DaninJapan's 2009 List (1 Viewer)

Well I've not really kept up with a list before, perhaps posting here will keep me inspired to do so. Being I've had a lifer already this month (Baillon's Crake) and I'm off for the Arasaki Crane Reserve in Kyushu tomorrow with promise of at least two new lifers being reported there (Siberian Crane & Swan Goose) This might be a good year! 2008 finished strong with another lifer (Lesser White-fronted Goose). Most of January will be from my photos taken at Kin and from around the local area.

Cheers and Good Birding!B

Daniel Smith
Onna-Son
Okinawa, Japan

1 Jan-Kin

1) Long-toed Stint
2) Little-ringed Plover
3) Barn Swallow
4) Wood Sandpiper
5) Common Redshank
6) Common Snipe
7) Pacific Golden Plover
8) Large-billed Crow

2 Jan-Kin

9) Scaly-breasted Munia
10) Green Sandpiper
11) Little Egret
12) Grey Heron
13) Great Egret
14) Intermediate Egret
15) Black-winged Stilt
16) White Wagtail
17) Bean Goose
18) Grey-faced Buzzard
19) Yellow Wagtail

3 Jan- Kijoka

20) Northern Pintail

7 Jan- Kin

21) Red-throated Pipit
22) Cattle Egret
23) Common Greenshanks
24) Pale Thrush
25) Cinnamon Bittern

14 Jan-Onna

26) Brown Hawk Owl

16 Jan-Kin

27) Greater Painted Snipe
28) Ziting Cisticola
29) Japanese Bush Warbler
30) Northern Lapwing
31) Rufous-necked Stint
32) Ruddy-breasted Crake
33) Water Rail

17 Jan-Kin

34) Baillon's Crake *Lifer*

19 Jan- Gushikawa/Yonashiro/Kin

35) Eastern Reef Heron
36) Kentish Plover
37) Little Grebe
38) Moorhen
39) Eurasian Coot
40) Whimbrel
41) Light-vented Bulbul
42) Black-faced Bunting
43) Brown-eared Bulbul
44) Japanese White eye
45) Tree Sparrow
46) Great Tit (Now split, the species here is Japanese Tit, Parus minor)
47) Kestrel
48) Rufous (Oriental) Turtle Dove
49) Osprey
50) Northern Shoveler
51) White-breasted Waterhen

Seems I've left off two common birds that I see nearly on a daily basis:

52) Blue Rock Thrush
53) Grey Wagtail

I'm leaving in a few moments heading to the airport to go to Kyushu and visit the Arasaki Crane Reserve for a few days. Hopefully many more birds to add to the list!
Will return Saturday afternoon and catch up then!

Just back from a few days in Kyushu. Had a great trip with some 85+ species seen.

21 Jan-Mi-Ike, Miyazaki-Ken

54) Great Cormorant
55) Mallard
56) Spot-Billed Duck
57) Eurasian Wigeon
58) Tufted Duck
59) Rock Dove
60) Japanese (green) Woodpecker
61) Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker
62) Olive-Backed Pipit
63) Ashy Minivet *Lifer* (We have Ryukyu Minivet here)
64) Bull-Headed Shrike
65) Durian Redstart
66) Dusky Thrush
67) Long-Tailed Tit
68) Varied Tit
69) Nuthatch
70) Russet Sparrow *Lifer*
71) White-Cheeked Starling
72) Carrion Crow
73) Hawfinch *Lifer*
74) Japanese Grossbeak *Lifer*

22 Jan- Arasaki Crane Reserve, Kagoshima-Ken;

75) Eared (Black-Necked) Grebe
76) Black-Faced Spoonbill
77) Swan Goose *Lifer*
78) Whooper Swan
79) Common Shellduck *Lifer*
80) Green-winged Teal
81) Black Kite
82) Common Crane *Lifer*
83) Hooded Crane
84) White-Naped Crane
85) Siberian Crane *Lifer*
86) Dunlin
87) Common Sandpiper
88) Black Headed Gull
89) Black-Tailed Gull
90) Herring Gull
91) Common Kingfisher
92) Buff-Bellied Pipit
93) Japanese Reed Bunting
94) Brambling
95) Oriental Greenfinch
96) Rook

22 Jan-Yatsushiro, Kumamoto-Ken;

97) Great Crested Grebe
98) Black-Crowned Night Heron
99) Striated Heron
100) Bufflehead *Lifer*
101) Red-Breasted Merganser
102) Eurasian Curlew
103) Oystercatcher
104) Siberian Medow Bunting

