Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Da Syue Shan Trail Taiwan





At least twice a year I spend two full days at Da Syue Shan searching for endemic species such as Taiwan Whistling Thrush, the Yellow Tit, Steere’s Liocichlas, White-eared Sibia, Taiwan Yuhina, the Rusty Laughingthrush, and all the other birds you can find here!

However, Da Syue Shan’s primary attraction is the pheasants, and both Swinhoe’s and Mikado are relatively easy to see. I haven’t seen the Mikado pheasant, yet! Both species are used to people and can be found walking along the edge of the road, so if you’re quiet and careful, you should be rewarded with outstanding views.

Birds are plentiful! Really,really plentiful and it's a joy to take pictures!
Da Syue Shan is relatively close to Taichung City, with a population of just over 1 million people, making it the third largest city on the island after Taipei and Kaohsiung. Da Syue Shan is a very popular destination for the city folks and it should be avoided on weekends, if possible! 

Enjoy

Boris



View Larger Map



Here are a few of my favorite pictures I took along the 
Da Syue Shan trail:


Collared Bush-Robin (female)




 White-browed Bush-Robin (male)


White-whiskered Laughingthrush





 The "tree of life" series!


I call this tree the "The tree of life!"

It's a tree at the Da Syue Shan trail (k 23.5 Parking lot) in Taiwan! The hole is filled with water, so many birds come to quench their thirst! It's well known and photographers tend to refill it from time to time.

The White's Thrush or Scaly Thrush 





Vivid Niltava female & male








This was a rare find. A female island trush! Unfortunately not the male!




Two male Vivid Niltava




This is one of the stars! The  Swinhoe's Pheasant! Da Syue Shan is famous for its pheasants!






The female:




Japanese White-eye and sakura blossom








A Pale Thrush




Steere's Liocichla




A Plumbeous Redstart




White-eared Sibia



Friday, July 12, 2013

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Taiwan Blue Magpie

The Taiwan Blue Magpie (Urocissa caerulea), also called the Taiwan Magpie or Formosan Blue Magpie (Chinese: 臺灣藍鵲; pinyin: Táiwān lán què) or the "long-tailed mountain lady" (Chinese: 長尾山娘; pinyin: Chángwěi shānniáng; Taiwanese: Tn̂g-boé soaⁿ-niû), is a member of the Crow family. It is an endemic species living in the mountains of Taiwan at elevations of 300 to 1200m.