Birds News from Patrick Blake, Melanie Proteau Blake, Bradlee Sulentic, and Jason Loghry
Our birding party focused on the Korean National Arboretum, spending the bulk of the day scouring the grounds for migrants. Our spirits (not to mention our clothes, equipment, and everything else) were dampened by the continuous rain that started soon after our arrival. The birding slowed to a crawl while the rain continued, but exploded once the weather broke around 3pm. Below is a list of the species observed throughout the day:
1. Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata (8)
2. Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis (1)
3. Grey Heron Ardea cinereus (2)
4. Solitary Snipe Gallinago solitaria (2, including 1 flyover)
5. Oriental Turtle Dove Streptopelia orientalis (2)
6. Eurasian Eagle-Owl Bubo bubo (1)
7. Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos kizuki (4)
8. Grey-capped Pygmy Woodpecker Dendrocopos canicapillus (2)
9. Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major (3)
10. Bull-headed Shrike Lanius bucephalus (2)
11. Eurasian Jay Garrulus glandarius (3)
12. Eurasian Magpie Pica pica (2)
13. Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos (9+)
14. Marsh Tit Poecile palustris (4)
15. Varied Tit Poecile varius (3)
16. Coal Tit Periparus ater (5)
17. Yellow-bellied Tit Periparus venustulus (9+)
18. Eastern Great Tit Parus minor (16+)
19. Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudacutus (7)
20. Eurasian Nuthatch Sitta europaea (2)
21. Eurasian Treecreeper Certhia familiaris (1 BS, PB, MPB)
22. Brown-eared Bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis (40+)
23. Yellow-throated Bunting Emberiza elegans (30+)
24. Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica (60+, JL)
25. Brown Dipper Cinclus pallasii (1, JL)
26. Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes (18+)
Solitary Snipe Gallinago solitaria, © Patrick Blake
Eurasian Eagle-Owl Bubo bubo, © Patrick Blake