I have just returned from a business trip to China and had a little time to twitch. Nanjing botanical garden is vast and a haven for birds in the city. Two hours produced 35 species some of which would be of interest to European birders. Included were four species of woodpecker - great spotted (6), lesser spotted (6), grey-headed (4) and surprisingly, white-backed (4). The latter were the most confiding and visible and a new bird for me. Azure-winged magpies were everywhere. My personal highlight was Whites thrush (2) a new bird for me as well. Coal tits (curiously crested things) and great tits (curiously with white underparts) were abundant. The most spectacular bird - possibly in the whole Palearctic - was the blue magpie (Urocissa erythrorhyncha). These are very vocal and occur in large parties of up to 20 birds. The garden also produced a single male Daurian redstart. Other species were Asian endemics and common European birds like tree sparrows and blackbirds. The latter, subspecies mandarinus, has a different jizz to our familiar garden bird. Another site in Nanjing produced greater necklaced laughing thrushes, several species of bulbul and a new species for me - the speckled piculet - a nano-woodpecker at 4 inches.
Shenyang in Northern China was my next opportunity for a short twitch. We went to Bird Island - a reserve in the middle of a large river. It was a cold wet and blustery day but produced around 45 species. Several trees with small black berries contained flocks of around 60 feeding thrushes consisting of 70 percent Dusky thrushes and 30 percent of the more southerly Siberian subspecies,
Naumanns thrush. Excellent close range views were had. My personal highlight was a flock of around 40 white-headed long-tailed tits. My last encounter with this jewel was a single bird in a flock of typicals in Germany almost 30 years ago. Bramblings were abundant. The river had many ducks the most unusual being 3 ruddy shelducks. Alba wagtails were of several different patterned forms some quite spectacular.
Although not a local report this may be of interest to your followers as access to China is becoming much easier.