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

As the young birds begin to move away from their parents, juvenile Crested Serpent Eagles are becoming easier to observe. Multiple juveniles have been confirmed across Ishigaki Island. There were no typhoons this season so breeding success looks good — I'm looking forward to seeing how many individuals are counted.

Of the recent Greater Painted-snipe brood, one chick died in the nest, but the surviving chick is doing well with the parent. There are plenty of predators — cats, crows, and Black-winged Kites — so let's hope it makes it through safely.

Crested Serpent Eagle, juvenile. When it spotted something in a roadside ditch it would swoop down — practising its hunting on its own.

For the past few days the Pin-tailed Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe flocks have been showing well. Should be enjoyable until the rice-field work starts up again. ^^

Pin-tailed Snipe, juvenile.

Every spare moment goes to snipe watching. Pin-tailed Snipe numbers are down and Swinhoe's Snipe now make up the majority.

Pin-tailed Snipe, juvenile.

The snipe migration on Ishigaki Island is at its peak. Pin-tailed Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe are both present in the rice fields, though the balance between the two seems to vary by area.

Swinhoe's Snipe, juvenile.

One month after the first Javan Pond Heron, the Chinese Pond Heron has finally arrived. In recent years a pattern has continued in which Chinese Pond Herons arrive after the Javan Pond Herons. There are also more years now when Javan Pond Herons outnumber Chinese Pond Herons.

The Eastern Yellow Wagtails first confirmed last month are increasing steadily in number. The white-supercilium form appears to predominate. Every flock is a mix of juveniles and adults.

The first Chinese Pond Heron of the season. It was eating a tadpole.

The Javan Pond Heron that arrived in July has been staying long-term and numbers have been building.

In the same rice field, Greater Painted-snipe and Common Moorhen are incubating eggs. They appear to breed multiple times a year. White-breasted Waterhens are at all sorts of different breeding stages simultaneously — newly hatched chicks alongside large, well-grown ones. They too may be raising several broods a year.

Three Javan Pond Herons are staying in the same rice field. They have also been recorded in other areas, and there seem to be a fair number on the island. On the Okinawa main island, arrivals have been confirmed in the north, central, and south. Their range appears to be expanding steadily eastward in recent years.

A Common Ringed Plover — a rare bird on Ishigaki Island — has turned up. It's only the second time I've seen one on the island. It was associating with a flock of Little Ringed Plovers. A juvenile Curlew Sandpiper, the first of the season, also arrived. I had noted it a few days earlier, but today I managed to get photographs.

The rice fields have a true migration-season feel, with Common Greenshank, Marsh Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Long-toed Stint, Black-winged Stilt, and Red-necked Stint all coming and going.

The Kentish Plover was in transition from breeding to non-breeding plumage.

The Ruddy Kingfishers on Ishigaki Island are now rarely heard calling. Moult into winter plumage is under way and every individual looks rather ragged. Most will have moved south by the end of September, and finding a Ruddy Kingfisher is becoming increasingly difficult.

Common Emerald Doves are being seen more often along roadsides, coming to feed on fallen fruits and seeds of Macaranga and related trees.

A Ruddy Kingfisher from the neighbourhood. Moult is well advanced and the plumage looks ragged. September has arrived and departure is not far off. I went out to photograph it while it still looks lively, before it disappears.

Juvenile Pin-tailed Snipes have finally arrived. Swinhoe's Snipe are also increasing in both adults and juveniles. For some reason, Pin-tailed Snipe are being recorded in unusually high numbers in the central part of the island this season as well. Most appear to be juveniles.

Juvenile Pin-tailed Snipe.

I recorded the first Eastern Yellow Wagtail of the season. It is a juvenile, but appears to be of the subspecies tschutschensis with the white supercilium. The Javan Pond Heron, with zero wariness of humans, continues its long stay.

The Greater Painted-snipe may be on a second breeding attempt — the male was collecting dead leaves and building a nest. When a snipe came close, he threatened it.

A juvenile Eastern Yellow Wagtail (superciliated form), the first confirmed record of the season.

While watching snipe, a female Greater Painted-snipe appeared. She started flapping her wings and then a male emerged from the undergrowth. After that the two moved around together, bathing and going about their business. A second breeding attempt perhaps? The Javan Pond Heron is still on its extended stay.

A pair of Greater Painted-snipe moving around together.

