After 5 memorable years in Hong Kong, my family has recently gotten news that we will be departing the city indefinitely. Our next destination is Singapore, a place currently outside the intense COVID restrictions plaguing Greater China, which offers multitudes of opportunities for travel and a liberated lifestyle. Because of the intensity of moving cities and finishing up my Eagle rank in Boy Scouts within the next month, I have very limited time to go wildlife watching and to enjoy the last of what Hong Kong has to offer me. This weekend, despite being overcast and rainy, offered me a valuable opportunity to do this. I had limited time yesterday due to other commitments, but because of its proximity to my home and the fact that there were apparently decent amounts of passage migrants flying through was enough incentive to make the blustery boat ride out to Po Toi. I did have some luck here last time with my Narcissus Flycatcher sighting, but in general the day was a disappointment. I was determined to change that, so I gathered up my gear and boarded the ferry to the island. On the way, I saw a tern species I couldn’t identify.

I walked over to the Feng Shui forest I visited last time, a light drizzle coming down which soddened the path. Based on the birdsong coming out of the woods, I could tell today was much more “birdy” than last time. On the way, I noticed several of the trees in the forest were perches for a number of egrets waiting out the weather, namely Cattle and Little Egrets and a few Chinese Pond Herons. This was interesting as I’d never seen egrets on Po Toi before. During my 3-hour long birding session on the island, I encountered quite a few Cattle Egrets, several of them bold enough to approach me on the main footpath.

In the main paved clearing of the forest, which separates the island’s hiking trails, a group of twelve birders sat poised toward a distant tree. Just like last time, they were scanning the canopy for a goshawk, which, upon farther inspection, turned out to be a Chinese Sparrowhawk. I’d seen one these cute little birds of prey before in Hong Kong just before I’d moved to the city in 2017, but it was a pretty mediocre sighting when compared to the lengthy encounter that unraveled itself in front of us birders yesterday. The sparrowhawk made several brief trips back to the tree in the half hour I spent there, giving me a neat chance to view this elusive animal.

While we were waiting for the sparrowhawk to return to the tree, my first lifer of the day, a Gray Wagtail, alighted on the pavement of the clearing. It was similar to both species of wagtails I’d seen before, with a unique coloring. Wagtails really live up to their name; after alighting, they’ll peck around for food and nervously rise and drop their tail until they fly off once again.

I took a side track into a deeper part of the forest, past a gushing, clear stream. There were tons of birds around here, namely Black Drongos, mynas, bulbuls and my second lifer of the day, Brown Shrikes, I was unable to photograph one initially, but after seeing a dozen or so I managed to get nice pictures of a few individuals later on. In a deeper part of the forest, I observed a warbler species for quite some time as it fed on flowers. I was unable to identify it as it kept moving from branch to branch.

After about an hour in the depths of the forest, I emerged to check out the pond near the village, where I saw a Little Bunting and a very speedy Common Kingfisher. I rejoined the birders that were still awaiting the return of the sparrowhawk, and high above we viewed a Black Kite mobbing it for a piece of fish. In the sky, an array of swifts swooped every which way, namely House Swifts and Pacific Swifts, my third and final lifer of the day.

Afterwards, I headed back toward the village and ferry pier to seek out some more birds. I had about an hour to kill, so I decided to hike to see an ancient rock carving which, despite myself having visited Po Toi 8 times prior, I had never seen. I kept my eyes peeled for additional birds along the way. I saw a Gray Wagtail and so, so many Brown Shrikes. They outnumbered every other bird on the island. It was as if every Brown Shrike in the entirety of Hong Kong made the journey out to Po Toi! One individual perched long enough for me to snap a photo of it before I continued toward the rock carvings.

I walked another 15 minutes to an area near the coast, about 10 feet above the waterline, where a platform surrounded two flat-faced rocks with some chiseled carvings in them. While not seeming significant up front, upon farther inspection these carvings are an astonishing 3,500 years old, dating to the Bronze Age! It’s crazy to think that such artefacts have been perfectly preserved for so long on this tiny island off the coast of Hong Kong. One can make out intricate patterns in the rock; animals, deities, people; making these carvings even more fascinating. I truly enjoyed my time there and I’m super happy I made the half-hour trek out to see them!

I left to catch my ferry home shortly after, completely satisfied with my birding expedition to the island. Overall, I think this outing was a great opportunity to savor some of the last birding time I have left in Hong Kong. I was surprised how much better the birdwatching was when compared to last time, and I’m grateful to have seen the amount of species I did on the island. I’m really excited for a new chapter of my life and more wildlife watching and travel opportunities in Singapore, but at the same time I’m sad to leave Hong Kong. Thanks for reading as always and stay tuned,

-Bennett

Birds Species Recorded: (17 total, including 3 lifers).

Pacific Swift (Lifer)

Gray Wagtail (Lifer)

Brown Shrike (Lifer)

Cattle Egret

Little Egret

Chinese Pond Heron

Pacific Reef Heron

Chinese Sparrowhawk

Black Kite

Tern Species (Unidentified)

Warbler Species (Unidentified)

House Swift

Red-Whiskered Bulbul

Little Bunting

Crested Myna

Common Kingfisher

Black Drongo