Kimasar gorge, Ile Alatau National Park.

Sunny and warm autumn day. There is snow in Kimasar, up from the half of spruce forest. Upper part of forest is more covered by snow than open. Today I expected to watch mostly birds of prey and some of little passerines. The latters are a lot – flocks of Bramblings (each up to 50 birds) all the time flying above the spruce trees, and some times landed to trees and peck the cones. Tits are a bit, once I saw Coal Tit and once heard Azure Tit, in upper spruce forest noticed three Goldcrests. Also here I twice saw Black-throated Accentor. Almost everywhere the single Redstarts (both Blue-capped and Eversmann’s ones) are observed, but in the border of spruce forest and birch grove they gathered at least three tens total. Redstarts were suddenly jumped from the tree to grass, catching the insect and suddenly backing into tree. Single flying Nutcatchers, Magpies and Carrion Crows were observed too.

Of birds of prey I saw Sparrowhawk flushing Bramblings, two Golden Eagles in the lower part of gorge, and the Eastern Buzzard and juvenile Lammergeier near the top border of spruce forest belt. Before today I saw young Lammergeiers only in Pamir-Alai but never in Tien Shan, though I regularly watched adults. Today I saw my first juvenile; it was flying above the border of forest and then flew off in western direction. I could guess the autumn record of juvenile Lammergeier in Kimasar because in this gorge I twice watched soaring couple of adult Lammergeiers.

1. Willow-herb

2. The ridges are in the snow

3. Eastern Buzzard | Buteo japonicus

4. Juvenile Himalayan Lammergeier | Gypaetus barbatus hemachalanus

5. Black-throated Accentor | Prunella atrogularis huttoni

6. Brambling | Fringilla montifringilla

7. Spotted Nutcracker | Nucifraga caryocatactes rothschildi

8. Smog is rising through the gorges

9. Common Sparrowhawk | Accipiter nisus

10. Common Chaffinch | Fringilla coelebs

11.

12. Blue-capped Redstart | Phoenicurus caeruleocephalus

13. Golden Eagle | Aquila chrysaetos

14. Eversmann's Redstart | Phoenicurus erythronotus

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