Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus 麻雀)
Date: 21 Jul 2018 Time: 9:45 a.m.
Weather: Sunny Temperature:28°C
It is a small bird with a body length of 13-15 cm. Feathers are brown, black, and white mixed together. Usually the color of the male and the female is different. Sparrows like to be in groups, they are not afraid of people, but they can respond quickly. I saw dozens of sparrows in the woods next to the wetlands, flying from one tree to another, and sometimes landing on the ground.
Eurasian magpie (Pica pica 喜鹊)
Date: 20 Jul 2018 Time: 6:45 p.m.
Weather: Cloudy Temperature:28°C
Its head, back and tail are black, while the ends of the wings and belly are white. The body is 40-50 cm long, and when they fly, we can see a white pattern on the back. Most of them live in pairs and don't mind people. At dusk, I saw seven or eight magpies walking around on an empty lawn beside the wetlands.
Black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax 夜鹭)
Date: 20 Jul 2018 Time: 7:00 p.m.
Weather: Cloudy Temperature:28°C
It is a medium-sized wader with a body length of 46-60 cm. The body is rounder and the neck is shorter compared to egret. The feathers in the center of the back are dark gray and the rest are light gray. They like to go out at dusk and at night, often hide in the woods during the day. I saw a few night herons flying high in the sky, sometimes they got close to the water. They had wide wings and they were flying stably.
Common moorhen (Gallinula chloropus 黑水鸡)
Date: 18 Jul 2018 Time: 6:30 a.m.
Weather: Sunny Temperature:27°C
It is a medium-sized wading bird with a body length of 24-35 cm. The toes are long and not webbed. The whole body is dark brown, the tip of the mouth is yellow, and the back of the mouth is red. When swimming, the tail is upturned, revealing white feathers under the wings. I saw two walking into the reeds when I rode my bicycle across the bridge. They feed on aquatic plants, small fish, shrimps, aquatic insects, etc.
Long-tailed shrike (Lanius schach 棕背伯劳)
Date: 18 Jul 2018 Time: 6:00 a.m.
Weather: Sunny Temperature:26°C
It is a large-sized bird in Shrike, with a body length of 23-28 cm, short wings and long tail. It is ferocious, not only good at preying insects, but also killing birds, frogs and rodents. When I saw it, it stood at the top of the tree and made a sound, as if calling a friend.
Little egret (Egretta garzetta 小白鹭)
Date: 15 Jul 2018 Time: 7:00 p.m.
Weather: Windy Temperature:26°C
It is a medium-sized wader with a body length of 52-68 cm. It has a slim body and white feathers. The legs are black and the toes are yellow, and it looks elegant when walking. I saw a couple of egret flying over the Taihu Lake. When flying, the head retracts to the shoulder, the neck bends into a bag shape, the two legs extend backwards, and the wings move slowly.