Synopsis
This has probably been the longest stretch between going on the trip and posting about the trip. Usually I'm fairly good about getting my write-ups within a few months, but going over half a year without posting has been the longest stretch for me. Life has been crazy and stressful and fully of anxiety (and still is). An international trip would normally be something I'd fully immerse myself in and happily given into the new surroundings and culture. This trip was a struggle. Technology makes it too easy to stay in tuned with things that happen halfway around the world and having the will to unplug can be difficult. Despite it all, I did manage a few moments of awe and enjoyment during our week and a half in Taiwan.

We've technically been to Taiwan several times before - though only flying through. The direct relatively "quick" 12 hour flight from Seattle made it a country we were interested in visiting for a stay. I had done some research on birding in the country. At the time there was only one local birding company (TaiwanBirdGuide.com), while other tours were run by out of country companies and on a set schedule. We had decided on going with a guide because they know the best places to go in addition to local bird knowledge. Plus it was a country whose language (and road signs) might be a bit too much to learn within a short period of time. Several months before March, I contacted the local tour company since they offered private tours at a more than reasonable price. The owner of the company was initially very responsive and we set up tentative plans for a 8-day tour in March. As March approached and multiple emails to the company went unanswered, I began to research and build an itinerary on my own - coming up with a brilliant plan (IMO). The day I finished my plan, I finally received an email from the owner of the tour company. Though I think my plan would have worked out just fine, we decided to go with the tour because we valued the knowledge of a guide (especially on a first visit), wouldn't have to deal with making reservations (which didn't look very easy at some places), and our tour guide would not be the (flaky) owner.

We flew StarLux, a Taiwanese company, and enjoyed the luxury of flying with legroom (even in economy), decent food, and a smooth (Airbus) flight. It was a red-eye (as are most direct flights from Seattle to Taipei), so we arrived at an early hour where we were picked up with JL, our guide for the next 8 days. JL was a great guide for getting to know the birds as well as the island. There are 32 endemic species on the island. JL did a magnificent job of showing us 29 of them (although we did hear the Taiwan Bamboo Partridge we never saw it). We even got decent glimpses of some of the sulkers (cupwing and shortwing). JL had a lot of patience with us and knew the places and birds intimately. His day job was translating books to English and guiding was a side job that got him out of the office.

The first day was a bit of a blur. Sleeping on the flight is never as restful and the jetlag was hitting us pretty hard. For the first day, I fell asleep whenever the car ride was more than 15 minutes, which meant I was out for a lot of it. Thankfully we recovered from jetlag quickly and were able to stay conscious most of the tour. JL took us down the west coast of the island, making stops at IBA wetlands, lakes, rice fields, and parks with a focus, as is typical for most birders who come to the island, on the endemic birds. The west coast of Taiwan is more densely populated than the eastside, which is directly subject to typhoons and high winds. A network of roads weaves towns and cities together, interspersed with rice fields and farms. A large mountain range separates the two coastlines and rise dramatically from each side.

Here is a mostly complete list of the places we birded over the next 8 days.

Xucuogang Wetlands, Taoyuan City
Our first stop was just outside the airport along the coast. These wetlands aren't much to look at. It was bordered by an industrial area and small farms, but the birds didn't seem to mind. A dike runs along the mudflats where Great and Little Egrets waded the murky waters, Common Greenshank and Little Ringed and Kentish Plovers probed the flats, Plain and Yellow-bellied Prinias and Manchurian Bush Warbler in the tall grass, and a pair of Black-faced Buntings made a brief appearance before diving into the dark depths of the brush. It reminded me a lot of the old Nisqually NWR, before the dike was breached and nature was allowed to take its course. Both places were productive in birding, but the Xucuogang Wetlands didn't seem as naturalized or scenic.

Shihmen Reservoir, Taoyuan City
There is a large park with trails adjacent to this large reservoir and dam. We spent a little time in the park, mainly around the parking lot and road (as would be the theme of the tour). We saw our first endemic Taiwan Blue-Magpie and Taiwan Scimitar Babbler. The reservoir itself hosted White and Gray Wagtails, Durian and Plumbeous Redstarts.

Hsinchu Coast IBA--Gangnan Jincheng Lake
We made a brief stop at this lake, which had a few blinds along one edge. A large flock of Black-winged Stilts joined some napping Pied Avocets in the shallow waters. Among the usual Mallards, Eastern Spot-billed Ducks, and Northern Shovelers, was a Garganey (the only one of the tour).

