CHINA'S WETLANDS

5 – 18/22 NOVEMBER 2016

LEADER: HANNU JÄNNES

China’s winter wetlands and woodlands always turn up lots of great , and, as always, our journey through this fascinating, but rapidly modernizing, country proved to be a highly successful one. The more spectacular recorded were Oriental Stork (photo above by Simon Colenutt), Black-faced Spoonbill, Swan Geese (plus five other species of geese), the rapidly declining Baer's Pochard, Mandarin Duck (‘real’ ones!), Falcated Duck, Baikal Teal, the beautiful Scaly-sided Merganser, Amur Falcon, Pied Falconet, the critically endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper, good numbers of Nordmann’s Greenshanks, seven species of cranes (including Black-necked, Sandhill, Hooded, White-naped, Red-crowned and Siberian), Saunders’s, Relict, Black-tailed, Mongolian and Siberian Gulls, Siberian Accentor, Mugimaki Flycatcher, Slaty-backed, Spotted and White- crowned Forktails, Collared Finchbill, Chestnut Bulbul, Eye-browed, Grey-backed, Red-throated, Pale, Naumann’s, Dusky, White's, Japanese and Chinese Thrushes, and Chinese Blackbird,

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Beijing Babbler (a.k.a Chinese Hill Warbler), Marsh Grassbird, Black-streaked and Grey-sided Scimitar Babblers, Ashy-throated, Vinous-throated, Spot-breasted and Reed , Chinese Babax, Plain, Masked, White-browed, Greater Necklaced, Moustached and Elliot’s , Chinese Hwamei, Spectacled, Rusty-capped and Grey-hooded , White-collared Yuhina, Yellow-bellied Tit, Chinese Nuthatch, Chinese Penduline Tit, Chinese Grey Shrike, Asian Azure-winged Magpie, Red-billed Starling, Black-headed Greenfinch, Yellow-billed Grosbeak, and no fewer than thirteen species of buntings. Poor weather at Poyang Lake and some typhoon damage at Fuzhou Forest Park, lead us to tweak the itinerary a bit, and we spent two nights at Mt Emeifeng, famous for its pheasants, enjoying great views of Silver, Elliot’s and Koklass Pheasants plus Chinese Bamboo Partridge along with other exciting mountain birds. We also chanced by a Pacific Swallow in Fujian province, which is apparently only the second record for mainland China!

The majestic Red-crowned Crane was one of the many avian highlights on this tour (Simon Colenutt).

However, one should remember that the tour is not only an opportunity to see such desirable rare species, but also provides the chance to see great concentrations of many of them in evocative settings. Who could ever forget the sight of tens of the rare Siberian Cranes with smaller numbers of Hooded Cranes, Swan Geese and many other species at a wetland in Poyang, the large mixed flock of various ducks at the fish-pond in Yangchen, or the massive number of wildfowl at Caohai in a remote corner of Guizhou province. The infrastructure, compared with many other parts of China, is surprisingly good, with mostly excellent road conditions and good quality accommodation throughout the tour. Also this is really quite an easy tour, with not too much physical effort for anyone interested in impressive numbers of some of the most magnificent, often rare, birds that still survive our crowded planet.

When we gathered at our pre-organised meeting point at Beijing airport early in the morning of day one, it turned out that Simon’s plane had been diverted to Shanghai due to the heavy fog that lay over Beijing. As there was no time to waste, we left our local guide to wait for Simon and headed for the Great Wall at Badaling for some of the target birds we needed in the Beijing region. During the sunny, but chilly morning we found Silver-throated Bushtits (a recent split from Long-tailed Tit), Plain Laughingthrushes, Beijing Babblers, a very showy flock of Vinous-throated Parrotbills, Chinese Nuthatch, and, best of all, a handful of Siberian Accentors, (this is the only Birdquest tour

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Plain Laughingthrush and were two of the key species in the Beijing area (Alec Gillespie).

Silver-throated Bushtit, a split from Long-tailed Tit (Simon Colenutt) and Vinous-throated (Alec Gillespie). where this species is regularly seen) and two Cinereous Vultures (a write-in). After an indifferent lunch at one of the many tourist restaurants in Badaling, Simon and our local guide caught up with us, and with the group now complete, we headed for the Yeyahu (Wigeon Lake) for some more birding. One of the first birds seen at the lake was a first-winter Black-legged Kittiwake flying around with Black-headed Gulls. Apparently this was only the seventh record for the Beijing area, but we didn’t stop for too long to admire this local rarity as we had a much bigger fish to fry. After a lengthy walk, we reached a massive watch tower, where we located our main target, a small flock of the rare and declining Baer’s Pochards in a small reed fringed pool. Other birds seen during the afternoon included several Ruddy Shelducks, two Common Goldeneyes, Black-necked Grebe, Oriental Turtle Doves, Chinese Grey Shrikes, gorgeous Azure-winged Magpies, a small flock of Silver-throated Bushtits, Pallas’s Reed Buntings, Kamchatka Gull and heard only Bearded Reedlings.

We spent much of the next day at the Ming Tombs, where we saw a good selection of thrushes including Naumann's, Dusky and Red-throated, a total of six Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpeckers,

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Siberian Accentor (Simon Colenutt) and Godlewski's Bunting (Alec Gillespie) at Ming Tombs in Beijing.

Yellow-bellied Tits, our first Light-vented Bulbuls, several Chinese Nuthatch, large flocks of Bramblings and a male Chaffinch, a rare winter visitor to the Beijing area, and six species of buntings, including our first and only Godlewski's Bunting of the trip. To Simon’s great relief Siberian Accentor proved fairly common and good views and some decent photographs were obtained. Later we headed for downtown Beijing, and after an early dinner, boarded our fairly comfortable overnight train to Yancheng.

After reaching Yangcheng at daybreak we were driven to Xinyanggang township, where we checked into our comfortable hotel and enjoyed a good noodle and baozi breakfast before heading out to at Yangcheng Crane Reserve with a local guide. The reserve stretches for well over 100 kilometres along the Yellow Sea coast, but only a small part is protected as a ‘core area’, and much agricultural and industrial activity goes on everywhere else! Our guide warned us that the continuous heavy rains had delayed the rice harvest and the cranes, which favour harvested rice paddies, would not be in the area where I wanted to go, but after negotiations he agreed to take us there. At the traditional crane area we worked the ditches and reed beds, which yielded Chestnut- eared, Pallas’s, Black-faced, Little, Lapland and even a single Yellow-breasted Bunting, splendid Reed Parrotbills, Chinese Grey Shrikes, Stjeneger’s Stonechats, two Merlins and Black-winged Kite. Later a check of the ‘crane fields’ produced a total of 29 Red-crowned Cranes, with some providing great views, and a flock of Common Cranes that included in their midst two Sandhills, a rare bird in eastern China, and one Hooded Crane. After lunch the weather detoriated dramatically and we spent the afternoon driving around the nature reserve in heavy rain and gale force wind without seeing a great deal!

