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

Adult winter-plumage Long-toed Stint. A small number winter here, but this flock of eight was on migration.

First-winter Long-toed Stint.

An Izu Thrush that wintered in the rice paddies this season. It will probably disappear before long.

Adult male White Wagtail (leucopsis) in summer plumage.

Adult male White Wagtail (leucopsis). Moulting from winter into summer plumage.

Mallard, a relatively uncommon bird on Ishigaki Island.

Adult female Eurasian Teal.

Female Northern Shoveler in non-breeding plumage.

Spot-billed Duck is resident on Ishigaki year-round, but numbers temporarily surge during the spring and autumn migration seasons as birds passing through are added to the mix.

Adult male Pine Bunting. A beautiful individual. ^^

From the other side. The Pine Bunting was eating something that had fallen on the farm track or the ridge between paddies.

A Pine Bunting showing some wariness at my presence. This individual was quite alert, and getting this close took considerable effort. ^^;

The back of the Pine Bunting. In flight, the white outer tail feathers and the rufous-chestnut on the wings are very conspicuous. The bird in flight looked every bit an Emberiza. ^^

It poked its head out from the grass along the paddy ridge. It spent a lot of time tucked into the vegetation, and once lost it was quite a struggle to find again.

It landed on a distant paddy ridge.

The Pine Bunting was eating what appeared to be the dried stems of a grass plant visible in the photo.

On the farm track it was also eating dried grass stems.

How many years before I see one again? Could easily be ten or more years down the line… ^^;