The end of summer in Korea is a spectacular time of year. Korean summer consists of inescapable humidity and crippling heat. Everyday. For nearly four months.
Once summer ends, though, things take on a whole new appearance. It rarely rains throughout September, with every day being a perfectly clear sky and comfortably warm temperatures. October is much of the same, though the leaves start to change color and fall away, and the temperature dips ever so slowly at night. And as hard as you try to ignore it, the sun creeps behind the horizon a little earlier each day.
So it was on a perfect October morning that Melanie and I set out to Geumseongsanseong (금성산성), an ancient fortress ruin in the mountains around Damyang-gun, just north of Gwangju. We’ve hiked this steep climb many times, but had never actually gone all the way around the fortress wall. This wall encloses a small valley, and protects an old hermitage at its center. Like the Great Wall in China, the battlements follow the lay of the land, resulting in a lot of sharp ups and downs along the path.
One of the gates at Geumseongsanseong
Looking out over Damyang-gun
This hardy tree clings to life on a solid boulder along the wall of Geumseongsanseong
The view from the northern wall of Geumseongsanseong
In addition to the amazing scenery (especially on a clear autumn day), I’ve found many interesting bird species in this area that I rarely encounter elsewhere. See an earlier post about Geumseongsanseong, when I observed alpine accentors and a golden eagle, two species that I have yet to see anywhere else in Korea to date.
It took Melanie and I almost six hours to hike the entire perimeter, keeping in mind we were going at a leisurely pace. Hiking with me usually consists of a lot of stopping and starting, as every song or call I hear requires identification. If I can’t ID it just on sound alone, I have to stop and look for the source, because chances are if I can’t ID a sound, it’s because I’ve never encountered it before (and therefore, LIFER!) Melanie has an abundant supply of patience…
We were finishing up our hike as the sun descended towards the horizon. Then, a flutter of movement as something flushed from right along the trail at Melanie’s feet and bee-lined it for the tree branches above. My mind goes through the motions: medium-sized ground bird, large body, powerful direct flight. Strong wing beats that produce some noise. Overall brown color, cryptic patterning, short tail. (Oddly enough, this is practically word-for-word what went through my mind as I watched the whole event, which lasted no more than 5 seconds.)
I put all of that information together, instantly ruling out 99% of my Field Guide to the Birds of Korea. Only two candidates remain, and I can rule out common pheasant easily because of the short tail observation. Which leaves only one option left: hazel grouse!
Hazel grouse are small gallinaceous birds, part of the order that includes turkeys, chickens, and other game birds. They closely resemble the ruffed grouse of North America. However, they are scarcely seen, due mainly to their naturally shy nature and cryptic camouflage. I have only encountered hazel grouse before on two separate occasions, both of which were over a year earlier. Melanie, on the other hand, had never seen one before.
Male Hazel Grouse (Tetrastes bonasia amurensis)
For all the fuss it made flushing from the side of the trail, we had to peer through the branches to actually see the grouse. Finally, I located it hiding behind a low-hanging branch. The grouse looked down at us, and remained relatively motionless. Then it began to vocalize in a high-pitched whistle; the sound was very uncharacteristic of most gallinaceous birds I’ve encountered before, and had I only heard it calling and not actually have seen it, I would never have guessed a grouse was making this call.
A pair of hikers passed us by soon after, and the grouse decided to fly off to another tree. Generally grouse are not strong flyers, and make short direct evasion flights when flushed or startled. This time the grouse only flew about 10 meters away, and landed in an exposed tree where it was in plain sight! I cautiously approached, and was treated to a one-on-one photo session with a truly accommodating bird. It wasn’t until a nosy Eurasian jay appeared that the grouse began to move further into the surrounding forest.
Hazel Grouse closely resemble Ruffed Grouse in every way but the facial patterning
And with that, we continued on down the mountainside, enjoying a beautiful sunset after an incredible hike. Although the day was not particularly birdy, encountering a hazel grouse and having such good views made for a very memorable experience.
On the Wing 