ハシブトアジサシ早めの飛来
普通なら秋は9月以降にやってくるハシブトアジサシが7月なのにもうやってきました。2カ月近く早めの飛来です。
干潟では、カニを捕まえていました。マングローブのかげから近い距離で観察していると小石を結構呑み込んでいることが分かりました。ハトやニワトリと同様、砂嚢に小石を貯めてカニを消化しているのだろうか?
A Greater Crested Tern that had caught a large crab.
It swallowed it whole, legs and claws still attached.
After the meal it pecked at nearby pebbles. It's the first time I've seen a tern swallow pebbles.
A crab happened to pass by while it was resting on the sandy beach, and the bird ran over and pounced on it. So they hunt like this too.
Adult winter plumage. Only nine primaries visible, which probably means P10 has been shed.
Looking at the upperwing from below, you can see P10 has grown out by a few centimetres. Once that feather is fully grown, the moult is as good as done. ^^
From this angle, the still-growing P10 on the right wing is visible. Not visible on the left.
Bridled Tern, head-on. Among the terns, this species has relatively long wings for its body size.
An Osprey was resting in a distant Yaeyama mangrove.
Related Posts
- 沖縄本島南部で今季2羽目のヤツガシラ(動画あり)(March 14, 2019)
- 西表島にアカガシラサギ3羽(June 7, 2019)
- First birds of 2023(Jan. 12, 2023)
- Collared Kingfisher — Three Weeks and Counting(Nov. 13, 2024)
- やんばるでリュウキュウオオコノハズク、ホントウアカヒゲなど(July 14, 2017)
- カタグロトビ独り立ち(July 13, 2021)
- 沖縄本島初記録のイエスズメ(動画あり)(Sept. 28, 2018)
- アカショウビン、キンバト、リュウキュウキビタキ、リュウキュウコノハズク、リュウキュウツミ(動画あり)(June 2, 2021)
- 国頭村営林道夜間通行規制にかかる許可証の取得方法(Sept. 2, 2016)
- トウネンとヨーロッパトウネンに酷似したトウネン(Aug. 14, 2018)