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

The second wave of Common Hoopoes seems to be winding down. Somewhere between 40 and 50 Common Hoopoes have arrived on Ishigaki this season. While searching for them I came across several Malayan Night Herons whose nuptial colouring has deepened noticeably.

Red-throated Pipit and Siberian Pipit numbers are fluctuating wildly — flocks seem to be passing through one after another. The season's first Pacific Swift and Temminck's Stint also appeared. Little Ringed Plovers are fully in summer plumage and moving through. There was a beautiful male Common Ringed Plover in summer plumage too, but I missed the shot… ^^;

For snipe it's all Common Snipe. The Pin-tailed Snipe I found on 20 February and the Swinhoe's Snipe on 21 February remain the only records, with nothing since.

A Eurasian Hoopoe looking tired, apparently just arrived on migration.

The Common Hoopoes on Ishigaki are rivalling the banner year of 2015 in numbers. In 2019, when I was posted to Okinawa main island, an exceptionally large influx of Common Hoopoes arrived as well. This year too, I'm guaranteed to encounter Common Hoopoes somewhere every single day. Every bird is remarkably tame and easy to watch. On this day they were confirmed across the southern, western and northern parts of Ishigaki.

Two Chinese Blackbirds are still present. These individuals are also quite unwary, making for relaxed photography. ^^ I've now found their feeding spot, so they should be even easier to see from here on.

I recorded Black-winged Kite in the northern part of Ishigaki for the first time. Breeding behaviour was first confirmed on the island in 2016, fledglings left the nest in 2017, and in the roughly seven years since, the species has spread across the entire island. There's a real possibility it could expand further to Miyako-jima and Okinawa main island in the future.

White Wagtails of the leucopsis subspecies are present in flocks of up to 50, and almost every White Wagtail I see anywhere on the island is of this subspecies — finding a nominate-type bird is the harder task. Good numbers of returning Red-throated Pipits are also arriving. Little Ringed Plovers are foraging alongside them.

I didn't bother photographing them, but White-shouldered Starling, Red-billed Starling, Common Starling and Eastern Yellow Wagtail are also around.

Five groups of birding acquaintances from the mainland are visiting the island this month — if things continue like this, they're in for a great trip. ^^

A Eurasian Hoopoe spotted in the grass. As usual, it was feeding on cockroaches.

A Caspian Tern was wrestling with a large fish on the coast. The fish was deep-bodied and the tern seemed to have real trouble swallowing it. The thread-like dorsal fin visible in the footage suggests it was a Silvery Moony.

Greater Crested Terns swallow small fish on the wing, but this Monocle Bream was too large, so the bird carried it to the water's edge. Looking closely, I could see it tearing off the obstructive dorsal and pectoral fins with its bill.

Overwintering in the paddies: Pied Avocet, Black-winged Stilt, Marsh Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Common Redshank, Green Sandpiper, Common Snipe, Little Ringed Plover, and Northern Lapwing. Dozens of Common Snipe are staying, but Swinhoe's Snipe have not been found…

Pied Avocet, first-winter.

The Grey-headed Swamphen had become difficult to see for a while, but from this day it started showing well again. It may be because the Hen Harrier, which had been causing the poor appearance rate, was no longer around.

I had been kept waiting 40 minutes for a work appointment, so in frustration I stopped by the paddies — and there was the Swamphen, walking along the farm track.

I contacted several acquaintances who had come to Ishigaki specifically to see it, and we all got to watch it together. Hearing them say "I can see it!! The trip was worth it!!" made me happy too. ^^

A Purple Swamphen walking along a farm track toward me.

Oriental Pratincole and Kentish Plover are breeding well, with many fledged chicks on view. The Oriental Pratincoles in particular have formed a flock of nearly 60 juveniles. At the reclaimed land site, chicks from several Kentish Plover pairs have fledged and are running around energetically.

The Little Terns, which share the same site as the Kentish Plovers in a colony, had their nests flooded by heavy rain brought by the typhoon. Some eggs that had been submerged for several hours did hatch, but their prognosis looks poor.

In the rice paddies, juvenile Common Redshank arrived for the first time this season. Every year, Common Redshank is the first shorebird species to arrive as a juvenile.

Migrating waders and plovers are gradually increasing. Wood Sandpiper, Long-toed Stint and Grey-tailed Tattler have arrived in the paddies. On the coast, Greater Sand Plover, Siberian Sand Plover and Grey-tailed Tattler numbers are building.

Oriental Pratincole in juvenile plumage (left) and first-winter plumage.

The long-awaited autumn wader migration has begun. Six Long-toed Stints have arrived. A few Wood Sandpipers as well. Black-winged Stilt and Common Greenshank are present in small numbers sporadically throughout the year. Little Ringed Plover has also arrived.

First Wood Sandpiper of the season. Summer plumage.

A few Chinese Pond Herons are wintering on Ishigaki Island. One individual is particularly unwary and has been useful for individual identification — it doesn't flee at all, which is almost worrying.

Common Redshank, Common Greenshank and Temminck's Stint are all wintering birds. Little Ringed Plovers have suddenly increased in number; I've confirmed several flocks of around 20 birds. Spring migration is under way.

A Chinese Pond Heron so tame it looked like it could perch on your hand. Winter plumage, but just a little summer plumage is starting to come in.

The Greylag Goose that appeared about ten days ago is still here. Alongside the Greylag Goose, Ishigaki currently hosts a Lesser White-fronted Goose, a Greater White-fronted Goose, a Taiga Bean Goose, a Tundra Swan, and a Common Crane — quite an unlikely lineup for a southern island.

The juvenile Crested Serpent Eagle was the ninth individual of the season. A very active bird, it was catching prey in the rice paddies and mown grasslands.

