with the retained wing feathers being browner than the body. This was one of the highlights of the trip for me - Emeifeng Mountain

Black Bulbul - Emeifeng Mountain

Links to Other Days of the Trip (Click to View)
Day 1 and 2 – International flight and Dongtai.
Day 3 - Dongtai.
Day 4 – Dongtai and Magic Wood.
Day 5 - Nanhui then fly to Fuzhou.
Day 6 - Shanutan Island and Fuzhou Forest Park.
Day 7 - Fuzhou Forest Park then Emeifeng Mountain.
Day 9 - Emeifeng Mountain.
Day 10 - Emeifeng Mountain then Wuyuan.
Day 11 - Wuyuan.
Day 12 – Drive Wuyuan to Dongzhai.
Day 13 - Dongzhai.
Day 14 – Dongzhai then fly Wuhan to Korlor.
Day 15 – Taklamakan Desert.
Day 16 – Taklamakan Desert then Urumqi.
Day 17 and 18 – Nanshan in the Tien Shan Mountains then fly Beijing. International flight.