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Hakodate end of year Report 2004 (1 Viewer)

HokkaidoStu

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The following is a report of my local patch from 2004. Apologies for the length. All my fancy italics and bold typing didn't survive the cut & paste.

Hakodate 2004.

I know it's a bit early to be posting an end of year report but I'll be leaving Hokkaido for England shortly and will not be bothered writing this up later in the month.

Hakodate is located at the southernmost tip of Hokkaido, the northernmost of the main Japanese islands. Its' location means a lot of migrants pass through on their way to and from Honshu (the main island in Japan). The following species were all seen in Hakodate within (theoretical) walking distance of my apartment. The main areas near my apartment is the Shinkawa River (a glorified concreted stream) and the nearby smallish Goryokaku Park. The River goes all the way down to the Pacific coast (and a beach, well sort of) in one direction (south) and into local foothills the other direction (north). Further east is the coastal suburb of Yunokawa with the slightly bigger Matsukura River and the only (tiny) bits of farmland and reedbeds in Hakodate. Further west is Hakodateyama, a small forestclad mountain and cape. The whole area could in theory be covered by foot in a day. But you'd have sore feet.

Last year I managed 121 species so my target this year was to beat this total.

January (60 species)

The start of the year was very mild (though it would get very cold after a few days) which meant several species usually absent in winter were still around. Common birds seen in the first week of January were Mallard, Eurasian Teal, Tufted Duck, Spot Billed Duck, Black Kite, Dusky Thrush, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Brown Eared Bulbul, Feral Pigeon, Carrion Crow, Jungle Crow, Black Backed Wagtail, Slaty Backed Gull, Herring Gull, Black Tailed Gull, Great Tit, Coal Tit, Winter Wren, Eurasian Jay, Japanese Wagtail, Hawfinch, Daurian Redstart, Common Kingfisher, Common Bullfinch and Great Spotted Woodpecker. On the sea were Red Breasted Merganser, Japanese Cormorant, Pelagic Cormorant, some offshore Black Legged Kittiwake, Brent Goose and Black Necked Grebe (which were surprisingly scarce this season). A Glaucous Winged Gull was one of 2 adults present throughout the winter-in fact they hardly seemed to move and were always in the same places. Raptors present in the first week were Common Buzzard, Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Northern Goshawk, Peregrine (mobbing a Black Kite) and White Tailed Eagle. Most surprising bird of early January was a lone Long Billed Plover on the Matsukura River which had arrived at the end of 2003) which remained until the end of the month.

Next to be seen in mid January were Grey Starling, Greater Scaup, Harlequin Duck, Common Goldeneye, Oriental Greenfinch, Blue Rock Thrush and Long Tailed Rosefinch and Siberian Meadow Bunting. January 18 on the Matsukura provided 5 new birds: a surprising pair Little Grebe, Brown Dipper (a species I didn't see last year), a lone female Eurasian Kestrel, Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker and a flock of Rustic Bunting.

Heavy snow towards the end of the month resulted in a lot of stuff on the move: a flock of 40 Hawfinch, several Long Tailed Rosefinch, lots of Grey Starling (which are usually pretty rare in winter) and best of all a flock of over 100 Bohemian Waxwing with a few Japanese Waxwing mixed in. This heralded a mini invasion of Waxwings with several groups around town. Last year was the same-they hung round for a few days in the last week of January and then disappeared. Several Peregrines were also present and were often a nice "balcony bird".

Seawatching in winter at the bitterly cold and windswept Tachi-machi misaki (the aforementioned cape) proved a test of endurance. On more than one occasion I was forced by the weather to take refuge in the only shelter-a public toilet. Birds seen included several Divers including Black Throated Diver and Red Throated Diver plus Red Necked Grebe. Actually there were lots of unidentified divers out there some of which were probably Pacific Divers but the only one that came close enough inshore was a Black Throated. The common seaducks were present at the cape including a regular flock of about 50 Black Scoter and smaller numbers of Red Breasted Merganser. About 40 Brent Goose were dotted around the town and a group of 5 Common Buzzard (presumably heading south) was an unexpected sight on 22 January.

A distant White tailed Eagle seen from the town centre and a flock of Brambling were the last stuff of any interest in January. Up to 60 for the year.

February (51 species)

Basically more of the same in February. January was a pretty good month in the sense I saw most of the species I could reasonably expect to see in winter so February didn't provide much in the way of new stuff. Long Tailed Rosefinch remained as did Eurasian Sparrowhawk, Northern Goshawk and Common Buzzard (including a very pale individual that had me going for a while as a possible Rough Legged Buzzard). New birds in the month included Marsh Tit, a group of 4 male Eurasian Wigeon on the Shinkawa River (where there was a also a peak of 16 Tufted Duck), a female Yellow Throated Bunting in the local park (where there were also Varied and Coal Tit, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Hawfinch, Daurian Redstart and Bullfinch), Eurasian Siskin and (finally) a second winter Glaucous Gull. Once seen of course the Siskin and Wigeon were everywhere around town. Up to 65 species for the year.

