Moulting

A family of scruffy moulting Goosander are on the river at Kamiiso every summer. They can't fly at the moment and if they need to move quickly they thrash and paddle away in a flurry of stubby wings and splashes........it seems to be effective in a desperate kind of way and they just about get the job done. Probably some metaphor in there somewhere.

The heat/humidity seems to have receded slightly...........hopefully not just a temporary respite.

Summer Pigeons

It's been a quiet hot hot couple of weeks.....................

On this day (July 28th)..................................

July 28th 2014.

A Spectacled Guillemot near Esashi 2 years ago today. Only the second one I'd seen in southern Hokkaido, it must have been blown inshore by strong westerlies. It looks a bit scruffy...........probably an adult beginning its moult. They look great in full summer plumage but I only see them as distant specks off the capes of east Hokkaido then....................

A real struggle

I noticed some unusual Osprey behaviour a few days ago.................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #9

My final batch of photos from last week's trip..........................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #8

There are 3 locustella warblers breeding in Hokkaido.............

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #7

The breeding season was in full swing in the grasslands of North Hokkaido................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #6

We camped for 3 nights on the Ohotsk coast. It was our 3rd consecutive time at this campsite, I chose it because it has Siberian Rubythroats singing in front of the tent..........

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #5

Some birds from the grasslands of the Ohotsk coast of North Hokkaido..................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #4

2 roadside raptors from last week................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #3

A Middendorffs Warbler at Kiritappu last week......................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #2

A Pacific Swift, an abundant breeder on the capes of east Hokkaido............................

East/North Hokkaido Summer 2016 #1

We just got back from a weeklong camping trip to east and north Hokkaido.

The above White Tailed Eagle was at Kiritappu in the east of the island. It was sat on a concrete wall, I took these photos out of the car window

We spent most of the first day driving. It was great to be in this part of Hokkaido again................more to follow over the next few days...............after I catch up on some sleep.

Unfledged Ospreys

The Ospreys are nesting on the same offshore stack as last year............

Peregrines have fledged

A very young Peregrine west of town yesterday afternoon.......................and a rather scruffy adult.

The Peregrine nest we found a few weeks ago must have been very busy whilst we were away, the young have fledged...............

Midsummer 2016

An Oriental Reed Warbler singing from the bushes near my apartment this afternoon. A warm midsummers day....................the quiet time is here as the local birds are now generally busy feeding young and all the action occurs deep in the bushes/greenery.

Oh England...............please don't play like that again after I get up at 4am to watch.

Rainy season

Well it poured down with rain all today and it's been raining on and off all week..................

On this day (June 16th)...............

June 16th 2014.

Some baby Ural Owls at Onuma 2 years ago today.....................

A walk around the neighbourhood

I had a free morning (for a change )so I took a walk near my apartment...........................and despite the grey overcast skies there were a few birds for my trusty old recently cleaned and fixed 100-400 lens.

A rainy Monday in June

A grey wet Monday in June..................and not much about.

There were several Red Foxes with cubs at Onuma but I missed lots of photo opps and anyway it was so dark in the forest, it wasn't worth the mosquito bites trying to track them down.

Quiet time is coming.................

Blue Rock Thrushes

A male Blue Rock thrush west of town this afternoon...........................

A final visit to the pool.............

We went back to the forest pool the next day....................

Arctic Warblers

There were lots of Arctic Warblers at our campsite a few days ago...................

Some common forest birds............

The forest pool is a good place for some of the commoner forest species, some of which are usually difficult to photograph....................

A Siberian Blue....................

I revisited the bird pool near Tomakomai..............

Summer

Well spring is over and summer is here.................

A very busy month ends............

Wow that was a busy month (birdingwise at least)..............

Crap pictures but interesting birds.............

The warm weather in the last week brought a couple of interesting birds with it...............

Brown Thrush

A Brown Thrush at our campsite the other evening..............

A wild Stork chase

We just got back from a weekend camping trip..................and on the way we stopped to find an Oriental White Stork which had been seen by someone north of Yakumo.

Travelling light

My battered old 100-400 MK1 is so full of dust and also suffering from various other ailments that it has been sent off to the Canon service centre for an insurance quote...........

The 500 f4 is too heavy and too attention drawing to carry around town. So today I walked around near my flat with the Canon PowerShot SX50 HS...........hmmmm.............