A confused grebe

We went back to one of the local ports to check the Black-necked Grebes.............

WIFs

With a 1 hour break in the weather I trudged through the slush and briefly checked the local park yesterday to see if the Japanese Waxwings were still around..........

A rainy Monday

Somewhat surprisingly it poured down with rain today...............

A sunny Sunday

It was a fine sunny day today after several days of heavy snow. The roads were a bit nasty so we headed east..............

The above Stellers Sea Eagle seems to be in the same place every winter: there were also 2 White-tailed Eagle, 1 Goshawk, 1 Peregrine, a few Black-legged Kittiwake still around, a lone Black-necked Grebe, Brent Goose, Harlequin Duck, Red-breasted Merganser and Siberian Meadow Bunting...........

The Japanese Waxwing were still around as we drove past........................

On this day (January 13th)...............

January 13th 2014.

A female Peregrine at Sawara 4 years ago today. It briefly shared the same hunting ground as that year's Gyrfalcon although I never saw them interact. It had obviously just killed and eaten something judging by the blood on its belly................

The background is an old disused lighthouse; not a public toilet exterior.

That day was one of the the coldest I've experienced in south Hokkaido. Minus 19 and it was windy too making it feel even colder.

A short Waxwing window between blizzards..........

There was a heavy snowstorm in Hakodate on Thursday night/Friday morning and again on Friday afternoon..................

An invasion year?

There were more Waxwings around today................

Waxwings and blizzards

There were lots of birds feeding on berries in one of the local parks...........

A lone Diver...........

A Red-throated Diver in one of the ports to the north of town yesterday...............

Some hungry Eagles

Just scraps for the eagles now.....................

A quiet Sunday

A Slaty-backed Gull trying to swallow a big shell......................

Still no red legs

There were still loads of kittiwakes out east last Thursday..............

A couple of raptors

A Mountain Hawk Eagle east of town a couple of days ago.....................

Some Harlequin Ducks

We were out east yesterday and the Kittiwakes were still around...............

Slow eagle season?

We were in Yakumo yesterday...............

2018 begins...........

My first birding of 2018 was yesterday.....................

On this day (January 3rd)...............

January 3rd 2014.

The Sawara Gyrfalcon 4 years ago today.............very tamely sat atop a post in a raging blizzard..............

On this day (January 1st)........................

January 1st 2012.

A Ural Owl in Onuma 6 years ago today. Sadly this tree was blown over by a typhoon a few years ago. It was a shame I couldn't photograph this individual in this tree with my 500mm lens..............

Some New Year's Eve Bramblings

I had a spare couple of hours so I thought I'd check the local park for Waxwings...................

So that was 2017.................

A Brent Goose in Hakodate today and probably my last photo of the year.....................

Harlequin Duck, Goldeneye, Whooper Swan and Scaup were also around but it was a very quiet day. Today saw the best weather in ages (and tomorrow is looking good too) but of course we had/will have other stuff to do. New Year here is basically the same as Christmas in the west.

I took a lot of photos in 2017. S**tloads. I don't know why that happened but it did. I can't see myself taking so many next year but you never know.

264 posts in one year! Sometimes I wish I spent as much time on more important things as I do with this blog............

Thanks to the people who regularly visit this blog and leave comments. I hope you all have a great 2018.