Dongshi Forestry Cultural Park
On the way to Dasyueshan, we stopped below at this cute park that was an old forestry operation and man-made pond where the logs were floated. In the water, Least Grebes and Eurasian Moorhens picked among the water plants and lotus leaves. A Crested Goshawk perched in the open, unfazed by our presence. Gray-chinned Minivets and Black Drongos perched high in the bamboo.

Dasyueshan (Daxueshan) Forest Road
We made several stops along the way to Dasyueshan National Forest Recreation Area. The road is a birding hotspot because it climbs through a number of microclimates and microenvironments and therefore hosts a great diversity of birdlife. Most birders stop at the pheasant crossing signs at 23.5K to see the Swinhoe’s Pheasant, 1 of the 2 endemic pheasants of Taiwan. We stopped for a brief walk along the road, looking down the steep hills for bird movement below. We saw our first endemic Taiwan Whistling Thrush, Liocichla, and Yuhina. All of these birds we would see repeatedly in the mountains. We also saw a pair of Swinhoe's Pheasant in the seep below the road. We had to squeeze in the crowd of tourist to get a glimpse of them. The male stuck to the shadows and brush, while we got decent views of the female.

Dasyueshan (Daxueshan) National Forest Recreation Area

The Dasyueshan NF is probably the number one stop for birders visiting Taiwan. It’s not hard to see why. There are many endemic species in the area and are somewhat easily spotted. Near the top, there is the funky lodge comprised of a scattering of cottages, dorms, and hotel buildings from the 60s- the 80s. The era and age really shows. We stayed in the lodge, which felt like an abandoned a dorm/bunker. There were also a number of cottages that the families typically stay in. This lodge was one I had planned to stay for several nights (if the tour guide fell through). But the reservation system is odd and confusing. So it was nice having the tour book all the rooms for us.

We only stayed for 2 nights, which was the longest stay at one location for the entire tour. But actually had a few of the longest walks/hikes in the area (at most 2 miles; this trip was not at all strenuous). It was enjoyable taking in the different forest environment. It was reminiscent of central-eastern Washington pine forest, but with stands of bamboo mixed in. We startled grazing muntjac and a troop of Taiwan Macaques that lived around the lodge. Near the visitor's center, Taiwan Bullfinch and Rosefinch munched on cherry flowers to get the nectar, while Taiwan Yuhina and Green-backed Tit gleaned their branches. In the early morning and evenings, a thick blanket of fog rolled into the mountains. At night JL pointed out the giant flying squirrels that would eat young leaf buds. These squirrels were giant for sure, but I don’t know if they flew as much as fell between limbs. They looked much too hefty to do any gliding.

JL took us to the end of the road near the top of the mountain. A large gathering of tourists indicated the presence of the star attraction in the area: a pair of Mikado Pheasants walked across the parking lot as a large crowd of onlookers held their phones up to snap pictures. The pheasants, even though they seemed somewhat used to people, were a bit overwhelmed by all the attention and found refuge under the brush and tall grass. Without a clear view or easy shot of the birds, the crowd quickly dispersed. We hung around and got a great private photoshoot with the pheasants as they picked along the grass and came within a few feet of us. The iridescent of the male's blue feathers shined and shimmered in the sunlight and the red fleshy face stood out in stark contrast. We sat on the curb watching, photographing and enjoying the beautiful couple. The pheasants, now more in the open, once again started to gather attention of passerbys. We took out leave before the crowd could swell to an intimidating mob once more. Walking a few of the mountain trails, we spotted more endemic birds: White-whiskered Laughingthrush, Collared Bush Robin, Taiwan and Morrison's Fulvetta. We also spotted Southern Nutcracker, Yellowish-bellied Bush Warbler, and Coal Tit during our hike through the marshy areas and secondary growth forests.

While walking an old logging road near the entrance to the park, we encountered a busy mixed flock of White-eared Sibia, Morrison's Fulvetta, Gray-chinned Minivet and Taiwan Barwing - our only barwings of the trip. We also saw a perched Mountain Hawk-Eagle and a small group of Fire-breasted Flowerpeckers that stubbornly perched high up in the tree.

We only scratched the surface of the trail system of Dasyueshan. I know edges and open areas are generally better for viewing birds and seeing more birds. It would be nice to return to this area to hike more of the trails and spending more time taking everything in.

Puli Dizang Temple, Nantou City
We made a brief stop at this temple for one reason- to see the Maroon Oriole. This was apparently the place to see this bird reliably. We were fortunate to see one male in its deep red plumage and we didn't have to leave the parking area to see it. There were also a number of birds in the parking area, which was heavily vegetated and treed (to be fair). The temple was also on the edge of town and surrounded by mountainous forest.

