ZooChat Big Year 2017

Status
Not open for further replies.
Various assorted additions from a rather strange weekend spent mostly in the south of Derbyshire and the fringes of Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire with some general wildlifing being built around attending a wedding reception and a bat box check - and it produced the year's first three butterflies:

Birds:
116. Common Chiffchaff - Phylloscopus collybita
117. Red-crested Pochard - Netta rufina
118. Egyptian Goose - Alopochen aegypticus

Mammals:
13. Soprano Pipistrelle - Pipistrellus pygmaeus

Invertebrates:
6. Small Tortoiseshell - Aglais urticae
7. Peacock - Aglais io
8. Comma - Polygonia c-album
9. Buff-tailed Bumblebee - Bombus terrestris
10. Tree Bumblebee - Bombus hypnorum

:)
 
From Flamingo Land (23/3/2017):

86. Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis
87. Little Egret Egretta garzetta
A surprise from whilst on a short walk in the dark, where it was found in the middle of a road:

Amphibians:
1. Common Frog Rana temporaria

From Dalby Forest (26/3/2017), I still have an unidentified warbler though:

88. Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis
89. Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis

Reptiles:
1. European Adder Vipera berus

2. Common Toad Bufo bufo
 
A nice little list to add from a day out in Norfolk, including the year's first bird and invert lifers (birds are all from Titchwell Marsh):

Birds:
119. Red-flanked Bluetail - Tarsiger cyanurus
120. Bearded Reedling - Panurus biarmicus
121. Pied Avocet - Recurvirostra avosetta
122. Grey Plover - Pluvialis squatarola
123. Red Knot - Calidris canuta
124. Long-tailed Duck - Clangula hyemalis
125. Meadow Pipit - Anthus pratensis

Mammals:
14. Brown Hare - Lepus europaeus
15. European Fallow Deer - Dama dama
16. Common Seal - Phoca vitulina

Invertebrates:
11. Violet Oil Beetle - Meloe violaceus


Plus one for a new list from yesterday in the river near home:

Fishes:
1. Brown Trout - Salmo trutta

:)


The bluetail was great - and wins the prize for best name that is undeniably accurate and descriptive but gives you no clue what the thing actually is (it's a flycatcher!).
 
Last edited:
The bluetail was great - and wins the prize for best name that is undeniably accurate and descriptive but gives you no clue what the thing actually is (it's a flycatcher!).

Or you could go with the more informative common name (and the one used by HBW/Birdlife) of Orange-flanked Bush-robin. Though that's possibly more confusing considering the number of unrelated species that are all called robins.
 
Since my last update I have added three new birds, my first reptile, a second fish, my first three butterflies and another bumblebee, while either in my local area or at Heybridge Basin:

109. Mediterranean gull Ichthyaetus melanocephalus
110. Eurasian linnet Linaria cannabina
111. European yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella

1. Slow worm Anguis fragilis

2. European roach Rutilus rutilus

1. Comma butterfly Polygonia c-album
2. Small tortoiseshell butterfly Aglais urticae
3. Red admiral butterfly Vanessa atalanta

3. Red-tailed bumblebee Bombus lapidarius

Since this last update, I have added one new bird, a third fish, four butterflies, three more bees and a wasp:

112. Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla

3. Common carp Cyprinus carpio (Vu)

4. Brimstone butterfly Gonepteryx rhamni
5. Small white butterfly Pieris rapae
6. Peacock butterfly Aglais io
7. Orange-tip butterfly Anthocharis cardamines

4. Tawny mining bee Andrena fulva
5. European honeybee Apis mellifera
6. Hairy-footed flower bee Anthophora plumipes
7. European hornet Vespa crabro
 
Here are the species I could identify during a 4 days trip to Canary Islands :

99 - Atlantic canary , Serinus canaria
100 - Corn bunting , Emberiza calandra
101 - Whimbrel , Numenius phaeopus
102 - Black-winged stilt , Himantopus himantopus
103 - Eurasian collared dove , Streptopelia decaocto



12 - European rabbit , Oryctolagus cuniculus
13 - Short-beaked common dolphin , Delphinus delphis
14 - Common bottlenose dolphin , Tursiops truncatus

I've had a delightful view of this not so common species this morning :) :

104 - Pallid swift , Apus pallidus
 
A few additions from an afternoon birding trip today. My next additions will probably be from Thailand starting next weekend.

90) Grey-headed Woodpecker (one of five species of woodpecker seen in the space of about an hour!)
91) Song Thrush
92) Eurasian Treecreeper

Actually not quite the last additions before going to Thailand because I got a very nice surprise lifer in my garden pond today!

