Taklamakan desert. Tarim Babbler.

We woke up before sunrise and went to XinJiang Ground Jay. Morning time we are dressed to sweaters. Sanzhar waited violent heat and several times said that we are in the one of the hottest places of the world in the middle of the summer. But we are dressed to sweaters. I think it’s better than suffer from the heat. Lord loves us, recent two day there were rain and cloudy weather.

After arriving to the desert we watched the brood of White-winged Woodpeckers; four birds (two adults and two juveniles) moved from the pole and wires to tamarix and back. Juvenile White-winged Woodpecker can be unknowingly identified as another species because it has large red crown and almost all white wings. After Woodpeckers photo shooting we dispersed in the desert. I found Ground Jay quite quickly. This time I approached to jay slowly; Jay was busy, pull the green caterpillar from the reeds. When Jay noticed me it show concern but not run away. Jay didn’t leave caterpillar, was taking it a beak then was puting it to sand and sometimes looked at me. After some minutes Jay still ate the caterpillar, went to the top of sand hill and began to sing the song. Song of Ground Jay first time sounds creaking but later enough pleasant. But when I found Jay second time (for Sanzhar) the song sounds very beautiful to me.

Completing the task of watching XingJiang Ground Jay by all of us we went to next site. Near the road there is the large reservoir not observed from the road because bordered by concrete parapet. We twice approached to the reservoir’s coast. The second point was almost birdless because a plain water; but in the first point there were not more water but mostly muddy shores and shallows. The most popular bird was the Graylag Goose. Th small group of Geese were widely feeding and resting, in total more than 200 birds. In addition to Geese we watched Grey Herons, Great White Egrets, Mallards, Ruddy Shellducks, Garganeys, Gadwalls, Black-winged Stilts, Pied Avocets, Common Redshanks, Yellowlegs, Kentish Plovers, one Terek Sandpiper, Gulls, Common and Little Terns.

Today’s main target is Tarim Babbler the endemic of Tarim depression and of course China. Perhaps we talk about Rhopophilus albosuperciliaris. This bird inhabits the narrow band between Tibet in south and deserts in north, in XinJiang and Qinghai (probably some more eastward). Babbler is not guaranteed in August. We arrived to the little village with the large pears-trees gardens where Tarim Babbler was recorded recent years. At once I left the car I heard very melodious song and the next moment I noticed Babbler. There were about 5 or 6 (or probably more) Babblers at the garden territory; all of them mostly were staying inside the bushes but sometimes went outside. Babblers are very quite birds; I didn’t see any sudden movements of birds. About half of hour we watched and took photos of Babblers; Sanzhar watched how Babblers ate the pears. Unfortunately Babbler didn't sing the song again.

The last site of our today birding is the oasis on the river between the rocks. This oasis located almost on the side of Korla city; therefore there are a lot of people and a bit of birds in this site. But our friends said this is very perfect site to winter birding, it’s possible to watch about 50 species per day, including 8 species of Thrushes. But this season we watched only numerous Tree Sparrows and Barn Swallows, and also Isabelline Shrikes, House Martins, White (Masked) Wagtails, one Black Kite and one Long-legged Buzzard.

During the day I photographed and watched Shrikes. There were many pale-brownish without buffy color juvenile birds. Adult birds were unmistakable Isabelline Shrikes. The high Tien Shan mountains separated the ranges of the Turkestan Shrike breeding in Northern XinJiang and the Isabelline Shrike breeding in south of XinJiang. How the numerous Isabelline Shrikes migrate through Kazakhstan’s territory to Tarim depression? Mountain ranges are the insurmountable barrier to migrating birds. Although Common Cranes overcome the Tibet; but to majority of birds Tibet is barrier. Therefore species of Indo-Malayan region come to XinJiang not from south but from west through Kazakhstan.

Also we studied the maps of ranges of Ground Jays in XinJiang. Of course we interested the western borders of ranges. So the maps in Chinese Guide show the ranges westward up to the border of Kazakhstan. But I think it’s mistake. The biology and ranges of Ground Jays are not well researched. Also need to see the habitat of Jays.

1. Tarim Babbler

2. White-winged Woodpeckers

3. XinJiang Ground Jay

4. Watching birds at Kala reservoir

5. Greylag Geese

6. Watching the Babbler

7. Oazis in Korla vicinity

8. Isabelline Shrike

9. Pears

10. Lian Yong, Askar Isabekov, Lee Tao