Ren’ai Township

From studying other tour's itinerary, I had seen ChingJing Farms often mentioned. I think that is very misleading as the farm is a tourist attraction and doesn’t seem like good habitat for birds. The town is perched on the ridge of the mountains and surrounded by forests. This general environment was the birding draw to the area. The cute town had Bavarian-styled buildings, very reminiscent of Leavenworth. We stayed at a nice lodge surrounded by tea plantations and grazing sheep - both draws to the area. We birded the area from the steep paths from the hotel. We didn’t walk far, but the views of the town below and the dramatic deep valley and mountains beyond were very picturesque. A pair of White-bellied Green Pigeons settled into a stand of trees to roost. In the thickets along the plantations, we caught a glimpse of our only Black-necklaced Scimitar Babbler. We also got good views of Olive-backed Pipits and Liocichia.

Hehuanshan Pass, Taroko NP
We drove up to pass in mild conditions; a mix of heavy overcast and wind made it cold enough to bundle up. As we climbed along the ridge line, the broadleaf forest trees gave way to open meadows of short bamboo and small stands of pines. Rocky outcrops and pools of water peaked out amongst the golden waves of bamboo.

At the pass, we took a short walk and spotted an Eurasian Wren, cousin of the Pacific and Winter Wrens. Sulking deep in the reeds was a Taiwan Bush Warbler, which we managed to glimpse before it dove in to the depths of the bamboo again. Flamecrest tittered and flitted in the pines, very similar to our Golden-crowned Kinglets.

We spent a good amount of time scanning the scree intensely, looking for the Alpine Accentor. The pass was the easiest way to see this bird that didn't involve a strenuous hike. Just as we were giving up and returning to the parking lot, I spotted movement along the rocks. After a short while the accentor perched high in the rocks before it flew down to the parking lot within just a few feet of us for great views and photos.

Alishan National Forest Recreation Area
This area was another spot I was most interested in visiting and exploring. With the network of trails and Yushan NP close by, I thought Alishan would be worth a couple of nights stay. It was difficult figuring out the hotels (once again). Contrary to the 2-3 hotels that showed up on Google Maps in the US, the little village had a surprising amount of hotels to choose from. Alishan was another funky town - sort of like a rundown version of Disneyland. There were lots of cute shops and themed buildings, and at one point in the 70s it probably looked impressive and new. Now it looked tired and the buildings definitely showed their age.

We stayed at a hotel with the smallest room I’ve ever stayed in. And I’ve been on cruises and lived in a dorm. All of walls in the room were cement. The bathroom was probably 1/2 the size of the sleeping area, which was a double bed pushed into the corner with 1-1/2 feet of clearance on the other two sides. It was a tight fit for two people (plus luggage) and took coordination of movements to maneuver. The truly weird thing about the hotel was the room had a window that looked out onto an abandoned hallway. Through the hallway‘s window we could see the neighboring building. The abandoned hallway was wide and could easily have doubled the size of our room if the cement walls could be removed to incorporate the empty hallway. The hallway was also lit, and the lights didn’t turn off even at night. Maybe it was haunted? Some superstitious way to keep the demons out? Although this hotel looked nice from the outside, we could tell that we weren’t staying in the nice part. When going in the elevator, the doors open to the back of the (haunted) hotel not the nice looking part in front. In fact, I figured out that the neighboring entrance took guests to the ”nice” hotel. It was pretty deceiving and I could help but wonder which hotel I would have ended up booked from the US.

On the way up to Alishan, we passed by a viewpoint and platform where a large number of tourists gathered to view the setting sun. Since the timing was perfect, we stopped to appreciate the views. Dark mountains poked above a sea of clouds as the setting sun lit the sky ablaze in red, orange, and pink. I had read about the sunset viewing at Alishan, and it wasn't difficult to realize why it was such a popular place to take it in.

As with the majority of the trip, we didn’t walk many of the trails. In fact, we hardly entered the actual park before heading to the next location. We saw more endemics: Taiwan Cupwing (a very dark tiny bird that likes to keep to the depths of a dark bush) and the Taiwan Shortwing (a dark small bird that likes to keep to the depths of grass and bamboo), and the Taiwan Vivid Nitava. Having crossed those off the list had to move on to see more.

