The day started early and quiet today. This is the first spring we have decided to try trapping in this area, and so far it has proved to be quite quiet regarding the birds.

However, this morning yielded a nice surprise catch of a Baikal Bush Warbler (Locustella davidi)! This individual was currently undergoing a very heavy moult (replacing its feathers- hence the bedraggled appearance).

These guys are fairly rare in Hong Kong, spending their winters here before migrating to the north (N. China, Russia) for breeding. They can be identified by their white-tipped undertail coverts, blackish streaks on the breast and white supercilium (eyebrow), as well as their distinctive, insect-like, buzzing call.

This is just the 2^nd individual to be ringed by the HKBWS. Looking at this bird’s wing (below) we can see that all the primaries have been replaced, and that one secondary is in currently growing, alongside 3 unmoulted (as of yet) secondaries.

This tells us that this bird is going through a complete moult, and will replace all of its feathers, most likely before undertaking its long migration to the north! For us to age this bird, we must be able to look at the retained (old) feathers, and determine if these are of adult or juvenile type.

Other interesting birds today included a beautiful young male Stejneger’s Stonechat, with 6 juvenile Greater coverts (GCs) as well as a 2^nd calander year (born last year) Chestnut-eared Bunting!

In the photos above, note the brown centers to the older, juvenile feathers, in both the old GCs and flight feathers, compared to the black and nice quality to the inner, post juvenile GCs.

Daily Totals

*Please note that all wild birds are protected under Hong Kong Law. All ringing activities are conducted with the necessary permits issued by the AFCD. Handling and processing of birds is only carried out by experienced individuals.*