It was a grey Monday. But the Ospreys are back; I’d seen several already the previous week before this one flew over low.
Sometimes the ports are full of Black-necked Grebes in summer plumage in March. Not yet this year. And there were only 2.
It was a grey Monday. But the Ospreys are back; I’d seen several already the previous week before this one flew over low.
Sometimes the ports are full of Black-necked Grebes in summer plumage in March. Not yet this year. And there were only 2.
ISO 6400 for these!
We hung around long enough to see the Osprey grab a (small) fish…
We stopped at Yakumo on the way back from our trip…
An Osprey was fishing just offshore.
Not great conditions for BIfs.
There were several Ospreys fishing at the mouth of one of the local rivers…
A lot of coming and going on the Osprey stack..
Plus some merciless harrying from the local Black-tailed Gulls…
The Osprey family are now 5…
2 Eurasian Spoonbills were seen at Yakumo so we went for a look. I saw one standing in the middle of the river, went back to the car to get my camera (with 2X T/C attached) but the bird flew off. I snapped the above warbler and then got the portable 600 f/11 and walked around trying to relocate the spoonbill but no joy.
Quite a lot of birds around though…
A lens I struggle with for BIFs.
Other stuff around included Pacific Swift, Mandarin Duck, Garganey, White-fronted Goose, lots of singing Sakhalin Leaf Warblers, Common Cuckoo etc…
But no spoonbill pics.
The migration season has fizzled out. Not a vintage one this year…
We checked the rice fields outside town for waders but nothing doing. Just the above Pheasant (which is fairly scarce at least).
No waders or anything else of real interest on the coast although there were a few Ospreys fishing offshore.
We had a fruitless couple of days on the west coast. Nothing rare around: the only passage migrants were lots of Dusky Thrush, a few Rustic Bunting and Japanese White-eye and a lone Olive-backed Pipit. There were some summer plumage Black-throated Divers offshore and a load of commoner birds around including Chestnut-eared Bunting, Pacific Swift and Peregrine.
Ospreys everywhere too. The well-known nest is already occupied and the female is sitting on eggs.
This Osprey was in the same spot as the Crested Kingfishers…
I may not get back to this location again this summer. Maybe in 2 weeks…wonder if the young will already be flying then?