Kasumigaura

Some bird observations by Fer-Jan de Vries

Report of a field trip around Lake Kasumigaura at December 10, 1995. (Ibaraki-ken, the province north-east of Tokyo bordering the Pacific. The freshwater lake is one of the largest in Japan.)

Weather: bright blue and cold; shallow water was covered by thin ice in the early morning, cloudless, a little wind.

Participants: Fer-Jan de Vries (10x40) and Shuichi Haupt (Toyota).

Route: (1) we started at the corner of the Kasumigaura lake NE of Tsuchiura at about 8am. Many ducks (wigeons, teals, pochards and tufted ducks ) and around 200 night herons, disturbed by people in little boats who were cleaning the border of the lake.

We followed the dike, north of the lake. On the inundated muddy fields (2) the lotus harvest was at its peak. Via the tollbridge we reached the second lake (3) between coast and kasimuguara. Pochards and tufted ducks and many black headed gulls.

We crossed the second lake, Kitaura, drove a little south and then east to the coast, a sand beach. (4) (14.30 - 15.15)

We returned to the second lake, crossed the middle bridge and drove north along its edge. Half way between middle and northern bridge the dyke curved westwards into a quiet wet valley (5). Finally just before sunset we drove further another kilometer north along the second lake (6)

In full darkness (17.30) we blundered our way home. The road numbering on the map did not correspond to reality.


English name (place) 		(remark) 
(as in Birds of Japan)

Artic loon (4) 			(1 ex)
Great crested grebe (3,4,5)  	(5)
Horned grebe or Eared grebe (2) ( > 3)
Little grebe (1,2,3,5,6) 	( > 100)
Great cormorant (4) 		( group > 20 flying south)
Mallard (1)			( > 10)
Spot-billed duck (1) 		( > 10)
Shoveler (1) 			( > 50)
Green winged teal (1) 		( > 500)
Eurasian wigeon (1,2,3) 	( > 1000)
Pochard (1,2,3,5,6) 		( > 1000)
Common goldeneye (1) 		(1 male)
Tufted duck (1,2,3,5,6) 	( > 500)
Greater scaup (?)  		(females, large white patch at bill)
Smew (3) (16 no fully colored males) 
Slaty-backed gull (4)		(3)
Black-tailed gull (3,4) 	(2)
Black-headed gull (1,2,3) 	( > 300)
Chinese little bittern (5) 	(female, cream striped breast/throat) 
Black-crowned night heron (1) 	( > 200) 
Little egret (1,2,5,6) 		( > 300)
Great egret (2,5) 		( > 50)
Gray heron (1,2,5) 		(5)
European coot (1,2,3,6) 	( > 50)
Common gallinule (1,2) 		( > 5)
Northern lapwing (2) 		(2)
Temminck's stint (2,6) 		(two groups of 15-20 ex in the mudfields)
Black kite (2) 			(at least 20 ex) 
Peregrine falcon (1) 		(1 female) 
Rufous turtle dove (1,2) 	( > 50)
Common kingfisher (1) 		(1)
Skylark (5)			(> 5)
White wagtail (2) 		(> 10)
Japanese wagtail (1,2) 		(> 10)
Water pipit (2,5,6)		(> 5)
Brown-eared bulbul (1,2) 	(> 20)
Dusky thrush (5) 		(> 5)
Japanese marsh warbler (5) 	( 1 ex. white eyestripe, striped head and back.
				Brown rounded tail)
Siberian meadow bunting (2,5)	(> 30)
Rustic bunting (2)		(2)
Reed bunting (5)		(> 5)
Oriental greenfinch (1)		(2)
Tree sparrow (1,2,5)		(> 100)
Gray starling (1,2)		(> 100)
Carrion crow (2)		(> 10)

Back to previous page Last modified: Januari 22, 1996. Fer-Jan de Vries, ferjan@harl.hitachi.co.jp