July tanjokai in Imazu

There had been reports of terns flying over the lotus ponds in Imazu. Not a common sight in Fukuoka. On the 1st of July, during the meeting of the Wild Bird Society of Japan there was still one around.

クロハラアジサシ  Whiskered Tern

Below エリグロアジサシ, Black-naped Terns between Thailand and Malaysia, 2008

Other birds seen that weekend: A family of Spot-billed Ducks, カルガモ

ヒドリガモ, Eurasian Wigeon and ヘラサギ, Eurasian Spoonbill. 

Decided to stay in Fukuoka this summer?

セッカ,  Zitting Cisticola, proudly posing with a big catch (grasshopper)

Carpenters at work

The reconstruction of a wooden building took my attention because the carpenters went about their work with such deligency and dedication. In this age of prefab housing they don't get many chances to exercise their skills. The soft light reflected by the wood added a sense of serenety to the atmosphere.

 

 

今日の勉強　　大工さん　＝　だいくさん = carpenter

Herons and Egrets at the Kikuchi river 1

In spring when the Ayu, or Sweetfish move upstream to spawn, birds gather at this point in the Kikuchi river, where it drops down a few meters in elevation. They scan the waters near the wall, making slow peddling movements with their feet. There is always a lot of action, as the birds fight fiercely over the best location. It makes me wonder why they don’t stick to an easy diet of rice paddy frogs. I guess this shows my lazy side and Ayu tastes much better. They sure make a good meal at the izakayas!

     

     

 コサギ,  Little Egret

コサギ,  Little Egret  and  ダイサギ, Great Egret

 Patience and concentration

ゴイサギ,  Black-crowned Night Heron

アオサギ, Grey Heron and ゴイサギ,  Black-crowned Night Heron

Herons and Egrets at the Kikuchi river 2

アオサギ,  Grey Heron

Showing some feather. I don't know if this is a form of display or intimidation. The Herons seemed to tolerate each others present more than the Egrets.

Moving on together

The Grey Herons could stand nearly motionless in the raging waters, allowing me to play with the camera's shutterspeed.

Got One!

Saturday with a friend

When John from Nagasaki came to town we decided to look at the fields around Koga.

The first birds we saw were Grey-headed lapwing, about 4 of them.

ケリ,  Grey-headed Lapwing

Nearby was a pair of Greater Painted-snipe, not in a hurry to leave, so we could watch them mating and performing some display. That was all done very briefly and without much flair. They must have been together for some time...

タマシギ,  Greater Painted-snipe

Greater Painted-snipes, going about their business as they should.

Showing some display afterwards

We drove to Dazaifu where a pair of Japanese Paradise Flycatchers was building a nest from moss, spider webs and ceder bark. The nest was only visible between leaves and branches from a 30cm square patch on the middle of the road, which was most inconvenient. But this is what came out:

サンコウチョウ,  Japanese Paradise Flycatcher

Male, visible because of its blue face markings.

and long tail.

female trying out the softness of the bedding

And that was another good birding day, thanks to John for helping me with his good advice and excellent eye sight. Arigato!