Jan 23-Arasaki Crane Reserve

105) Bamboo Partridge *Lifer*
106) Saunder's Gull
107) Japanese White-Eye
108) Grey Headed Bunting *Lifer*
109) Rustic Bunting
110) Yellow Throated Bunting *Lifer*
111) Silky Starling
112) Slaty-backed Gull

24 Jan- Mi-Ike, Miyazaki Ken

113) Red-Flanked Bluetail
114) Baikal Teal
115) White-Backed Woodpecker *Lifer*
116) Grey Bunting *Lifer*

Just going through photos from the Kyushu trip and found I also picked up another bird 117) Skylark

2 Feb- Sankaku-Ike, Tomigusuku
118) Avocet
119) Ruff

Found a cool site to track lists at:
http://birdstack.com/people/DaninJapan

I took a few days off from work to guide a visiting Birder (Dr. Robert Askins & his wife Karen, from Conneticut) around the island. We hears the Okinawa Rail several times, some quite close but never got a glimpse of it. Had a brief view of the Okinawa Woodpecker but great views of Black-faced Spoonbills, Saunders Gull, Japanese Wood Pigeons and the Ryukyu Robin as well as several more common species that were Lifers for them.


9 Feb- Manko, Naha/Sankaku-Ike/Senaga-Jima
119) Saunders Gull
120) Ruddy Turnstone

10 Feb- Yambaru

121) Okinawa Woodpecker

11 Feb- Kin

122) Temmink's Stint

12 Feb- Yambaru

123) Japanese Wood Pigeon
124) Ryukyu Robin

21 Mar- Yambaru

125) Okinawa Rail (The best time to see them is May-Aug)

Haven't been good at keeping up so have a bit of catching up to do. A few trips in April, to Korea and to Amami-Oshima so I was able to add a few nice "wanted birds" to my list.

Korea-3-10 April: I had a meeting to attend from the 6th to the 10th so I just went over a few days early to hit the Saemangeum area. I had always wanted to go but alas, it was after the majority of the birds had departed and the landfill project was in full swing. Visit http://www.birdskorea.org/ for more information on the korean birding scene.

Still managed to get the follwing new birds for the year:

126: Eurasian Magpie
127: Japanese Cormorant
128:Vinous-throated Parrotbill *Lifer*
129:Azure-Winged Magpie
130:Grey-Headed Woodpecker

I still need to go through some gull photos, there might be a few more to add to this list later on!

Yonashiro, Okinawa- 19 April
131: Lesser Sand Plover

After returning from Korea, less than two weeks later I was again off on a trip, this time to Amami-Oshima, the next main island up in the Nansei-Shoto, the string of islands between Taiwan and Kyushu, Japan. Amami is home to several species of endemics and near endemics and I was fortunate enough to get them all! As well as add some new waders passing through on migration. All told it was a better trip than Korea (but no where near as good of food!) Many thanks to my birding partner here on Okinawa, Tom and our friend Dermot visiting all the way from Ireland.

22-25 April- Amami-Oshima
132: Amami Woodcock
133: Lidth's Jay
134: Narcissus Flycatcher
135: Ryukyu FLycatcher
136: Great Knot
137: Ryukyu Scops Owl
138: Amami Thrush
139: Owston's Woodpecker
140: Curlew Sandpiper

Returning to Okinawa, I had a 4 person German film crew here making a documentary. I had met up with them just before I left for Amami and was able to guide them to get good views of the Okinawan endemics, Ryukyu Robin, Okinawa Rail and Pryer's Woodpecker. I had great photos of the Rail that day and picked up my first Ruddy Kingfisher and Japanese Paradise Flycatchers of the season.

5 May-Ada, Kunigami-Son

141: Ruddy Kingfisher
142: Japanese Paradise Flycatcher

After we bid farewell to our German friends, the next weekend Tom and I headed down to our southern Okinawa hot-spots to check for any drop in migrants. We were rewarded by:

143: Tri-colored Munia (escapees, established population)
144: Fork-Tailed (Pacific) Swift
145: Little Tern
146: Black-Tailed Godwit

20 May- Yomitan, Okinawa
147: Oriental Pratincole
148: Common (Ring-Necked) Pheasant
149: Japanese Sparrowhawk (A nesting pair!)

19 June-Onna Coastline
150: Black-Naped Terns