2) Common (Smooth) Newt

I'm super excited about having a colony of newts in my garden pond, there are at least a dozen of them! The previous occupier of the house that I'm living in mentioned that he'd seen newts in the pond once before, but this is my first time having them.
 
From Dalby Forest (26/3/2017), I still have an unidentified warbler though:

88. Northern Goshawk Accipiter gentilis
89. Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis

Reptiles:
1. European Adder Vipera berus

2. Common Toad Bufo bufo

A rather nice addition from today:

90. Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor
 
After being in the flat all day for work and it being a sunny evening, I headed up for a drive on the moors as soon as I was off the clock. Well worth it - not only caught the Big Moor herd of Red Deer making a daring raid on a farmer's pasture, including some delicate crossing of barbed-wire fences on their part, but also came across my first owl of the year:

Birds:
126. Short-eared Owl - Asio flammeus

Mammals:
17. Red Deer - Cervus elaphus

:)
 
BIRDS
87) Willow warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus

88) Barn swallow, Hirundo rustica
 
more from Vietnam. Not a lot seen at Yok Don NP (too hot), and relatively few additions from Mang Den and Bach Ma NP (partly due to species being repeated from earlier places).


BIRDS:

409) Asian koel Eudynamy scolopacea
410) Asian barred owlet Glaucidium cuculoides
411) Black baza Aviceda leuphotes
412) Black-headed woodpecker Picus erythropygius

413) Common woodshrike Tephrodornis pondicerianus
414) Maroon oriole Oriolus traillii
415) Ratchet-tailed treepie Temnurus temnurus
416) Black-hooded laughing thrush Garrulax milleti
417) Yellow-billed nuthatch Sitta solangiae
418) Golden babbler Stachyridopsis (Stachyris) chrysaea
419) Pale-capped pigeon Columba punicea
420) Grey-headed parrotbill Paradoxornis gularis
421) Sultan tit Melanochlora sultanea
422) Coral-billed scimitar-babbler Pomatorhinus ferruginosus
423) Common (Eurasian) cuckoo Cuculus canorus

424) Buff-breasted babbler Pellorneum tickelli
425) Puff-throated bulbul Alophoixus pallidus
426) Black eagle Ictinaetus malayensis
427) Indochinese yuhina Yuhina torqueola
428) Orange-bellied leafbird Chloropsis hardwickii
429) Long-tailed broadbill Psarisomus dalhousiae
430) Red-whiskered bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus
431) Eye-browed thrush Turdus obscurus


MAMMALS:

56) Red-shanked douc Pygathrix naemeus
57) Stump-tailed macaque Macaca arctoides
 
I've had a delightful view of this not so common species this morning :) :

104 - Pallid swift , Apus pallidus

I went bird-watching today , ended up with 3 new (and 2 of them are uncommon around Souss) species so yay! :)

105 - Spectacled warbler , Sylvia conspicillata
106 - Moustached warbler , Acrocephalus melanopogon
107 - Black redstart , Phoenicurus ochruros
 
BIRDS
41. Rook (Corvus frugilegus)
42. Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)
43. Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)
44. Dunnock (Prunella modularis)
45. Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
46. Common Redshank (Tringa totanus)
47. Greater Scaup (Aythya marila)
48. Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)
49. Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
50. Northern Shoveler (Anas clypeata)
51. Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)
52. Red Knot (Calidris canutus)
53. Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
54. Rock Pipit (Anthus petrosus)
55. Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata)
56. Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)
57. Little Grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
58. Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)

MAMMALS
3. House Mouse (Mus musculus)

After not being able to go out birding at all in February I managed to pick up the pace a bit again over the last few weeks. First four additions still being from prior to this ''break''.

BIRDS
59. Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus)
60. Eurasian Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)
61. Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)
62. Great Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus)
63. Eurasian Nuthatch (Sitta europaea)
64. Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
65. Stock Dove (Columba oenas)
66. European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola)
67. White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
68. Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)
69. Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus)
70. Common Reed Bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus)
71. Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)
72. Eurasian Teal (Anas crecca)
73. Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus)
74. Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)
75. Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus)
76. Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
77. Common Gull (Larus canus)
78. Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta)
79. Little Ringed Plover (Charadrius dubius)
80. Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
81. Black Swan (Cygnus atratus)
82. Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator)
83. Bluethroat (Luscinia svecica)

84. Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)

MAMMALS
4. European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus)
5. European Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
 
Since this last update, I have added one new bird, a third fish, four butterflies, three more bees and a wasp:

112. Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla

3. Common carp Cyprinus carpio (Vu)

4. Brimstone butterfly Gonepteryx rhamni
5. Small white butterfly Pieris rapae
6. Peacock butterfly Aglais io
7. Orange-tip butterfly Anthocharis cardamines

4. Tawny mining bee Andrena fulva
5. European honeybee Apis mellifera
6. Hairy-footed flower bee Anthophora plumipes
7. European hornet Vespa crabro

Over the past few days I have managed to add two new birds, a new mammal and a second species of wasp to my list:

113. Corn bunting Emberiza calandra
114. Common tern Sterna hirundo

11. Stoat Mustela erminea

8. Common wasp Vespula vulgaris

I am heading off tomorrow for a week on the North Norfolk coast so hopefully that should bring in some more new birds.
 
