17th October 2012 Wajima Overcast with rain

Overcast skies but a calm dawn. We walked up the river valley just east of Wajima seeing most of the hoped-for species including Japanese Wagtain, Brown Dipper and Meadow Bunting. We then tried the Harbour but relatively quiet for Gulls. Flew from Noto to Haneda in the afternoon arriving in torrential rain. Took the monorail and caught the overnight ferry to Hachicho-jima.

Grey Heron 6
Spot-billed Duck 2
Black-eared Kite 50
Black-headed Gull 5
Black-tailed Gull 100
Slaty-backed Gull 5
Rufous Turtle Dove 2
Skylark 5
Siberian Buff-bellied Pipit 1
Grey Wagtail 1
Black-backed Wagtail 2
Japanese Wagtail 8 ex.
Brown-eared Bulbul 10
Daurian Redstart 2
Blue Rock Thrush 2
Jay 1 +1h
Large-billed Crow 15
Tree Sparrow 30
Hawfinch 2
Meadow Bunting 15

Meadow Buntings at Wajima

Japanese Wagtails at Wajima

Siberian Black-headed Gulls at Wajima

First-winter Black-tailed Gulls at Wajima

16th October 2012 Hegura-jima E3 Overcast

Dawn was accompanied by a E3 wind that strengthened as the morning progressed. Our early morning was memorable with a White's Thrush on the Central Track that we watched for 5 minutes before it melted away. JFC flushed a Japanese Quail at the Water Treatment Works that we all saw as it gained height and away. We then tried Tsukasa finding a Richard's Pipit there. We then relocated the Taiga Flycatcher near the earth field before trying the Central Track where a vocal Radde's Warbler performed well and another Taiga Flycatcher was seen briefly. We then tried Tsukasa again finding 2 Richard's Pipits now present. We reluctantly departed Hegura-jima on the 3pm ferry. A choppy crossing with only a few Streaked Shearwaters.

Streaked Shearwater 50
Greater Cormorant 1
Japanese Cormorant 1
Great Egret 1
Grey Heron 4
Mandarin Duck 2
Teal 2
Mallard 3
Pochard 2
Black-eared Kite 1, c.70 at Wajima
Sparrowhawk 1
Merlin 1
Peregrine 1
Japanese Quail 1 ex.
Coot 1
Woodcock 1
Common Snipe 1
Black-headed Gull 2, 1 Wajima
Black-tailed Gull 100
Slaty-backed Gull 1, 3 Wajima
Wryneck 1
Great Spotted Woodpecker 1
Skylark 2
Richard's Pipit 2
Olive-backed Pipit 1
Siberian Buff-bellied Pipit 1
Black-backed Wagtail 6
Brown-eared Bulbul 6
Red-flanked Bluetail 3
Daurian Redstart 15
Stejneger's Stonechat 2
Blue Rock Thrush 2
White's Thrush 1 ex.
Pale Thrush 2
Dusky Thrush 80
Japanese Bush Warbler 4
Middendorff's Grasshopper Warbler 2
Black-browed Reed Warbler 1
Arctic Warbler 2
Radde's Warbler 1 ex.
Goldcrest 15
Taiga Flycatcher 2
Japanese White-eye 15
Large-billed Crow 2
Brambling 30
Oriental Greenfinch 12
Siskin 50
Hawfinch 50
Masked Bunting 4
Grey Bunting 2
Pine Bunting 1
Elegant Bunting 20
Tristram's Bunting 1
Rustic Bunting 6
Reed Bunting 5



Watercolour in the Minshuku

Merlin along the west shore

Eastern Reed Bunting at the Water Treatment Works

Richard's Pipit at Tsukasa

The Central Track

Radde's Warbler along the Central Track

15th October 2012 Hegura-jima NW4 Overcast

Awoke to a NW4 wind and overcast conditions that soon cleared although the wind persisted all day. A quiet early morning walk although a Carrion Crow was new for the trip! The morning produced a Pochard, Long-eared Owl and a first-winter male Chinese Grosbeak but the wind made birding difficult especially at Tsukasa. The afternoon was largely uneventful although a Common Snipe feeding out in the open on the grass at the Harbour Park was good value as were good numbers of Daurian Redstarts and Elegant Buntings.

