Spring Is Here!

Recently, before and since my trip to New Zealand I didn't really have much time to go out birding, so most of my photos are from before the trip. 

Back tracking a few weeks before going to New Zealand, I was able to squeeze the time for a venture up Ping Fung Shan at Pat Sing Leng Country Park to look for upland pipits. 

The first bird that we got at the entrance gate was a few confiding velvet fronted nuthatches, followed by a speckled piculet, asian emerald dove, indochinese green magpie and orange bellied leafbird.

Velvet Fronted Nuthatch

Speckled Piculet

Asian Emerald Dove

Indochinese Green Magpie

Orange bellied Leafbird

The hike up the steep slope was fairly uneventful, I only heard a few Chinese Grassbirds calling. Once I reached the summit, I saw a distant bird perched on the rock, though with my photos it is too blurry to ID. The likely possible birds includes blue rock thrush, upland pipit, richards pipit.

Steep Stairs up Ping Fung Shan

Blue rock thrush / Upland pipit / Richards pipit

Over at Mai Po, spring migration has started off great, and the best part of this was that I had got the closed area permit, meaning that we could go out into the boardwalk where most of the birds occurred. Some birds that I got which were evocative of spring were a Long toed Stint, Nordmann's Greenshank and pair of Sharp tailed Sandpipers and a Ruddy Turnstone. 

 

Long Toed Stint

Nordmann's Greenshank - far left

Sharp Tailed Sandpipers

Ruddy Turnstone

Black Faced Spoonbills are now in full breeding plumage, getting their beautiful golden crowns, though they remained fairly far away. In addition to that, we also got Caspian Tern and Far Eastern Curlews. On our way back, I got my best views of a black faced bunting, as it jumped up on a branch and started singing!

Black Faced Spoonbills - in breeding photos

Assorted Waders - Caspian Tern, Far Eastern Curlew, Black headed Gulls and Gull billed Terns

Black Faced Bunting

I stopped by on the Tower Hide, where the Japanese Quail which had been showing for the last few weeks, and I was not disappointed, as I got great views of it feeding on the footpath. On our way out, I spotted a Eurasian Magpie, which I had noticed to be in decline these last few years....

Japanese Quail

Eurasian Magpie

Near my local patch, things had been going pretty well with the residents Swinhoe's White Eyes and Blue Whistling Thrushes breeding! Other than that, there was nothing out of the ordinary so far.

Swinhoe's White Eye - at nest

Blue Whistling Thrush - food for chicks