Wednesday 26th February
After a couple of days of being a tourist within Kathmandu with my trekking group, I departed for Phulchowki on the 26th February, arriving at the Hotel View Brikhuti around midday. Mt. Phulchowki is located on the outskirts of Kathmandu, so not a long drive needed to get a long list of exciting foothill species.
After a tiny bit of sorting, I started the long incline, though today I only concentrated on the lower slopes. This worked well as I could then concentrate on the upper slopes tomorrow, where I had a full day.
Mt. Phulchowki provided some excellent birding. There were constant bird flocks moving through, and I ended the day with a host of new species - even better the entry fee was 80p!! I reached a decent elevation today, but with thick fog I felt little need to continue upwards, and therefore concentrated along the lower road. Around the flowering trees was a surprisingly high number of Fire-tailed Sunbirds - sadly the males yet to attain their stunning summer plumage. Many warblers were also encountered, including the striking Black-faced Warblers. If I had bothered getting my camera out of my bag, I could've got some lovely photos.
Highlights for today:
Asian Barred Owlet - 1
Great Barbet - 20
Yellow-bellied Fantail - 1
White-throated Fantail - 1
Red-billed Blue Magpie - 2
BLACK-HEADED JAY - 5
Yellow-browed Tit - 10
HIMALAYAN BLACK-LORED TIT - 15
Black-throated Tit - 30
Mountain Bulbul - 5
Buff-barred Warbler - 20
BLACK-FACED WARBLER - 30
WHISTLER'S WARBLER - 2
CHESTNUT-CROWNED WARBLER - 1
GREY-HOODED WARBLER - 10
Oriental White-eye - 15
STREAK-BREASTED SCIMITAR-BABBLER - 1
WHITE-THROATED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 40
STRIATED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 5
RED-BILLED LEIOTHRIX - 2
NEPAL FULVETTA - 5
Blue-winged Minla/Siva - 3
WHISKERED YUHINA - 1
White-tailed Nuthatch - 1
Rufous-bellied Niltava - 1
FIRE-TAILED SUNBIRD - 20
Thursday 27th February
I had a full day on the mountain today, and my aim was to reach the top. Sadly, when I awoke, my insides weren't quite up to it, and halfway through the day I vomited lots on the upper slopes, initiating a descent. Thankfully, I felt fine for the rest of the day, although I reached the hotel earlier than anticipated, resting for the remainder.
Up to that point however, I had seen some excellent birds, and under clear blue skies. A lot of the species seen yesterday were encountered, though the higher I went, the more interesting the avian life became. I finally scored a good view of a Speckled Wood Pigeon, a species that I had only seen in flight (and badly) in other parts of Asia. Today though, was mainly all about the laughingthrushes, with five species encountered - Grey-sided being the scarcest. Besides these, there was a constant onslaught of trip ticks, and I thoroughly enjoyed obtaining great views of species that I hadn't seen for some time - the whacky Long-tailed Broadbills being the most enjoyable.
Highlights for today:
Kalij Pheasant - 2
SPECKLED WOOD PIGEON - 1
Oriental Turtle Dove - 10
Long-tailed Broadbill - 15
Green-billed Malkoha - 1
Golden-throated Barbet - 1
Great Barbet - 25
Grey-headed Woodpecker - 1
Maroon Oriole - 1
Yellow-billed Blue Magpie - 2
Red-billed Blue Magpie - 1
Black-headed Jay - 15
Yellow-browed Tit - 3
Himalayan Black-lored Tit - 30
Black-throated Tit - 30
HIMALAYAN BULBUL - 2
Buff-barred Warbler - 20
Whistler's Warbler - 5
Chestnut-crowned Warbler - 4
Grey-hooded Warbler - 20
Black-faced Warbler - 10
White-throated Laughingthrush - 40
White-crested Laughingthrush - 10
Striated Laughingthrush - 10
GREY-SIDED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 3
Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush - 2
Red-billed Leiothrix - 2
White-browed Shrike-babbler - 3
BLACK-EARED SHRIKE-BABBLER - 1
Nepal Fulvetta - 15
Bar-throated Minla/Siva - 5
Rufous Sibia - 5
Himalayan Bluetail - 10
Blue-fronted Redstart - 1
Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher - 1
Taiga Flycatcher - 3
Orange-bellied Leafbird - 4
Fire-breasted Flowerpecker - 1
Green-tailed Sunbird - 1
Black-throated Sunbird - 2
Fire-tailed Sunbird - 3
After a couple of days of being a tourist within Kathmandu with my trekking group, I departed for Phulchowki on the 26th February, arriving at the Hotel View Brikhuti around midday. Mt. Phulchowki is located on the outskirts of Kathmandu, so not a long drive needed to get a long list of exciting foothill species.
