On 24th August I made my first solo trip to Hengsha island since September 2012. By that time, i was new to China, even to birding. Since then Hengsha has changed only a little with reclaimed land here and there and still holding potential habitat for waders and passerines. Getting to the island is not tricky, Passenger ferries leave from Wusong Pier. I usually take the car ferry from Changxing island, 5 minute ferry travel and bingo, i’m in Hengsha, a very good birding destination and a weekend getaway.
The morning started with a bang, a huge flock of Reed Parrotbills were feeding right by the sea wall when i was scoping the waders in the mudflat. I counted 18 birds with only Reed Parrotbills and no Vinous-throated Parrotbill or Plain Prinia’s in the flock, a record count for a single flock. Barn Swallows were in huge no’s which is very usual during the migration, the presence of Pale Martins were not surprising but there were about 12 individuals in different location was another high species count. August is a great time to see the wader migration in Shanghai and with lot of habitat in Hengsha, it proved again that it’s definitely a hot spot for passing birds.
intermedia
The mudflats were completely occupied by busy Calidris. The regular loners in any inland pool, Long-toed Stints were flocking and definitely the majority of the Calidris. Red-necked Stint, Little Stint, Temminck’s Stint, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper were the other Calidris present.
In the reeds close to the ocean mudflat, plenty of Whimbrels and Black-tailed Godwits were busy feeding then they were flushed out by a hungry Eastern Marsh Harrier.
Ouch, not comfortable
still not comfortable
I’m not a dedicated bird photographer who thinks about the aesthetics of bird photography but this Red-necked stint was not too happy about its leg flags and mostly limping.
Other Calidris,
Though Hengsha is slightly disturbed by the cosmo gig of the downtown, the entire village is peaceful and out on the sea wall, i hardly came across single soul in the past. Yes, in the past. To my shock n surprise, the new sea wall is now filled with the fancy fishermen in Cadillacs.
This poor Kentish Plover had lost its toes but was very actively feeding. Hope it survives.
Considerable no of Yellow Wagtails, Brown Shrikes, a lonely Blue Rock Thrush were the passerine migrants for the day.
Special Thanks to Roger for lending me his Leica Televid APO 65mm scope with 25-50x eyepiece, without that i wouldn’t have spotted half of the species.
Species List :
| Common name | Scientific name | Location |
| Herons, Bitterns (Ardeidae) – 6 / 72 | ||
| Yellow Bittern | Ixobrychus sinensis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Black-crowned Night Heron | Nycticorax nycticorax | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Chinese Pond Heron | Ardeola bacchus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Great Egret | Ardea alba | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Intermediate Egret | Egretta intermedia | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Little Egret | Egretta garzetta | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Kites, Hawks and Eagles (Accipitridae) – 1 / 256 | ||
| Eastern Marsh Harrier | Circus spilonotus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Stilts, Avocets (Recurvirostridae) – 1 / 10 | ||
| Black-winged Stilt | Himantopus himantopus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Plovers (Charadriidae) – 3 / 67 | ||
| Little Ringed Plover | Charadrius dubius | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Kentish Plover | Charadrius alexandrinus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Lesser Sand Plover | Charadrius mongolus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Sandpipers, Snipes (Scolopacidae) – 20 / 96 | ||
| Common Snipe | Gallinago gallinago | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Black-tailed Godwit | Limosa limosa | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Whimbrel | Numenius phaeopus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Spotted Redshank | Tringa erythropus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Common Redshank | Tringa totanus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Marsh Sandpiper | Tringa stagnatilis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Common Greenshank | Tringa nebularia | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Wood Sandpiper | Tringa glareola | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Grey-tailed Tattler | Tringa brevipes | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Common Sandpiper | Actitis hypoleucos | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Ruddy Turnstone | Arenaria interpres | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Sanderling | Calidris alba | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Red-necked Stint | Calidris ruficollis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Little Stint | Calidris minuta | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Temminck’s Stint | Calidris temminckii | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Long-toed Stint | Calidris subminuta | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Sharp-tailed Sandpiper | Calidris acuminata | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Curlew Sandpiper | Calidris ferruginea | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Dunlin | Calidris alpina | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Broad-billed Sandpiper | Limicola falcinellus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Gulls, Terns and Skimmers (Laridae) – 4 / 102 | ||
| Gull-billed Tern | Gelochelidon nilotica | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Little Tern | Sternula albifrons | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Common Tern | Sterna hirundo | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| White-winged Tern | Chlidonias leucopterus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Pigeons, Doves (Columbidae) – 1 / 335 | ||
| Spotted Dove | Spilopelia chinensis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Cuckoos (Cuculidae) – 2 / 149 | ||
| Indian Cuckoo | Cuculus micropterus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Common Cuckoo | Cuculus canorus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Kingfishers (Alcedinidae) – 1 / 93 | ||
| Common Kingfisher | Alcedo atthis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Caracaras, Falcons (Falconidae) – 1 / 67 | ||
| Common Kestrel | Falco tinnunculus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Shrikes (Laniidae) – 2 / 33 | ||
| Brown Shrike | Lanius cristatus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Long-tailed Shrike | Lanius schach | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Swallows, Martins (Hirundinidae) – 2 / 88 | ||
| Pale Martin | Riparia diluta | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Barn Swallow | Hirundo rustica | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Grassbirds and allies (Locustellidae) – 1 / 60 | ||
| Marsh Grassbird | Locustella pryeri | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Cisticolas and allies (Cisticolidae) – 2 / 159 | ||
| Zitting Cisticola | Cisticola juncidis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Plain Prinia | Prinia inornata | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Sylviid Babblers (Sylviidae) – 2 / 70 | ||
| Vinous-throated Parrotbill | Sinosuthora webbiana | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Reed Parrotbill | Paradoxornis heudei | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Thrushes (Turdidae) – 1 / 166 | ||
| Common Blackbird | Turdus merula | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Chats, Old World Flycatchers (320) (Muscicapidae) – 1 / 320 | ||
| Blue Rock Thrush | Monticola solitarius | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches (Passeridae) – 1 / 51 | ||
| Eurasian Tree Sparrow | Passer montanus | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Wagtails, Pipits (Motacillidae) – 2 / 67 | ||
| Eastern Yellow Wagtail | Motacilla tschutschensis | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| White Wagtail | Motacilla alba | Hengsha, Chongming, Shanghai, China |
| Species: 54 | ||
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