Caspian Terns have also been coming in over the past few days. They usually stay for a while each year but rarely winter over. On the coast, Siberian Sand Plovers, Kentish Plovers, Little Ringed Plovers, Pacific Golden Plovers, Grey-tailed Tattlers, Common Greenshanks, and Ruddy Turnstones are present in fluctuating numbers.

I had already seen a flock of five Greylag Geese at the end of last year on Okinawa Island, but this was my first encounter with the species on Ishigaki Island.

今季初のクロハラアジサシとハマシギを確認。トウネン、アオアシシギ、ソリハシシギ、メダイチドリ、オオメダイチドリ、セイタカシギ、コチドリなども入れ替わりながら通過しているようです。

First White-winged Tern of the season. A single adult arrived.

7月20日にもうセイタカシギの幼鳥がお目見えしました。成鳥の飛来数もまだまだ少ない中での登場にびっくり。もしかして石垣島内で繁殖しちゃった?

タカブシギはどんどん増えています。こちらの幼鳥の到着はまだ。ヒバリシギ、アオアシシギ、コチドリも増えてきました。

A juvenile Black-winged Stilt. Strange, given that there are only a few Black-winged Stilts in the rice paddies of the same area….

夏羽のエリマキシギ成鳥オスが飛来しました。まさか石垣島で夏羽が残ったオスを見られるとは思ってもいませんでした。最初見つけた時は、何かわからず戸惑いました…。

田んぼにはコアオアシシギ、タカブシギ、ヒバリシギ、セイタカシギ、コチドリなどが増え出して秋の渡りが始まったことを感じさせてくれます。

昨年の石垣島の秋の渡りは大当たりで、かなりの人が訪れてフィーバーしておりました。今季はどんな鳥が飛来するか今から楽しみです。^^

The first Ruff of the season — an adult male in breeding plumage!!

水路にツルシギが2羽飛来していました。セイタカシギの群れと行動を共にしていました。セイタカシギは20羽程度の越冬組。タシギは越冬組に渡り組が加わって数を増やしています。一つの田んぼに10羽以上いるエリアもありました。

淡水シギで渡りのトップを切ったタカブシギは数を増減させて入れ替わっているようです。

コチドリは大きな群れも入り出してすっかり夏羽に変わった個体も多くいます。

小鳥の渡りも活発になってきています。ノビタキを始め、キビタキやルリビタキなどが確認されています。

Spotted Redshanks in a drainage channel. Two birds arrived.

何度か確認していてもなかなか写真に撮れないヒメクイナの写真がやっと撮れました。

石垣島では少ないツルシギは今季初確認。オジロトウネン、ヒバリシギ、オオハシシギ、メダイチドリ、シロチドリなどは元気に滞在中。

Little Crake, juvenile.

久しぶりにハリオシギに出会えました。タシギ6羽、チュウジシギ1羽の群れでした。チュウジシギも久しぶりの出会いでした。

アオアシシギやコアオアシシギ、オジロトウネン、ヒバリシギ、ハマシギ、セイタカシギ、タカブシギ、コチドリ、ダイゼン、ムナグロなども滞在中。

Pin-tailed Snipe, juvenile. A particularly wary individual.

職場と自宅周辺で少しだけ鳥見。

今季初のハシビロガモとオナガガモは前日、初認していましたが写真は撮れずでしたが、この日、ハシビロガモだけは写真の記録が残せました。シマアジは5羽の群れがやってきました。

海岸ではムナグロやダイゼン、キアシシギ、トウネン、メダイチドリなどが滞在中。

サトウキビ畑には警戒心の弱いカタグロトビがいました。石垣島のカタグロトビはずいぶん増えて、田んぼやサトウキビ畑、牧草地に行けばたいてい見られます。

Garganey, adult. Sex unknown.

ジャワアカガシラサギとアカガシラサギという奇跡のツーショットが撮れました。2年前の ブロンズトキとレンカクという組み合わせ にはかないませんが…。^^

ジャワアカガシラサギは今季3羽目。 アカガシラサギは先日から滞在中の個体 です。2羽は常に一緒に餌を取ったり移動したりしていました。ジャワアカガシラサギが幼鳥なので心細いのかもしれません。

アオアシシギとトウネン、ハマシギ、コチドリは今季初の幼鳥を確認しました。ジシギはチュウジシギばかりになり、20羽以上を確認。クロハラアジサシは5羽ほどがトラクターに驚いて飛び出す虫を捕食していました。

A rare case of a Javan Pond Heron (background) and a Chinese Pond Heron together in a single frame.

今季初のハマシギを確認。タカブシギやヒバリシギは成鳥、幼鳥とも数を増やしています。ウズラシギ、クサシギ、コチドリなどもいましたが、幼鳥の到着はまだのようです。

石垣島で唯一、繁殖するシギのタマシギは親子連れが水浴びをしていました。

First Dunlin of the season. Adult, late breeding plumage.

定例調査で海岸3カ所巡り。オオメダイチドリの幼鳥が増えていました。ムナグロやキアシシギ、ソリハシシギ、メダイチドリ、キョウジョシギなどもぼちぼち。

Greater Sand Plover, juvenile. Adults had been trickling in from late June, but this is the first juvenile of the season.

海岸にオオメダイチドリの群れが入りました。これまでも少数がパラパラと通過していましたが、まとまった数が入ったのは今季初。オオメダイチドリの群れには3羽のメダイチドリも入っていました。

今季初となるダイゼン1羽も確認したほか、アカアシシギやヒバリシギ、アオアシシギ、キアシシギも順調に増えてきています。

エリグロアジサシのコロニーではヒナの孵化が始まりました。巣立ちまで台風が襲来しないことを祈ります。

A Greater Sand Plover holding a crab claw in its bill.