Leader(s): Mark Beaman

A tour which is definitely something completely different! This exciting Birdquest offers the chance to visit some little-known parts of China and see some extremely rare birds whilst experiencing the delights of early 21st century Chinese travel, including some really wonderful food, chopsticks and fiery liquor, elegant city dwellers, smiling peasants, inscrutable officials and probably the last cormorant fishermen in the country. We will begin our ¡®crane and pheasant quest¡¯ through the Middle Kingdom at Beijing, where we will search for Siberian Accentors, Chinese Hill Warblers and P¨¨re David¡¯s Laughingthrushes in the shadow of the Great Wall. Next we travel to the flat, marshy lowlands of the Yancheng reserve on the coast of the Yellow Sea where the incomparable Red-crowned Crane (Asia¡¯s rarest crane) winters in hundreds to escape the icy conditions in its Manchurian and Siberian breeding grounds, and a place where the rare Saunders¡¯s Gull and the impressive Reed Parrotbill are permanent residents, where Dalmatian Pelicans, Black-faced Spoonbills and Relict Gulls winter, and even the threatened Baikal Teal is now a regular visitor. After travelling south and west to Jiangxi province we will first visit the forests of Guan Shan in search of Silver Pheasant, the rare endemic Elliott¡¯s Pheasant, near-endemics such as Collared Finchbill, Chestnut Bulbul and Yellow-bellied Tit, and the little-known Yellow-browed Bunting. Next we will explore the flatlands of the Yangtze valley, where the relatively mild weather during the coldest months creates favourable wintering grounds for countless birds from northern Asia. Only in recent years, following discoveries by China¡¯s tiny band of ornithologists, has the true importance of this region for some of the world¡¯s rarest birds become apparent. At the vast complex of lakes and marshes at Poyang Hu, now well known as one of the world¡¯s greatest wetland reserves (although as yet few westerners have visited it!), large numbers of rare cranes have been found to spend the winter. In the case of one species, the endangered Siberian Crane, the numbers involved are so large (over 1500) that the estimated world population has had to be revised upwards by a factor of five! The stunning White-naped Crane is even more abundant, with over 2000 birds known to winter here, and there are also small numbers of Hooded Crane. As well as being of vital importance for several of the world¡¯s rarest cranes, the reserve has been found to provide the winter quarters for almost the entire world population of the critically endangered Oriental Stork and well over half the population of the rare Swan Goose! A few Lesser White-fronted Geese, Baikal Teals and Baer¡¯s Pochards winter in the area, and there is even a reasonable chance of seeing the almost unknown Swinhoe¡¯s (or Asian Yellow) Rail! Before we leave this exciting province we will visit the Xin River in eastern Jiangxi to admire the rare Scaly-sided Mergansers that winter there, and the Wuyuan area where we should see the endemic Courtois¡¯s Laughingthrush as well as a number of other interesting species. During the tour extension we will fly far to the southwest to remote and mountainous Guizhou province in south-central China. Here we will visit the famous Caohai (the ¡®Sea of Grass¡¯), home to the largest known wintering concentration of Black-necked Cranes, as well as many other Palearctic visitors, not to mention some superb endemic and near-endemic species including the magnificent Reeves¡¯s Pheasant, Chinese Thrush, Elliot¡¯s Laughingthrush, Black-browed Tit, Black-bibbed Tit and Black-headed Greenfinch.

Mark Beaman has travelled throughout the length and breadth of China, spending over two years in total in the field. Since our first visit in 1988, Birdquest has operated a series of tours to these particular regions of China. The tour provides a wonderful opportunity to see the superb wetlands of China and their many exciting specialities, including some of the world¡¯s most endangered waterbirds, and a series of exciting endemic and near-endemic forest species, including two endemic pheasants. An easier tour than most China bird trips in terms of walking effort and travelling conditions, with good to fairly simple accommodations, tasty food and mostly good roads. The walking effort is easy to moderate, with some longer walks in both flat and hilly terrain. Rates at the easier end of the Birdquest spectrum.