Actually not quite the last additions before going to Thailand because I got a very nice surprise lifer in my garden pond today!

2) Common (Smooth) Newt

I'm super excited about having a colony of newts in my garden pond, there are at least a dozen of them! The previous occupier of the house that I'm living in mentioned that he'd seen newts in the pond once before, but this is my first time having them.

I am currently in Thailand and have been for the last few days visiting Kaeng Krachan National Park and a few other birding sites. I’m back in Bangkok now so I have enough internet access to post my list so far. For those who haven’t seen it, I have a travel thread here: LaughingDove Visits Thailand if you want more information.


2nd of April:

Transit in Beijing:
Eurasian Magpie subsp. serica (included just for infromational purposes, not split)

Accommodation in Bangkok
3) Hemidactylus frenatus


3rd of April:

Accommodation in Bangkok
93) Peaceful Dove
94) Red turtle Dove
95) Coppersmith Barbet
96) Common Mynah
97) White-vented Mynah
98) Asian palm Swift

99) Spotted Dove
100) Yellow-vented Bulbul
101) Oriental magpie Robin

102) (Eastern) Cattle Egret
103) Streak-eared Bulbul
104) Barn swallow
105) Striated Grassbird
106) Scaly-breasted Munia



Drive from Bangkok to Pak Thale
107) Asian Openbill
108) Javan Pond-heron
109) Intermediate Egret

110) Little Egret
111) Black-winged Stilt
112) Black-capped Kingfisher
113) Eastern Great Egret
114) Black-eared Kite
115) Little Cormorant
116) Large-billed Crow


Stop at some ponds before the main Pak Thale Shorebird Site
117) Marsh Sandpiper
118) Plain Prinia
119) Brown-headed Gull
120) Black-naped Tern

121) Whiskered Tern
122) Spotted Redshank
123) Curlew Sandpiper
124) Bar-tailed Godwit
125) Whimbrel

Main Pak Thale Shorebird Site
126) Greater Sand-plover
127) Temminck’s Stint
128) Common Greenshank
129) Red Knot
130) Common Redshank
131) Red-whiskered Bulbul
132) Straited Heron
133) Red-necked Stint
134) Long-toed Stint
135) Sanderling
136) Ruff
137) House Swift
138) Collared Kingfisher
139) Painted Stork
140) Pied Fantail
141) Plain-backed Sparrow
142) White-rumped Munia
143) Streaked Weaver


Environmental Research Project Area
144) Chinese Pond-heron
145) Red-wattled Lapwing
146) White-winged Tern
147) White-breasted Waterhen
148) Golden-bellied Gerygone
149) Mangrove Whistler
150) Dusky Warbler
151) Black Drongo
152) Greater Coucal


4) Asian Water Monitor

Near Kaeng Krachan:
5) Common four-clawed gecko (G. mutilata)


4th of April:

Baan Maka Chalets (accommodation near Kaeng Krachan)
9) Western Striped-squirrel
153) Crow-billed Drongo
154) White-rumped Shama


10) Variable Squirrel

155) Asian Koel
156) Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker
157) Spangled Drongo
158) White-throated Kingfisher
159) Indochinese Bushlark
160) Lesser-necklaced Laughingthrush

161) Indian Roller

Kaeng Krachan National Park Day 1 (no guide)
162) Little Grebe (subspecies poggei)
163) Bronze-winged Jacana
164) Red Junglefowl
165) Greater Flameback Woodpecker
166) Great Hornbill
167) Green-eared Barbet
168) Crested Serpent-eagle


11) Dusky Langur

6) Variable Sun-skink

169) Changeable Hawk-eagle
170) Black-crested Bulbul
171) Dollarbird
172) Lineated Barbet
173) Tickell’s Blue-flycatcher
174) Bronzed Drongo
175) Grey-capped Emerald-dove
176) Siberian Blue-robin
177) Large Hawk-cuckoo
178) Oriental Honey-buzzard
179) Thick-billed Green-pigeon
180) Black-headed Bulbul


12) Long-tailed Macaque

7) Long-tailed Sun-skink

181) Sand martin (subspecies ijimae)
182) Puff-throated Babbler
183) Golden-throated Barbet
184) Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
185) Ochraceous Bulbul
186) Lesser Yellownape
187) Indochinese Cuckooshrike
188) Black Baza
189) Black-hooded Oriole
190) Black-backed Kingfisher
191) Asian Pied Starling
192) Large-tailed nightjar