Next morning we headed for the fishponds south of the town. After last night’s rain the sky was still cloudy, and there was a very strong northerly wind, which together with the low temperature made the morning feel uncomfortably cold. Our first stop was at ponds where we admired a large mixed flock of Falcated Ducks and Gadwalls, a large roost of Black-crowned Night Herons, Vega (Mongolian) Gulls, one first-winter Black-tailed Gull, and couple of Common Reed Buntings (a rare sight on this itinerary). At another group of ponds, the bulk of a thousand strong flock of ducks was formed by Mallards and Northern Pintails, but after much scanning we also picked-up 50 or so Baikal Teal which were unfortunately quite distant. Other good birds at this site included Tundra

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Baikal Teal and Reed Parrotbill were important target birds at Yangcheng (Simon Colenutt).

Bean Geese, very acceptable views of Oriental Storks, two fine Red-crowned Cranes and tens of Common Cranes. Further along the road we discovered a much closer drake Baikal Teal in a flock with Chinese Spot-billed Ducks, which provided us good views and even photo-ops. On the way back for lunch we were able to photograph fly-by Oriental Storks. After lunch and some hassle at the hotel, it was time for some forest birding, which yielded, several Red-flanked Bluetails (including a gorgeous adult male), rather showy male and female Mugimaki Flycatchers, a flock of Yellow-billed Grosbeaks, a single Hawfinch, a couple of Pallas’s and Yellow-browed Warblers, Pale Thrush, two Chinese Thrushes for some, and several Olive-backed Pipits.

On our last morning at Yangcheng we revisited the Red-crowned Cranes and had really great views of a total of around 60 birds during two hours birding. After this it was time to drive couple of hours south to the famous tidal mudflats near Yangkou. The tide was low and the water’s edge was several kilometres away, but we spent couple of hours checking tidal pools and channels seeing 43 Dalmatian Pelicans, a distant Short-eared Owl, many Caspian Terns, a few Lesser Sand Plovers, two Black-faced Spoonbills with Eurasian Spoonbills, Avocets, Dunlin and distant Greater Scaups. Later we drove to Yangkou, stopping en route for a juvenile Amur Falcon, and spent the last couple of hours of daylight walking the ‘Magic Wood’, which initially seemed pretty birdless, but eventually yielded several showy Red-flanked Bluetails, Pale Thrushes, a very showy White’s Thrush (another individual was glimpsed) and, best of all, a first-winter male Japanese Thrush, which was a write in.

Nordmann's Greenshanks on tidal mudflats near Yangkou (Simon Colenutt).

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One of the birding highlights on the mudflats near Yangkou was this first-winter Relict Gull (Simon Colenutt).

This morning we paid another visit to the mudflats north of Yangkou. The tide was far out and we had to walk a couple of kilometres out to the mudflats to admire the large numbers of birds feeding along the edge of the rising tide. A first glance revealed mostly Dunlins, Kentish Plovers, Grey Plovers and Eurasian Curlews, but a more careful scrutiny found Red Knot, Bar-tailed Godwit, Lesser Sand Plover and Sanderlings as well. Amongst a more distant group of waders and gulls, Simon picked up a Relict Gull, and we quickly concentrated on this rarity, getting decent scope views of the first-winter bird. Unfortunately it decided to take off before the photographers got close enough for decent images, but consolation was offered when two Relict Gulls flew past us a little later. We also realised that there were several Nordmann’s Greenshanks feeding quite close to us, and a quick scan along the shoreline revealed around fifty or so of this ridiculously short-ended shank. It was also good to compare this species and the Common Greenshank side by side. Other birds seen included a single Saunders’s Gull and the same Short-eared Owl we had seen day before. After couple of hours of birding it was time to walk back to the bus and head for Wuyuan, where we arrived late in the evening after a numbing 600 kilometres drive.

White's Thrush and Yellow-billed Grosbeak (Simon Colenutt).

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Scaly-sided Mergansers near Kengkou (Alec Gillespie).

A new morning found us at the bridge of the Le’an River of the Scaly-sided Merganser fame. Our scan from the bridge near Kengkou village early in the morning produced two female mergansers, but the views were rather poor due to the great distance and mist that hung over the river. However, we were more successful with Long-billed Plover, Plumbeous Redstart, Masked Laughingthrush and the showy Yellow-browed Buntings, which were all new birds for us. We then walked a forest trail, where we saw Crested Goshawk, a pair of Silver Pheasant, Huet’s Fulvettas, Rufous-capped Babblers, Chestnut Bulbul, Collared Finchbill, Grey-chinned Minivets, Streak- breasted and Grey-sided Scimitar Babblers, and, best of all, a rather showy pair of Moustached Laughingthrushes. Back at the river, we moved couple of kilometres upstream and walked down the steep bank to the shore of the river, where after a patient wait, we had really stunning views of a flock of nine Scaly-sided Mergansers including three males. For lunch we drove to the village of Xiao Qi, where we also had a splendid encounter with a family flock of six charming Pied Falconets. The remainder of the day was spent driving to Nancheng, where we arrived late in the evening.

Moustached Laughingthrush and Streak-breasted Scimitar Babbler near Kengkou (Simon Colenutt).

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Brown Crake offered great views near Poyang Lake (Alec Gillespie).

