Birdwatching in Ibaraki-ken: Kasumigaura

Kasumigaura

Visit to the Edosaki coast of Kasumigaura. Birding with the new scope was a deleight: the air was clear and quiet enough to allow me to recognize birds over almost the entire width of the lake until the opposite coast of Tozaki. Total number of ducks must have been at least 15000. Below some rough estimates. Was way too slow to visit the Geese area this time.

Weather: In the beginning of the afternoon the weather was warm, 10 degrees celsius. Near sunset it became chilly, 4 degrees celsius. Hardly any wind, sunny the first half of the afternoon, but after 3.30 pm the sun disappeared behind a heavy cloud.


Observations:
  1. Great crested grebe Podiceps cristatus [Kanmuri-kaitsuburi] 4 ex.
  2. Little grebe Podiceps ruficollis [Kaitsuburi] 3 ex.
  3. Mallard Anas Platyrhynchos [Ma-gamo] at least 4500 ex along the coast of Edosaki and on the middle of the lake.
  4. Spot-billed duck Anas poecilorhyncha [Karu-gamo] At least 80 ex.
  5. Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata [Hashibiro-gamo] At least 400 close to the Edosaki coast.
  6. Green-winged Teal Anas crecca crecca [Ko-gamo] At least 2000 close to the Edosaki coast and more towards the one third of the lake.
  7. American Green-winged Teal Anas crecca carolinensis [Ko-gamo] 1 ex. Same spot as last year on Edosaki-coast. Coast line just east of the burned house.
  8. Falcated Teal Anas falcata [Yoshi-gamo] At least 200 ex close to the Edosaki coast!
  9. Gadwall Anas strepera [Okayoshi-gamo] At least 50 ex.
  10. Northern Pintail Anas acuta [Onaga-gamo] At least 3 ex.
  11. Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope [Hidori-gamo] Some 4000 ex mainly on the side of Tsuchiura.
  12. Pochard Aythya ferina [Hoshi-hajiro] 1 ex. East side of Edodosaki.
  13. Smew Mergus albellus [Miko-aisa] 30 males and at least 20 females more towards the Tozaki coast.
  14. Herring gull Larus argentatus [Seguro-kamome] 2 ex.
  15. Eastern Mew gull Larus c. kamchatschensis [Kamome] 4 ex.
  16. Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus [Yuri-kamome] 35 ex.
  17. Black-crowned night-heron Nycticorax nycticorax [Goi-sagi] 6 ex along Edosaki-coast after sunset.
  18. Little egret Egretta garzetta< [Ko-sagi] 7 ex sleeping on some fishing construtions in the lake. Probably not Daisagi.
  19. Intermediate egret Egretta intermedia [Chuu-sagi] 2 ex.
  20. Great egret Egretta alba [Dai-sagi] 1 ex.
  21. Coot Fulica atra [Ou-ban] 3 ex.
  22. Common Gallinule Gallinula chloropus [Ban] 2 ex.
  23. (Northern) Lapwing Vanellus vanellus 3 ex along Edosaki-coast.
  24. Common snipe Gallinago gallinago [Ta-shigi] 5 ex along Edosaki-coast.
  25. Eurasian Kestrel Falco tinnunculus [Chougenbou] 1 female along Edosaki-coast
  26. Rufous turtle dove Streptopelia orientalis [Kiji-bato] 6 ex.
  27. Common kingfisher Alcedo atthis [Kama-semi] 3 ex along Edosaki-coast.
  28. Skylark Alauda arvensis [Hibari] At least 6 ex.
  29. White wagtail Haku-sekirei [Motacilla alba] At least 4 ex.
  30. Japanese wagtail Motacilla grandis [Seguro-sekirei] At least 12 ex.
  31. Water pipit Anthus spinoletta [Tahibari] At least 20 ex.
  32. Brown-eared bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis [Hiyodori] Several.
  33. Bull-headed shrike Lanius bucephalus [Mozu] 3 ex.
  34. Dusky thrush Turdus naumanni [Tsugumi] 3 ex.
  35. Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica [Kashiradaka] 4 ex.
  36. Oriental greenfinch Carduelis sinica [Kawarahiwa] At least 20 ex.
  37. Gray starling Sturnus cineraceus [Mukudori] At least 10 ex.
  38. Tree sparrow Passer montanus [Suzume] At least 800 ex.
  39. Jungle crow Corvus macrorhynchos [Hashibuto-garasu] 2 ex.

Back to Birds in Japan and Asia. Last modified: December 28, 1997. Fer-Jan de Vries, ferjan@etl.go.jp