Winter at Wu Kau Tang

Wu Kau Tang (烏蛟騰), a village in the Northeastern New Territories, lies at the beginning of Plover Cove Country Park (船灣郊野公園), one of the least developed areas in the territory. Although relatively remote, the village is served by a green minibus service (20R from Tai Po) and there is a small car park at the end of the road, supplemented by parking spaces along the road linking the village to Bride's Pool Road.
The area has become known for harbouring birds which are otherwise uncommon in Hong Kong, such as the Barred Cuckoo-dove. The Common Rosefinch (not so common in Hong Kong) winters around the village, as do buntings such as Little, Black-faced and Tristram's Bunting.
Two birds which are common in Taiwan but uncommon in Hong Kong are resident here: the garrulous Gray Treepie, a relative of the crows and magpies, and the Black Bulbul. The Black Bulbul appears to occur locally in at least two plumage variants, with some birds white-headed and others all black. These were once thought to belong to different subspecies, but according to the Avifauna of Hong Kong (2024), the white-headed individuals are adults while the all-black ones are immature birds.

Posted on Φεβρουάριος 11, 2023 1211 ΜΜ by stephenmatthews