A Crane & Pheasant Quest

A tour which is definitely something completely different! This exciting Birdquest offersthe chance to visit some little-known parts of China and see some extremely rare birdswhilst experiencing the delights of early 21st century Chinese travel, including somereally wonderful food, chopsticks and fiery liquor, elegant city dwellers, smilingpeasants, inscrutable officials and probably the last cormorant fishermen in thecountry. We will begin our ¡®crane and pheasant quest¡¯ through the Middle Kingdom atBeijing, where we will search for Siberian Accentors, Chinese Hill Warblers and P¨¨reDavid¡¯s

Laughingthrushes in the shadow of the Great Wall. Next we travel to the flat,

marshy lowlands of the Yancheng reserve on the coast of the Yellow Sea where theincomparable Red-crowned Crane (Asia¡¯s rarest crane) winters in hundreds to escapethe icy conditions in its Manchurian and Siberian breeding grounds, and a place wherethe rare Saunders¡¯s Gull and the impressive Reed Parrotbill are permanent residents,where Dalmatian Pelicans, Black-faced Spoonbills and Relict Gulls winter, and eventhe threatened Baikal Teal is now a regular visitor. After travelling south and west toJiangxi province we will first visit the forests of Guan Shan in search of Silver Pheasant,the rare endemic Elliott¡¯s Pheasant, near-endemics such as Collared Finchbill, Chestnut

Bulbul and Yellow-bellied Tit, and the little-known Yellow-browed Bunting. Next wewill explore the flatlands of the Yangtze valley, where the relatively mild weatherduring the coldest months creates favourable wintering grounds for countless birdsfrom northern Asia. Only in recent years, following discoveries by China¡¯s tiny band ofornithologists, has the true importance of this region for some of the world¡¯s rarestbirds become apparent. At the vast complex of lakes and marshes at Poyang Hu, nowwell known as one of the world¡¯s greatest wetland reserves (although as yet fewwesterners have visited it!), large numbers of rare cranes have been found to spend thewinter. In the case of one species, the endangered Siberian Crane, the numbersinvolved are so large (over 1500) that the estimated world population has had to be

revised upwards by a factor of five! The stunning White-naped Crane is even moreabundant, with over 2000 birds known to winter here, and there are also smallnumbers of Hooded Crane. As well as being of vital importance for several of theworld¡¯s rarest cranes, the reserve has been found to provide the winter quarters foralmost the entire world population of the critically endangered Oriental Stork and wellover half the population of the rare Swan Goose! A few Lesser White-fronted Geese,Baikal Teals and Baer¡¯s Pochards winter in the area, and there is even a reasonablechance of seeing the almost unknown Swinhoe¡¯s (or Asian Yellow) Rail! Before weleave this exciting province we will visit the Xin River in eastern Jiangxi to admire therare Scaly-sided Mergansers that winter there, and the Wuyuan area where we shouldsee the endemic Courtois¡¯s Laughingthrush as well as a number of other interestingspecies. During the tour extension we will fly far to the southwest to remote andmountainous Guizhou province in south-central China. Here we will visit the famousCaohai (the ¡®Sea of Grass¡¯), home to the largest known wintering concentration ofBlack-necked Cranes, as well as many other Palearctic visitors, not to mention somesuperb endemic and near-endemic species including the magnificent Reeves¡¯sPheasant, Chinese Thrush, Elliot¡¯s Laughingthrush, Black-browed Tit, Black-bibbed Tit

and Black-headed Greenfinch.Mark Beaman has travelled throughout the length and breadth of China, spending overtwo years in total in the field. Since our first visit in 1988, Birdquest has operated aseries of tours to these particular regions of China. The tour provides a wonderfulopportunity to see the superb wetlands of China and their many exciting specialities,including some of the world¡¯s most endangered waterbirds, and a series of exciting

endemic and near-endemic forest species, including two endemic pheasants. An easiertour than most China bird trips in terms of walking effort and travelling conditions,with good to fairly simple accommodations, tasty food and mostly good roads. Thewalking effort is easy to moderate, with some longer walks in both flat and hillyterrain. Rates at the easier end of the Birdquest spectrum.

Itinerary

Day 1 Late morning flight from London bound for Beijing.

Day 2 Morning arrival at Beijing for an overnight stay. After a short stop at our hotelwe will head off for some introductory birding.

