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

Passed through Banna Park. I had good encounters with multiple Ruddy Kingfishers. One adult was feeding a fledgling that had grown to nearly adult size.

The Crested Serpent Eagles are in the final stages of raising their young. The beautiful white-plumaged juveniles should be appearing soon.

I also recorded the first Grey Wagtail of the season — a small group of four.

The Eurasian Tree Sparrow chicks that had been breeding in the nest box on my house have also fledged. The garden is lively these days.

This Ruddy Kingfisher was still feeding its fledgling. The adult was relaxed, but the fledgling was an extremely wary individual.

The Glossy Ibis that arrived on Ishigaki Island with Typhoon No. 9 is now in its fifth day of stay. It has become less wary and easier to observe.

Wood Sandpipers and Little Ringed Plovers on autumn migration have increased rapidly in the rice paddies. Little Terns that apparently bred on the island came to bathe, bringing their recently fledged chicks.

The Ruddy Kingfisher along the forest road has finished raising its young and is taking it easy.

By the fifth day of its stay, wariness had faded. It stopped flushing even when tractors and kei trucks passed by.

A few Chinese Pond Herons are staying. Plumage varies widely, from individuals still mostly in winter dress to those that have almost fully switched to breeding plumage. A Cinnamon Bittern was nearby as well — it is probably breeding in the vicinity.

White-winged Terns were still present but numbers seemed to have dropped. Black-tailed Godwit, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Common Redshank, and Common Greenshank are also staying.

A Chinese Pond Heron almost fully into breeding plumage. This individual was a bit wary.

The Ryukyu Scops Owl I have been watching continuously for many years appears to have begun incubating again safely this season. The chicks should fledge around late June.

A male Ryukyu Scops Owl keeping watch.

6th Ishigaki Island Snipe Camp side notes: a Broad-billed Sandpiper showed at close range, and the paddies also produced a flock of Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, Long-toed Stints in summer plumage, freshly arrived Eurasian Whimbrels, breeding Greater Painted-snipes, and Cinnamon Bitterns in beautiful nuptial plumage.

While traveling between sites, we encountered Ruddy Kingfishers, a Crested Serpent Eagle, Red-throated Pipits, and a large flock of Eastern Yellow Wagtails.

When I first spotted it the Broad-billed Sandpiper was at the far end of the rice paddy, but it gradually worked its way closer.

The Ruddy Kingfishers on Ishigaki Island are in the early stages of breeding, and pairs can be observed nest building here and there. Seeing the two birds perched side by side is something that only happens at this time of year. Courtship feeding, with the male passing food to the female, can also be observed.

A pair of Ruddy Kingfishers perched together. They are in the middle of nest building.

Ruddy Kingfishers increased sharply once April arrived. Some pairs have already formed and can be seen excavating nest holes. The pair near my house was nesting in a rotting tree. I confirmed nest-hole digging at several other spots as well.

Ryukyu Flycatcher song can be heard here and there. I also came across a pair collecting nesting material.

The Crested Serpent Eagle has entered breeding season too. Other resident birds on the island are equally active as the breeding season gets underway.

A Ryukyu Ruddy Kingfisher on the way home from work. One of three individuals I saw.

Ruddy Kingfisher numbers have been building up. The first call of the season came a little earlier than usual, but I had been away from the island on a family trip at the end of March, so I only just managed to get photographs. These days a bird is calling loudly around the house from early morning — at around 6 a.m. the Ruddy Kingfisher wakes me up.

The Ashy Drongo has been wintering at the same spot since around New Year, a stay of roughly four months now. That is quite a long wintering record for Ishigaki Island.

A single Ruddy Shelduck turned up in the rice paddies. Last winter one appeared briefly at the dam but I could not get a proper look, so this was my first good view in a long time. It really is a beautiful bird.

Other spring migrants are arriving one after another: Oriental Pratincole, Common Snipe, Common Greenshank, Black-winged Stilt, Pied Avocet and more.

