Sichuan, China 

20th May – 8th June 2007

Leader: James Eaton

Participants: Hemme Batjes, Andrew Duff, Duncan Himes,
Ann Lawson, Brian Sykes and Peter & Dorothy Webster

Temminck’s Tragopan, Wuyipeng Research Station          (James Eaton/Birdtour Asia)

Sichuan is doubtless one of the most fascinating bird regions in the eastern Palaearctic, and a hotspot for pheasants, laughingthrushes, warblers, parrotbills and many other groups that are high on the agenda of the travelling birdwatcher. This tour was no exception and was an unforgettable birding experience, with sightings of some of the rarest and most enigmatic birds of Asia. Our trip harvest was exceptional; 14 galliforms seen well(including Blue Eared Pheasant, Chinese Monal & male Golden Pheasant), 7 parrotbills, 30 warblers, 12 Laughingthrushes, and great views of 26 babbler species, in addition to many other specialties.
After arrival into Chengdu we made an afternoon excursion to Huan Huanxi Park in downtown Chengdu. Our afternoon in the Red Basin’s subtropical heat was spent admiring Chinese Blackbirds and convincing the blurry-eyed participants of its credentials as a good species while impressive Chinese Grosbeaks hopped about on the restaurant tables and large, roving flocks of Black-throated Tits and Vinous-throated Parrotbills buzzed through the ornamental bamboo thickets accompanied a single Ashy-throated Parrotbill - a welcome early addition to the tour list. Our first of 12 species of Laughingthrush recorded on the tour was found here with numerous confiding White-browed Laughingthrushes hopping about on the freshly mown lawns. Chinese Bulbuls and Collared Finchbill constantly revealed their presence with their raucous songs, a trait that would continue throughout our journey. During the late afternoon we scanned the tree tops for starlings, but we were unsuccessful and would have to wait until our final afternoon before we finally connected with several White-cheeked. Our evening meal introduced us to the wonders of the famed Sichuanese food and our collective dislike for Tofu and those hot, hot, spices (sorry Brian!).
Our first full day was largely a driving day, as we made the journey 350km north to Juizhaigou; studying the shift in cultures as we passed through the various villages, becoming more Tibetan the further north we drove. Birding was restricted to a few pit-stops but this still gave us singing Daurian Redstart, Japanese Tit (a justified split from Great Tit), Red-billed Chough and Pacific Swifts along with Common Pheasant, a species noted with considerable excitement among the European contingent! Our first ‘proper’ birding stop wasn’t until the late afternoon, when a walk through the open spruce forest south of Juizhaigou produced a wonderful pair of Crested Tit-Warblers below eye-level, the male performing a remarkable display, shimmering his wings with crest erect, dancing around the female, a superb introduction to Sichuans bird-life. Our first encounter with the perplexing Phylloscopus warblers of the region was with the readily identifiable Tickell’s Lear-Warbler, busy feeding in the nearby bushes along with gaudy Blue-fronted and White-throated Redstarts and two Pink-rumped Rosefinch, the latter our only sightings of the tour. Busy feeding parties of tits comprised Grey-crested, Rufous-vented and Coal, the latter here of the completely dissimilar, crested subspecies aemodius, which (as DNA studies have it) may actually be closer genetically to the western Himalayan Spot-winged Tit. Our second galliform of the day, 3 Blood Pheasants weren’t so co-operative but their time would come in due course.

  

            Blue Eared-Pheasant, Roeurgei                                Black-necked Crane, Roeurgei

