名護岳でサシバの渡り
今季、2度目のタカの渡りを名護岳の天上展望台で見てきた。家を出るのが少し遅れたので、現地に着くと、すでに名護岳の麓からもサシバのタカ柱が見える。これは、出遅れたなと思いながら林道を展望台まで上がり午前8時20分ごろ到着。
早速、北に見える尾根に双眼鏡を向けてみると、数十羽のサシバのタカ柱ができていました。今日はたくさん飛びそうな予感。^^
結局、午前10時まで観察して600羽ほどカウントできました。ダブルカウントはほぼないはず。アカハラダカも何羽か渡って行きました。しかし、ほとんどの群れがかなり遠くを飛ぶのでなかなか写真に収められない…。
前回、たくさん渡っていたエゾビタキは一羽も見当たりませんでした。
帰りは、金武の田芋畑に寄ってみると、ここにも数羽のサシバがいて、田んぼで獲物を捕まえて長旅の疲れを癒し、越冬地を目指すさらなる旅に備えているようでした。
An adult Grey-faced Buzzard passes directly overhead, but at considerable altitude.
A juvenile Grey-faced Buzzard. Juveniles hatched in Japan in spring set out in autumn on the long journey to their wintering grounds far to the south.
A female Chinese Sparrowhawk passing through as well. The Chinese Sparrowhawk migration peaked last month.
A flock too large to fit in the frame. It was a kettling column of around 60 raptors.
This one was high too. It flew off to the south in no time.
A Grey-faced Buzzard rendezvous.
When a flock of Grey-faced Buzzards appears, the individuals that had been resting in the Yanbaru forest climb frantically to catch up.
Two separate flocks merging into a single kettle.
Adult and juvenile Grey-faced Buzzards.
A Grey-faced Buzzard being attacked by a Japanese Sparrowhawk. The sparrowhawk has bitten onto the buzzard's tail feathers.
A Japanese Sparrowhawk getting behind a Grey-faced Buzzard and kicking it.
A Grey-faced Buzzard hunting for prey in the rice paddies of Kin Town. Both feet are caked in mud.
This Grey-faced Buzzard also hunting in the paddies. Some Grey-faced Buzzards winter on Okinawa Island and elsewhere in the Nansei Islands.