The heavy rain that had lasted most of the night stopped as we left the Galactic Peace Hotel in Nancheng. On our way to the wetland complex around Nanjishan, we stopped at a densely vegetated canal, where we found, after much searching, a pair of Brown Crakes and also spotted a couple of Amur Falcons. Next stop was for a family of three close Siberian Cranes feeding in a roadside field, which were joined by another family of calling Siberian Cranes, before they all took off and disappeared in the mist. A magical encounter! At Nanjishan wetlands we had great views of several very close Bitterns, mixed flocks of Taiga and Tundra Bean Geese providing a great opportunity to compare these two different forms, our first Greater White-fronted Geese and Tundra Swans, a Yellow Bittern and two Painted Snipes in flight. We also spent quite some time chasing Marsh Grassbirds (two were heard), Brown-cheeked Rails (several were heard and one was seen briefly in flight), many Plain Prinias (Simon’s favourite bird), Zitting Cisticolas, and three Black-browed Reed Warblers, a write in. The weather was murky for the whole day, with some rain, and, as it was Saturday, the area was full of Chinese tourists driving around along the narrow roads and stopping to wonder what on earth we were doing there. In the evening we drove to Wu Cheng for two night stay.

A mixed flock of Siberian, White-naped and Common Cranes near Wu Cheng (Alec Gillespie).

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Eurasian Bitterns were numerous and easy to see near Nanjishan (Alec Gillespie).

Today we birded various areas around Wu Cheng, and found nearly all of our target birds including many gorgeous White-naped Cranes and a showy Marsh Grassbird. It was also great to get prolonged views of small flocks of Siberian and Hooded Cranes, and see Chinese Hwamei and White-browed Laughingthrush, which both were new birds for us. Our walks through the grasslands, agricultural areas and forests produced five species of pipit with Richard’s, Olive- backed, Red-throated, Buff-bellied, and Water, many buntings including a single Yellow-breasted and many Chestnut-eared Buntings, good numbers of Pallas, Yellow-browed and Dusky Warblers, many Yellow-billed Grosbeaks, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Scaly-breasted Munias and the only Temminck’s Stints of the trip. The rainy and murky weather continued during the day, and trying to find the rare Lesser White-fronted Goose amongst the flocks of thousands of Greater White-fronts was nigh on impossible due the poor visibility. As the weather forecast predicted more rain and fog for the following day, and the chances to find our final target bird, the Lesser White-fronted Goose, began to look pretty slim, we started to think about leaving Poyang Lake one day earlier than originally planned.

As the murky weather continued, and the visibility was even poorer than on previous days, we decided to leave Lake Poyang and headed for the mountains of Fujian province and pheasants. On the way we stopped at a huge flock of Rooks (of the subspecies pastinator, a potential split), and found, after much scanning, around 15 Daurian Jackdaws amongst them. Birding later in the afternoon along the approach road to Emeifeng gave us Slaty-backed and White-crowned Forktails and Brown Dipper. We reached the gate of Mount Emeifeng at four pm, and spent two hours driving slowly to the top end of the road and back to the gate seeing a very brief Elliott’s Pheasant and one Koklass’ Pheasant. Not a very promising start for our improvised pheasant quest! After a decent dinner in a nearby village we drove back to Mt Emeifeng and checked into our somewhat

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Silver Pheasants were common and easy to see on Mt Emeifeng (Simon Colenutt). run down accommodation. As the sky was clear we had a great opportunity to admire and photograph the super bright full moon, which won’t be as bright again until 2034!

During the next day and a half we spent two mornings and one late afternoon driving slowly up and down the mountain road looking for pheasants, which put up a really good show. We logged good numbers of Silver, Koklass and Elliot’s Pheasants with excellent views of all three species. I was especially delighted to see so many Koklass and Elliot’s Pheasants, as these birds have been difficult to find during the spring season for the last couple of years. Unfortunately the Cabot’s Tragopan was nowhere to be seen. During our stay we also birded the temple grounds and a forested trail, where we obtained great views of Chinese Bamboo Partridge, Great Barbet, many Mountain and Chestnut Bulbuls, Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush, Indochinese Yuhina (split from Striated Yuhina), a couple of White’s Thrush, Tristram’s Bunting, two Radde’s Warblers (a write-in), Lesser Yellownape, Yellow-cheeked Tit, Spotted Forktail and a heard only Brown Wood Owl. Then it was time to drive to Changle for the last leg of the main tour, arriving late in the evening.

The next morning we visited the Shanyutan Island at the Ming River Estuary of Spoon-billed Sandpiper and Chinese Crested Tern fame. The tern would not be present at this time of the year, but there was an excellent chance of the sandpiper! The weather conditions, with clear sky and moderate wind, were perfect for our day at the beach. We had to wait for quite a long time on the mainland opposite the island before the tide was high enough for our boat to take us over, and once on the island we had to wade quickly across a deep channel in order to get close to the roosting waders before the rising tide blocked our way completely. In a two hour stay we saw good numbers of roosting waders including Kentish Plovers and White-faced Plovers (a potential split from Kentish), Sanderlings, Dunlins, few Red-necked Stints, a mixed flock of Red and Great Knots,

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Black-faced Spoonbills at Shanyutan Island near Changle (Alec Gillespie).

Greater and Lesser Sand Plovers, Bar-tailed Godwits, Whimbrel, Ruddy Turnstone, Eurasian Curlews, Grey Plovers, Spotted Redshanks and Common Greenshanks, and after a lot of scanning, a beautiful Spoon-billed Sandpiper, which we managed to locate several times in the constantly moving wader flock. Additional highlights during our lovely day at the beach included 50 Black-faced Spoonbills, with excellent close-up views, two Saunders’s Gulls and a Black-tailed Gull. Back on the mainland we realised that some of the roads had been closed due to an international bicycle race, and we had to abandon our plans to visit some inland localities for birds that we still needed. Instead, we spent the rest of the afternoon on the narrow coastal strip checking the agricultural areas and fishponds for anything of interest. The absolute highlight of our afternoon was a Pacific Swallow that we found flying around a fishpond with two Barn Swallows. This is apparently the second record of the species on mainland China! The first record was from Hong Kong earlier this autumn. Other goodies seen on the mainland during the day included several Oriental Reed and Black-browed Reed Warblers, many Dusky Warblers, Siberian Rubythroats, a Sand Martin, Fire-breasted Flowerpecker, a Pacific Golden Plover, a Himalayan Swiftlet, many Yellow-bellied Prinias, Chinese Penduline Tits and Scaly-breasted Munias.

In the evening it was time to say goodbye to Rienk and Simon, who would fly back to Europe the next day. The rest of us took an early flight the next morning to Guiyang in Guizhou province for more birding. Arriving in Guiyang around noon we spent the rest of the day transporting ourselves through the spectacular limestone karst ‘wonderland’ of western Guizhou to the city of Liu Pang Shui, stopping en route for lunch and a brief stroll, which produced new birds with Brown-breasted Bulbul, Ashy-throated Parrotbill and Himalayan Wagtail (alboides form of the White Wagtail).