Day 3 During our stay at Beijing we will explore the environs of the Great Wall andother areas in the capital area. Away from the crowds at the restored sections of thisfamous bulwark against the barbarian hordes we can wander amongst quiet valleysand scrubby hillsides that hold wintering Siberian Accentors and resident endemicChinese Hill Warblers and P¨¨re David¡¯s Laughingthrushes in particular, and also suchspecies as Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Eurasian Collared Dove, Grey-headed, GreatSpotted and Grey-capped Woodpeckers, the near-endemic Chinese Bulbul, Dusky

Thrush, Long-tailed and Marsh Tits, Songar Tit (split from Willow), Japanese Tit (splitfrom Great), Eurasian and Blue Magpies, Asian Azure-winged Magpie (now regardedas specifically distinct from the Iberian population), Large-billed Crow, Eurasian TreeSparrow, Brambling, Grey-capped Greenfinch, and Godlewski¡¯s and MeadowBuntings. This evening we will catch a flight south to Yancheng (¡®Salt City¡¯), situatedclose to the Yellow Sea coast of northern Jiangsu province, for a four nights stay at theYancheng reserve¡¯s surprisingly fancy guesthouse.

Days 4-6 The Yancheng reserve is a vast complex of coastal reedbeds, wet grasslands,lagoons, saltpans, shrimp ponds and river channels situated at the edge of the YellowSea in eastern Jiangsu. The whole coastline is expanding outwards at a rate of up toseveral hundred metres a year due to the gigantic quantities of silt brought down bythe Yangtze River. The strict nature reserve section of Yancheng is limited to 10,000hectares, but the much larger buffer zone is protected to some extent by limitations onland use and non-hunting regulations. Almost incredibly this remarkable wetland,which holds one of the largest winter concentrations of waterbirds in Asia, has beenonly rarely visited by birders. The reserve was primarily established to protect the 800

or more Japanese or Red-crowned Cranes that winter in the area. This incomparablebird is without doubt the most graceful and elegant of all the cranes, and we shall findit hard to tear ourselves away from watching the flighting flocks with their gleamingwhite and contrasting black plumage. Often good numbers of Common Cranes arepresent and the flocks regularly attract a few Hooded Cranes and sometimes evenSandhill Cranes (of the ¡®Lesser¡¯ subspecies) that have failed to cross the Bering Straitfrom their Siberian breeding grounds. Not only is Yancheng notable for its cranes but

also for being the first place that the rare and enigmatic Saunders¡¯s Gull was found tobreed (in 1984): the summer population has now been found to number over 1000and even in mid-winter numbers remain in the area. We should be able to watch thempatrolling areas of open mud, suddenly plummeting down to pick up a crab, theirfavourite food. Indeed Yancheng is a great area for studying Eastern Palearctic gulls, fornot only can one watch Saunders¡¯s Gull, but also Vega Gull, Mongolian Gull (split

from Caspian), the taimyrensis form of Heuglin¡¯s Gull (which may in fact be a hybridpopulation with Vega), Black-headed Gull and, with a bit of luck, Pallas¡¯s (or GreatBlack-headed) Gull and the rare and little-known Relict Gull. Two other endangeredspecialities of Yancheng are the huge Dalmatian Pelican and the attractive Black-facedSpoonbill. The vast reedbeds are haunted by the splendid Reed Parrotbill, the tinyChinese Penduline-Tit, numerous Pallas¡¯s Reed Buntings and smaller numbers ofCommon Reed Buntings (and occasionally a few Japanese Reed Buntings). Largenumbers of wildfowl spend the winter months in this mild region, including TundraBean Goose, Common Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon, the handsome Falcated Duck,Gadwall, Eurasian Teal, Mallard, Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Northern Pintail, NorthernShoveler, Common Pochard and Goosander (or Common Merganser) also, depending

on water levels, Greater Scaup, Common Goldeneye and the handsome Smew. Wealso have a fair chance of coming across the rare and endangered Baikal Teal, surelyone of the world¡¯s most beautiful ducks. Usually numbers are small, but occasionally alarge flock turns up. We will also have our first chance to come across the endangeredDalmatian Pelican and even rarer Black-faced Spoonbill. Other species frequentlyobserved in the area include Little, Great Crested and Black-necked Grebes, GreatCormorant, Great Bittern, Little and Great Egrets, Grey Heron, Eastern Marsh and Hen

