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

Adult Curlew Sandpiper moulting from winter to summer plumage.

The Curlew Sandpipers were always moving around as a pair.

A Dunlin that caught a polychaete worm.

A Dunlin startled by a wave.

Aerial battle between Grey-tailed Tattlers. The adult is on the left, the juvenile on the right.

The adult (right) drives off the juvenile.

The adult appears to have won the fight over the feeding spot.

A charming Common Sandpiper. It walked over and sat down right in front of me.

Pectoral Sandpiper molting from winter to summer plumage.

Sanderling mostly in winter plumage.

Red-necked Stint mid-molt into summer plumage.

A flock of about ten Red-necked Stints feeding.

Pacific Golden Plover molting into summer plumage.

Lesser Sand Plover molting into summer plumage.

Female Kentish Plover. Molting from winter to summer plumage.

A Glossy Ibis preening.

Something startled it and it flew up.

The Glossy Ibis that had been startled into the air came back down in the same paddy.

A female Ryukyu Kingfisher. Her male partner was also in nearby brush.

A lone Oriental Pratincole. It looked tired — perhaps just arrived on migration.

A flock of Common Greenshanks. Every individual is in winter plumage.

Little Whimbrel moulting from first-winter to first-summer plumage.

Adult Little Whimbrel moulting from winter to summer plumage.

When crows or people pass by, they take refuge in the sprouting sugarcane fields.

At first there was only one, but as I watched, another dropped out of the sky. ^^

Adult Little Whimbrel, seen from behind.

Little Whimbrels have been abundant in the Yaeyamas this season, even if Greater Sand Plovers were scarce. ^^

Little Whimbrel, adult. Mostly in winter plumage, but a few summer-plumage feathers are showing.

Little Whimbrel moulting from first-winter into first-summer plumage.

A Little Whimbrel keeping a wary eye on the sky.

Two Little Whimbrels walking through a sugarcane field.

There were also several Oriental Pratincoles in the same field as the Little Whimbrels.

A Chinese Pond Heron in a rice paddy. More birds are coming into breeding plumage.

The Marsh Sandpipers were a flock of four.

The Black-winged Stilts were a flock of about twenty.

The flock of Glossy Ibises has been relentlessly chased by a Peregrine Falcon for the past several days. This individual was struck on the neck but managed to survive.

Immediately after the attack, a Glossy Ibis regurgitates a Golden Apple Snail it had eaten — apparently in shock.

A Broad-billed Sandpiper I was able to photograph at unusually close range.

A Broad-billed Sandpiper that caught what looks like a ragworm? at the river mouth.

It is in the middle of moulting from winter plumage into breeding plumage.

A Curlew Sandpiper also transitioning into breeding plumage. Full red breeding plumage is striking, but a bird still holding worn winter plumage makes you imagine the hardships of the long journey — which is something in itself.

This Curlew Sandpiper seemed a little more wary than the other sandpipers sharing the same spot.

A Sanderling still in full winter plumage. The worn state of the feathers tells of the rigours of a long journey.

Three Great Knots that dropped onto the shore while I was watching Sharp-tailed Sandpipers and Sanderlings. They looked utterly exhausted, as if they had just arrived after a long journey.

A Lesser Sand Plover showing some breeding plumage coming through.

A Ruddy Turnstone still very much in winter plumage.

This adult Pacific Golden Plover also still very much in winter plumage.

A Large-billed Tern in breeding plumage appeared at the river mouth.

The Large-billed Tern was catching prey with impressive flying skill.

A Large-billed Tern working the river mouth with Taketomi Island in the background.

Red-necked Stints have been turning up in greater numbers.

There were many large Costal Ghost Crabs along the shore.

A Wood Sandpiper in the rice paddies. Still very much in winter plumage.

Adult Long-toed Stint. Moulting from winter into breeding plumage.

First-winter Pectoral Sandpiper moulting into first-summer plumage.

Green Sandpiper moulting from winter into breeding plumage.

First Swinhoe's Snipe of the season.

Another Swinhoe's Snipe. They seem to have come in all at once.

Looking for Pin-tailed Snipe, but Swinhoe's Snipe again. ^^;

A shy Common Snipe.

Another Swinhoe's Snipe.

Common Snipe (right) and Swinhoe's Snipe.

A female Greater Painted-snipe. She was keeping watch over the male building a nest behind her.

The male, nest-building and just barely visible behind a screen of grass, was being watched over by a female showing softly out of focus in the foreground.

Black-winged Stilts are gradually increasing in numbers.

A Eurasian Spoonbill has also arrived. It appears to be moving around the island day by day.

Black-faced Spoonbill, adult. The breeding plumes are coming in.

Five birds were in a small stream.

A Malayan Night Heron in the green.

A wary Japanese Night Heron has been staying along the forest road for several days now. At 1200mm, this is as close as this individual will allow.

Ryukyu Striated Heron, male. No nuptial coloration yet.

The Mandarin Duck male is still present.

A Eastern Spot-billed Duck with its right leg missing partway down.

A Great Egret with nuptial coloration on the face and elongated breeding plumes.

A Medium Egret still in winter plumage, bill still yellow.

A Red-throated Pipit in the process of transitioning to summer plumage.

The same individual as above, from the back.

An adult male Brambling moulting into its beautiful summer plumage.

Another adult male Brambling, also nearly in full summer plumage.

Adult female Brambling.

An individual moulting from first-winter into first-summer plumage.