Imazu on the 13th

Monday. The excitement of the day before drove me to the fields again. Not a bad decision. There was no wind, a good condition for small birds in the reeds. Around the 2 lakes:

Penduline Tits, ツリスガラ

On to the river, I stumbled upon a flock of Stints. Had I complained about small numbers the day before? There were 21!　Black-winged Stilts, セイタカシギ

Immediately followed by Garganeys, シマアジ. Below a group of 6. Plus 3 others, made it 9 birds.

On the way back I checked the location for the male Stonechat and... Bingo!

Stonechat, ノビタキ

I probably used all my luck up. The next day, my intentions of looking for flycatchers were washed away in the rain...

Winter trip - Saga

We're in Saga, nearly back home. Our 11-day winter trip has come to an end. This is the first post of our trip report, covering Kagoshima, Kumamoto and Saga in 12 parts. It's a long read!

Early in the morning at Higashiyoka, a Short-eared Owl was keenly patrolling the reed-covered land plots behind the sea wall. 

Short-eared Owl, コミミズク

When the sun warmed us up, a few small birds poked their head out.

Common Reed Bunting, オオジュリン

Penduline Tit, ツリスガラ

Zitting Cisticola, セッカ

with each leg on a different leaf

Female Daurian Redstart, ジョウビタキ Puffed up her feathers to stay warm

Male Hen Harrier, ハイイロチュウヒ, chasing a flock of waterbirds over the mudflats

There were 2 Common Ringed Plovers, ハジロコチドリ, whose orange legs I could just make out in the distance. Thank you for showing me, C-san!

Last, the enticing sweeping flocks of mostly Dunlins across the mudflats 💗

The last stop on the last day of our winter holiday. Billie took us safely a fair 1100 km around Kyushu in 11 days. Saga was the perfect end of what was a wonderful trip for the 2 of us.

Penduline Tits, ツリスガラ

Little fleeting noises in the reeds. First I see the Reed Buntings, then the small birds eating from the fluffy reed seeds. They are the Penduline Tits, ツリスガラ

With their size and color, they can easily disappear from view

Males and females look similar, but the males have a grey head

Common Reed Bunting, オオジュリン

Imazu in February part 1

It is cold again - too cold to walk around. But Sunday was not so bad and though I arrived a bit late, I saw a lot of birds that I had not seen this winter yet.

Great or Eurasian Bittern, サンカノゴイ

Eurasian Penduline Tit, ツリスガラ

Common Reed Bunting, オオジュリン

Northern Lapwings, タゲリ

Waders in spring

 When the days get longer, the sun is warmer and the fields are bright green, speckled with yellow, white and purple flowers I feel the need to see plovers, sandpipers, stints and stilts. I try to go to Imazu as often as I can, but the sights there are not fulfilling. So, on May 1st I drove south Saga, to a place that I usually go to in spring.  After driving around, scanning many fields, I found just a few locations that held some birds: 

Red-necked Stints, トウネン in a field full of water. Nearly too much water.

Marsh Sandpipers, コアオアシシギ with their thin needle like bills and long elegant legs have less problems with all that water.

Wood Sandpipers, タカブシギ were there as well, quarreling as I used to see them doing all the time.

At a shallow patch some Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, ウズラシギ ...

... and several Common Snipes, タシギ

Way out at the back, where the field had dried up were the Long-toed Stints, ヒバリシギ

In the surrounding reeds Penduline Tits, ツリスガラ were fluttering in and out of view.

A Kingfisher, カワセミ sat on one of the many poles

A bit further on a Pacific Golden Plover, ムナグロ in the fading evening light