XinJiang. Back to Urumqi.

The day of coming back to Urumqi. But in first we visited Bosten Lake the second in size lake in China. The lake is large and is tourist attractions. Tourists visit lake by tickets; for local people there is rest zone with Aqua Park. But we interested birds of course. We visited two sites on the coast and some birds were observed from the car’s windows. In the first site we watched Pale Sand Martins, Barn Swallows, and House Martins. All species are usual but the subspecies could be unusual. Especially we viewed House Martins some of which were dark-brown tinged on rump, throat and flanks. But probably it is fresh plumage only. The interesting fact: juvenile martins asked the food from parents sometimes yet flying for them. One of adult martins flew into the nest with the insect in beak, at once the juvenile bird flew to it and asked the food. From the side it looked as one martin flow to nest, asked the food and flew out.

The birding in the second site near Aqua Park was very active. A lot of Terns, mostly Whiskered but Common Terns too. Black-headed and Caspian Gulls rested near channel. Also there were Grey Herons, Isabelline Shrikes; from the car’s window we twice saw Little Bitterns and also Crested Grebes, Great Cormorants, Ferruginous and Red-crested Pochards, Greylag Goose. But the basic bird of Bosten lake was Whiskered Tern, because firstly it is rarer than other birds, secondly it is very beautiful, thirdly our Xinjiang friends watched this bird first and second time in life

After the lunch in the large city (in our understanding) we started the back way to Urumqi. Now we crossed the dry and lifeless foothills of Tien Shan backwards and without rain. The most interesting record of this road was Lammergeier soaring over gasoline station and then over the road. By the way we saw Lammergeier in foothills not in highlands. Other birds watching on roadside in foothills and low mountains: Black Kites (single birds and the flock on the transmission tower) and Ravens, no other birds. We again wondered to the absence of life in these dry mountains; but our friends told us that mountains are of course lifeless but in some places there are little rivers with green grass valleys. and it’s possible to look here the Chukar Partridges, once they recorded here even Pheasant!

1. Lotus in Bosten Lake

2. House Martin with dark tinge on the rump

3. One Common Tern between Whiskered Terns

4. Kentish Plovers

5. Desert Wheatear

6. Ferruginous Duck

7. Black Kites in foothills of Tien Shan

8. Lammergeier soaring over the road

9. Raven is the most popular bird of Central Tien Shan

10. Sands on the middle of the ridge

11. Dry and lifeless Tien Shan