Dulan County is a big county in east-central Qinghai, China. Sparsely populated and at a median altitude of 3200 meters, it has a little bit of an end-of-the-world really feel to it, significantly the ranger station at round 4000 meters, the place we stayed for just a few nights. Good for animals, in fact – significantly some shy mammals. Subsequently, apologies upfront for the largish variety of mammal pictures on this publish.
The Bearded Vulture appears to be like surprisingly just like the Evening King in “Recreation of Thrones”. Most likely not a coincidence.
A juvenile close by.
Being a mammal myself, I’m understandably a lot much less keen on this animal class than I’m of birds. However I’ve to confess that seeing a few of the wolves, foxes, asses, and sheep of Dulan county is sweet, a minimum of so long as they don’t stand in entrance of some thrilling birds.
Blue Sheep. No less than they’re cute.
Provided that it’s laborious to say certainly one of my favourite bands, the Mountain Goats, in a birding weblog, these pictures of blue sheep are in all probability the very best alternative I’ll ever get. Pay attention/watch their “This 12 months” right here.
Tibetan Fox. Sort of cute, too.
Tibetan Wild Ass. Cute?
Gray Wolf. Not cute, I assume.
Himalayan Marmot (with good blue flower)
Three Himalayan Marmots with out good blue flowers
Two Himalayan Marmots, certainly one of which small, presumably moist and fairly cute. No good blue flowers.
Moupin Pika
Gazelle, perhaps Goitered? Not in a zoo however within the wild, regardless of the fence within the background.
It feels a bit unhappy to confess that this picture sequence of a Little Owl makes me consider the Rocky Horror Image Present (It’s only a leap to the left … after which a step to the appropriate). I don’t even like that film a lot.
One in every of my Chinese language buddies who’s a a lot better birder than me instructed me that this Chinese language Gray Shrike is prone to be of the subspecies Lanius sphenocercus giganteus. In line with the HBW, primarily based on sturdy morphological, ecological, and genetic variations, that is prone to be a definite species altogether. If I used to be a lister, this is able to give me nice hope for a future armchair tick.
A Widespread Kestrel wanting fairly grumpy, in all probability as a result of it was snowing in August on that day.
When shrikes get fats and overdo their eye make-up, the result’s a Desert Wheatear.
In line with our information Bella from Alpinebirding, the holes in these partitions are nesting holes of Floor Tits. However perhaps she simply made this up in an effort to additional enhance shopper satisfaction.
This Robin Accentor was consistently asking his chick to comply with him. The chick – fairly probably the cutest fowl I noticed on this journey – obliged.
I needed to take a photograph of Pine Bunting with a extra pure background, however the fowl insisted on sitting on a wire. I assume fashionable birds assume this appears to be like a lot cooler.
We encountered a number of small herds of Przevalski’s Partridge. I at all times really feel a bit unhappy for fowl species that in all probability can’t even pronounce their very own names.
If I inform you that the Streaked Rosefinch was named after Robert Streaked (1796-1856), a Scottish naturalist, will you consider me?
The Twite isn’t a very exciting-looking fowl – the one extravagant bit is that this little pinkish bit on the rump. Just like the colourful handkerchief looking of the breast pocket of a well-dressed but in the end fairly conservative gentleman.
There are additionally White-browed Tit-warblers right here. At all times good to see them once more.
The Upland Buzzard is the most typical raptor right here at Dulan county.
This one has Pika for lunch …
… however doesn’t appear very satisfied by its style.
Juvenile Upland Buzzards have an instinctive capacity to look silly
This can be a actually miserable-looking Upland Buzzard. If you wish to study extra about being depressing and have no idea Distress Bear, please watch this video.
Shared distress continues to be distress, or not?
Unscrupulous fowl guides (not from Alpinebirding – word that every of those little promoting plugs will presumably entitle me to a free beer on a future birding journey with them) generally inform harmless birders that this White-rumped Snowfinch is definitely a juvenile Snowy Owl. Not so.
