A useful primer for Hong Kong’s birds
HONG KONG has been poorly served by bird guide books for a long time, despite having
579 species on its official list.
Its popularity with tourists and attractiveness to birds are a given, so it is surprising to realise that it is only partially covered by the major Chinese and SouthEast Asian field guides.
The key text is Viney, Phillipps and Ying’s The Birds of Hong Kong and South China (2005), also published by the Hong Kong Bird Watching Society (HKBWS). This covers the region well but is expensive and hard to obtain, only being available from the HKBWS by mail order or from the visitor centre at Mai Po.
This handy pocket photo guide will not change that situation but could serve as a helpful primer for the more casual birder on a visit to the islands. The usual provisos for photo guides apply – for most people, clear illustrations serve better for identification purposes – and doubly so, as the majority of species are represented by a single image.
For the trickier gulls and warblers, of which there are several, these images will be of little help, though the accompanying text is knowledgeable, relatively detailed and helpful. Sexually dimorphic species have both sexes illustrated, as are some seasonal plumage changes, but those with different age groups will prove a struggle.
Having said that, this book is only intended as guide to the 279 uncommon, common or abundant species. True scarcities and rarities are excluded, though a thorough birding trip in spring or autumn has the potential to reveal a few such species, particularly if you keep your ear to the grapevine.
The book has brief up-to-date taxonomic, climate and habitat notes (for example, Oriental and Azure-winged Magpies are included and chats are considered flycatchers) and a ‘where to go’ section for the major sites. Perhaps the most useful parts are at the end, though, where a full checklist of Hong Kong bird species can be found, along with a detailed map of the islands’ country parks and nature reserves.
Overall, this book might be helpful on a stopover, family holiday or business trip, but if you are planning some serious birding on the islands, I’d recommend planning well ahead and ordering Viney et al. David Callahan