Japan in July? (1 Viewer)

We are planning two weeks vacation in Japan in July before a conference in Kyoto. This is our first visit to Japan and my first to east Asia. The dream bird is Steller's Sea Eagle. We appreciate these are a winter visitor to Hokkaido but do any stay on and if so where is the best chance to find one?

Any other good advice and links to trip reports would be appreciated.

dacoj3 said:

We are planning two weeks vacation in Japan in July before a conference in Kyoto. This is our first visit to Japan and my first to east Asia. The dream bird is Steller's Sea Eagle. We appreciate these are a winter visitor to Hokkaido but do any stay on and if so where is the best chance to find one?

Any other good advice and links to trip reports would be appreciated.

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That's difficult- very few summering Steller's records I think.

Birding can be a bit difficult generally in July. Well worth considering a ferry trip out of Tokyo for masses of Streaked Shearwaters etc., hopefully some albatrosses and July is good for the locustellas (if you are into that sort of thing..), which arrive and breed late: Gray's Grasshopper W in particular, once heard never forgotten.

Try Kantori archives for a feel for things in July:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/kantori/

I spent most of summer in Japan last year. The birding was indeed rather difficult for July. In particular, if you make it up to Hokkaido, be aware that by end of the month, some of the birds will have already migrated south. My trip to Hokkaido was early August, and we missed Russet Sparrow and Chestnut-cheeked Starling.

Steller's Sea Eagles will probably most likely be absent, however Blakiston's fish Owl is still present, and was easy at a minshuken in Rausu, so worth trying for.

Closer to Kyoto, The izu islands should also be good. I was able to get all the endemic birds on Hachiojima last year that occur there in a long weekend.

If you can find it, I recommend tracking down Mark Brazil's book on birdfinding in Japan. It is somewhat out of date but most of the information is still relevant.

Thanks Ed and Mysticete!

I see from an earlier report (Jon_Hardbuckle_May-June 1986 on travellingbirder.com) that it was possible to sail to Hokkaido all the way from Tokyo - he saw 3 albatross spp. So a ferry trip definitiely appeals

dacoj3 said:

Thanks Ed and Mysticete!

I see from an earlier report (Jon_Hardbuckle_May-June 1986 on travellingbirder.com) that it was possible to sail to Hokkaido all the way from Tokyo - he saw 3 albatross spp. So a ferry trip definitiely appeals

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Sadly, that was the now defunct Tokyo-Kushiro ferry: replaced by faster ferries that hug the coast more, but still potentially excellent and S-t A has been seen from them in April - June at least.

It's worth starting to pray right now for no fog..

Mention of ferry made me think of this thread - I assume you've seen it by looking in the vacational reports...

I just came back from Japan. I got involved in birding late.
I am going to be posting pictures of a night heron, king fisher and a child king fisher etc....from just one pond I would visit. If you get lucky to see a king fisher, they are so beautiful most camera shops have posters of the bird to show quality in the cameras etc....good luck.