GUIDED BIRDWATCHING TOUR
We'll drive you around Ishigaki Island to wherever the birds are showing best that day. Observation is mostly from inside the vehicle, and we keep it to a maximum of 3 guests so everyone can take their time.
道路を走っていたら、道端にヤツガシラを見つけました。今年もいい一年になりそうな予感です。^^
A close-up of a charming Eurasian Hoopoe.
It was hunting cockroaches out of the lawn. ^^
二日酔いが抜けたところで、崎枝半島を回ってきました。^^
Two juvenile Grey-faced Buzzards were threatening each other.
It seems the dispute was settled by calls alone, without coming to blows.
A juvenile Common Kestrel landed in a pine tree.
昨日は、竹富島でもヤツガシラ見ましたがカメラ持ってなかったので撮れず…。^^;
下の写真は、石垣島のヤツガシラ。
The setting leaves something to be desired… ^^;
愛想のいいシマアカモズのオスでした。川平石崎半島。
The background was nice. ^^
今年はヤツガシラの渡りが早くて多いですねー。寒波の影響?
きょうは、5羽観察の4羽撮影できました。1日で見つけた数では過去最高です。1羽撮影を逃したのは、カラスに追われて遠くに飛び見失ったので…。^^;
This was the individual furthest along in its moult.
This one has ruffled feathers around the face — mid-moult.
It was foraging with its crest raised. A slightly nervous individual.
While I was watching this bird, the nervous Eurasian Hoopoe from above came flying over. ^^
ヤツガシラを探す合間に現れた小鳥たちを。
Japanese White-eye.
Zitting Cisticola.
Siberian Stonechat.
島の東側に多いヤツガシラですが、今回は島の西側の崎枝半島に2羽いました。^^
今月、7羽目!!
A Eurasian Hoopoe foraging on the footpath.
It was in an unusually dark stretch of forest road. Only about 200 metres from the hoopoe above, so I thought it might be the same individual, but zooming in and checking the moult condition, it turned out to be a different bird. ^^;
ハチジョウツグミやツグミ、シロハラなど渡ってきてから2カ月近く経っているので警戒心は薄れています。
This Naumann's Thrush was particularly approachable and kept wandering around close by.
夏場に2回ほど見たことがありますが、冬に見たのは初めてです。越冬個体なんでしょうか?
It was so incredibly far away that I used a 2× extender and cropped heavily on top of that. ^^;
At first I thought it was a large Japanese Sparrowhawk and raised my binoculars, then realised it was a Common Cuckoo and scrambled to shoot it… ^^;
天気が良いのでヤツガシラはどんどん目的地へ渡っているようです。
仕事中に1羽だけかろうじていました。^^;
Something seemed to be on the other side of the dead leaves, and it was raising its crest frequently.
ほとんど毎日、同じ場所に2羽でいます。きょうは、オスがシロハラクイナを捕まえた直後のようでした。もう少し早ければ狩りが見られたかも。
It is plucking the feathers off a White-breasted Waterhen.
Male on the left, female on the right.
冬に渡ってくるシギの仲間です。
A small flock of Common Redshanks.
Lately the Common Greenshanks tend to be on their own.
Pacific Golden Plovers stand like ornaments on the wide lawn.
It was so small I thought — a Jack Snipe?! — but it is a Common Snipe. ^^;
About eight Common Snipe were bathing and foraging together.
A favourite sandpiper of mine. ^^
発見した時は、バンを水中で掴んでいました。カンムリワシもバンを襲うことあるんですねー。シロハラクイナの雛を襲うところは見たことあったけど…。^^;
After pulling it out of the water it carried it to a dead branch, then moved off with it into the undergrowth.
ヤツガシラを探しに島を一周しました。北部東側集落に4羽、島の西側の崎枝半島に1羽いました。越冬するのかな?
他の情報によると平久保小学校や野底小学校の校庭にも飛来しているそうです。今年は、ヤツガシラの当たり年ですね。
A reasonably handsome Eurasian Hoopoe.
By the time I noticed the exposure was badly off, it had already gone into the undergrowth… ^^; This one alone is from the Sakieda Peninsula.
In the middle of moult — the feathers around the crest and face look rather ragged.
The feathers around the neck on this one look rather ragged.
Every hoopoe here seems to prey exclusively on this one species of cockroach.
シマアカモズやシロハラも滞在が長くなり、人に慣れてきました。^^
A handsome male Bull-headed Shrike.
The Pale Thrush showed no wariness at all.
ふつうのズグロミゾゴイの虹彩は黄色ですが、この個体は暗色でした。カンムリワシは2羽ほどいますが、ズグロミゾゴイでは初めて見ました。
The iris colour is different, and the overall impression is quite distinct from other Malayan Night Herons I've seen. It was catching earthworms in a pasture.
This individual was in the same pasture. The iris is yellow.
ホシムクドリとムクドリの20羽ぐらいの混群がいました。群れは日によって、大きくなったり小さくなったりします。
In good light you can see a metallic sheen — on a nice day, anyway.
It had been probing the turf with its bill looking for food, so its head was quite dirty.