The Ryukyu Ruddy Kingfisher arrived about a week earlier than usual this season — calls were already audible around 23 March. Numbers picked up toward the end of March. My first photos weren't until 6 April, a little later than usual, partly because I was away from the island on a trip.

By the second half of September, Ruddy Kingfisher numbers are starting to drop. Even so, on this day I confirmed 9 individuals at 3 locations.

A Ruddy Kingfisher on the forest track. An unwarry individual — I suspect the same bird has been returning for several years running.

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.

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.

Breeding is progressing steadily for Ruddy Kingfisher, Ryukyu Scops Owl, Northern Boobook, and Japanese Sparrowhawk alike.

Two pairs of Ruddy Kingfishers breeding near home. This season's nests are out of sight from the house, so I can't tell exactly how things are going, but since they're carrying food I assume all is well.

The Oriental Pratincole colony was ploughed up, but birds that were already flying apparently managed to escape. A few pairs were still carrying food to chicks.

The Japanese Sparrowhawk breeding is also going well, and chicks were confirmed at one nest. The Common Emerald Doves are probably getting along fine too. The local Ruddy Kingfisher was seen carrying a large cicada, and I assumed it was for large chicks — but it ate the cicada itself. Some nests have already hatched, and on hot days the chicks poke their heads out.

A Collared Pratincole chick that cannot yet fly, being fed by one of the parents.

A check on breeding Ryukyu Scops Owls, Northern Boobooks, Ruddy Kingfishers, and Black-naped Terns in a different area of Ishigaki Island from last time. Everything appears to be progressing well.

The female is incubating, the male standing watch — a pair of Ryukyu Scops Owls. They took over the tree hollow where a Brown Hawk-Owl had nested last year… ^^;

Migratory birds have all but disappeared from Ishigaki Island, but breeding by the Ruddy Kingfishers, Northern Boobooks, and Oriental Pratincoles seems to be going smoothly. Black-naped Terns have also arrived and are beginning to form colonies on the rocky reefs.

As every year, I worry about the effect of typhoons, but I hope the breeding season ends in success. ^^

A Ruddy Kingfisher in the shade of a tree at a ranch. After taking prey, it flew right over my head and off into the forest.

Breeding is going well for the Ryukyu quartet: Ryukyu Scops Owl, Northern Boobook, Ruddy Kingfisher, and Black Paradise Flycatcher. Temperatures on Ishigaki Island have not been rising this season and insect activity has been sluggish, so I am a little worried about the effect this may have on chick-rearing.

I found a Ryukyu Scops Owl sitting motionless in the forest in the rain. A Brown Hawk-Owl was incubating right nearby. I wonder if there's no conflict between them.

The first Black-naped Terns of the season have arrived. I have been seeing them on the ferry route since last month, but toward late May they appear on coastal reefs to breed. Almost all of the birds are already paired up.

Ruddy Kingfishers seem to be particularly numerous this season. Nest-building has begun in all sorts of places, though I do wonder whether there are enough nest holes to go round.

A few Bridled Terns arrived. They have been seen on the ferry route since last month, and pairs already seem to have formed.

The Black Drongo arrived again this season to coincide with Golden Week. On Ishigaki Island it usually turns up around this time in spring. It perched on branch tips and caught dragonflies and horseflies in the air.

I also observed Ruddy Kingfisher, Crested Serpent Eagle, and Chinese Pond Heron, among others.

A Black Drongo perched at the tip of a thin branch, waiting for prey.

Black Paradise Flycatcher numbers have been increasing. I keep coming across pairs of Ruddy Kingfishers hard at work nest-building. Some Northern Boobooks have already paired up, showing that breeding is underway. An individual that appears to be a Gray-faced Buzzard was also found.

A Japanese Paradise Flycatcher pair moving around together. They will probably build a nest somewhere in this area.

The pair of Ruddy Kingfishers that visits near my home has returned to breed again this year. They have already begun excavating a nest hole, so I am hoping for another successful breeding season. Last year three chicks fledged safely.

A male Ryukyu Ruddy Kingfisher. Its bill has wood chips on it from digging out a nest hole.