No change among the Pin-tailed Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe, but a second Curlew Sandpiper of the season had arrived. The other waders are the usual crowd, numbers fluctuating as they linger on.

Pin-tailed Snipe, adult.

Pin-tailed Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe are both gradually increasing. This year both species arrived at the same time. For now, Swinhoe's Snipe outnumber Pin-tailed Snipe.

Pin-tailed Snipe, adult.

I recorded my first Sharp-tailed Sandpiper of the season — about three birds arrived together. The autumn shorebird passage is now getting properly underway, with Wood Sandpiper, Common Redshank, Long-toed Stint, Red-necked Stint, Black-winged Stilt, Common Greenshank, and Little Ringed Plover passing through the paddies day by day.

While watching the waders, a sudden tension ran through the paddy. Looking up, a juvenile Black-winged Kite appeared to hunt. It plunged into the grass and came out gripping a White-breasted Waterhen chick. The prey seemed heavy and the bird was struggling to carry it off.

The first Pectoral Sandpiper of the season turned out to be an adult.

Javan Pond Heron have increased, with 4 birds confirmed at 3 sites. They seem to be turning up steadily on Okinawa Island too, and have become a fixture of this time of year. I recorded the first juveniles of the season for Black-winged Stilt, Long-toed Stint, Wood Sandpiper, and Marsh Sandpiper. Both the variety and numbers of juveniles are growing day by day.

Two Javan Pond Herons. Not particularly wary — easy to observe.

Pin-tailed Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe have finally arrived on Ishigaki Island. Juveniles should start coming in from here, and numbers are expected to keep climbing toward the peak in late August to early September. Something to look forward to.

The 5th Ishigaki Island Snipe Camp currently has one person signed up. There is room for one or two more, so if you feel like enduring the ordeal, please get in touch. ^^ You are also welcome to browse the past Ishigaki Island Snipe Camp reports.

Found an adult Pin-tailed Snipe among three snipe. We pulled the car up close, waited until their wariness eased, then began watching.

I visited Aichi Prefecture for an away Snipe Camp. Taking the shinkansen from Nagoya Station, I arrived in Toyohashi. On the first day, two powerful local helpers supported me, and I was finally able to observe the long-awaited Latham's Snipe — both adults and juveniles!!

On the second day I headed alone to Aisai City to search for Latham's Snipe. The lotus fields were thick with leaves and looked hard to work, so I covered the nearby paddy areas instead. Of four birds found, one could be observed well. On the third day I returned to the same spot and photographed one bird.

Wood Sandpiper, Greater Painted-snipe, and Little Ringed Plover were also present, though their numbers were overwhelmingly fewer than on Ishigaki Island.

I am now a little better prepared for the one-in-a-million chance of encountering Latham's Snipe on Ishigaki Island. ^^

An adult Latham's Snipe. I had a good, fairly close look at it.

On Ishigaki Island, the autumn wader passage is growing more active by the day, with both species and numbers on the rise.

In the paddies I recorded the first Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, and Long-toed Stint of the season. Little Ringed Plover juveniles have also arrived. Wood Sandpiper can be seen in flocks of several dozen birds across various paddy areas around the island. Common Greenshank are also passing through in good numbers. Four Whiskered Tern — the first of the season — had arrived as well.

The first Curlew Sandpiper of the season.

The Javan Pond Heron has arrived. Over the past ten years or so it has become a regular sight on Ishigaki Island and Okinawa Island. In recent years the pattern has become standard: Javan Pond Herons arrive first, followed by Chinese Pond Herons.

A Javan Pond Heron appearing alone. It was catching tadpoles and insects in the rice paddies.

I made a trip to Yanbaru while I was already in Naha on assignment for the House of Councillors election.

Results started coming in around 9:30 p.m. By 11 p.m. I had filed my story and taken a shower, then headed north. I reached Yanbaru around 1 a.m. Conditions were good after the rain, but the owls were uncooperative — one Japanese Scops Owl, two Ryukyu Scops Owls, and zero Northern Boobooks. On the other hand, I found six Okinawa Rails in total: four sleeping in trees and two walking along the road. I also ran into an Okinawa Spiny Rat along the way.

A Okinawa Rail roosting in a tree. Unfortunately I was unable to photograph a Ryukyu Scops Owl — the first time I've visited Yanbaru and come away without one.