March (63 species).

Not much interesting in the first 2 weeks of March apart from a huge passage of Common Gull which coincided with a very mild spell of weather with strong southerly winds. Thousands were offshore and on both the rivers in Hakodate. Several Black Legged Kittiwake were present too and there was a peak of about 30 Harlequin Duck. A female Ring Necked Pheasant was the only new species around this time.

The second half of March saw both the birds and the weather changing. The trail up the mountain became passable which allowed me to get several of the resident forest species: Long Tailed Tit, Willow Tit, Goldcrest, Eurasian Treecreeper, Eurasian Nuthatch and Grey Headed Woodpecker. The forest was alive with birds including Siskin, Bullfinch, Great Spotted and Japanese Pygmy Woodpecker, Coal and Marsh Tit and Brambling. A party of 20 Whooper Swan (another species I missed last year-I guess I just wasn't looking skywards when they flew over) flying north on the 24th were accompanied by an unidentified Grey Goose. Birds returning from the south included Japanese Skylark and Bull Headed Shrike.

I saw 2 "firsts" for Hakodate at the end of March. A female Common Pochard was on the Shinkawa River but it paled in comparison to the Ural Owl-my first Owl in Japan. This was seen in temple grounds being mobbed by a very excited pack of Jungle Crows. My wife, an avid Harry Potter fan, was present at the time and screamed as she thought the Owl was going to get killed by the Crows. The Owl was trapped under a bush by the Crows but I think it managed to escape.

Large numbers (hundreds) of Red Breasted Merganser passed through at the end of the month as did a small influx of adult Glaucous Gull (which would continue until mid-April). Up to 77 species for the year.

April (80 species)

April is always the best month species-wise. Most of the winter stuff lingers on into the middle of the month as birds come up from further south in Japan on their way north. The first "real" summer visitor was Barn Swallow on April 8. This was followed by Asian House Martin the next day. Also seen in early April were returning Japanese Bush Warbler and Grey Wagtail. Small groups of Eurasian Wigeon were scattered across town.

Mid April saw several new passerines as well as all the resident species now in full voice-lots of Black Faced Bunting, Red Flanked Bluetail and Common Stonechat scattered across town, Buff Bellied Pipit on the Matsukura, large numbers of Japanese White-eye, Pale Thrush and Eastern Crowned Willow Warbler on the mountain. Other new birds included a lone northbound Osprey, some strangely exotic-looking groups of summer plumage Black Headed Gull and several beautiful Blue and White Flycatcher on the mountain (including one male in someone's tiny front garden in the middle of town).

April 22 was an excellent day on the Matsukura- Sakhalin Leaf Warbler (a brownish phylloscopus warbler........ or was it a Pale Legged Warbler?), a superb male Narcissus Flycatcher (one of several across town), Oriental Turtle Dove and the first Common Crossbill of the year (it was very common in 2003 and would get commoner later in April this year). 2 early morning visits to the mountain right at the end of the month brought me Short Tailed Bush Warbler, Rhinoceros Auklet, singing Grey Thrush and Japanese Thrush as well as lots of common stuff passing through (huge numbers of Coal Tit and Great Tit for example plus Long Tailed Rosefinch, Red Flanked Bluetail and lots of Eastern Crowned and Sakhalin Leaf Warblers).

The last day of April was spent on the Matsukura when an Oriental Reed Warbler had the honour of being my 100th species for the year. Little Ringed Plover and Red Cheeked Starling brought me up to 102 species for the year with 3 "firsts" in April for Hakodate.

May (64 species)

Due to various reasons I couldn't do much birding in Hakodate in May. The first 5 days in May were spent birding with Charles Harper and Ray Gossen on Tobishima in the Japan Sea where I was amazed at their ability to get up so early and also by their wonderful telescopes. Thanks for the wonderful hospitality Ray.

12 May was my first decent day in the month when I too got up very early and visited the mountain. Large numbers of the same migrants as April were present plus several Siberian Blue Robin and Japanese Robin, Eye Browed Thrush and 1 singing Oriental Cuckoo. The first Grey Heron of the year passed north and there there were small numbers of Grey Tailed Tattler on the coast. Also present on this day were Common Buzzard and another 3 species of Thrush (including a late Dusky Thrush which was also seen the next day). A Chestnut Eared Bunting was singing on the same patch of wasteland on the Shinkawa River as last year.

Highlight of the month were the huge flocks of Red Necked Pharalope seen off Yunokawa on May 16. Calm conditions meant the flocks could be easily seen about half a kilometre offshore. Mid-late May seems to be a cert for this species as I saw hundreds of thousands of them a few miles east last year too. A lone Sand Martin was also seen on the Matsukura together with another Tattler well upstream (which remained until at least the 23rd), Little Ringed Plover, singing Grey Thrush, Stonechat and Chestnut Eared Bunting. The same place provided a Common Cuckoo a week later. A final visit (until Autumn) to the mountain provided a singing Arctic Warbler plus various sundry Warblers, Thrushes, Flycatchers, Tits and Woodpeckers. Up to 113 species for the year.