We began our next morning full of anticipation of what lay in store in the scenically spectacular Juizhaigou National Park, an outstanding world heritage site. The one draw back about the park is the strict opening hours, though we were able to have our own vehicle during our 2-day stay here, so not having to keep with the usual routine of using the parks rigid bus system. Our main target bird was the little-known Rufous-headed Robin, a fine songster, and though we were able to admire its wonderful chorus we could only manage mere glimpses of this highly elusive species. Juizhaigou can be teeming with birds, and though it took a while, we eventually found them, and began to enjoy the birds as they competed with the scenery for our attentions. Phylloscopus warblers kept us entertained as we went through their characteristics, Chinese Leaf-Warblers were particularly conspicuous as they sang continually from the tree-tops, Sichuan (split from Lemon-rumped), Claudia’s (split from Blyth’s), Large-billed, Hume’s, Buff-barred, Greenish and finally, Yellow-streaked Warblers all performed as hoped. The higher reaches of the valleys held Tibetan Siskin, chunky White-winged Grosbeak, numerous Elliot’s Laughingthrushes, a fine pair of Vinaceous Rosefinch and Bar-tailed Treecreeper amongst its commoner relative, the recently-split (from Eurasian) Hodgson’s Treecreeper. Overhead Golden Eagles soared the skies above the mighty rock faces. Lower down the valley, the side-trails produced a new set of avifauna for us, Pere David’s Tits sulked in the rain, a Black-streaked Scimitar-babbler (split off from the ‘Spot-breasted’ complex) finally gave itself up and a male Indian Blue-Robin put on a fine performance singing from the road verge. A pair of Chinese Nuthatch turned out to be our only ones on the tour after another skulker, a White-bellied Redstart, had put on an equally impressive performance (had it of been an adult rather than an immature anyway!).
As many of Juizhaigou’s specialties can now be found more readily elsewhere, we departed south then west, birding en-route until we reached the Tibetan town of Roeurgei. Our stops produced many of the hoped-for species with Sukatshev’s Laughingthrush - a shy range-restricted species - seen at two sites, being the most notable. Elsewhere in the spruce forest the freshly budding bushes hosted many Chinese White-browed Rosefinch, though a female Three-barred was just too brief for most, and a pair of Chinese Fulvetta quietly fed on the ground as did a showy pair of vocal Blood Pheasant. A Yellowish-bellied Bush-warbler went through its full repertoire just feet away, sitting on an open branch for all to admire. As we left the forest for the open plains weigoldei Dusky Warbler, Kessler’s Thrush and a fine pair of White-browed Tit-Warblers favoured the low scrub, as White-throated Redstarts became an increasingly common sight. Gaining elevation took us to the vast open plains along the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau, orientalis Carrion Crow competed with Large-billed Crow (of the recently split japonensis group, with this newly-elevated species keeping the common English name), and our first Black-necked Crane graced a nearby marsh, as Horned Lark and Oriental Skylarks ran around us in the foreground.
A brief walk to ‘migrant hill’ in Roeurgei town in the early evening held a surprise Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher, a flyby Red-billed Starling along with large, swirling flocks of Twite on their way to roost.      

  Chinese Grey Shrike, Roeurgei                                  Sichuan Jay, Mengbishan

The previous afternoon we heard the distant croaking calls of the Blue Eared-Pheasant, a species everyone was keen to see, so dawn saw us on-site just in case. Shortly after our wait began, the loud calls again emanated from a spruce-clad valley, before a pair flew across from one side to the other and into a hidden gulley; much to our anguish! In between waiting for the birds to walk out of the gulley the distinctive rattles and cries of Verreaux’s Monal-Partridges suddenly started from behind us, as a bird showed silhouetted against the early morning sky not to be seen again. By this point we were starting to get worried the pheasants had moved back into the forest, but as soon as the leader signalled that another long, demanding walk might be necessary, the birds popped out of the valley and fed in an alpine meadow for the next 20 minutes! Under a bright blue sky we birded the rest of the morning in beautiful coniferous forest along the roadside. A pair of Giant Laughingthrushes performed to perfection under the sun, while a Chinese Grouse whizzed past the vehicle before being relocated as it flew across a gorge for us to admire. Pere David’s Laughingthrushes flocked under the bushes and once again the budding scrub held large numbers of passerines: Common and Beautiful Rosefinches, Great and Sichuan Willow Tit (a taxon split from Songar Tit p.songarus using mtdDNA evidence, which also indicates p. songarus should be best treated as a race of Willow Tit). On our return to Roeurgei town a road block had been put in place at short notice, meaning that unless we took the 250km detour we would have to walk the 5km back to town and forget about our afternoon activities! Fortunately after some quick thinking and phone calls we soon had two small, rustic vehicles on the other side awaiting our arrival. This excitement was followed by mouth-watering views of a family of recently-fledged Chinese Grey Shrikes, a very welcome bonus. Taking our newly acquired vehicles, complete with Tibetan drivers, on to the open plains surrounding a nearby lake ended a splendid day. Roadside birds included White-rumped Snowfinch and Hume’s Ground-tits amongst the colonies of Black-lipped Pika and Himalayan Marmots, carefully scrutinised by eagle-sized Upland Buzzards, seemingly perched on every available telegraph and electricity post; plus a fine sprinkling of Steppe Eagles, and a hunting Sakar Falcon. In the wetter areas Black-necked Cranes became an increasingly common roadside bird and a short walk produced several huge Tibetan Larks, dwarfing the nearby Horned Larks.
Fortunately our driver and minibus made it through the road blocks late the following night enabling us to continue the journey, after a round of applause for his patience and commitment to the cause. Snow sprinkled the landscape overnight, producing a dramatic backdrop to a predominantly driving day. Himalayan Griffons sat patiently in groups waiting for the snow to thaw, with one group containing a fine immature Cinereous Vulture. Hume’s Ground-tit along with orange-bellied rufiventris Black & Hodgson’s Redstarts dotted the roadside, mingling with rosy-rumped Twite. Odd birding stops en-route produced Ferruginous Pochard, lineatus Black Kite, black-backed calcarata Citrine Wagtails, and yet more Pere David’s Laughingthrushes, White-browed Tit-warblers and Chinese Grey Shrikes; before we reached our next base, Maerkang, in the evening.