Yushan NP

When going to Alishan we passed through Yushan in the afternoon. The following day we backtracked to the national park for a brief day trip. There we spent the morning and early afternoon walking and birding the trails. We watched Taiwan Fulvetta flit like an overgrown Bushtit. A pair of friendly White-whiskered Laughingthrushes came to greet us. Yellowish-bellied Bush Warblers weaved and hid in the rushes. Taiwan and Collared Bush-robins perched openly in the understory. On the mammal front: we watched a pair of Yellow-chinned Martens leap over reflectors while running along the cement guard rail.

In the national park, we stopped at the visitor center, where we had a wonderful meal in the small restaurant. You wouldn't think you'd get great food options in a national park that is far removed from towns and major cities. But the food at the national park restaurant (as with all of the other places we ate at) was of high quality, freshly prepared, satisfying, and wholesome (no highly processed foods). At the national park, we dinned on steamed and pickled veggies, a cutlet of pork, soup, and cold noodles. To wash it down, I had a delicious cup of honey tea, which was unlike anything I've ever had before.

Dongshi Fisherman's Wharf, Chiayi City
After leaving the mountains, we stayed in Chiayi City, much faster pace and busier than the country. We went from staying in the tiniest room of an Alishan hotel to a very posh, extravagant one in the city. It felt like they were trying to make up for the tiny room. Large windows overlooked the city that stretched as far as the eye could see. In the evening, we watched bats fly over the buildings and JL took us out on the streets to watch Savanna Nighthawks swoop over the tall buildings.

In the morning, we headed back to the coast stopping a Dongshi wharf to watch gulls cruise over the waters. The majority of the gulls were Black-headed Gull. But also mixed in were Mongolian, Lesser Black-backed and Vega Gulls.

Budai wetlands

This was another hotspot I was interested in from my research. From the maps and descriptions, I never got a clear understanding of where to go. We made several stops in this expansive area that’s considered the Budai wetlands. A couple of stops were at parks and/or designated birding spots. The area was an expanse of mudflats that provided great habitat for Common Greenshank, Common Redshanks, Kentish Plovers, Pied Avocets, and Little Egrets. Whiskered Terns and a few Little Terns glided over the waters. Plain Pirinias chattered loudly from the scrub. The star of the area was the Black-faced Spoonbills, which wintered on these wetlands in large numbers.

Driving along a set of dikes around the mudflats, we spotted Black-winged Stilt, Long-toed and Red-necked Stint, Little-Ringed, Pacific Golden and Kentish Plover picked along the exposed mud. In deeper waters, Caspian Terns gathered. JL picked out an Eurasian Spoonbill among the Black-billed.

Our last stop in the area was at a more naturalize wetlands. Even in the heat of the day, the open shallow waters were teeming with sandpipers: Eurasian Curlew, Great and Red Knots, Greater Sand and Siberian Plover, Marsh Sandpipers, Spotted Redshank, and Bar-tailed Godwits amassed in great numbers. Small mudskippers and fiddler crabs also picked along the edges of the water.

Kenting NP - Longluan Lake
Our last destination of the trip was to see one endemic bird- the Styan’s Bulbul, which was abundant and easily seen at the southern tip of the island. The bird differed from the common Light-vented Bulbul, but the two birds didn’t overlap much in their ranges.

We made a couple of notable stops around this national park. At the Longluan Lake, we startled a grazing Sika Deer. JL told us about the plight of the deer - how over hunting and habitat loss almost exasperated the population, until the government stepped in and started breeding the deer in captivity. The deer were released in Kenting National Park and the population grew from there. It's still a fraction on what it once was, but at least they didn't go extinct. Longluan Lake itself wasn’t much to look at. Major roads surrounded it, and large power lines crackled overhead.

Kenting NP - Maobitou
This was probably the best stop of what little we saw of Kenting NP. This little park jutted out into the ocean. Waves crashed into the limestone rocks below. We also got great looks at Taiwan Hwaime, Styan's Bulbul and Taiwan Scimitar Babbler.

Kenting NP - Kenting Rangeland
We drove through an official looking gate to the national park, but imagine my disappointment when we turned off before the entrance and instead onto a country road surrounded by cow fields. We did see an impressive kettle of 500+ Gray-faced Buzzards. Oriental Skylarks forged in the cow patties and Pacific and Barn Swallows buzzed overhead.

Guantian Farmland, Tainan City
Returning to Chaiya City to catch the high speed rail back to Taipei, we made a couple of stops along the way. In the rice and water chestnuts fields outside of Tainan City, Long-tailed Jacanas gathered in the winter.