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One of the highlights on our extension to Guizhou was a small flock of Spot-breasted Parrotbills (Alec Gillespie).

Next morning we visited “the hidden valley of Yi”, a small, charming "old style" village of Yi people, where we enjoyed really great birding in beautiful weather. Best birds of the day were Grey-backed Shrike, Green-backed Tit, Black-streaked Scimitar-babbler, White-browed and Elliot's Laughingthrush, Chinese Babax, Grey-hooded, Rusty-capped and Spectacled Fulvettas, Red- billed Leiothrix, Blue-fronted Redstart, gorgeous Vinaceous Rosefinches, White-collared Yuhinas many Russet Sparrows, several Rosy Pipts, and a very pleasant surprise in the form of two Spot- breasted Parrotbills, a write-in. We drove to the city of Weining in the late afternoon for two nights stay.

Our morning on the shores of the lake Caohai, the famous 'Sea of Grass', started in very murky weather (the normal morning weather here), but nevertheless we managed to secure very good views of several Black-necked Cranes and Bar-headed Geese, our seventh crane and sixth goose species of the trip. Later in the day, when the weather improved, we spent quite some time trying to photograph the cranes and geese in better light. Birding the fields, wet meadows and wetlands provided great views of many Rosy and a few Richard’s Pipits, Intermediate Egrets, a single Grey- headed Lapwing, several Carrion Crows, and a few 'Tibetan Wagtails' (the black-backed form of Citirine Wagtail). After lunch at a newly opened small roadside restaurant, we spent the afternoon walking through a small village and patches of woodland to a high bank where we scanned the huge Caohai Lake for anything of interest. The big lake was thronged with various ducks as far as the eye could see, including quite a few Falcated Ducks and small numbers of Ferruginous Ducks. Black-headed Greenfinch, Buff-throated Warbler, Blue Rock Thrush and an adult Eastern Imperial Eagle (my first record of the species on this tour) were also added to our bird list during the afternoon.

The next day we were back in the “the hidden valley of Yi”, as we still needed to find couple of target species. The morning was fairly cold and windy, and we really struggled to find anything of interest until at the very end we relocated the magnificent Spot-breasted Parrotbills, which this time

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Black-necked Cranes at Caohai (Alec Gillespie). put on a really great show. While walking back to our bus we heard an interesting call from the edge of the forest, and after playback, we had really amazing close-up (down to one meter!) views of a flock of cute Black-browed Bushtits! The rest of the day was spent getting back to Guiyang.

Our last morning was spent in a very crowded and noisy city park in Guiyang. Best birds here included Black Kite, many Rufous-faced Warblers, Brown-flanked Bush Warbler, a small flock Rusty-capped Fulvettas, a large and showy flock of Indochinese Yuhinas, and Chestnut-crowned Warbler, which was a write-in. After a good lunch at a local restaurant it was time to head for the airport and say thank-you to everyone for being such great company, which together with the magnificent birding and exciting places, combined to make this a most memorable tour. See you in 2017 perhaps?

Male Vinaceous Rosefinch in the 'hidden valley of Yi' (Alec Gillespie).

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‘BIRDS OF THE TRIP’ WINNERS:

MAIN TOUR

1st=: Red-crowned Crane, Silver Pheasant & Scaly-sided Merganser

2nd =: Elliot’s Pheasant & Spoon-billed Sandpiper

3rd: White-naped Crane

EXTENSION

1st: Spot-breasted Parrotbill

2nd: Black-browed Bushtit

3rd=: Black-necked Crane & Vinaceous Rosefinch

Man carrying water near Changle in Fuzhou Province (Simon Colenutt).

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Black-necked Crane at Caohai (Hannu Jännes).

SYSTEMATIC LIST OF SPECIES RECORDED DURING THE TOUR

The species names and used in the report mostly follows Gill, F & Donsker, D (Eds.) IOC World Bird Names. This list is updated several times annually and is available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org Names of the subspecies follow Cheng, T-h (1987): A Synopsis of the Avifauna of China.

Species which were heard but not seen are indicated by the symbol (H). Species which were only recorded by the leader are indicated by the symbol (LO) Species which were not personally recorded by the leader are indicated by the symbol (NL)

Species marked with the diamond symbol (◊) are either endemic to the country or local region or considered ‘special’ birds for some other reason (e.g. it is only seen on one or two Birdquest tours; it is difficult to see across all or most of its range; the local is endemic or restricted range and may in future be treated as a full species).

Bar-headed Goose ◊ Anser indicus ca. 300 at Caohai. Greylag Goose Anser anser Noted at Yangcheng, Poyang and Caohai. Ssp rubrirostris. Swan Goose ◊ Anser cygnoides One at Yangcheng and nine at Poyang. Taiga Bean Goose ◊ Anser fabalis Good numbers at Poyang. Tundra Bean Goose ◊ Anser serrirostris Good numbers at Yangcheng and at Poyang. Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons Good numbers at Poyang. Tundra Swan ◊ Cygnus columbianus Numerous at Poyang, and six at Shanyutan in Changle. Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea Small numbers in Beijing and Yangkou, numerous at Caohai. Mandarin Duck ◊ Aix galericulata Up to 50 at Yangcheng, and one at Yangkou. Gadwall Anas strepera Good numbers at Yangcheng and Caohai.

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Chinese Bamboo Partridge on Emeifeng (Simon Colenutt).

