Sat Oct 3 19:39:09 JST 1998
The shorebird (wader) migration, which many of us believed to have occurred earlier than normal this season, surged during the second half of the month, with 20+ species during the last two weeks. It was refreshing to find an actual mixed-species flock of shorebirds on mudflats at one of the rivers, rather than just twos and threes. My attempts at photography might have been more successful had not Greenshanks been present. These are the alarmists among what might otherwise be quite unwary birds.
The Hobbies which I described last month abruptly disappeared during the weekend of the 5th, while we were in Ibaraki Prefecture. Several days later, the three youngsters reappeared over the Misawa airport, and were subsequently observed going to roost in a tall grove of trees a few hundred meters from the nest site. This was exactly the same site where three juvenile Hobbies spent late September last year. I don't know if that species has nest-site fidelity.
One other highlight of the month was the flock of Pacific Swifts which foraged over the coastal hills the weekend of 9/19. I actually counted 400 birds in different segments of what appeared to a continuous flock distributed over tens of kilometers (I couldn't properly estimate total numbers because there are only so many places where one can pull off of the narrow roads safely). The actual number of birds was probably several thousand. A few hours before the typhoon of 9/23, part of this flock descended low over parts of Misawa. After the storm passed, hardly any remained.
Here's the bird list. As usual, the area covered was the hundred or so northeasternmost kilometers of Honshu coastline, from Misawa to Shiriya. Departure and arrival dates for some species are represented by "->". For example, "9/15->" means "arrived 9/15", while "->9/15" means "until 9/15". Note that departure dates are subject to change next month.
Little Grebe Kaitsuburi Podiceps ruficollis Great Crested Grebe Kanmuri-kaitsuburi Podiceps cristatus Streaked Shearwater (9/19,26(100) Mizunagidori Calonectris leucomelas Short-t Shearwater (9/26(1)) Hashiboso-mizunagidori Puffinus tenuirostris Great Cormorant Kawa-u Phalacrocorax carbo Temminck's Cormorant (60) Umi-u Phalacrocorax filamentosus Chinese Little Bittern (9/4(1)) Yoshi-goi Ixobrychus sinensis Black-cr. Night Heron (9/1(1)) Goi-sagi Nycticorax nycticorax Great Egret (20) Dai-saga Egretta alba Intermediate Egret (9/19-26(15)) Chu-sagi Egretta intermedia Little Egret (40) Ko-sagi Egretta garzetta Gray Heron (50) Ao-sagi Ardea cinerea Mute Swan (10) Kobu-hakucho Cygnus cygnus Whooper Swan (2 disabled) O-hakucho Cygnus olor Bewick's Swan (1 disabled) Ko-hakucho Cygnus bewicki Mallard (9/20(15)) Ma-gamo Anas platyrhynchos Spot-billed Duck Karu-gamo Anas poecilorhyncha Common Teal (9/1(1)->(1000+)) Ko-gamo Anas crecca Eurasian Wigeon (9/20(1)->) Hidori-gamo Anas penelope Northern Pintail (9/20(25)->) Onaga-gamo Anas acuta Pochard (2 disabled) Hoshi-hajiro Aythya ferina Tufted Duck Kinkuro-hajiro Aythya fuligula Greater Scaup (9/20(1),9/26(3)) Suzu-gamo Aythya marila Osprey (5) Misago Pandion haliaetus Black Kite Tobi Milvus migrans Northern Goshawk (9/13(1)) O-taka Accipiter gentilis Common Buzzard Nosuri Buteo buteo Asian Marsh Harrier (9/1,4,20(1)) Chuhi Circus spilonotus Peregrine Falcon Hayabusa Falco peregrinus Northern Hobby (4) Chigo-hayabusa Falco subbuteo Eurasian Kestrel (9/12(1) Chogenbo Falco tinnunculus Green Pheasant (9/4(2)) Kiji Phasianus colchicus Water Rail (9/1(3)) Kuina Rallus aquaticus Moorhen (2) Ban Gallinula chloropus Eurasian Coot O-ban Fulica atra Little Ringed Plover (9/1(1)) Ko-chidori Charadrius dubius Kentish Plover (43) Shiro-chidori Charadrius alexandrinus Mongolian Plover ((20)->9/27(7)) Medai-chidori Charadrius mongolus Lesser Golden Plover (4) Munaguro Pluvialis dominica Ruddy Turnstone (3) Kyojo-shigi Arenaria interpres