      

       Grandala, Balang Shan                                    Tibetan Snowcock, Balang Shan

Ready for dawn and full of excitement, saw us on the way up to the cold, mist-glad summit of Mengbishan. Certainly not what we were hoping for, unlike the male Koklass Pheasant sat by the roadside on the way up. Our second bird of the day, Sichuan Jay, could only be identified on shape and call! Our morning was spent moping through the beautiful coniferous forest, succeeding in seeing little until at last the mist started to lift, offering us a glimmer of hope as our first White Eared-Pheasants appeared on the hillside opposite, and Blood Pheasants above us. Then a fine party of stunning Three-banded Rosefinch, quickly followed by a mesmerised Przewalski's Nuthatch that just sat and watched, tentatively looking for its invisible intruder. At lunch Chinese Fulvetta, Giant Laughingthrush, Beautiful, Common and Chinese White-browed Rosefinches joined us once again. Feeling refreshed we neared the summit, this time in fine weather. Soon we were treated to prolonged views of a pair of Verreaux’s Monal-Partridges calling raucously on the slope just above us. Just after handshakes all round, 4 Sichuan Jays glided overhead then started to fed around us within a few metres for 10 minutes, a wonderful experience and a delightful moment as the cameras whirred away on these little-known birds. As our brilliant day came to a close a party of Chinese Babax finally showed, and a singing Firethroat at close-range would be one we would leave for another day, we didn’t want to be too greedy!    
Another driving day and thanks to our good fortune the previous day, we were able to make an early start on the road, via a couple more Blood Pheasants, and head for Wolong National Park, a UNESCO site famed for the Giant Pandas both roaming free and at the captive breeding centre. Driving through a spectacularly deep, long gorge we stopped to admire a close colony of Hill Pigeons as a fully-grown Lammergeier chick peered out of its huge nest, looking ready to make its first flight. 2007 appeared to be the year China would rebuild its public highways, and we were left dismayed as they attempted to relay a 140km road over the scenic Balangshan which would double our driving time. We eventually trudged our way over and down the 4500m high pass, stopping to admire a pair of Tibetan Snowcock in the snow, then hearing their eerie duetting before they flew past together with the mountain back-drop, superb! We would have two full days at the pass, something we were looking forward to for the following day.
One of the highlights of the tour is always the birding at Balangshan, and this year was no exception. Our first of two mornings saw us placed at a strategic viewpoint ready for the early morning sun. Unfortunately the road works had begun early, reducing our chances of seeing our holy grail as the hillside around us shook visibly as dynamite exploded inside for the new tunnel being built. A raucous male White Eared-Pheasant nearby provided a glimmer of hope, then, casually strolling out of the grassy valley were 3 Chinese Monals, including a fine adult male with its multi-coloured plumes glowing in the sunlight, simply stunning! We could now relax, soaking in these magnificent birds, and then carried on birding under the sun with a fabulous backdrop of snow-glad peaks. Birds flowed throughout the morning, so much so, that we cleaned up on all of our target birds - Dark-breasted Rosefinches fed nearby, an adult Lammergeier circled low overhead. As we neared the pass, a Grandala popped up at the roadside, a male of an impossible glowing purple, bounding along an alpine meadow, and a Red-fronted Rosefinch sang from its rocky outcrop. Venturing over the pass both Brandt’s and Plain Mountain-Finches quickly followed as Snow Pigeons whirred around us, then a Snow Partridge was picked up, its silhouette breaking the horizon perfectly. As we settled down for lunch Himalayan Rubythroats were in fine voice as we admired several singing from prominent perches nearby. Due to our success we turned back to our comfortable hotel attempting to avoid the late afternoon road workings. Our second morning saw us ready pre-dawn in the hope of glimpsing lekking Wood Snipes, but despite hearing their bizarre vocalisations below us, the thick mist thwarted our attempts to actually see them. As the weather refused to budge we headed lower down the mountain, finally catching up with a perched Lesser Cuckoo thanks to Ann, whose uncanny knack at picking up cuculus cuckoos was startling, with several more to follow over the next two weeks! This was shortly followed by a Large Hawk-Cuckoo, and a singing White-browed Bush-Robin was most welcome, perched close to the roadside. Two male Firethroats singing at the roadside were even more greatly appreciated, despite the road workers best attempts to drown out our attempts at playback! 
Birding the scrub behind our hotel produced several new trip birds, notably Chinese Thrush and Ferruginous Flycatcher in the conifers, and plentiful but surprisingly elusive Marten’s Warblers singing from the bushes. After much chasing and stalking a co-operative male Golden Pheasant was found glowing inside a favoured bush that it kept returning to, despite our prying eyes. The tour was turning into a galliform mega for us all!

