“Never seen him in Beijing before”, who is this “mysterious guest”?

Audit expert: Wang Lei

National Parks and Conservation Areas Researcher, PhD in Ecology

Recently, a little creature about ten centimeters long, with brown, gray and white colors, a red tail and striking yellow eyes, was found in the bushes of the "Lohas Middle Dike" of the Yongding River Flood Discharge Reservoir in Fangshan, Beijing.

"Sometimes it was eating grass seeds seriously, and sometimes it was flying around in the bushes." The Asian Desert Warbler was not included in Beijing's previous bird records. This observation is actually the first record of this species in Beijing.

Who is this "mysterious visitor" and why did he appear here alone?

Asian Desert Warbler appears in Beijing. Image source: Weibo account @北京晚报, photo by Chen Jiaqi

The small and exquisite "Desert Elf"

The Asian Desert Warbler (Scientific name: Sylvia nana) is a globally distributed species and is not endemic to Asia. Theoretically, it can appear at any longitude and latitude on the earth, but the migration routes of their family are usually relatively fixed.

This bird is usually 11-13 cm long and has a cute, small appearance. Its feathers are usually brownish-grey with a bright yellow eye and sometimes red tail feathers.

Photography/Wang Jin

Explorers in the bush

This bird has a wide distribution range, extending from Central Asia and North Africa to northwestern China and Mongolia. It is commonly found in Gobi sandy beaches where only scattered shrubs or sandy plants grow, bare rocky hills and deserts, as well as extremely arid grass, willow shrubs, and Haloxylon ammodendron forests in the heart of the desert.

Such bushes are very suitable for nimble birds, which will constantly jump up and down, shuttling back and forth between the ground and the bushes in search of food.

The "hunting expert" of the insect world

Small in size and not able to stand hunger, they never stop looking for food, often move alone or in pairs, are sexually active, often fly around, jump up and down among the branches and leaves of bushes, busy looking for food. This bird's diet is mainly insects, including Lepidoptera, Coleoptera and Hemiptera insects and their larvae, and sometimes eats some berries and seeds.

During the breeding season, male birds often stand on the top of bushes and sing continuously. Their calls are similar to those of white-throated warblers, but more chaotic, with interspersed harsh sounds and lark-like trills. The call is a dry exhaled sound "drrrrrrrrrrrr", with the emphasis on the "d", the pitch descends until it disappears; it can also be described as a trembling "chee-chee-chee-chee" sound.

Photography/Wang Jin

Migration experts

The Asian Desert Warbler is a summer migratory bird that migrates from its wintering grounds to Central Asia, Mongolia, Xinjiang and western Inner Mongolia in China to breed every spring. In my country, their main breeding grounds include parts of northwestern China, such as Xinjiang and western Inner Mongolia. The climate and ecological environment in these places provide them with ideal breeding conditions.

Wang Ruiqing, a senior ornithologist and editor-in-chief of Beijing Common Wild Birds, explained, "This Asian Desert Warbler appeared in Beijing, perhaps because it strayed eastward during its migration and got lost."

Migration is an important part of the life cycle of birds, and it is also an important way for them to adapt to the natural environment, seek survival and reproduction. However, during the migration process, they also face many challenges and dangers. This lost Asian Desert Warbler is undoubtedly a lucky exception.

at last,

As we observe and interact with these creatures,

Also be sure to respect their habits.

Protect their living environment.

References:

Forests and Humans 2022 (05): “Little Desert Dwarf” Asian Desert Warbler

Beijing Evening News: Successfully added a new cute character, just like "Angry Birds"! First record in Beijing