Red-necked Stint (150->9/29(1j)) Tonen Calidris ruficollis Long-toed Stint (9/14,15(1)) Hibari-shigi Calidris subminuta Dunlin (9/20(1)) Hama-shigi Calidris alpina Red Knot (9/26,27(2j)) Ko-oba-shigi Calidris canutus Great Knot (9/19(1),/26,27(1j)) Oba-shigi Calidris tenuirostris Sanderling (60+) Miyubi-shigi Crocethia alba Greenshank (9/26(7),/27(10)) Aoashi-shigi Tringa nebularia Wood SP (9/19,20,27(1)) Takabu-shigi Tringa glareola Wandering Tattler (9/20(1)) Meriken-kiashi-shigi Tringa incana Gray-tailed Tattler (6) Kiashi-shigi Tringa brevipes Common Sandpiper (->9/20(1)) Iso-shigi Tringa hypoleucos Black-tailed Godwit (9/26(3j),/27(4j)) Oguro-shigi Limosa limosa Bar-t. Godwit (9/4(1j),20(1j),26(1j)) O-sorihashi-shigi Limosallapponica Curlew, sp.? (7) ?-shaku-shigi Numenius arquata Whimbrel Chushaku-shigi Numenius phaeopus Common Snipe (9/20(6),/27(10)) Ta-shigi Gallinago gallinago non-Common Snipe (9/27(2)) ?-shigi Gallinago sp. unidentified Snipe (9/27(20) ?-shigi Gallinago sp. Red-n. Phalarope (9/13(1);/16(28),/26(1)) Akaeri-hireashi-shigi P. lobatus Common Black-headed Gull (9/17(7)->) Yuri-kamome Larus ridibundus Herring Gull (9/19(4),/26(25)->) Seguro-kamome Larus argentatus vegae Slaty-backed Gull O-seguro-kamome Larus schistisagus Black-tailed Gull Umineko Larus crassirostris Common Tern (9/17-27(12+)) Ajisashi Sterna hirundo longipennis Rufous Turtle Dove Kiji-bato Streptopelia orientalis Common Cuckoo (5->9/27) Kakko Cuculus canorus Pacific Swift (9/20(400+)->9/27(10)) Amatsubame Apus pacificus Common Kingfisher Kawasemi Alcedo atthis Great Spotted Woodpecker (15) Aka-gera Dendrocopus major Skylark (10) Hibari Alauda arvensis Bank Swallow (->9/27) Shodo-tsubame Riparia riparia Barn Swallow Tsubame Hirundo rustica Gray Wagtail Ki-sekirei Motacilla cinerea Black-backed Wagtail Haku-sekirei Motacilla lugens Japanese Wagtail (5) Seguro-sekirei Motacilla grandis Olive Tree Pipit (9/26(4)) Binzui Anthus hodgsoni Water Pipit (9/29(4)) Tahibari Anthus spinoletta Red-throated Pipit (9/29(3)) Muneaka-tahibari Anthus cervinus Brown-eared Bulbul Hiyodori Hypsipetes amaurotis Bull-headed Shrike Mozu Lanius bucephalus Stonechat (9/1(1),/20(4),/26(3),/27(1)) No-bitaki Saxicola torquata Blue Rock Thrush Isohiyodori Monticola solitarius Brown Thrush Akahara Turdus chrysolaus Pale thrush (9/27(3)) Shirohara Turdus pallidus Bush Warbler Uguisu Cettia diphone Middendorf's Grasshopper W. (9/19(1)) Shima-sennyu Locustella ochotensis Japanese Marsh Warbler (->9/27(1j)) O-sekka Megalurus pryeri Black-browed Reed Warbler (->9/27) Ko-yoshiki Acrocephalus bistrigiceps Great Reed Warbler (->9/27(1)) O-yoshikiri Acrocephalus arundinaceus Pallas's Leaf Warbler (9/26(1)) Karafuto-mushikui Phylloscopus proregulus Crowned Willow Warbler (9/26(6+)) Sendai-mushikui Phylloscopus occipitalis Narcissus Flycatcher (9/26(1)) Ki-bitaki Ficedula narcissina Asian Brown Flycatcher (9/4(1),26(1)) Ko-same-bitaki Muscicapa latirostris Long-tailed Tit (9/27(1)) Enaga Aegithalos caudatus Coal Tit (9/19(2),/26(1)) Hi-gara Parus ater Varied Tit (9/19(2),/26(3),/27(2))) Yama-gara Parus varius Great Tit Shiju-kara Parus major Japanese White-Eye Mejiro Zosterops japonica Meadow Bunting Hojiro Emberiza cioides Japanese Reed Bunting (->9/20(1j)) Ko-jurin Emberiza yessoensis Gray-headed Bunting (9/1(1)->9/27(ij)) Hoaka Emberiza fucata Black-faced Bunting Aoji Emberiza spodocephala Reed Bunting (9/27(5)) O-jurin Emberiza schoeniclus Oriental Greenfinch Kawara-hira Carduelis sinica Hawfinch (8) Shime Coccothraustes coccothraustes Eurasian Tree Sparrow Suzume Passer montanus Red-cheeked Myna ((100)->9/26(1)) Ko-mukudori Sturnus philippensis Gray Starling (1400+) Mukudori Sturnus cineraceus Jay (9/4(1),9/19(1),/26(4),increasing) Kakesu Garrulus glandarius Azure-winged Magpie Onaga Cyanopica cyana Carrion Crow Hashiboso-garasu Corvus corone Jungle Crow Hashibuto-garasu Corbus macrorhynchos
Good birding, Mike