(or Northern) Harriers, Common Buzzard (and perhaps even a wintering UplandBuzzard), Merlin, Peregrine, Common (or Ring-necked) Pheasant (here in its naturalhaunts), Common Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Eurasian Oystercatcher (of the rare anddeclining East Asian race), Kentish (or Snowy) Plover, Grey (or Black-bellied) Plover,Dunlin, Eurasian Curlew, Common Greenshank, Green Sandpiper, Caspian Tern,Oriental Turtle and Spotted Doves, Eurasian Hoopoe, Oriental Skylark, Barn Swallow,Buff-bellied (or American) Pipit, Amur Wagtail, Chinese Blackbird (split fromCommon), Zitting Cisticola, the near-endemic Vinous-throated Parrotbill, Long-tailedShrike, the impressive near-endemic Chinese Grey Shrike, White-cheeked Starling, and

Black-faced, Rustic and Little Buntings.

Day 7 After some early morning birding at Yancheng we will head for Shanghai. Thedrive is a long one, but not without interest as we will cross the mighty Yangtze Riveren route and also see considerable evidence of the economic boom which is rapidlytransforming the coastal region, in stark contrast to many poor, remote interior regionsof China. Upon arrival at Shanghai we will catch an early evening flight to Nanchang,capital of Jiangxi province, for an overnight stay.

Day 8 This morning we will drive to the edge of the Poyang Hu wetland complex,situated to the south of the great Yangtze River, passing across a plain covered infallow paddyfields and small villages. This is a good area for finding Baer¡¯s Pochardand sometimes Baikal Teal, but both are uncommon and finding them amongst themass of commoner ducks requires both persistence and luck. Later we will drivesouthwestwards to Guan Shan, an area of forested mountains where we will stay forthe next three nights. We may arrive in time for some initial exploration.

Days 9-10 Guan Shan Nature Reserve consists of 30,000 hectares of primary andsecondary mixed forest, together with conifer plantations and bamboo, at an altitude of500-1500m. The forested peaks loom high above the deep valleys where tumblingstreams and rivers rush downwards towards the plains. We will be staying at a remoteforestry department resthouse in the heart of this partly-exploited reserve and exploringthe tracks and trails that give access to all but the highest areas. Silver Pheasant is stillquite common here and so we should see this superb bird more than once during ourstay. With luck we will also come across the lovely endemic Elliot¡¯s Pheasant, but, aswith most pheasants, it can be hard to find. Other species of interest include the

endemic Chinese Bamboo Partridge and such near-endemics as Collared Finchbill,Chestnut Bulbul, Hwamei and Yellow-bellied Tit, as well as Mountain Hawk-Eagle,Crested Kingfisher, Great Barbet, Grey-chinned Minivet, Mountain and Black Bulbuls,Orange-bellied Leafbird, Brown Dipper, the superb Red-flanked Bluetail, Daurian andPlumbeous Redstarts, Blue Whistling Thrush, White¡¯s Thrush, White-crowned Forktail,Brownish-flanked Bush-Warbler, Pallas¡¯s Leaf Warbler, the delightful little Rufousfaced

Warbler, Rufous-capped Babbler, Red-billed Leiothrix, Striated Yuhina, GreycheekedFulvetta, Japanese White-eye, Grey Treepie, Tristram¡¯s Bunting and the littleknown,restricted-range Yellow-browed Bunting.

