Birding for autumn migration near to the UB

written by Gankhuyag, 27th-28th of August, 2010.

Big flock of Pacific Golden Plover (Photo by Amarkhuu)

Ayga and Gun galuut lakes are wonderful places for birding near to the Ulaanbaatar. It located 110 km from the Ulaanbaatar to east. Water level of the Ayga Lake looks like very good this year than our previous years. There are also many small water points around the lake too. We observed the birds there for 1 day. The weather condition was not good during the trip, it was windy and cloudy but we seen fantastic shore birds there.

Bird list of Ayga lake:

A pair of whooper swan with 4 chicks (Photo by Amarkhuu)

Great grey heron-(12), Spoon billed (2), Bar headed goose (46)-(3 had red neck rings, it was not easy to see ring ID), Swan goose (110), Whooper swan (4 pairs with chicks), Black-winged Stilt (2), Pied Avocet (6), Pacific Golden Plover (350+), Kentish Plover (5), Grey Plover (1), Black-tailed Godwit (250+), Spotted Redshank (14), Common Redshank (4), Green Sandpiper (3), Marsh Sandpiper (8), Wood Sandpiper (23+), Ruddy Turnstone (4), Curlew Sandpiper (26), Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (3), Little curlew (2), Little ringed plover (5), Red-necked Stint (?), Little stint (4), Temminkii stint (3+), Ruff (2), Red-necked Phalarope (14), Common teal (2), Black tailed Gadwit (75+), Golden eye (5), Ruddy shelduck, Common shelduck, Mallard, Pin tail, Tufted, Common coot (3), Black necked Grebe (4), Northern lapwing (100+), Common tern (1), Relict gull (7), Black headed gull (4), Mongolian gull (40+), Common snipe (2),Yellow wagtail, Demoiselle crane.

Ruff (Photo by Amarkhuu)

Gun galuut lake:
Whooper swan (4 pairs with chicks), Pied Avocet (6), Pacific Golden Plover (), Grey Plover (1), Black-tailed Godwit, Ruddy Turnstone (18), Terek Sandpiper (1), Sanderling (2), Little stint (4), Ruddy shelduck, Common shelduck, Relict gull (2), Pallas’ gull (3), Black necked Grebe (6), Crested Grebe (2), Shoveler (2), Eurasian wigeon (2), Common pochard (6).

Raptors near to the lake: Eurasian sparrowhawk (1), Hobby (1), Common kestrel (2), Hen harrier (1), Saker falcon (3), Black vulture (5), Upland buzzard (3), Steppe eagle (6). We saw also one Peregrine falcon on the way in same day.

Tuul river site on end of the Gorkhi-Terelj National park:

Pallas's Grasshopper Warbler (Photo by Amarkhuu)

Lammergier (1), Saker falcon (3), Eurasian sparrow hawk (), Griffon sp? (2), Black vultures (32), Steppe eagle (9), Booted eagle (1), Common kestrel (2), Black kite (6+), Common rosefinch (2), Daurian redstart (5+), Dusky warbler, Radde’s warbler, Green warbler, Pallas's Grasshopper warbler, Great tit, Willow tit, Northern wheatear, Isabelina wheatear, Eurasian jay (1), Lesser woodpecker (1).

Birding team (photo by Gankhuyag)

Birding team of this trip: Gankhuyag, Munkhzul, Benjamin Metzger (Germany), Amarkhuu, Ariunzul, Munkhjargal, Bandi, Bolormunkh and Azjargal.