Barred Warbler, Common Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroats, Spotted Flycatcher. [...... read more ]

Barred Warblers, Common Whitethroats, one Turkestan Shrike, one Blyth's Reed Warbler. [...... read more ]

The most interesting bird was Red-backed Shrike. Other birds I saw were Common Whitethroats, Barred Warblers, one Booted Warbler, and one juvenile Turkestan Shrike. The adult Turkestan Shrike was noticed in square near Museum, bird was very scenic perched into the hawthorn tree. [...... read more ]

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Day of appearance of Barred Warblers (both adults and juveniles) and Bluethroats. Bluethroat fed on the border of hedges and hid in it in case of danger; but Barred Warblers hid in spruce trees. Once I watched Barred Warbler were drinking water drained from the pipe, after drinking Warbler hid in the next spruce tree. The most popular bird of the day was Common Whitethroat; its sound “chek-chek” was heard everywhere: from the spruce trees, from berry trees and from hedges. I also saw one Turkestan Shrike, one Spotted Flycatcher, and one Black Kite. [...... read more ]

On the dam: Dalmatian Pelican, one Black-tailed Godwit. White-headed Ducks were still in the lake, have not migrate. On the sandy spits of south coast of Big Sorbulak there were a lot of Ruddy Shelducks which flew out in our appearance. Twice we noticed Harriers, one Montagu’s Harrier, and one Marsh Harrier. Other birds of the southern shore: Whooper Swans, one Mute Swan, Little Ring Plovers, Common Sandpipers, rare Sanderlings (pair), Little Stints, Temminck's Stints; many Lapwings and Great Cormorants; flock of Curlew Sandpiper in autumn plumage, Greater Short-toed Larks, Eurasian Curlew, Pheasants in the shelterbelt (one rooster and one hen), Dalmatian and Great White Pelicans. At pools in west from Big Sorbulak we observed the swirling of very active Red-necked Phalaropes, several juvenile Stilts and one Wood Sandpiper. The birds of the day are probably Sanderlings and Curlew Sandpipers. [...... read more ]

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Appearance of Lesser Whitethroats, Stonechats, Turkestan Shrikes; the Common Whitethroats became more visible. I observed how Shrike was perching on the top of thuja and caught flying by wasp by the lazy movement of the head, as if by accident but not specifically. Then Shrike parted the wasp, ate it and continued to perch as if nothing had happened. [...... read more ]

The Water Pipits dominated directly in Cosmostation area and in stony beds in south from it, especially many Pipits were on two small lakes. Above the Cosmostation under the Big Almaty Peak Hodgson's Rosefinches were in majority again. The first time in these places I watched Alpine Accentor and fledgling of Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush. Yellow-billed and Red-billed Choughs rounded in the sky. Himalayan Snowcocks were observed but from a far, two flocks flew down from the opposite slope to the green part of the gorge. We waited their climbing but they probably moved to another direction. Saw soaring Himalayan Vulture and some later the Golden Eagle. We descended by the rocks. In addition to noted Water Pipits we watched another fledgling of Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush, Stonechats, some Himalayan Accentors, Brown Accentors feeding their fledglings, the Stoats and the Grey Marmots.In juniper thickets about the Observatory a lot of Black-throated Accentors, White-browed Tit-Warblers, the strange [...... read more ]

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The temperature difference between the city and the Cosmostation accorded to the difference between altitudes: the city was very hot, but the Cosmostation was cold and windy. Plus double cloudy: the high clouds covering the whole country and the local patches of fog rising up by the branch gorges. However clouds from time to time dispersed. We watched several flocks of Himalayan Snowcocks, and I even was lucky to photograph them. There were also Water Pipits, Guldenstadt’s Redstart, a lot of Hodgson's Rosefinches (reddish juveniles and grey adults), Himalayan Accentors, Mistle Thrushes, Wallcreeper. Twice in the clouds we watched predators, one Lammergeier and one Booted Eagle. Near the Almaty lake always there were the pair of Kestrels.The list of birds of juniper thickets near Observatory was common: Sulphur-bellied Warblers, Hume’s Warblers, White-browed Tit-Warblers, numerous and active Black-throated Accentors of different ages, and probably already migrating Stonechats. Here we [...... read more ]

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