Day 11 After a final morning at Guan Shan we will travel back to the margins of thePoyang wetlands and the embarkation point for the next stage of our journey. The littletownship of Wu Cheng, our base for the next three nights, is on an island in the midstof the wetlands and for most of the year can only be reached by boat, adding greatly tothe feeling of remoteness that one experiences when visiting Poyang Hu. In goodweather the final part of the journey, which has to be made by motorized sampan, is adelight. The traditional art of cormorant-fishing still survives in this area and we should

pass one or two small boats with their tethered birds or perhaps even watch theirowners letting them go about their business or reward their more successful employeeswith a piece of fish. Decidedly Chinese-style, flat-bottomed barges ply the channels,often loaded down with unlikely cargoes such as piles of bamboo poles or mountainsof hay that almost completely obscure their bulky wooden superstructures whilstoverhead small groups of cranes and geese make their way between the wetlands. Aswe approach Wu Cheng a large pagoda can be seen at the northernmost point of theisland, built on the site of a lighthouse built centuries ago on the orders of the Chinese

emperor to guide shipping heading up to Nanchang. Here in this remote place we arefar indeed from the realities of early 21st century life in the west.

Days 12-13 Poyang Hu is the largest freshwater lake in China, covering about 3000square kilometres. After the spring and summer rainy season the water levels fallprogressively - creating a mosaic of residual lakes surrounded by dry land around theperiphery of Poyang Hu itself. It is these shallow residual lakes which are of primeimportance to waterbirds and following the discovery of an enormous concentration ofrare cranes and other species in 1981 a reserve of 22,400 hectares was established bythe Chinese authorities. This extensive reserve, situated at the northwestern corner ofthe Poyang complex, is one of the great waterbird sanctuaries of the world, although asyet few people know much about it and even fewer have actually visited it (our firstvisit, in 1988, was the first ever by a birding tour!). During our time here we willexplore a series of lakes and their surrounding marshland, and also the Gan and Xiurivers that flow into Poyang Hu itself near Wu Cheng. Undoubtedly the most exciting

birds of the area are the cranes. Up to 2000 White-naped Cranes, 1500 SiberianCranes and a small number of Hooded Cranes winter in the area and impart their ownspecial magic to it. The V-shaped skeins passing overhead and the cranes dancing andcalling to each other along the lake shores are amongst the most evocative sights andsounds in the avian world. Up to 200 Oriental Storks winter in the area, probably alarge proportion of the world population of this extremely endangered bird, as domany hundreds of Eurasian Spoonbills. The star attraction amongst the hordes ofwildfowl found in the area are the huge numbers of Swan Geese. Over 10,000 winter

in the Poyang area ¨C the majority of the world population. Other wintering geeseinclude over 5000 White-fronted, several hundred Taiga Bean and small numbers ofGreylag. Small numbers of Lesser White-fronted are also present, although they areoften hard to locate amongst the far more numerous Greaters. Up to 2000 Bewick¡¯sSwans occur here as well as large numbers of ducks (mainly comprising EurasianWigeon, Eurasian Teal, Chinese Spot-billed Duck, Mallard, Northern Pintail andNorthern Shoveler). The diversity of wintering waders is not very great this far north,but there are large flocks of Pied Avocets and Spotted Redshanks. One of the mostenigmatic birds in Asia, the poorly-known Swinhoe¡¯s (or Asian Yellow) Railoverwinters here and we shall make a concerted effort to find one, hoping to see thislittle mite flutter up from the ground displaying its broad white wing patches. In typicalyears it is not hard to find, but in dry conditions they seem to be rare or absent. A

number of Great Bustards used to spend the winter in the area, but numbers havedeclined markedly in recent years and nowadays we would be very lucky to find thissplendid bird. Other species of the area include Black-shouldered Kite, Imperial Eagle,Common Kestrel, Japanese Quail, Brown Crake, Northern Lapwing, Common Snipe,Common, White-throated and Pied Kingfishers, Eurasian Skylark (often hard to findamongst the many Orientals), Oriental Magpie-Robin, the localized Japanese SwampWarbler, Plain Prinia, Black-collared Starling, Crested Myna, Scaly-breasted Muniaand the impressive Yellow-billed Grosbeak.

Day 14 After a final morning at Poyang Hu we will return to Nanchang for an

overnight stay.

Day 15 We will leave early this morning so that we can explore the Xin river in

eastern Jiangxi where the rare and little-known Scaly-sided (or Chinese) Merganserwinters in fair numbers. We should obtain great views of at least a few and quitepossibly 20 or more of these beautiful ducks, watching them feeding in the river orchasing each other during territorial squabbles. We also have a good chance of findingthe localized Long-billed Plover on the gravel islands. Later we will continue toWuyuan for an overnight stay, arriving in time for some initial exploration.