Falcated Duck ◊ Anas falcata Numerous at Yangcheng, smaller numbers elsewhere. Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope Mallard Anas platyrhynchos Eastern Spot-billed Duck ◊ (Chinese S-b D) Anas zonorhyncha Common and widespread. Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata Small numbers at Yangcheng. Northern Pintail Anas acuta Numerous at Yangcheng, only small numbers elsewhere. Baikal Teal ◊ Anas formosa 50 at Yangcheng. Eurasian Teal Anas crecca Common Pochard Aythya ferina Baer’s Pochard ◊ Aythya baeri A flock of nine at Yeyahu in Beijing. Ferruginous Duck (F Pochard) Aythya nyroca Small numbers were noted at Caohai. Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula Greater Scaup Aythya marila Two near Yangkou. Common Goldeneye Bucephala clangula Two at Yeyahu in Beijing. Common Merganser (Goosander) Mergus merganser Small numbers at Yangcheng and Caohai. Scaly-sided Merganser ◊ Mergus squamatus Up to 12 in the Wuyuan area. Brilliant views! White-necklaced Partridge ◊ Arborophila gingica (H) A few were heard at Emeifeng. Chinese Bamboo Partridge ◊ Bambusicola thoracica Great views at Emeifeng. Koklass Pheasant ◊ Pucrasia macrolopha A total of eight on Emeifeng. Ssp darwini. Silver Pheasant ◊ Lophura nycthemera Tens with excellent views at Emeifeng. Ssp fokiensis. Elliott’s Pheasant ◊ Syrmaticus elioti Eight with some excellent views on Emeifeng. Common Pheasant (Ring-necked P) Phasianus colchicus Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus Black-necked Grebe (Eared G) Podiceps nigricollis One at Yeyahu in Beiing. Oriental Stork ◊ Ciconia boyciana Small numbers at Yangcheng and at Poyang.

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Adult and juvenile Hooded Crane at Lake Poyang (Alec Gillespie).

Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia Numerous at Yangcheng and at Poyang. Black-faced Spoonbill ◊ Platalea minor Two near Yangkou and 51 at Shanyutan in Changle. Eurasian Bittern (Great B) Botaurus stellaris Amazingly common at Nanjishan. Few elsewhere. Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax Chinese Pond Heron Ardeola bacchus Eastern Cattle Egret Bubulcus coromandus Small numbers at Changle and around Caohai. Grey Heron Ardea cinerea Common and widespread. Purple Heron Ardea purpurea One at Yangcheng and four at Nanjishan. Great Egret Ardea alba Common and widespread. Intermediate Egret Egretta intermedia Three at Caohai. Little Egret Egretta garzetta Common and widespread. Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo Common and widespread. Western Osprey Pandion haliaetus A few were noted. Black-winged Kite (B-shouldered K) Elanus caeruleus A total of seven were noted. Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus Two at Badaling in Beijing. Black Eagle Ictinaetus malayensis Two on the way to Changle and one at Wuyuan. Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca A beautiful adult bird at Caohai. Crested Goshawk Accipiter trivirgatus One at Wuyuan and another one at Guiyang. Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus Small numbers were noted. Norhern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis (NL) One at Yeyahu in Beijing and another one at Yangcheng, Eastern Marsh Harrier Circus spilonotus Small numbers were noted. Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus Scattered records of small numbers. Black Kite Milvus migrans Two in Guiyang. See note. Eastern Buzzard (Japanese B) Buteo japonicus Scattered records of small numbers. Brown-cheeked Rail ◊ Rallus indicus One in flight and four more were heard at Nanjishan. Brown Crake ◊ Amaurornis akool Great views were obtained in the Poyang area. Ssp coccineipes. White-breasted Waterhen Amaurornis phoenicurus Two in the Changle region. Ssp chinensis. Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus Ssp indica. Eurasian Coot Fulica atra Siberian Crane ◊ Grus leucogeranus 18 with some great views at Poyang. Sandhill Crane Grus canadensis Two adults with Common Cranes at Yangcheng. White-naped Crane ◊ Grus vipio A hundred of these stylish birds at Poyang. Red-crowned Crane ◊ (Japanese C) Grus japonensis Up to 62 at Yangcheng. Common Crane Grus grus Fairly common and widespread.

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Eurasian Curlew (Simon Colenutt).

Hooded Crane ◊ Grus monacha One at Yangcheng and ten or so at Poyang. Black-necked Crane ◊ Grus nigricollis A total of ca150 at Caohai including some great views. Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus Good numbers near Yangkou and 2 at Changle. Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus Four at Poyang. Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta Good numbers near Yangkou Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus Grey-headed Lapwing ◊ Vanellus cinereus One at Caohai. Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva One at Changle. Grey Plover (Black-bellied P) Pluvialis squatarola Long-billed Plover ◊ Charadrius placidus Three near Wuyuan. Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius One at Changle. Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus Fairly numerous in suitable wetland habitats. White-faced Plover ◊ (Swinhoe's P) Charadrius [alexandrinus] dealbatus See note. Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus A few on the coast. Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii A few birds on the coast. Greater Painted Snipe Rostratula bengalensis Two birds were flushed at Poyang. Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago Small numbers were noted. Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica 50 near Yangkou and five at Shanyutan. Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus One at Shanyutan Island in Changle. Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata Locally common on the coast. Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus The commonest “shank” on this tour. Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis One at Poyang. Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia Widespread in small numbers. Nordmann’s Greenshank ◊ Tringa guttifer 50 or so near Yangkou. Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola (H) One was heard at Poyang. Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres One at Shanyutan Island in Changle. Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris 12 at Shanyutan Island in Changle. Red Knot Calidris canutus One near Yangkou and 20 at Shanyutan Island in Changle.

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Adult Saunders's Gull on Shanyutan Island near Changle (Simon Colenutt).

Sanderling Calidris alba Common near Yangkou and at Shanyutan. Red-necked Stint (Rufous-n S) Calidris ruficollis One at Poyang and five at Shanyutan. Temminck's Stint Calidris temminckii Two at Poyang. Dunlin Calidris alpina Spoon-billed Sandpiper ◊ Eurynorhynchus pygmeus Great views of one at Shanyutan. See note. Ruff Philomachus pugnax Three at Yangcheng. Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla One first winter bird at Yeyahu in Beijing. See note. Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus Saunders's Gull ◊ Chroicocephalus saundersi One at Yangkou, and two at Shanyutan. Relict Gull ◊ Ichthyaetus relictus Two first-winter birds near Yangkou. Black-tailed Gull ◊ Larus crassirostris One at Yangcheng and another one at Shanyutan. Mew Gull Larus [canus] kamtschatscensis One first-winter bird at Yeyahu in Beijing. Vega Gull (Mongolian G) ◊ Larus [vegae] mongolicus Fairly common and widespread. Lesser Black-backed Gull (Siberian G) ◊ Larus [fuscus] heuglini Small numbers were noted. Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida Rock Dove (feral) Columba livia Oriental Turtle Dove (Rufous T D) Streptopelia orientalis Ssp orientalis. Eurasian Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto Only noted in Beijing and Yangcheng. Spotted Dove Spilopelia chinensis Ssp chinensis. Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis (LO) One at Changle. Brown Wood Owl Strix leptogrammica (H) One was heard at Emeifeng. Collared Owlet Glaucidium brodiei (H) One was heard at Wuyuan. Short-eared Owl Asio flammeus One near Yangkou. Himalayan Swiftlet Aerodramus brevirostris One near Changle whilst waiting for the boa to arrivet. House Swift Apus nipalensis Small numbers were noted on three days. White-throated Kingfisher (W-breasted K) Halcyon smyrnensis Ssp perpulchra. Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis Ssp bengalensis. Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis Three at Poyang. Ssp insignis. Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops Ssp saturata. Great Barbet Megalaima virens One at Emeifeng. Ssp virens.

