Saunders’s Gull, ズグロカモメ – Vulnerable

A handful of these vulnerable gulls winters in Imazu. They are the smallest of the lot, just a bit smaller than the Black-headed Gulls with similar markings and from a distance difficult to distinguish. The bill is stubby and black. And the wings have a dotted pattern visible at rest.

  

The Competition:  Black-headed Gull, ユリカモメ

  

The bill longer and red-colored, overall a bit larger

Seen at the same time: Common Greenshanks, アオアシシギ

And Osprey, ミサゴ with his catch of the day

Common Goldeneye, ホオジロガモ

Far off and cropped to the limits:

Rain and snow in Imazu area

Birds don't seem to mind this bad weather. As long as they can find food...

I found our 2 kinds of spoonbills in a ditch along a small road. We do not often see them this close, so I thought I would study their bills a bit. They are different:

left a juvenile Eurasian Spoonbill, ヘラサギ;  right the endangered  Black-faced Spoonbill, クロツラヘラサギ

apart from the yellow tip of the juvenile Eurasian and the black face of the other, the markings on the bill look quite different. But that could be age.

Pulling a funny face now.

Next a Chestnut-eared Bunting, ホオアカ

And a Common Reed Bunting, オオジュリン

A bit vague, but the white stuff on the reed is visible. It's not snow. I guess it's their food.

Last the Common Snipe, タシギ  

again with some white stuff. This time it is snow.

American Wigeon, アメリカヒドリ

Another surprise in town.

  

Below with Eurasian Wigeon, ヒドリガモ in front

winter scenes

back to the birds: Eurasian Oystercatcher, ミヤコドリ

Despite all the yummy oysters of Itoshima I never see any Oystercatchers there. But east of the city, where the big harbors are and where there is more concrete then anywhere else... we can find them.