The Bird Draught - Oasis at Tsing Yi Park

Summer, the quiet season for birders have finally arrived! Other then common resident species and the few breeding summer visitors, things have been pretty quiet lately. Today, me and Long Long went to look for the Yellow Bittern at Tsing Yi Park, a regular summer visitor that have became quite regular in a few urban parks namely Hong Kong Park and Tsing Yi Park. These parks have became true oasis for hungry birders like me!

We arrived just around 2pm, the sun was scorching! We took refuge under shades of a tree next to the lily pond and waited. The dense lily pads have became a little haven for the Bitterns, providing plenty of shelter for these skulking birds.

After half an hour of waiting a Yellow Bittern finally caught our sight, though it didn't stay long and disappeared again into thick foliages. But patience is the key, we waited for a little longer and finally the bird came into full view! It's been a whole year since I last seen any Yellow Bitterns, so it's good to see this old friend again. Their extendable necks crane over the water surface, waiting for any small fishes that swim past, suddenly they will strike with amazing speed and precision! The first bird provided plenty of entertainment for us.

The second bird was chased off by the first bird, but later came back into view. This individual have slightly dark plumage and more prominent markings on it's neck. We wonder whether this could be due to difference in sex or age? We got no conclusive answer, but the second bird gave great views when the first bird hid amongst the lilies.

A long summer awaits, hopefully some unseasonal surprise will turn up this summer.