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Juvenile Amur Falcon (Simon Colenutt).

Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos canicapillus Nine were noted. Ssp nagamichii. Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major A handful of birds were noted. Lesser Yellownape Picus chlorolophus One at Emeifeng. Ssp citrinocristatus. Grey-headed Woodpecker Picus canus A handful of birds were noted. Bay Woodpecker Blythipicus pyrrhotis (H) One at Wuyuan and four on Emeifeng. Ssp sinensis. Pied Falconet Microhierax melanoleucos A family party of six at Xiao Qi. Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus Amur Falcon Falco amurensis A total of 18 including juveniles and adults of both sexes. Merlin Falco columbarius Five at Yangcheng. Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus A total of five were noted. Grey-chinned Minivet Pericrocotus solaris Ten in the Wuyuan region. Ssp griseigularis. Long-tailed Shrike Lanius schach Common and widespread but not seen in Beijing. Ssp schach. Grey-backed Shrike Lanius tephronotus One in Guizhou. Chinese Grey Shrike ◊ Lanius sphenocercus A total of eight were noted. Black Drongo Dicrurus macrocercus Two at Lake Poyang. Eurasian Jay Garrulus glandarius Small numbers were noted. Ssp sinensis. Azure-winged Magpie (Asian A-w M) Cyanopica cyanus Red-billed Blue Magpie (Blue Magpie) Urocissa erythroryncha Grey Treepie Dendrocitta formosae Small numbers in Wuyuan. Ssp sinica. Eurasian Magpie Pica pica Ssp sericea. Spotted Nutcracker Nucifraga caryocatactes Three in Guizhou. Daurian Jackdaw Coloeus dauuricus 15 in a huge flock of Rooks in the Poyang area. Rook (Oriental Rook) Corvus [frugilegus] pastinator A huge flock in the Poyang area. Carrion Crow Corvus corone Small numbers around Lake Caohai. Ssp orientalis. Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos Noted in the Beijing area. Ssp colonorum. Yellow-bellied Tit ◊ Periparus venustulus Six at Ming Tombs in Beijing. Also heard in Wuyuan. Yellow-cheeked Tit Machiolophus spilonotus A handful of birds on Emeifeng. Marsh Tit Poecile palustris Seen in the Beijing area. Ssp hellmayri. Japanese Tit Parus minor Common and widespread. See note. Green-backed Tit Parus monticolus Noted in Guizhou. Ssp yunnanensis. Chinese Penduline Tit ◊ Remiz consobrinus Fairly common in suitable habitat.

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Pacific Swallow, apparently only the second record for mainland China (Simon Colenutt).

Bearded Reedling Panurus biarmicus (H) Two groups were heard at Yeyahu in Beijing. Oriental Skylark Alauda gulgula Fairly common around Lake Poyang and in the Changle area. Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis Fairly common around Yangcheng and Yangkou. Collared Finchbill ◊ Spizixos semitorques Ssp semitorques. Brown-breasted Bulbul Pycnonotus xanthorrhous Small numbers in Guizhou. Light-vented Bulbul (Chinese Bulbul) ◊ Pycnonotus sinensis Common and widespread. Mountain Bulbul Ixos mcclellandii Small numbers on Emeifeng. Ssp holtii. Chestnut Bulbul ◊ Hemixos castanonotus Good numbers on Emeifeng, also seen in Wuyuan. Sand Martin Riparia riparia One in the Changle area. Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica Only small numbers were noted. Pacific Swallow Hirundo tahitica Second record for mainland China! See note. Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica One in the Changle area. Rufous-faced Warbler Abroscopus albogularis Noted on Emeifeng and in Guiyang. Ssp fulvifacies. Brown-flanked Bush Warbler ◊ Horornis fortipes One in the city park in Guiyang. Ssp davidiana. Silver-throated Bushtit ◊ Aegithalos glaucogularis Three encounters in Beijing. Ssp vinaceus. Black-throated Bushtit Aegithalos concinnus Ssp concinnus. Black-browed Bushtit Aegithalos bonvaloti Great views of an excited flock in Guizhou. Dusky Warbler Phylloscopus fuscatus Locally fairly common. Radde’s Warbler Phylloscopus schwartzi Two on Emeifeng. Buff-throated Warbler Phylloscopus subaffinis One at Caohai. Pallas's Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus proregulus Widespread in fairly good numbers. Yellow-browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus Widespread in fairly good numbers. Chestnut-crowned Warbler Seicercus castaniceps One in Guiyang. Oriental Reed Warbler Acrocephalus orientalis Three in the Changle area. A write-in. Black-browed Reed Warbler Acrocephalus bistrigiceps A total of six were noted. Marsh Grassbird ◊ Locustella pryeri One was seen well at Poyang, where we also heard few birds. Zitting Cisticola (Fan-tailed Warbler) Cisticola juncidis Ssp tinnabulans. Yellow-bellied Prinia Prinia flaviventris Ssp sonitans. Plain Prinia Prinia inornata Fairly common in suitable habitat. Bird of the trip for Simon! Black-streaked Scimitar Babbler ◊ Pomatorhinus gravivox Noted in Guizhou. Grey-sided Scimitar Babbler ◊ Pomatorhinus swinhoei Noted on Emeifeng and Wuyuan. Streak-breasted Scimitar Babbler Pomatorhinus ruficollis Rufous-capped Babbler ◊ Stachyridopsis ruficeps Noted in Wuyuan and Emeifeng. Ssp davidi. Rusty-capped ◊ dubia Some excellent sightings in Guizhou. Huet's Fulvetta ◊ Alcippe hueti Fairly common on Emeifeng and Wuyuan.