Heard only: scops owl and wood owl


5th April:

Kaeng Krachan National Park Day 2 (with guide)

13) Golden Jackal

193) White-crested Laughingthrush

14) Yellow-throated Marten

194) Great Barbet
195) Mountain-imperial Pigeon
196) Blue-throated Barbet
197) Mountain Bulbul
198) Grey Treepie


15) Pallas’ squirrel

199) Wedge-tailed Green-pigeon
200) Everett’s White-eye
201) Little Spider-hunter
202) Slaty-backed Forktail
203) Red-headed Trogon
204) Long-tailed Broadbill
205) Asian Fairy-bluebird

Heard only: Tickell’s Brown Hornbill, Common Green-magpie
206) White-browed Scimitar-babbler
207) Black-throated Laughingthrush
208) Banded Kingfisher
209) Vernal Hanging-parrot
210) Blue-winged Leafbird


8) Blanford’s Gliding-lizard

211) Lineated Barbet
212) Silver Pheasant
213) Grey-eyed Bulbul
214) Rufous-browed Flycatcher
215) Rusty-naped Pitta
216) Abbott’s Babbler
217) Golden-fronted Leafbird


16) White-handed Gibbon
17) Red-cheeked Squirrel


218) White-hooded Babbler
219) Blue Whistling-thrush
220) Common Flameback
221) Oriental Pied Hornbill
222) Himalayan Swiftlet
223) Ashy Woodswallow
224) Green-billed Malkoha
225) Heart-spotted Woodpecker
226) Collared Falconet


9) Tokay Gecko


6th April

Kaeng Krachan National Park Day Three (with guide)
227) Laced Woodpecker
Heard only: Red-and-black Broadbill

18) Black Giant Squirrel

228) Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher
229) Ashy Drongo
230) Streak-throated Woodpecker
231) Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo
232) Black-naped Monarch
233) Forest Wagtail
234) Orange-breasted Trogon


10) Long-tailed Lizard (T. sexlineatus)

235) Asian Drongo-cuckoo
236) Grey-rumped Treeswift


19) Grey-bellied Squirrel

237) Silver-breasted Broadbill

20) Leopard

238) Common Green-magpie
239) Flavescent Bulbul
240) Streaked Spiderhunter
241) Blue-eared Barbet
242) Ashy Bulbul
243) Blue-throated Flycatcher
244) Dark-necked Tailorbird
245) Black-throated Sunbird
246) Common Iora
247) Grey-throated Babbler
248) Spot-necked Babbler
249) White-browed Piculet

Phylloscopus sp.
250) Large Scimitar-babbler
251) Orange-bellied Leafbird
252) Brown-backed Needletail
253) Collared Scops-owl



7th April

Morning birding at Baan Maka Chalets
254) Scarlet Minivet
255) Hainan Blue-flycatcher
256) Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush
257) Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike
258) Olive-backed Sunbird
259) Banded Bay-cuckoo


Drive to Bangkok + stop at Petchaburi Rice Fields
260) Chestnut-headed Bee-eater
261) Striated Swallow
262) Baya Weaver


11) Changeable Crested-lizard

263) Asian Golden-weaver
264) (Asian) Red-rumped Swallow
265) Brown Shrike
266) Zitting Cisticola (subspecies malaya)
267) Purple Heron (subspecies manilensis)
268) Black-collared Starling
269) Plaintive Cuckoo
270) Eastern Marsh-harrier
271) Black-headed Munia


I still have three bird species and quite a few amphibians to identify, but I’ll have to get those later. Let me know if you think there are any errors with the list, since it's quite long they could possibly have slipped in (though of course I will go through everything properly myself when I'm back in Warsaw).
 
I went bird-watching today , ended up with 3 new (and 2 of them are uncommon around Souss) species so yay! :)

105 - Spectacled warbler , Sylvia conspicillata
106 - Moustached warbler , Acrocephalus melanopogon
107 - Black redstart , Phoenicurus ochruros

3 new species seen :

108 - Long-legged buzzard , Buteo rufinus
109 - Sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus
110 - Eurasian blackcap , Sylvia atricapilla
 
I am currently in Thailand and have been for the last few days visiting Kaeng Krachan National Park and a few other birding sites. I’m back in Bangkok now so I have enough internet access to post my list so far.
that's a great list! There are three birds there that I haven't seen (banded kingfisher, rusty-naped pitta, and silver pheasant).

I have some questions/comments.

Did you see Javan and Chinese pond herons in breeding plumage?

Are you splitting black-eared kite from black kite?

Peaceful dove is Australian. The Thai species is zebra dove (as I'm sure you know).
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top