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

Yellow Wagtail, first-winter. One slightly olive-tinged feather is showing on the shoulder.

Same individual as above. Watching from behind, several olive-tinged feathers are visible. The uppertail coverts and undertail coverts at the base of the tail are also faintly olive-tinged.

A different Yellow Wagtail, also first-winter. The uppertail coverts and undertail coverts on this one show no colour.

Same individual as above. Seen from the front, juvenile feathers remain on the breast.

A Solitary Snipe puffed up.

Just as it puffed up, it gave itself a good shake. What a beautiful bird the Solitary Snipe is.

A Solitary Snipe startled by the shutter sound.

In this shot I was a bit further from the bird. This is what its normal body shape looks like.

At first it was like this — extremely alert even seen through gaps in the grass.

Common Snipe is a fine bird too, but next to the beauty of a Solitary Snipe…

There was also a female Ryukyu Little Bittern.

A juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle — the 14th of the season. I called my mentor, who surveys juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle numbers, straight away.

The crest was raised by the wind. I'd like to get closer for a shot, but apparently local birders and rental-car tourists have driven into the paddies here a combined four times, and the landowner is angry and not letting anyone in. ^^; Please be careful if you're visiting. If you wander in without knowing, you'll get a very scary earful in Yaeyama dialect.

My first Swinhoe's Snipe in a while.

A few Buff-bellied Pipits had joined a flock of Eastern Yellow Wagtails.

After waiting quietly, one came close.

White Wagtail, female, first-winter plumage. White Wagtails are scarce this year.

Photographed three Tufted Ducks at the sedimentation pond for the newspaper.