Birding in Shanghai is the core of this website, and Cape Nanhui is the core of birding in Shanghai. No place in Shanghai better combines easy access and thrilling coastal birding. In this post, my old friend and experienced Cape Nanhui tour guide Chloe Kan provides an update on the birding situation. Secure your spot today on a shanghaibirding.com tour to Cape Nanhui. Write to tours@shanghaibirding.com. — Craig Brelsford
by Chloe Kan
for shanghaibirding.com
Despite the rapid development the site has undergone in recent years, Shanghai’s Cape Nanhui is still a highly attractive place for birdwatchers. Here are the six best spots:
1. Reeds, Fish Ponds, and Fields near Lingang Avenue Station (Shanghai Metro Line 16)
Good habitat remains. In spring, birders find migrating Oriental Plover and Oriental Pratincole, in summer Pheasant-tailed Jacana and various shorebirds, and in autumn and winter birds of prey. Reed Parrotbill and Pied Kingfisher are residents.
2. Dishui Lake (30.909054, 121.926074)
Wild ducks and grebes in winter and early spring. Also Japanese Cormorant, Red-throated Loon, Black-throated Loon.
3. Rice Fields
Amid the several hundred acres of rice fields and fish ponds, Oriental Stork have been seen. This place is also good high-tide habitat for shorebirds. Birders often note Chinese Grey Shrike and Merlin.
4. Nanhuizui Seaview Park
The center of this large area is the famous Magic Parking Lot (30.884898, 121.968229). Located at the very southeastern-most point of Cape Nanhui, and with a contingent of birders and bird photographers holding an almost daily vigil there, the Magic Parking Lot has been the site of numerous notable records, among them Swinhoe’s Rail and Orange-headed Thrush (see photos below). Other interesting species noted in the Parking Lot are Grey Treepie, Hair-crested Drongo, Black Drongo, and Sakhalin Leaf Warbler. Near the Parking Lot are vast reed beds and mudflats on the sea-side of the seawall and inside a large fish pond. Birds noted here include Chinese Crested Tern and other terns, plus shorebirds such as Black-tailed Godwit, Red Knot, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, and Long-toed Stint. Among the many ducks noted around here are familiar species such as Eurasian Teal, Eurasian Wigeon, Northern Shoveler, and Northern Pintail, East Asian specialties such as Falcated Duck and Mandarin Duck, and rarities such as Baikal Teal.
5. Microforests
Classic, as always! The microforests, eight in all, are like paradise in May, with the sweet fragrance from the blooming locust trees and various kinds of colorful migratory birds. Fairy Pitta is recorded nearly every season. Other East Asian specialities seen here are Narcissus Flycatcher, Yellow-rumped Flycatcher, Mugimaki Flycatcher, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher Grey-streaked Flycatcher, Blue-and-white Flycatcher, Taiga Flycatcher, White-throated Rock Thrush, Daurian Redstart, and Red-flanked Bluetail.
6. Binhai Forest Park (30.966324, 121.910289)
This park lies inland 4 km (2.5 mi.) from the coast of Cape Nanhui. It has become a hotspot for watching migrating forest birds such as Forest Wagtail, Swinhoe’s Minivet, and Black Paradise Flycatcher. Black-naped Oriole and Amur Paradise Flycatcher also pass through the park and may breed there.
PHOTOS
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Birding Cape Nanhui: Even in decline, the coastal area 85 km (53 mi.) southeast of downtown Shanghai is the premier birding spot in the city-province and one of the most famous birding sites in China. The microforests at Cape Nanhui are astonishingly effective migrant traps for woodland species such as Japanese Paradise Flycatcher and Siberian Blue Robin. The wetlands offer East Asian specialties Black-faced Spoonbill and Asian Dowitcher.
Birding Sites Around Shanghai: Use this page to help you find the right spots for birding in Shanghai and further afield in east-central China. The Shanghai region comprises the city-province of Shanghai plus parts of neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Habitats range from mudflats on the coast to wooded parks in the inner city and forested hills and mountains inland.
Birding the Urban Center of Shanghai: Century Park in Pudong offers excellent birding and is easily accessible on Metro Line 2. Yellow-bellied Tit, White’s Thrush, Red-flanked Bluetail, and Daurian Redstart are among the East Asian specialties commonly noted at Century and other parks in the urban core.
Featured image: A nubby promontory between the mouth of the Yangtze River and Hangzhou Bay, Cape Nanhui is the southeasternmost point on the Shanghai Peninsula, the most popular birding site in Shanghai, and among the best-known birdwatching areas in China. The site in Pudong, 85 km (53 mi.) from People’s Square, is a critical stepping stone for birds crossing the Yangtze Delta and is within easy commuting distance to millions of people. Despite manic development that in recent years has caused considerable environmental degradation, Cape Nanhui continues to offer birders a compelling opportunity to experience birds along the East Asian-Australasian Migratory Flyway. (NASA/Craig Brelsford)
