The weather is changing again. This morning dawned warm and wet, threatening rain, but alas, there was not even a breath of wind to save us. As the thick air clung to our skin, it was clear that it was a welcome change to the creatures of the wetlands.
As the frogs chirped, and the sun rose across the horizon, we were greeted with a common sight in our nets- a Scaley-breasted Munia! This strange species always reminds me of some kind of prehistoric bird dinosaur, with a bill taking up far too much of its face, but it is curiously adorable. Alas, my fingers appreciate it less.
Another species with a less than obvious moult strategy, we age these birds based on the presence of juvenile feathers. In this individual, we can see in the tail that there are two incredibly worn feathers on either side of the central tail feathers (and potentially the central pair also). It is most likely that these are juvenile, retained from last Summer- therefore this must be a 2nd calendar year bird.
As the morning wore on, and the Masked Laughingthrushes mocked us from the bush next to camp, and the Koels persisted with their song of Spring, we continued with quite a few birds in the nets, including an old friend!
This Stejneger’s Stonechat was first ringed in November 2021 and is now a handsome adult male! No moult limits are present in this bird, who shows an all adult plumage. The level of black in the head, face and underwing is what determines him to be an unmistakable male (female would not show this amount of black).
One of our most common species today was the Dusky Warbler! All the juveniles appear to currently be going through a fairly extensive Winter partial moult, with most of their tertials and tails currently growing. Soon they will be in half fresh pre-breeding and half worn juvenile/postjuvenile plumage, ready for Spring migration!
Daily Totals
| Species | Original | Recapture |
| Black-browed Reed Warbler | 0 | 1 |
| Chinese Penduline Tit | 12 | 1 |
| Dusky Warbler | 3 | 6 |
| Olive-backed Pipit | 1 | 0 |
| Plain Prinia | 2 | 1 |
| Red-whiskered Bulbul | 1 | 0 |
| Scaly-breasted Munia | 2 | 0 |
| Siberian Rubythroat | 0 | 1 |
| Stejneger’s Stonechat | 0 | 1 |
| Yellow-bellied Prinia | 1 | 0 |
*Please note that all wild birds, their nests, and eggs are highly protected (under Wild Animals Protection Ordinate, Cap. 170) in Hong Kong. It is an offence to willfully disturb, take, remove, or injure wild birds or their nests/eggs. The actions described here were undertaken by trained professionals holding the necessary licenses and permits issued by the AFCD.*
