季節外れのオオバン、田んぼで繁殖のカルガモ、ムラサキサギ幼鳥とタマシギ
石垣島でこの時期、オオバンを見るのは初めて。若い個体が水路を泳いでいました。
田んぼでは、カルガモが3家族。ヒナが大きい順から5羽連れ、2羽連れ、7羽連れでした。今年はカルガモが大変多く繁殖しています。
ムラサキサギの幼鳥もあちこちで見ます。まだ営巣中のペアは孵化後、1週間ほどのヒナを育てています。
タマシギも繁殖中でメスの個体と出会う機会が特に多いです。
It's my first time seeing a Eurasian Coot on Ishigaki Island in summer. On Okinawa Island as well, multiple individuals overwintering through the summer have been confirmed recently.
Juvenile Purple Heron. There were two juveniles in the same area.
A female Greater Painted-snipe preening. At this time of year I hear their calls often and encounter them frequently.
Eastern Spot-billed Duck with ducklings. Occasionally individuals breed at the dam, but this was my first time seeing a female with chicks in the rice paddies. This female had seven ducklings with her.
These chicks have grown quite large. The adult is in the middle. She had five chicks that had grown to nearly the same size as the parent.
Adorable Eastern Spot-billed Duck ducklings. Mandarin Duck also breeds on Okinawa Island, but among ducks, the Eastern Spot-billed Duck is the only one that breeds on Ishigaki Island. Though not in the family Anatidae, the Little Grebe also breeds on Ishigaki Island.