June (37 species)

Summer allowed me to wallow in lethargy. The weather was humid and foggy and the mountain is the haunt of large numbers of mosquitoes and the leaf cover means I can't see the birds anyway. Plus Euro 2004 was on TV. The Matsukura River provided (very difficult to see) Grays Grasshopper Warbler and Black Browed Reed Warbler (which was much easier to see). There were at least 2 of each as well as around 25-30 singing Oriental Great Reed Warbler on a single kilometre stretch of river. Also present and apparently breeding along this river were Little Ringed Plover, Japanese Skylark, Grey Thrush, Black Faced and Chestnut Eared Bunting, Japanese Bush Warbler, Bull Headed Shrike, Stonechat and Common Cuckoo.

Nearer my apartment on the Shinkawa River there were also good numbers of Oriental Reed Warblers (at least 7 singing males on a highly urban mostly concreted river). Also breeding on this river were Asian House Martin, Red Cheeked Starling, Bull Headed Shrike, Chestnut Eared Bunting, Black Backed Wagtail and Great Tit. A surprise juvenile Black Crowned Night Heron was around for a few days from June 18. Up to 116 species for the year.

July (25 species)

Not much happening in July. I was surprised to see Peregrine still around (I had assumed they were only winter visitors but they appear to be resident). Immature Grey Wagtail were moving down from the foothills and a Common Sandpiper on July 30 brought me up to 117 species for the year. The end of the month was REALLY hot and the hot spell continued for a few more weeks.......

August (25 species)

Very hot weather meant little birding for most of the month. A few birds were on the move -notably Common Cuckoo and Grey Heron. The Weather turned at the end of the month as the typhoon season began (several big ones this year which is unusual in Hokkaido). The wader passage was light (or maybe I just missed them all as the typhoons kept me indoors) with only a few Common Sandpiper and a lone Red Necked Stint. A White Throated Needletail was a nice flyover bird on August 31st bringing me up to 119 species for the year.

September (39 species)

Most of my birding this month was on the Shinkawa River where I saw lots of southbound Stonechat, Eastern Crowned and Arctic Warblers and the first Hawfinch since early June. All 3 Muscipia Flycatchers were present-Asian Brown Flycatcher (the commonest), Sooty Flycatcher and Grey Streaked Flycatcher. Sometimes 2 different species were on the same tree branch allowing easy ID. A huge typhoon on the 8th did a lot of damage in town and even knocked out the power for most of the day. At least 2 Eurasian Hobby were seen from my balcony from where I also saw several Pacific Swift heading south on the 14th. Several Grey and 1 juvenile Black Crowned Night Heron were also on the Shinkawa River. Red Cheeked and Grey Starling were flocking ahead of migration. Up to 124 species for the year.

October (64 species)

Early October probably provided my best birding of the year.. Near my apartment in the first week were 2 superb male Siberian Rubythroat. Pretty common elsewhere in Hokkaido this was a great bird to see so near home. The same clump of trees also provided a Wryneck (which stuck around for a week).On the mountain there were lots of birds on the move including huge numbers of White-eye, Coal Tit, Black Faced and Rustic Bunting. Eclipse Eurasian Shoveler and Northern Pintail were both "firsts" for Hakodate as was a female Mandarin Duck -all on the Matsukura River. All 3 accipter species were seen on migration at the mountain including a pair of Japanese Sparrowhawk. Olive Backed Pipit was seen sheltering from the rain in Goryokaku Park. Eye Browed and Pale Thrush passed through in small numbers.

The end of the month was more about quantity than quality-large numbers of commoner stuff moving south (including huge numbers of Japanese Bush Warbler) as well as the return of many of the commoner winter visitors such as Daurian Redstart and large numbers of many of the resident species in the forest on the mountain. Up to 131 for the year.

November (38 species)

2 female Goosander in Goryokaku park on the 1st were the last new species of the year. A basically lazy quiet month also provided a very late worn looking Arctic Warbler on the 5th and a lost looking female grey Headed Woodpecker in Goryokaku Park at the end of the month. The first Dusky Thrush was seen on Nov 25th. Up to 132 species.

December (32 species).

A pretty mild winter so far. Glaucous Winged Gull, Brent Goose, Goldeneye and Black Necked Grebe have all returned.....................








So 132 species is a pretty good return for a place like Hakodate. Birds I saw in 2002/3 but not this year were Common Guilemot, Smew, Common Redpoll, Rosy Finch, Slavonian Grebe, Water Rail, Japanese Green Pigeon, Intermediate Egret, Striated Heron, Whites Thrush and Sanderling.
 
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