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Elliott's Laughingthrush in the "hidden valley of Yi" (Alec Gillespie).

Chinese Babax Babax lanceolatus Common in the ‘Hidden Valley of Yi’ in Guizhou. Ssp latouchei. Chinese Hwamei ◊ canorus Noted at three different sites. Ssp canorus. Moustached Laughingthrush ◊ Garrulax cineraceus A pair at Wuyuan was a nice surprise. Masked Laughingthrush Garrulax perspicillatus Seen at Wuyuan and heard near Changle. Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush Garrulax pectoralis Two encounters on Emeifeng. Plain Laughingthrush ◊ (Père David’s L) Garrulax davidi Several encounters in the Beijing area. White-browed Laughingthrush ◊ Garrulax sannio Noted in Jiangxi and Guizhou. Ssp sannio. Elliot's Laughingthrush ◊ Trochalopteron elliotii Great views in Guizhou, where locally common. Red-billed Leiothrix Leiothrix lutea Noted in Wuyuan and Guizhou. Spectacled Fulvetta ◊ Fulvetta ruficapilla See note. Grey-hooded Fulvetta ◊ Fulvetta cinereiceps See note.

White-browed Laughingthrush (Alec Gillespie) and Chinese Hwamei (Simon Colenutt).

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Grey-hooded Fulvetta and Spectacled Fulvetta (Alec Gillespie).

Beijing Babbler ◊ (Chinese Hill Warbler) pekinensis See note. Vinous-throated Parrotbill ◊ Sinosuthora webbiana Quite widespread and locally very common. Ashy-throated Parrotbill ◊ Sinosuthora alphonsiana Two small flocks in Guizhou. Spot-breasted Parrotbill ◊ Paradoxornis guttaticollis Great views of three in Guizhou. Reed Parrotbill ◊ (Chinese P) Paradoxornis heudei A flock of six in Yangcheng. White-collared Yuhina ◊ Yuhina diademata See note. Black-chinned Yuhina Yuhina nigrimenta (H) Heard only on Emeifeng. Japanese White-eye Zosterops japonicus Ssp simplex. Goldcrest Regulus regulus In Beijing and Yangchen one each. Ssp japonensis.

White-collared Yuhina in Guizhou (Alec Gillespie).

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Spotted Elachura ◊ Elachura formosa (H) Two were heard singing in the Wuyuan area. See note. Chinese Nuthatch Sitta villosa Great views at Badaling and Ming Tombs in Beijing. Ssp villosa. Crested Myna ◊ Acridotheres cristatellus Red-billed Starling ◊ Spodiopsar sericeus White-cheeked Starling ◊ Spodiopsar cineraceus Black-collared Starling Gracupica nigricollis White's Thrush ◊ Zoothera aurea A total of five with excellent views of one in Yangkou. Grey-backed Thrush ◊ Turdus hortulorum Three were noted. Japanese Thrush ◊ Turdus cardis A first-winter male at Yangkou were a great surprise. Chinese Blackbird ◊ (Mandarin B) Turdus mandarinus Fairly common and widespread. Eyebrowed Thrush ◊ Turdus obscurus Only one, in Yangkou, was identified. Pale Thrush ◊ Turdus pallidus Ten or so were noted. Red-throated Thrush ◊ Turdus ruficollis Four, with some good views, at Ming Tombs in Beijing. Naumann’s Thrush ◊ Turdus naumanni Good numbers in Beijing and north of Shanghai. Dusky Thrush ◊ Turdus eunomus Fairly common in the north. Also noted at Emeifeng. Chinese Thrush ◊ (C Song T) Turdus mupinensis (NL) One at Yangcheng. Asian Brown Flycatcher Muscicapa dauurica Two were noted. A write-in. Oriental Magpie-robin Copsychus saularis Ssp prosthopellus. Bluethroat Luscinia svecica (NL) One at Poyang. Siberian Rubythroat Luscinia calliope Four in the reedbeds in the Changle area. Red-flanked Bluetail (Northern Red-flanked B) Tarsiger cyanurus Widespread in small numbers. Slaty-backed Forktail Enicurus schistaceus Four on Emeifeng. Ssp. sinensis. White-crowned Forktail Enicurus leschenaulti One at Kengkou in Wuyuan, and four on Emeifeng. Spotted Forktail Enicurus maculata Four on Emeifeng. Blue Whistling Thrush Myophonus caeruleus Noted on Emeifeng and in Guizhou. Mugimaki Flycatcher Ficedula mugimaki Two, male and female, in Yangcheng. Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus Widespread, seen almost daily after we left Beijing. Blue-fronted Redstart Phoenicurus frontalis One attractive male in Guizhou. Plumbeous Water Redstart Phoenicurus fuliginosus Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius One in Guizhou. Brown Dipper Cinclus pallasi One at Emeifeng. Stejneger's Stonechat ◊ Saxicola stejnegeri Widespread in small numbers. Fire-breasted Flowerpecker Dicaeum ignipectus (H) Two in the Changle area. Russet Sparrow Passer rutilans Small numbers in Guizhou. Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus White-rumped Munia Lonchura striata Ssp swinhoei. Scaly-breasted Munia Lonchura punctulata Ssp topela. Siberian Accentor ◊ Prunella montanella A total of 15 in the Beijing region. Eastern Yellow Wagtail Motacilla [tschutscensis] taivana Common in the Changle area. Tibetan Wagtail Motacilla [citreola] calcarata A few at Caohai. See Note. Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea Himalayan Wagtail Motacilla [alba] alboides Fairly common in Guizhou. Amur Wagtail Motacilla [alba] leucopsis Quite widespread, but not noted in Beijing and Guizhou. East Siberian Wagtail ◊ Motacilla [alba] ocularis Noted in Yangcheng, Fujian and Poyang. Richard’s Pipit Anthus richardi Fairly widespread. . Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni Widepread in small numbers. Rosy Pipit Anthus roseatus Good numbers in Guizhou. Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus Widepread in small numbers. Buff-bellied Pipit (American Pipit) Anthus rubescens Widespread in good numbers. Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta Noted in the Poyang area. Common Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs One at Ming Tombs. A scarce winter visitor to Beijing area. Brambling ◊ Fringilla montifringilla Common and widespread.