After a tiny bit of sorting, I started the long incline, though today I only concentrated on the lower slopes. This worked well as I could then concentrate on the upper slopes tomorrow, where I had a full day.
Mt. Phulchowki provided some excellent birding. There were constant bird flocks moving through, and I ended the day with a host of new species - even better the entry fee was 80p!! I reached a decent elevation today, but with thick fog I felt little need to continue upwards, and therefore concentrated along the lower road. Around the flowering trees was a surprisingly high number of Fire-tailed Sunbirds - sadly the males yet to attain their stunning summer plumage. Many warblers were also encountered, including the striking Black-faced Warblers. If I had bothered getting my camera out of my bag, I could've got some lovely photos.
Highlights for today:
Asian Barred Owlet - 1
Great Barbet - 20
Yellow-bellied Fantail - 1
White-throated Fantail - 1
Red-billed Blue Magpie - 2
BLACK-HEADED JAY - 5
Yellow-browed Tit - 10
HIMALAYAN BLACK-LORED TIT - 15
Black-throated Tit - 30
Mountain Bulbul - 5
Buff-barred Warbler - 20
BLACK-FACED WARBLER - 30
WHISTLER'S WARBLER - 2
CHESTNUT-CROWNED WARBLER - 1
GREY-HOODED WARBLER - 10
Oriental White-eye - 15
STREAK-BREASTED SCIMITAR-BABBLER - 1
WHITE-THROATED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 40
STRIATED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 5
RED-BILLED LEIOTHRIX - 2
NEPAL FULVETTA - 5
Blue-winged Minla/Siva - 3
WHISKERED YUHINA - 1
White-tailed Nuthatch - 1
Rufous-bellied Niltava - 1
FIRE-TAILED SUNBIRD - 20
 |
| The view on a clear day. |
Thursday 27th February
I had a full day on the mountain today, and my aim was to reach the top. Sadly, when I awoke, my insides weren't quite up to it, and halfway through the day I vomited lots on the upper slopes, initiating a descent. Thankfully, I felt fine for the rest of the day, although I reached the hotel earlier than anticipated, resting for the remainder.
Up to that point however, I had seen some excellent birds, and under clear blue skies. A lot of the species seen yesterday were encountered, though the higher I went, the more interesting the avian life became. I finally scored a good view of a Speckled Wood Pigeon, a species that I had only seen in flight (and badly) in other parts of Asia. Today though, was mainly all about the laughingthrushes, with five species encountered - Grey-sided being the scarcest. Besides these, there was a constant onslaught of trip ticks, and I thoroughly enjoyed obtaining great views of species that I hadn't seen for some time - the whacky Long-tailed Broadbills being the most enjoyable.
Highlights for today:
Kalij Pheasant - 2
SPECKLED WOOD PIGEON - 1
Oriental Turtle Dove - 10
Long-tailed Broadbill - 15
Green-billed Malkoha - 1
Golden-throated Barbet - 1
Great Barbet - 25
Grey-headed Woodpecker - 1
Maroon Oriole - 1
Yellow-billed Blue Magpie - 2
Red-billed Blue Magpie - 1
Black-headed Jay - 15
Yellow-browed Tit - 3
Himalayan Black-lored Tit - 30
Black-throated Tit - 30
HIMALAYAN BULBUL - 2
Buff-barred Warbler - 20
Whistler's Warbler - 5
Chestnut-crowned Warbler - 4
Grey-hooded Warbler - 20
Black-faced Warbler - 10
White-throated Laughingthrush - 40
White-crested Laughingthrush - 10
Striated Laughingthrush - 10
GREY-SIDED LAUGHINGTHRUSH - 3
Chestnut-crowned Laughingthrush - 2
Red-billed Leiothrix - 2
White-browed Shrike-babbler - 3
BLACK-EARED SHRIKE-BABBLER - 1
Nepal Fulvetta - 15
Bar-throated Minla/Siva - 5
Rufous Sibia - 5
Himalayan Bluetail - 10
Blue-fronted Redstart - 1
Rufous-gorgeted Flycatcher - 1
Taiga Flycatcher - 3
Orange-bellied Leafbird - 4
Fire-breasted Flowerpecker - 1
Green-tailed Sunbird - 1
Black-throated Sunbird - 2
Fire-tailed Sunbird - 3
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| Striated Laughingthrush |
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| Himalayan Bluetail |
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| Speckled Wood Pigeon |
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| Grey-sided Laughingthrush |
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| Black-eared Shrike-babbler |
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| Black-headed Jay |
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| Kalij Pheasant |
