Xinjiang 5th 18th April 2009
These are species seen during a short visit to the Urumqi area of Xinjiang. The sightings are all incidental in that they are records of birds seen while on a family holiday. They are not intended to be systematic and there was no stage in the two weeks when I was solely birding (usually accompanied by driver or guides who couldn't get the birding idea at all).
Urumqi and surrounding area
Great Egret
Long-legged Buzzard
Black-eared Kite
Barbary Falcon - chasing pigeons in city centre
Kestrel
Feral Pigeon
Common Swift
European Roller
Hoopoe
Barn Swallow
White Wagtail
Isabelline/Rufous-tailed Shrike
Common Starling
Blackbird
Great Tit (yellow-bellied)
Azure Tit
House Sparrow
Turpan and surrounding area (7th-9th April)
Mallard
Gadwall
Pallid Harrier
Lesser Kestrel
Northern Lapwing
Kentish Plover
Common Redshank
Yellow-legged Gull
Oriental Turtle Dove
Collared Dove
Laughing Dove
Little Owl
Hoopoe
Crested Lark
Crag Martin
White Wagtail
Richards Pipit
Isabelline/Rufous-tailed Shrike
Lesser Grey Shrike
Blackbird
Tree Sparrow - the sparrow of the area common everywhere
Desert Finch
Tianchi (10th April)
Black-eared Kite
Long-legged Buzzard
Common Buzzard (Steppe Buzzard)
Imperial Eagle
Himalayan Griffon
Lammergeier - at least 3
Grey Wagtail
White Wagtail (Masked Wagtail)
Carrion Crow
Raven
White-throated Dipper
Brown Dipper
Winter Wren
Rufous-backed Redstart
Dark-throated Thrush
Blackbird
Mistle Thrush
Coal Tit
Red-fronted Serin
Not bad for a couple of weeks of not birding!
Does anyone know the status of Black-eared Kite (is it a separate species from Black Kite or merely a race?)?
Just realised that the list for Urumqi should have included Shikra (fancy forgetting a lifer!)
Other lifers were:
Long-legged Buzzard
Barbary Falcon
Isabelline Shrike
Laughing Dove
Desert Finch
Oriental Turtle Dove
Lesser Grey Shrike
Pallid Harrier
Lesser Kestrel
Rufous-backed Redstart
Dark-throated Thrush
Brown Dipper
Red-fronted Serin
Imperial Eagle
Himalayan Griffon
Lammergeier
Azure Tit
I'm going to claim that this was a combination of jet lag and using an older fieldguide to sequence my records - the gull I saw was obviously Caspian not Yellow-legged.