Birds of Taiwan with Optisan Optics

September 18-19, 2025

During the 2025 World Bird Fair, we were invited by Optisan Optics to go birding across the mountains of Taiwan! 歐帝生光電 - Optisan Sports Optics Nature is the official optical partner of Bird Finder Philippines and Haring Ibon , and this expedition allowed us to meet our many international partners and brand ambassadors from the Philippines (Wild Bird Club of the Philippines), Indonesia (Birding Indonesia), Malaysia (Sabah Birdwatchers Association), and Bhutan (Langur Eco Travels - Bhutan) all led by Chuck Kuan-Chieh Hung Taiwan Bird Guide

Taiwan, although an incredibly close neighbor to the Philippines, has a lot more in common with mainland Asia in terms of its birds. There are around 30 endemic species with a whole lot more endemic subspecies due to its geographic isolation and formation!

Despite only birding for 2 days, we were able to record around 75 species at the end of our trip! I think everyone has the stunning Mikado Pheasant as their favorite bird of the trip with it being a joy to watch! This post has some of my favorite bird photographs from the trip, including gorgeous closeups of the two endemic Titmice, the adorable Taiwan Yuhina, and flight shots of Martins and Drongos!

Thank you to Optisan Optics and Taiwan Bird Guide for making this trip a fun and successful one! Love the local food, all the fun jokes and banter along the way.