The Deskbound Birder: South Korea and Taiwan

Sunday 2 February 2020

South Korea and Taiwan - 2nd February (Day 8)

After a good nights sleep in our very cold rooms which have hot water but no heating, we began our first day at Dasyueshan Forest Reserve with a drive up hill to KM50 looking for Mikkado Pheasant but with no luck. We then headed down hill to KM23 arriving at around 08:30. In the fruiting trees here were many White-eared Sibia, Taiwan Yuhina and Vivid Niltava. It was not long before one of the most difficult Taiwan endemics appeared, a stunning Taiwan Thrush whose head shone in the dull morning light. We spent some time at these fruiting trees watching the birds coming and going, we eventually saw two Taiwan Thrush here plus Taiwan Yellow Tit, Swinhoe’s Pheasant, Taiwan Barbet and White-tailed Robin. We then walked down the road a short way where we saw a third Taiwan Thrush, Pale Thrush and our only Rufous-crowned Laughingthrush of the trip, a small group of six birds foraging through the understorey. My eBird checklist for this location can be viewed here.

Taiwan Thrush - KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

White-eared Sibia - KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Taiwan Barbet - KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

White-tailed Robin - KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Vivid Niltava- KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Vivid Niltava - KM23, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

We then had to head back to the lodge to finish the check-in process and to gather some gen on birding sites for the next few days birding at the reserve. The rest of the day was then spent in the area around KM50 where many of the speciality birds, including Mikkado Pheasant can be encountered. Over the next 5.5 hours the highlights included Taiwan Barwing, Flamecrest, White-whiskered Laughingthrush, Collared Bush-robin, Spotted Nutcracker, Ashy Woodpigeon and Brown-headed thrush. My ebird lists for the afternoon can be seen here, here and here.

Red-flanked Bluetail- KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Red-flanked Bluetail - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

White-whiskered Laughingthrush - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Taiwan Barwing - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Black-throated Tit - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Flamecrest - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Coal Tit of subspecies Ptilosus - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Reeve's Muntjac - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Eurasian Wren - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Ashy Woodpigeon - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Taiwan Yuhina - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Brown-headed Thrush - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

Spotted Nutcracker - KM50 area, Dasyueshan Forest Reserve, Taiwan

As the day drew to a close we took a slow drive down the road back to the lodge and at KM47 we encountered a stunning male Mikkado Pheasant feeding on the roadside. My eBird list can be viewed here.