Yesterday, Hoang informed me he had discovered a Fairy Pitta at Vuon Nhan Vinh Thuy, a scrubby lytchee orchard close to the Red River (and only few kilometers from Hanoi city center)... where 4 Brown-chested Jungle-Flycatchers had been recorded one day before!
Today, I tried my luck at noon. I met there almost all the local bird photographers: Bac, Quyet, Hao, Long, Tien, Hoang and Thanh, all equipped with monster lens... and all very happy with their double megatick (pitta + Jungle-Fly). Never spotted so many Vietnamese birdwatchers together! They informed me that 2 - and not only one - Fairy Pittas were hanging around!
Despite the lack of time (one hour) and the poor weather, I managed to grab a few acceptable 'atmospheric' shots of one of the pittas before it disappeared in the scrub. Hoang and some other fellow birders used a hide + mealworms, so they certainly got clean close-ups - hope they can share here some pics.
The previous - and probably first - record of Fairy Pitta in the city was in April 29, 2015.
Other noteworthy species seen in this area include Hainan, Mugimaki, Dark-sided, Yellow-rumped, Asian Brown Flycatchers, Brown-chested Jungle-Flycatchers (at least 2 ind.), 1 female Siberian Blue Robin, 1 Forest Wagtail, 1 juv. Tiger Shrike, the white morph "Asian Paradise Flycatcher" seen last Sunday.
Sébastien
May have come from Taiwan, China, or from Japan, who knows the story it could tell. If all goes well, in the coming weeks it will arrive in Borneo to spend the winter.
Hey, great to see life again here (and in the small patches in Hanoi)! Looking forward to be there soon. Also nice to read that more people get into birdwatching/photographing. Do they post pics anywhere?
ReplyDeleteCheers, Florian
Hi Florian, they share pictures, sightings etc mainly on Facebook, you should ask Hoang for more details.
ReplyDeleteThis influx of birders was a good show to be seen, it made the owner of the orchard - who use the place as a wedding photos spot - realize that it can also make money from birds. He already drive out poachers -that's a very good point! - and I hope that the presence of bird photographers will encourage him to keep intact the 0,5ha dense scrubby vegetation where most of the migrants are found.