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

Meadow Bunting — a species I almost never get to see in Okinawa.

Eurasian Skylark is also scarce in Okinawa.

Bull-headed Shrike is quite rare too.

I counted around 30 snipe, but every one of them was a Common Snipe.

I was surprised by how completely unafraid the Eastern Buzzard was. Every individual I see in Okinawa is highly wary.

The Pied Avocets that arrived in a group of eleven in November have dwindled one by one, down to a single bird now.

A flock of Northern Lapwings arrived — all juveniles.

Grey-headed Lapwing is scarce in Okinawa and on Ishigaki Island, but two birds are present this season.

A flock of about forty Northern Lapwings was still around as well.

A Common Snipe that stays close to the large flock yet never joins it for some reason — always keeping a little apart.

A Tundra Swan has also been here since November. There is plenty of unharvested rice left in the paddies, so food doesn't seem to be a problem.

An Upland Buzzard perched on a branch beside a channel, targeting a Eurasian Coot. It dive-bombed into the channel shortly afterwards but failed to make a catch.

A different Upland Buzzard. Whenever it circled over the paddies, the Eurasian Coots huddled tightly together on alert.

A juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle foraging along a paddy field bund.

This juvenile was also lying in wait for prey near the paddy fields.

A juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle in a roadside tree along the prefectural highway. It has been spotted here often lately — I worry about traffic accidents.

When an adult Crested Serpent Eagle appears, the juveniles flee at full speed.

This adult was looking down into a small channel. Wondering if there was a crab or frog down there.

A juvenile Malayan Night Heron. Born last year, it is in the process of molting into adult plumage.

An adult Malayan Night Heron. It is still too early for nest-building, but it was picking up twigs.

A Chinese Pond Heron at a drainage channel, targeting small fish.

A Chinese Pond Heron in a rice paddy, catching small insects and the like as it walked along the field bank.

Crested Serpent Eagle "Hayate" — an individual that was rescued after a traffic accident and released back to the wild on 23 November last year. A green ring engraved with "8" is visible on the left leg.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail, first-winter plumage.

A flock of around 30 Red-throated Pipits wintering here.

A Grey Wagtail attacking its reflection in the mirror of an abandoned car. Judging by the droppings, this has apparently been going on for quite some time. Feeling sorry for it, I folded the mirror in.

A Collared Kingfisher that caught a centipede. Ruddy Kingfishers, Crested Serpent Eagles, and Blue Rock Thrushes all seem to be very fond of centipedes.

After the centipede, it caught a Mudskipper. The prey's expression was one of despair….

It has been three months since the Collared Kingfisher arrived on Ishigaki. The moult on the head and back seems to have progressed a little.

When observed from the car it shows no wariness at all, fluffing up its feathers and looking relaxed.

A Collared Kingfisher flushed by a birder approaching on foot. T1 and T2 of the tail feathers appear to be in moult.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail (beema), first-winter plumage.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail (taivana), first-winter plumage.

First-winter (Yellow) Citrine Wagtail.

First-winter Sykes's Wagtail.

A few Buff-bellied Pipits were mixed in.

On Ishigaki and Okinawa, Red-throated Pipits are overwhelmingly more common than Buff-bellied Pipits.

While I was watching the shorebirds, a Peregrine Falcon showed up at its usual spot. It had its eye on a Eurasian Coot, but a light truck passed by and it flew off somewhere.

First-winter Common Snipe.

A White's Thrush in the rice fields. It is noticeably larger than Pale and Brown Thrushes, and the bold patterning adds to its presence.

A Pale Thrush appearing in my garden every day.

A Pied Avocet on an extended stay.

Red-necked Stints arrived in a small flock.

Little Ringed Plovers in a flock of about 20.

About 20 Common Snipe wintering.

A Siberian Rubythroat in the morning, moving through the undergrowth while giving its call note.

Siberian Rubythroats are pretty much like this. Ryukyu Robin is even harder — I could only confirm it by voice…

A Korean Bush Warbler appearing in the grass.

These three Korean Bush Warblers were moving along a forest edge.

A Japanese Bush Warbler found on a forest road.

A Pale-legged Leaf Warbler also detected by its call note. I was able to get a brief look at it as well.

Yellowhammer Yellow-throated Buntings in a flock of about 10.

A solitary Black-faced Bunting detected by its call near the settling pond. Rustic Buntings and Little Buntings were also present, but I couldn't get a photo.

There were three Richard's Pipits at Higashizaki. Feels like I haven't seen them in a while.

A White's Thrush on the farm track by the rice fields.

Also confirmed a few Red-flanked Bluetails.

A fair number of Daurian Redstarts are wintering.

Pale Thrushes are wintering in considerable numbers across a variety of spots, from within the village to cemeteries, farmland, and forest roads.

Although fewer than Pale Thrushes, Japanese Thrushes are also wintering here.

Dusky Thrushes are concentrated in the south pasture.

Common Mynas are increasing in number year by year. In the evenings, Sonai is noisy with Common Mynas roosting on utility poles.

Purple Herons are relatively scarce on Yonaguni Island. This time I found only one individual, a juvenile.

Common Kestrel, first-winter plumage. A completely unafraid individual.

A Common Sandpiper on the lawn. Rice paddies have nearly disappeared on Yonaguni Island, and sandpipers and plovers are almost absent.

Around 30 Pacific Golden Plovers flew in to the school lawn. They may have taken shelter from the heavy overnight rain.

Ring-necked Duck, male breeding plumage. Following a record on Miyako Island in 2023, this became the second record in the prefecture — a valuable sighting.

It is sleeping, but the Ring-necked Duck is the one in the middle. All the others are Tufted Ducks. Once your eye adjusts, you can spot it straight away.

When it lifts its head, the difference between the Ring-necked Duck and the Tufted Ducks is immediately obvious.

Eastern Yellow Wagtail, first-winter plumage.

Long-toed Stint, first-winter plumage. Numbers have been increasing lately. Perhaps the return migration has begun.

A Striated Heron, unusual for Ishigaki Island. I was also able to hear its call.

The two Tundra Swans are still present.

An Osprey came to bathe. It seemed to be wary of me, so I left the area promptly.

A Brown Shrike that has wintered in my workplace car park every year since it was a juvenile. Several years on, it has grown into a fine adult male.