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Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes One at Yangcheng. Chinese Grosbeak ◊ Yellow-billed Grosbeak Eophona migratoria Widespread. Vinaceous Rosefinch ◊ Carpodacus vinaceus Three in the ‘Hidden Valley of Yi’ in Guizhou. Grey-capped Greenfinch ◊ (Oriental G) Chloris sinica Widespread in small numbers. Black-headed Greenfinch ◊ Chloris ambigua Four in Guizhou. Godlewski’s Bunting Emberiza godlewskii One at Ming Tombs in Beijing. Meadow Bunting ◊ Emberiza cioides Seen at Ming Tombs in Beijing and in Guizhou. Tristram’s Bunting Emberiza tristrami One at Wuyuan and another at Emeifeng. Chestnut-eared Bunting ◊ Emberiza fucata Fairly common in suitable wetland habitat. Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla Widspread in small numbers. Yellow-browed Bunting ◊ Emberiza chrysophrys Two at Wuyuan and 10 on Emeifeng. Rustic Bunting ◊ Emberiza rustica Small numbers in Beijing and north of Shanghai. Yellow-throated Bunting ◊ Emberiza elegans Widespread in small numbers. Black-faced Bunting Emberiza spodocephala Widespread in mostly small numbers. Pallas’s Reed Bunting ◊ Emberiza pallasi Fairly common in Beijing and Yangcheng. Common Reed Bunting Emberiza schoeniclus Two at Yangcheng. Lapland Longspur ◊ Calcarius lapponicus Noted in Yangcheng and Yangkou. Ssp coloratus.

Male Yellow-throated Bunting and female Black-faced Bunting (Alec Gillespie).

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Little Bunting (Alec Gillespie) and Chestnut-eared Bunting (Simon Colenutt).

Female (left) and male (right) Pallas's Reed Bunting (Simon Colenutt).

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Tristram's Bunting and Yellow-browed Bunting (Simon Colenutt).

Daurian Redstart, female (left) and male (Simon Colenutt).

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Maritime Striped Squirrel at Wuyuan (Simon Colenutt).

MAMMALS

Père David’s Rock Squirrel Scuriotamias davidianus One at Badaling . Perny's Squirrel (P's Long-nosed S) Dremomys pernyi Maritime Striped Squirrel (Formosan S S) Tamiops maritimus A few were seen. Eurasian Red Squirrel Sciurus vulgaris Four at Ming Tombs in Beijing. Hoary Bamboo Rat Rhizomys pruinosus One on Emeifeng. Siberian Weasel Mustela sibirica Two at Poyang. Rhesus Macaque Macaca mulatta Numerous in Guiyang. Chinese Water Deer Hydropotes inermis Four at Poyang.

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Wader watching on Shanyutan Island near Changle (Catherine Gillespie).

NOTES TO THE SYSTEMATIC LIST

Black Kite Milvus migrans The form lineatus encountered on this tour is sometimes treated as a separate species Black-eared Kite Milvus lineatus.

White-faced Plover (Swinhoe's P) Charadrius [alexandrinus] dealbatus Good numbers were observed among Kentish Plovers at Shanyutan. This form is separated from Kentish Plover on the basis of its slightly larger size, more robust bill, paler, warmer mantle colour and rather extensive reddish brown tones to crown and ear-coverts. At this time of the year dealbatus is not as distinctive (e.g. lacking the dark loral stripe) as it is in spring/summer, but is still easy to pick out from a flock of Kentish Plovers. There is a lot of confusion and debate over this form still, and it may end up being treated as a distinctive form of Kentish Plover, or as a new species in its own right. We have treated it as an allospecies for recording purposes.

Spoon-billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus Great views of one at Shanyutan. This charismatic species is listed as Critically Endangered by BirdLife International because it has an extremely small population (estimated in 2014 to be 210-229 breeding pairs with a post-breeding population of adults and immatures of 661–718 individuals) that is undergoing an extremely rapid population reduction. Collected data indicate a reduction of 88% between 2002 and 2009, equating to an annual rate of decline of 26%. This is because of a number of factors, including habitat loss in its breeding, passage and wintering grounds, compounded by disturbance, hunting and the effects of climate change. Since 2012, to combat poor fledging success, freshly laid eggs collected from nests are being hatched and young raised in captivity close to the breeding sites, and then released to migrate south with wild-bred juveniles.

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Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla We observed a first-winter bird with Black-headed Gulls at Yeyahu in Beijing on 5th November. This is apparently a very rare bird in the Beijing area with perhaps seven previous records. An adult bird was observed at the same time at another wetland near Beijing.

Japanese Tit Parus minor Common and widespread. Subspecies artatus in the north and commixtus in the south. Note that the Birds of East Asia (Brazil, 2009) splits this form into two species; Eastern Great Tit P. minor, which we encountered in several areas, and Southern Great Tit P. cinereus, which we saw in Fuzhou, but IOC doesn't follow this treatment listing the form in Fuzhou (commixtus) under Japanese Tit.

Pacific Swallow Hirundo tahitica One bird (see photos) with two Barn Swallows near Changle on 17th November. This is possibly the second record of this species in mainland China! The first was recorded in Hongkong in early October 2016 in the aftermath of typhoon Megi. Pacific Swallow is common in Taiwan, and it has also been listed for Matsu and Kinmen, Taiwan.administered islands a few km off the coast of Fujian.

Spectacled Fulvetta Fulvetta ruficapilla Good views in the ‘Hidden Valley of Yi’ in Guizhou. Ssp sordidor.

Grey-hooded Fulvetta Fulvetta cinereiceps Fairly common in the ‘Hidden Valley of Yi’ in Guizhou. Ssp cinereiceps.

Beijing Babbler (Chinese Hill Warbler) Rhopophilus pekinensis Good sightings in the Beijing area. The IOC World List now treats this unusual species as a sylviid babbler, and splits it into two species, calling the form we encountered as Beijing Babbler R. pekinensis and the form encountered further west in China as Tarim Babbler R. albosuperciliaris.

White-collared Yuhina Yuhina diademata Fairly common in the ‘Hidden Valley of Yi’ in Guizhou. Nominate subspecies.

Spotted Elachura Elachura formosa Two were heard singing in the Wuyuan area. Spotted Wren-Babbler is now known to belong a relict lineage of birds not related to babblers at all. It is now assigned to a new monotypic family Elachuridae, genus Elachura.

Citrine Wagtail Motacilla [citreola] calcarata The black-backed form calcarata encountered on this tour is treated as subspecies of Citrine Wagtail by IOC

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