Barred Laughingthrush, Wuyipeng              (James Eaton/Birdtour Asia)

Another major highlight of the Sichuan tour is our 2-night stay at Wuyipeng Research Centre. Situated in the heart of a fairytail moss-clad forest, with a rich bamboo understory, which is home to the iconic Giant Panda. The steep hike up was completed swiftly as our group of sprightly hikers performed the task with no grumblings (of sorts!). Our only Green Shrike-Babbler was found near the top, and after another classic Chinese meal we hit the trail, seeing little by the time the weather had closed-in. Fortunately we arrived back at our lodgings to find a female Temminck’s Tragopan busy chewing on leaves in the mid-story, and as dusk approached a Barred Laughingthrush appeared in front of us, giving exceptional views, a welcome introduction to Wuyipeng!
We awoke full of anticipation the following morning. Slowly walking the trails over the day and the following morning produced some mouth-watering views of a fiery red Temminck’s Tragopan glowing as it fed quietly near to the trail. One of several we observed during our stay, and promptly became our unanimous bird of the tour. Great Parrotbills crunched the bamboo in half at equally close-range. During one of our three Firethroat sightings, an inquisitive Three-toed Parrotbill continually circled and zipped around us, giving some a headache until it eventually began to calm down. Other wanted species kept turning up; a gigantic Spotted Laughingthrush performed nicely, Sooty Tits were seen regularly. Nutcrackers were finally pinned down, a tiny Scaly-breasted Wren-Babbler hopped into view, and a confusing woodpecker situation culminated with us obtaining fine views of both White-backed and Crimson-breasted as various passerine-filled feeding flocks kept us amused in between these highlights. Bidding farewell to this magical forest we descended back to our hotel to begin another roadwork-filled drive south of Chengdu to yet another stunning national park - Wawu Shan - for a 3-night stay.
A morning was all we needed on the bamboo smothered table-top summit. On finally getting out of the tiny cable-car cabins we were greeted by the awesome sight of White-throated Needletails whizzing overhead. The recently discovered Sichuan Treecreeper was one of our first targets to fall, shortly followed by a host of exciting bush-Warblers. Aberrant, Yellowish-bellied, Spotted, Brownish-flanked, Chestnut-crowned and a couple of cracking Brown Bush-Warblers, the latter singing like a sewing-machines from exposed perches! The various tacks, ticks and trills emanating from the dwarf-bamboo came from a host of beautiful creatures; pairs of Fulvous Parrotbills continually responded to our pishing, flitting around our knees. A marvellous experience along with Grey-hooded Fulvetta and the occasional Golden Bush-Robin. Eventually we located a pair of feisty Grey-hooded Parrotbill busy chirping from the bamboo, a really cool bird! Above the bamboo Black-faced Laughingthrush eventually put in an appearance, as did Vinaceous Rosefinch, Stripe-throated Yuhina and Darjeeling Woodpecker.
We spent our final hour admiring the ‘Chinglish’ signs put up around the forest to really bamboozle our minds (See photos below, or e-mail us for more pictures!). 

