Just got back from a short trip. On the way we stopped at one of the ports on the way; the first time I’d been there since the New Year break..just a brief check with the lightweight 600 f/11.
There were 6 Long-tailed Ducks…
Some final pics before they swam back to the open sea…
Grounded…
Not many eagles but the influx of winter passerines compensates for it nicely…
Some scoter fine dining…
Some females…
Redpolls were still up there too…
Nice smooth backgrounds with the big lens…
By far the closest shots I’ve managed of this species…
The ports didn’t have that many birds; here are some of the commoner ones.
There were crossbills up north too and this time, unlike my walks around Hakodate, I had my big f/4 lens…
We stayed away (sleeping in the car!) for a night…
It was holiday time in Japan so everywhere was really quiet and nobody was working in the ports. I was delighted to find a couple of Stejneger’s Scoter in one of them. Usually this species stays on the sea…
The first 2 are an adult male, the bottom one must be a younger bird as its bill structure isn’t fully developed yet.
