The three primary colors of light on Ishigaki Island: Ryukyu Kingfisher (Red), Common Emerald Dove (Green), and Collared Kingfisher (Blue). Right now you can see all three — RGB — in one go. ^^
A Ruddy Kingfisher near home. Looks like the same individual as last year.
I confirmed the first Pin-tailed Snipe of the season. Common Snipe and Swinhoe's Snipe numbers are low, and I have a bad feeling about how the snipe season is starting.
Scanning the paddy bunds with binoculars, I spotted a Pin-tailed Snipe!!
Stopped to check the coast on my way past and scanned for sandpipers and plovers. The tide was wrong and everything was far off. ^^;
Great Knots arrived in a small flock.
I did some birdwatching during free time on a work trip to Yonaguni Island.
The timing was good — in a short while I was able to see Oriental Plover, Black Redstart, Citrine Wagtail, Common Hoopoe, Pin-tailed Snipe, and Swinhoe's Snipe. It was all thanks to the senior birders staying on the island!!
Seven Large Sand Plovers arrived early in the morning at the go-to spot on Yonaguni Island. I got the message while I was at work, so I was fidgeting.
Crested Serpent Eagles are active early in the breeding season. On fine days you can see them displaying high overhead or hear them calling back and forth. The young birds have to keep a low profile so they don't get picked on by the agitated adults.
Overwintering Eastern Marsh Harriers and Grey-faced Buzzards are still present, but they should be heading north before long.
A juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle hatched last year. It has been holding territory in this area since around the end of the year. Sometimes chased off by adults, but it always comes back — a bold individual. ^^
Two consecutive days of bad weather brought large numbers of shorebirds and plovers — apparently mid-migration — dropping in to localized spots. The biggest group was Black-winged Stilts, over 400 birds, followed by Wood Sandpipers at 200+. There were too many to keep counting, so I stopped midway. ^^;
Pied Avocet, Black-tailed Godwit, Marsh Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, and Garganey also arrived, making the paddies extremely lively — though two days later everything was back to normal. ^^;
Along the coast, Greater Sand Plover numbers increased, and a small number of Grey Plovers also came through.
Two Curlew Sandpipers confirmed.
The Collared Kingfisher that had been absent since around mid-February has come back to Ishigaki Island. Based on behavioral patterns and physical features — bill shape and plumage — it appears to be the same individual as before.
In the paddies, Pied Avocet, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Curlew Sandpiper, and Sharp-tailed Sandpiper have been forming impressive mixed flocks, much to the delight of visiting birdwatchers from off the island. ^^
The Collared Kingfisher, which had not been seen for over a month, has returned to Ishigaki Island.
The Black-winged Kites that have been breeding continuously for several years in a woodland near my home appear to be starting their first breeding attempt of the year. Black-winged Kites on Ishigaki breed roughly twice a year, and the timing seems fairly irregular, though warmer periods likely bring higher success rates. Black-winged Kites can now be found everywhere on the island, from the towns in the south to Hirakubo in the north.
Pacific Swifts have arrived at the rice paddies. Around five birds were wheeling through the air together with Barn Swallows. I also recorded my first Sharp-tailed Sandpiper of the season, and Common Redshanks that are hard to separate from overwintering birds but appear to be on passage. Black-winged Stilts are also gradually increasing.
A Black-winged Kite perched on a prominent dead branch, occasionally calling back and forth with another individual perched nearby.
As late March arrives, I am seeing Crested Serpent Eagle pairs more often. This is an active season for them, and road casualties also increase. More and more Purple Herons are beginning to show breeding plumage.
Spring migration is slowly getting underway. Waders are gradually increasing, and I also encountered a large flock of Eastern Yellow Wagtails apparently on the move.
A pair of Crested Serpent Eagles. The male is on the left. The area where this pair lives is surrounded by farmland, so traffic accidents seem unlikely to be a concern.
This season seems to be a bumper year for Common Hoopoe on Ishigaki. Reports of sightings are coming in from all over. On this one day alone, a dozen or more individuals were recorded. I myself photographed two while travelling for work.
It looks like snipe migration has finally begun. The birds feel clearly different from the overwintering ones, and there is a real sense of spring passage. ^^
A Eurasian Hoopoe foraging without any sign of concern as a lawnmower carrying a worker roared and trundled around nearby.