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Peter Ericsson | all galleries >> Tripreports! >> China, April 2010 > Azure-winged Magpie
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16-APR-2010 Peter Ericsson

Azure-winged Magpie

Temple of Heaven, Beijing, China

Beijing seemed devoid of birds outside of Tree Sparrows. However, at pockets of greenery there were some exciting birds. As soon as we entered the grounds to the Temple of Heaven we encountered big groups of this lovely looking Magpie, actively flying between rows of planted coniferous trees. They would come down on the lawn for water and food leftover placed there my the park caretakers.

This bird is only found in the temperate parts of Eastern Asia.

Canon EOS 30D
1/400s f/5.6 at 400.0mm iso640 full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto
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Alex Vargas14-May-2010 02:49
Nice bird, Peter, but as Rainbirder well says, I found them in Spain 2007.
RAINBIRDER08-May-2010 11:02
Nice capture of this beauty Peter!!!

But here is a conundrum: http://www.pbase.com/rainbirder/image/90870951
This bird is also found in Iberia where some authorities treat it as a separate species. Initially it was thought to have been brought to Iberia by Portugese sailors returning from China but there is now sub-fossil evidence that these birds are native to Iberia. Perhaps at one time they were found from South-west Europe right across to China?
lou_rozensteins08-May-2010 09:01
Very nice details. Well done.
Guest 08-May-2010 02:37
Excellent capture, Peter. Beautiful detail and light. V
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