Ruddy Kingfisher, Ryukyu Scops Owl, Northern Boobook and More — Breeding Season Brings Life to Ishigaki (Video)
With migration winding down on Ishigaki, the island's breeding species — Ruddy Kingfisher, Ryukyu Scops Owl, Northern Boobook, Ryukyu Sparrowhawk, Malayan Night Heron and others — are busy building nests and incubating.
Ruddy Kingfishers in particular are very active. On this day, while working my regular job, I counted 13 individuals in the morning and 7 in the afternoon — 20 in total with no duplicates. I get the feeling Ruddy Kingfisher numbers are higher than usual this year.
Crested Serpent Eagles are incubating at this time of year, so encounters are fewer. Black-winged Kites breed year-round, so a few sites are also in the incubation stage right now.
Black Paradise Flycatchers have been increasing too, and their songs can be heard from all directions.
A male Ruddy Kingfisher sang at close range on a forest track. I was able to record fine detail in the recording.
A Ruddy Kingfisher in the park. A female individual.
The male of the pair with the one above. Neither the male nor the female of this pair shows any wariness.
A Ruddy Kingfisher on a forest track. This individual also showed little wariness.
This is a Ruddy Kingfisher I encountered on foot. It bred in the same spot last year as well, and is noticeably accustomed to people.
A Ruddy Kingfisher nesting in the garden two houses down from my home. It is perched on my neighbour's roof.
My acquaintance with this Ryukyu Scops Owl has been going on for quite a while now.
Ryukyu Scops Owls have begun breeding at several locations. At the earliest sites, chicks have already hatched. This was also an early-breeding pair last year — perhaps there are individual differences in timing.
It appears the Brown Hawk-Owls have also begun incubating. This pair has successfully bred for several consecutive years.
A male Ryukyu Sparrowhawk in the rice paddies. At this time of year males are often seen, but females are incubating and rarely show themselves.
A Ryukyu Night Heron that has pulled out an earthworm.
Same individual as above. The Ryukyu Night Herons living in the park are used to people and walk right toward you.
A neighborhood Ryukyu Night Heron. It lives close to the settlement, so this one is also used to people.
White-breasted Waterhen breeding too. I expect to encounter adults with chicks before long.
An Ishigaki Bulbul bringing food. Some pairs are still building nests while others already have hatched chicks.
A male Japanese Paradise Flycatcher. He seemed to still be unpaired, moving through the woodland while singing.