Streaked Shearwater 10
Greater Cormorant 1
Japanese Cormorant 2
Grey Heron 4
Teal 1
Pochard 2
Black-eared Kite 1
Eastern Buzzard 1
Sparrowhawk 2
Peregrine 1
Common Snipe 1
Black-headed Gull 2
Black-tailed Gull 150
Vega Gull 2
Slaty-backed Gull 6
Rufous Turtle Dove 2
Long-eared Owl 1 ex.
Great Spotted Woodpecker 2
Skylark 2
Olive-backed Pipit 2
Black-backed Wagtail 8
Brown-eared Bulbul 6
Red-flanked Bluetail 2
Daurian Redstart 60
Stejneger's Stonechat 6
Blue Rock Thrush 5
Japanese Grey Thrush 1 male
Pale Thrush 5
Dusky Thrush 50
Naumann's Thrush 1
Japanese Bush Warbler 4
Black-browed Reed Warbler 1
Arctic Warbler 8
Yellow-browed Warbler 3
Goldcrest 30
Eastern Great Tit 1
Japanese White-eye 20
Carrion Crow 1
Large-billed Crow 2
Brambling 50
Oriental Greenfinch 15
Siskin 60
Chinese Grosbeak 1 first-winter male
Hawfinch 50
Masked Bunting 6
Grey Bunting 1
Pine Bunting 2
Elegant Bunting 50
Tristram's Bunting 2
Rustic Bunting 15
Little Bunting 1
Reed Bunting 1

Long-eared Owl over the East Shore

First-winter male Chinese Grosbeak

JFC at Tsukasa Fields

Yellow-browed Warbler at the Tree Shrine

Male Daurian Redstart near the School Field

Pale Thrush at the Drinking Pool

Naumann's Thrush at the Earth Field

Common Snipe at the Harbour Park

Blue Rock Thrush with damaged bill at Tsukasa

Rustic Bunting at Tsukasa

14th October 2012 Hegura-jima NE1

We awoke to a NE1 breeze that switched to S2 as the day went on. Our early morning walk didn't produce anything new and there was a general reduction in numbers of migrants present with few Thrushes on the tracks. A morning walk to Tsukasa added 3 Yellow-browed Warblers and a male Siberian Rubythroat. A check of the earth field yielded 2 Red-flanked Bluetails and a Taiga Flycatcher. Walking to the SW produced an arrival of raptors with an Eastern Buzzard, a juvenile Black-eared Kite, a couple of juvenile Peregrines and a Merlin all new to the island. A pair of adult Peregrines were watched chasing down a Mandarin into the sea off the SW beach. The afternoon produced further views of the Taiga Flycatcher, a Swinhoe's Snipe seen in flight at the earth field, another Yellow-browed Warbler and a/the male Siberian Rubythroat at Tsukasa.

Greater Cormorant 1
Japanese Cormorant 2
Grey Heron 4
Mandarin Duck 1
Teal 1
Mallard 3
Black-eared Kite 2
Eastern Buzzard 1 ex.
Sparrowhawk 1
Merlin 1
Peregrine 4
Coot 1
Swinhoe's Snipe 1
Black-headed Gull 2
Black-tailed Gull 200
Vega Gull 1
Slaty-backed Gull 2
Great Spotted Woodpecker 3
Skylark 3
Olive-backed Pipit 3
Black-backed Wagtail 10
Brown-eared Bulbul 6
Siberian Rubythroat 1 male
Red-flanked Bluetail 3
Daurian Redstart 6
Stejneger's Stonechat 5
Blue Rock Thrush 5
Japanese Grey Thrush 1 female
Pale Thrush 5
Eye-browed Thrush 2
Dusky Thrush 60
Naumann's Thrush 2
Japanese Bush Warbler 6
Middendorff's Grasshopper Warbler 1
Arctic Warbler 1
Pallas's Leaf Warbler 1
Yellow-browed Warbler 4
Goldcrest 50
Taiga Flycatcher 1
Japanese White-eye 20
Large-billed Crow 2
Brambling 40
Oriental Greenfinch 15
Siskin 50
Bullfinch 1 female
Japanese Grosbeak 4
Hawfinch 50
Masked Bunting 10
Pine Bunting 1
Elegant Bunting 20
Rustic Bunting 12
Little Bunting 1
Reed Bunting 3

Yellow-browed Warbler at Tsukasa

a very grey-crowned individual

Red-flanked Bluetail at the earth field

Female Daurian Redstart at the earth field

Black-eared Kites had doubled in number!

Eastern Buzzard at Middendorff's Marsh

East to see why Rough-legged Buzzard is considered a confusion species

Hawfinches over the Central Track

First-winter Siberian Black-headed Gull in the Harbour

First-winter Black-backed Wagtail at the harbour

Taiga Flycatcher at the earth fiel

Goldcrest at Tsukasa