Next to the farmland, a small park was set aside for nesting jacana. It was too early for the jacanas to be nesting, but it was still a nice park to walk through.

Hulupi Natural Park, Tainan City
Our last stop of the tour. This mostly urban park hosted a good number of birds that we had already seen earlier in the trip. It was a nice relaxed pace that we could enjoy in the beauty and uniqueness of the bird life.

Da'an Forest Park, Taipei
We said our goodbyes and thank yous to JL and return to Taipei on the HSB. This was our first ride on the sleek and quiet train and we were impressed by how steady and comfortable it was. You wouldn’t know you were traveling at 160 mph.

Back in Taipei, and on our own, we checked into our hotel on the edge of Da’an Park, which was described as the Central Park of Taipei. It was also mentioned in many of the bird guides about Taiwan.

We were lucky and had had decent weather so far in our trip, but once we landed in Taipei, the monsoon rains arrived. We tried to make the best of it. The nice thing about the rain in Taiwan was that, even though it was torrential at times, there wasn’t an accompanying wind. So, unlike in Seattle, umbrellas were practical and everyone used one. The racks in front of shops and restaurants were littered with piles of umbrellas from the patrons who entered and didn't want to drip everywhere.

In the rain, we walked around Da’an Park. There were a good number of trees, but the ground was mostly denuded of understory and was instead a mat of green (flooded) grass. The open park did have the benefit of easily seeing the Malaysian Night-Heron, which is difficult to see everywhere except Taiwan. The birdiest part of the park was the island of nesting Black-crowned Night-Herons and Eastern Cattle Egrets. White-breasted Water Hen walked the water plant covered edges of the pond, while the egrets and night-herons squawked and squabbled from the branches.

Nearby the park, we took refuge in the Flower Market - a long stretch of vendors selling bonsais, cherry trees, cut flowers, potted succulents and cacti. It was an amazing array and color of plants. The market was set up underneath an elevated road and what is likely a communter parking lot during the week. The gloom of the rainy day was easily forgotten in the glow of lights and color from the vendors. Contrast that to the Jade Market at the end of the flower market, which felt like an underground crowded mass of dark deals on cramped tables.

Guandu Nature Park, Taipei
We took the rail out to the northern edge of the city to Guandu Nature Park. The park was actively managed for wading and water birds. A majority of the park was inaccessible to the public so as not to disturb them. There was still a nice loop of trails through the wetlands and along the edges of the creeks that we could bird along. Two-story blinds looked out over the marshes. And the second story of the visitor center was designed to taken the view of the ponds full of Eastern Spot-billed Ducks, Northern Shovelers, Green-winged Teals, and Black-winged Stilts, in the distinct ponds.

Food
Although our tour was focused on birds, we did enjoy many a good meal along the way. JL seemed to be familiar with many of the restaurants on the route. Our meals ranged from hotpot with robot servers to little mom-and-pop restaurants to a whole chicken roasted in a clay pot to convenience stores. The latter was actually very good. 7-11 and Family Dollar were quick, easy, and cheap places to get food. They had prepared meals of stir fries and noodles that could be heated in store.

Most of our breakfasts at the hotel were buffet style and had a lot of good options mostly Asian cuisine: noodles, congee, steamed veggies - especially cabbage, which they seemed to have everywhere, and steamed bao buns. It was too easy to over do it, but I did manage to find some restraint.

Many of the restaurants had slips of paper to mark your order. Using Google Translate, we could pretty much order what we were expecting. It was always interesting to see what the names of dishes translated into.

When roaming the streets in Taipei and having to pay for meals ourselves, it was surprising how cheap and reasonably portioned all the food was. And it was good wholesome food (like they actually cared about what we put into our bodies). One of the things on my Taiwan list was to go to a night market. Thankfully, it had stopped raining in the evening, and we enjoyed roaming the alleyway, watching vendors preparing their foods. We enjoyed juicy dumplings, mango ice, bao bun stuffed with meat and pickled vegetables, chicken charred by blowtorch, and sweet potato donuts. Even though the line was long and it’s popular we passed on the stinky tofu, which we could smell from a few feet way.

Despite the crowded streets and lots of people everywhere, everyone was friendly and welcoming. We never felt uncomfortable and felt safe wherever we went.

Lasting impressions
Our tour was a whirlwind with many stops and just a taste of the beauty of their mountains and coastline. This experience will be a good stepping stone to planning a longer trip where we can take more time to enjoy and explore the trails and national parks. And of course eat more great food.

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Pictures (click on thumbnail to enlarge)

A few birds of Taiwan

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