Day 16 This interesting area is the home of the extremely restricted-range Courtois¡¯sLaughingthrush, only known from Jiangxi province and formerly included in YellowthroatedLaughingthrush. We will be concentrating on this interesting endemic duringour stay, but other birds of interest include the near-endemic Dusky Fulvetta and ForktailedSunbird, as well as Grey-backed and Pale Thrushes, and Black-throated (or Redheaded)Tit. During the afternoon we will return to Nanchang for an overnight stay.

Day 17 Those not taking the extension will catch a flight to Hong Kong, connectingwith an evening flight bound for London.

Day 18 Morning arrival at London.

Extension Itinerary

Day 17 Morning flight to Guangzhou where we connect with an onward flight to

Guiyang, capital of Guizhou province. From here we will drive to Liupanshui in

western Guizhou for an overnight stay.

Day 18 Today we will drive to Weining, a small town on the shores of the Caohai inwestern Guizhou where we will stay for four nights. Along the way we will be able toadmire the strange conical limestone peaks that dominate this karst landscape area andwhich are a characteristic feature of this part of China. Not far beyond the town ofLiupanshui we will drive over a spectacular mountain pass and on through small,primitive villages inhabited by colourfully-dressed Yi tribespeople. We will stop alongthe way for a first opportunity to search the rocky hills and scrubby valleys and areas

of cultivation for Brown-breasted Bulbul, the endemic Chinese Thrush, the nearendemicSpot-breasted Scimitar Babbler, the near-endemic Chinese Babax, theendemic Elliot¡¯s Laughingthrush, the near-endemic Spectacled and Streak-throatedFulvettas, Rusty-capped Fulvetta, the near-endemic White-collared Yuhina, the nearendemicBlack-browed Tit, the little-known, near-endemic Black-bibbed Tit (split fromMarsh), Green-backed Tit, Chestnut-vented Nuthatch, Eurasian Jay, Russet Sparrow,Brambling and perhaps the secretive Vinaceous Rosefinch.

Days 19-21 Caohai (pronounced ¡®tsow-high¡¯), which means ¡®Sea of Grass¡¯, is one ofthe most fascinating wetland reserves in China. Far from anywhere in particular, theremote Caohai reserve protects 4600 hectares of open water, marshland and wetgrassland. The prime attraction here is the large concentration of the rare Black-neckedCrane. Up to 300 individuals winter in the area and many have become quite tame,tolerating close approach by local fishermen and farmers (or even birdwatchers!). Aswell as the Black-necked Cranes there are several hundred Common Cranes and thearea also holds over 1500 Bar-headed Geese and over 1500 Ruddy Shelducks. Oncalm days one can travel across the ultra-clear waters of the lake by punt, obtainingexcellent views of the huge rafts of ducks and often getting close to both species ofcrane. The range of duck species here includes most of those mentioned for Yanchengand Poyang Hu, and in addition there are good numbers of Red-crested Pochards andFerruginous Ducks. Small numbers of the endangered Baer¡¯s Pochard are an addedattraction, but they can be hard to track down. Other birds at Caohai includeCinnamon Bittern, Chinese Pond and Purple Herons, Cattle Egret, Black-eared Kite(split from Black), Olive-backed Pipit, Citrine Wagtail, Oriental Crow (split fromCarrion) and sometimes Daurian Jackdaw. As well as exploring the Caohai wetland we

will also have opportunities to look for some exciting woodland and scrubland speciesin the surrounding region, including the magnificent endemic Reeves¡¯s Pheasant(surely the most extraordinary of all Chinese pheasants, with a tail of up to 1.6 metresin length!), White-browed Laughingthrush, the restricted-range Black-headedGreenfinch and the smart Yellow-throated Bunting. (As Reeves¡¯s Pheasants can be hardto see, never mind see well, we are allowing enough time for two attempts if need be.)

Day 22 Today we will return to Guiyang and catch an afternoon flight bound for

Hong Kong where we connect with an evening flight bound for London

Day 23 Morning arrival at London.