Bird News by Patrick Blake and Jason Loghry
Mr. Jason Loghry and I surveyed the area around Naju and Haenam County in southern Jeollanam-do. The weather was clear skies throughout the day, with a continuous light wind in Haenam; despite the sunlight, it was still quite cold and standing in one place for a long time was not to be the order of the day.
We covered a lot of ground and were rewarded with some fantastic birds for our efforts. A complete list of the days sightings is below. A total of 49 species were observed throughout the day.
1. Taiga Bean Goose Anser fabalis
2. Tundra Bean Goose Anser serrirostris
3. Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons; c. 2,000-3,000 birds around Gocheonnam Lake in Haenam – both the nominate and A. a. frontalis subspecies were represented
4. Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythopus; 7+, observed hidden in with the Greater White-fronted Geese
5. Common Shelduck Tadorna tadorna
6. Gadwall Anas strepera
7. Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope
8. Mallard Anas platyrhynchos
9. Eastern Spot-billed Duck Anas zonorhyncha
10. Northern Pintail Anas acuta
11. Common Teal Anas crecca
12. Common Merganser Mergus merganser
13. Red-breasted Merganser Mergus serrator
14. Scaly-sided Merganser Mergus squamata
15. Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis
16. Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus
17. Grey Heron Ardea cinerea
18. Eastern Great Egret Ardea modesta
19. Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo
20. Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus
21. Eastern Marsh Harrier Circus spilonotus
22. Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus; included a beautiful adult male
23. Eastern Buzzard Buteo japonicus; very numerous
24. Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
25. Merlin Falco columbarius; JL only
26. Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus
27. Eurasian Coot Fulica ater
28. Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola
28. Green Sandpiper Tringa glareolus
29. Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago; JL only
30. Vega Gull Larus vegae
31. Mongolian Gull Larus mongolicus
32. Oriental Turtle Dove Streptopelia orientalis
33. Grey-headed Woodpecker Picus canus; heard only near Naju
34. Bull-headed Shrike Lanius bucephalus
35. Eurasian Jay Garrulus glandarius
36. Azure-winged Magpie Cyanopica cyanus
37. Eurasian Magpie Pica pica
38. Eurasian Skylark Alauda arvensis
39. Brown-eared Bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis
40. Vinous-throated Parrotbill Sinosuthora webbiana
41. White-cheeked Starling Spodipsar cineraceus
42. Dusky Thrush Turdus eunomus
43. Daurian Redstart Phoenicurus auroreus; JL only
44. Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus
45. Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea
46. Olive-backed Pipit Anthus hodgsoni
47. Buff-bellied Pipit Anthus rubescens
48. Yellow-throated Bunting Emberiza elegans
49. Pallas’s Reed Bunting Emberiza pallasi
Scaly-sided Merganser Mergus squamatus © Patrick Blake
Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus © Patrick Blake