A daily record.
Featuring photos of wild birds and nature, mainly from Okinawa Main Island and Ishigaki Island

A mosquito has landed on the head of a Brown Hawk-Owl. There were plenty of mosquitoes swarming around me too, but since I had applied insect repellent spray I was barely bitten.

It was drying its wings and giving itself a shake. The Brown Hawk-Owls here are extremely aggressive, and the crows seem to have learned their lesson well — even perched in such an open spot, not a single crow comes near. Last year at fledging time, a juvenile crow wandered into this pair's territory, and a single male Brown Hawk-Owl drove off five crows. ^^;

I managed to find the Oriental Scops Owl, but no matter what I tried I couldn't get a photo… ^^;

It really knows how to hide itself.

It coughed up a pellet. What appeared to be the wing covers of a Japanese green chafer were mixed in.

This Brown Hawk-Owl ignores the crows even when they make a fuss.

A male Ruddy Kingfisher resting in his favourite tree. The female is probably incubating eggs.

This one is also a male Ruddy Kingfisher. Something seemed to have caught its attention up above, and it kept looking that way.

A White-winged Tern that arrived later knocked off an individual that was preening.

Adult and juvenile.

A Lesser Frigatebird gliding effortlessly toward me on a thermal. There's something a little eerie about it — almost an ominous feeling… ^^;

Huge… According to the field guide, the wingspan is over 180 cm.

A Greater Crested Tern also searched for prey, soaring leisurely over the kuruma prawn aquaculture ponds.

Success — it caught a kuruma prawn. According to someone at the farm, the prawns that get taken are weak ones, so it's no problem. ^^;

A colony of Black-naped Terns. About five pairs were present.

A white-morph Pacific Reef Heron crouching low, eyeing its prey.

The catch turned out to be a small fish… ^^;

A Black-naped Tern bathing.

They came as a pair and left as a pair.

A flock of Kentish Plovers was milling about on the beach in the foreground.

It wasn't carrying food back to the nest, so the chicks have probably not hatched yet.

It had been bathing, but then someone came along walking their dog off-leash and it disappeared somewhere…

For some reason, a Ryukyu Scops Owl froze with its right foot extended.

I was surprised to find it perched right in front of me. I watched and photographed it for a while — it seemed very relaxed.

A Brown Hawk-Owl appeared overhead. It had just stopped raining heavily, so perhaps it came out to dry its feathers?

I encountered a very similar scene just the other day.

A Ryukyu Scops Owl among the green. Quite charming.

A cool-looking profile of a Ryukyu Scops Owl. Both the Brown Hawk-Owl and the Ryukyu Scops Owl are wonderfully expressive.

When it closes its eyes with a smiling expression, it is genuinely relaxed and asleep. When it closes its eyes in a straight line, it is actually on guard and watching you through half-open eyes.

A Brown Hawk-Owl was perched in a chinaberry tree. Which tree it is nesting in is unknown.

I found a new nesting tree for a Oriental Scops Owl. Nearby, the male is keeping watch. It cocks its head to one side — quite endearing. But when a crow came close, it launched a fierce attack and drove it off.

Walking through the windbreak with binoculars around my neck, I sensed something watching me. A female Oriental Scops Owl was visible from a small nest hole. She appears to still be incubating.

A male Japanese Paradise Flycatcher sitting on the nest. The tail feathers stick out well beyond the rim.

Partway through, the female took over. Since no food is being brought, the chicks have apparently not hatched yet.

The male Japanese Paradise Flycatcher would not come out far enough for a full-body shot.

The tree the male Japanese Sparrowhawk uses to watch for prey. The nest was also just a few dozen metres from here. It looks like things are still getting started.

An Oriental Scops Owl in such a conspicuous spot!! Could it be keeping an eye on a fledgling that has just left the nest?

Wiping its bill on a branch. That vacant expression is rather charming.

On alert when a crow flew nearby.

Again, an Oriental Scops Owl in a conspicuous spot.

The Brown Hawk-Owl was resting in a large banyan tree.

The Oriental Scops Owl is very expressive. Today it was oddly active from midday and was even catching prey.

It seems chicks have hatched in some Ruddy Kingfisher nests too — the parents were seen carrying food.

I thought something was caught near its right foot, but it was just a spider web reflecting the light. ^^;

The female was outside. It is thought the chicks have grown large enough to be pushed out of the nest.

The Oriental Scops Owl is very expressive.

The chicks of this Oriental Scops Owl still appear to be small. Even after dark, the female did not leave the nest.

The male paired with the Oriental Scops Owl above. During the day he perches in the tree directly in front of the nest and keeps watch.

This was my first time seeing the female Ryukyu Scops Owl at this nest. The chicks at all the nesting sites have grown large and are being pushed out. The male of this pair is a strongly rufous individual, so telling them apart is easy.

The Brown Hawk-Owl was keeping watch from a slightly different tree than usual. This is my first observation of this pair this season, so I have no idea how many days until fledging — birding friends and I are checking every day.

The female Ryukyu Scops Owl that had been pushed out of the nest yesterday was in the same spot today.

When I visited the first nest, three Brown Hawk-Owl chicks were lined up together. The two parent birds were a short distance away. At this nesting site I had only been able to find one fledgling last year, but this year all five — parents and chicks — were grouped together, making them easy to find.

The eldest.

The second son.

The restless third son.

The female Brown Hawk-Owl watching over her chicks. This female can be identified by the large bleed from the pupil into the iris of her left eye.

The other nest produced only one fledgling. At this site I had found two last year, but this year just one.

The male parent of the fledgling above. This individual is noticeably smaller than the female, which makes him easy to pick out.

The female parent. Her plumage is quite ragged — you can see how hard raising chicks has been.

A male Ryukyu Scops Owl. Relaxed, so standing on one foot.

The wait in the blazing sun was worth it. A fledging Ruddy Kingfisher — so adorable. ^^

Flapping hard as it flies.

It landed in the shrubbery. A Ruddy Kingfisher that isn't red yet. ^^

A parent brought in a Ryukyu Giant Cicada. This pair always brings cicadas. ^^;

Once they lean out this far, fledging is 10–15 minutes away.

This chick looks like it will take a little longer to fledge. Two bills were visible from the nest hole.

Very far away, so extreme extreme extreme cropping. ^^;

A male Ryukyu Scops Owl, maybe?

A pair with the Ryukyu Scops Owl above. Maybe a female? Extreme crop. ^^;

Everyone was puzzled about why this Ryukyu Scops Owl was perching somewhere so conspicuous. ^^

The male Japanese Paradise Flycatcher here is relatively cooperative with chick-rearing, bringing food to the chicks at about the same frequency as the female. Normally the male's main job is keeping predators away while the female handles most of the food delivery.

The female Japanese Paradise Flycatcher tends to perch on branches deeper in the foliage, making her difficult to photograph.

The long tail feathers are hidden, but the green background is beautiful and this ended up being a surprisingly favourite shot. ^^

The pair of Ruddy Kingfishers here often bring grasshoppers. So far, zero large brown cicadas.

A parent Ruddy Kingfisher busy ferrying food — bringing something in about once every 20 minutes.

All four Japanese Paradise Flycatcher chicks are now clearly visible from outside the nest. They've been bringing food frequently, but today it stopped abruptly after around 1 p.m.