Autumn Approaching

I haven't been out birding too much since my return from the epic trip to West Java, mainly because of work and also the continuously unpredictable weather. I did snuck out one morning earlier in the month for a female Common Pochard that had been spotted at San Tin. It took little effort to locate this diving duck in amongst the Little Grebes. Being a scarce winter visitor, this Common Pochard was rather lost, but it seemed to be quite healthy, why it decided to turn up in Hong Kong in August is a bit of a mystery.

Common Pochard - female

I didn't really put much effort into locating other birds, but a Common Kingfisher was present. Black-winged Stilts were quite noisy and seemed a bit agitated by my presence around the fish ponds, it's quite possible that they have a nest or chicks nearby.

Common Kingfisher

Black-winged Stilt

As summer is coming to a close, it is also a good time to look for other critters that is making the most out of the remaining warm weather, especially amphibians and reptiles. Bee, Kenneth, Hoiling and I visited Tai Mo Shan at night last week, Hoiling stayed with the moth trap while the three of us went to look for herps...Our evening began with a few common Hong Kong Cascade Frogs, one of which perched right on an exposed rock in the middle of the rapids, providing a great opportunity for an environment shot. We spotted a Slender Forest Skink, which is normally a diurnal species.

Hong Kong Cascade Frog - looking comfortable in it's natural setting...

Slender Forest Skink

Kenneth managed to spot a Giant Spiny Frog resting on a rock in the stream. I have not seen one of these for a long time and was very happy to finally get a photo. This is the largest frog species in Hong Kong, measuring at 14cm from snout to vent. This species have a very restricted range in Hong Kong, only found at higher elevations on Tai Mo Shan. We also found plenty of Lesser Spiny Frogs which are far more common and widespread, but both species are now listed as Vulnerable, as they are heavily collected for food throughout their range in Southern China.

Giant Spiny Frog - those thick arms were quite impressive to look at

Lesser Spiny Frog

We met our first snake soon after, as I was overlooking a gully I realised a Many-banded Krait was right beneath me! It was quite a large one and I estimate it to be well over a metre long. Although highly venomous, they are relatively tame and rarely bite except when caught. It soon dropped down into the gully and disappeared. Our second snake however was certainly our highlight of the night, as we walked further up I checked a gully, only to notice a small thin snake slithering along the damp wall, a closer look revealed it to be a beautiful Coral Snake! A species that I've dreamed of seeing ever since I laid my eyes on a photo in the Hong Kong reptile book. They belong to the same family as the Krait and is also highly venomous, but they are also very docile and quite timid in nature, although I was not quite ready to risk picking it up...but it's certainly my favourite snake in Hong Kong.

Many-banded Krait

Coral Snake - an absolute beauty...

Throughout the night we spotted quite a lot of spiders as well, a few of which were new to me, including the impressive looking Heteropoda onoi and the tiny but beautiful Thwaitesia glabicauda.

Heteropoda onoi

Thwaitesia glabicauda

Leucauge tessellata were quite common up here, while two species of Argiope spiders were spotted, including the Argiope aetheroides and Argiope perforata, both very beautiful.

Leucauge tessellata

Argiope aetheroides

Argiope perforata

I spotted a few Neriene nigripectoris in amongst their three-dimensional webs. Two Cyclosa species were observed including Cyclosa argenteoalba and Cyclosa ginnaga.

Neriene nigripectoris

Cyclosa argenteoalba

Cyclosa ginnaga

I didn't spent much time at Hoiling's moth trap, but the most impressive moth that night by far was the Chinese Moon Moth (Actias ningpoana), although they are quite common it's still a joy to see them every time, especially those that are still in relatively good conditions like this one (I've seen much worst...).

Chinese Moon Moth - Actias ningpoana

Blogs posts should resume to more about birds soon as autumn migration begins...Although I will be visiting Fraser's Hill with Hoiling for the mothing workshop hold by Dr. Roger Kendrick in a few days time. Not sure how much birding I will be able to fit into our schedule but I suppose some birds will be seen for sure!