   

‘Chinglish’ Signs, Huan Huanxi Park (right), Wawu Shan (left)   (James Eaton/Birdtour Asia)

Spending almost 2 days on the lower slopes of the mountain was equally productive. A female Lady Amherst’s Pheasant strolled across the road in the early morning for all to admire, before a showy Emei Leaf Warbler sang from an exposed perch. Many species previously considered specialties of Emei Shan are more readily found here, so we were keen to make the most of the time. Emei Liocichla gradually gave better and better views with each individual we came across. Laughingthrushes were particularly conspicuous during our stay, with some fine groups of Buffy Laughingthrushes, but Red-winged proved rather elusive. Chinese Babax called veraciously with recently fledged young in attendance, and Black-streaked Scimitar-babblers put on a fine performance. Gradually birding lower, the avifaunal shift became noticeable, with three Brown Bullfinches perched close-by followed by a singing Chinese Blue Flycatcher - the finest songster on the tour which put on a wonderful show at the roadside. Eventually a Kloss’s Leaf-Warbler was found singing from a favoured perch, while a Fujian Niltava put in a brief appearance in a deep valley. However one of the favourites was the Lesser Shortwing in full volume, so close that we could see his little tonsils busily vibrating. The bamboo understory along the roadside played host to a different set of little gems to the summit, as colourful Golden-breasted Fulvetta and Golden Parrotbills continually vied for our attention, as did Red-billed Leiothrix and White-collared Yuhina.

Following the lure of Mt Emei we departed Wawu, stopping for a singing Hwamei and several perched Grey-capped Greenfinch. Emei Shan is one of Buddhism’s four Holy Mountains, and owing to its religious significance remains one of the last bastions of subtropical primary forest habitat in Sichuan. We would spend the following three nights at Mt Emei, each at a different elevation so as to take in as much of its rich birdlife as possible. Starting below the summit we noted Blanford’s Rosefinches feeding in the coniferous canopy - always a tricky species. Both the Phylloscopus and Seicercus warblers are a particular feature of the mountain, and it was enjoyable noticing the elevational shift between species as we walked down the long-winding steps to the base of the mountain. From the beginning of the walk we noticed Bianchi’s Warbler, Large-billed and Buff-barred Leaf-Warblers among the numerous feeding flocks, which also held a junco-like male Slaty Bunting, a showy White-browed Shortwing and yet more Emei Liocichla, Golden-breasted Fulvetta and Golden Parrotbill. Some fine songsters during the day included a posing White-bellied Redstart, a surprise Hwamei, a pair of Grey-winged Blackbird and best of all, a Vivid Niltava singing from the pinnacle of a nearby conifer at Xianfeng Monastery, our next overnight stop. Before a welcome rest we went night-birding with two Collared Owlets putting in an appearance at dusk then it wasn’t long before the distant hoots of a Chinese Tawny Owl were heard. Not to be put off, our persistence paid off, as after a tense wait the owl was found perched at eye-level right in front of us! The distinct vocalisations and morphological differences were all noted on this split from the Eurasian Tawny Owl we all know well. The avifaunal shift changed to Marten’s Warbler, Emei, Claudia’s and Sichuan Leaf Warblers shortly before Xianfeng, and during our walk towards the base we noticed the next change as first White-spectacled Warbler appeared, then the final Seicercus of the tour, Alstrom’s Warbler. Also Phylloscopus number 15 of the tour, Sulphur-breasted Warbler finally made an appearance, amazingly our 29th warbler, with just Rufous-faced to go to complete the 30. The stroll down the mountain wasn’t just about the warblers. A Purple Cochoa was found singing from an exposed branch along a ridge top, large numbers of Speckled Wood Pigeon and Wedge-tailed Green Pigeons flocked in their usual fruiting trees. Black-chinned Yuhina were a constant source of pishing amusement, while Chinese Blue Flycatchers put in further appearances, and both Spotted and Little Forktails vied for the position of our favourite forktail.
 
  

              Fulvous Parrotbill, Wawu Shan                        Grey-hooded Parrotbill, Wawu Shan

Birding the base of Emei Shan was to be our final birding. A single Ashy-throated Parrotbill was found in the stream-side vegetation. Along the stream we also completed the full set of Sichuan forktails at this one site, with a gorgeous pair of Slaty-backed being joined by a White-crowned. Recent DNA studies show that the local subspecies sinensis is clearly distinct from its southern Indochinese neighbour, and may well merit species status in the future. Edging towards Fuhu Monastery, famous as the setting of the final fighting scene in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, we ran into a singing Fork-tailed Sunbird and most surprisingly, a Brown-chested Jungle Flycatcher, singing from one of the darker parts of the recreational area, virtually unknown from Sichuan except for a handful of records. All morning we had been hearing Chinese Bamboo-Partridges with little more than glimpses for some, so it was a relief that we all finally managed to get onto our 14th galliform of the tour as it scuttled over a streambed. A nice way to finish this most enjoyable tour.

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