Late Winter Cyornis - Hill Blue Flycatcher

Despite the presence of both Bianchi's and White-spectacled Warblers at Tai Po Kau, I haven't had much luck with them (as usual). However, a reported male Hill Blue Flycatcher caught my attention, and I successfully connected with this rarity. We get the odd Hill Blue Flycatcher during winter every so often, my last encounter was the tamed one at King's Park in 2016, this one was very much 'wild', as it flew around actively and was quite shy. It often announce its presence with the 'tack-tack' call and a short song phrase. I managed a decent record in the end after trying the whole morning.

Hill Blue Flycatcher - male

The continued presence of the numerous Mrs. Gould's Sunbirds at Tai Po Kau is such a welcoming sight, the single adult male is the main attraction here as always, where it continues to attract dozens of photographers on a daily basis. Along with the females and juvenile males I counted no less than six birds on my last visit.

Mrs. Gould's Sunbird - male

Mrs. Gould's Sunbird - female

It is also nice to catchup with some common resident species at Tai Po Kau, including Scarlet Minivets and Grey-chinned Minivets, which came very close in a bird wave on my visit.

Scarlet Minivet - male

Grey-chinned Minivet - female

A pair of Crested Serpent Eagle drifted past as I made my way back to the car park, it was an adult closely followed by a young bird, breeding habits of Crested Serpent Eagles are surprisingly not well known in Hong Kong despite their abundance, nests are rarely found. In a Taiwan study, nesting usually starts around late winter, where juveniles can stay in nest for up to two months. This young bird is likely to be of last year's brood.

Crested Serpent Eagle - adult

Crested Serpent Eagle - juvenile

I also visited Long Valley recently, as a Red-headed Bunting was reported. I saw a probable female earlier in the month along with a male Black-headed Bunting, and this female somehow confirmed my suspicion, it was nice to get a good look at this confirmed bird. There was also a female Rustic Bunting present, either a wintering individual or a very early migrant.

Red-headed Bunting - female

Rustic Bunting - female