What's Left?

So I've been away from this blog for quite a while...here's the final post for the Japanese stuff I took before flying back to Thailand. Nothing much, just a bunch of common birds and some landscape shots from the top of Mt. Tsurumi. The Chinese Plum in Beppu Koen was already starting to bloom since February 2. There were a few trio; Japanese, Varied, Long-tailed Tits, hopping here and there among the plum trees. The Japanese Tits were concentrating on singing their sweet songs and trying to attract the females.

Japanese Tit (Parus minor)

Varied Tit (Parus varius)

At the Beppu Ropeway bus stop, I was a bit surprised to see a pair of Varied Tit busily looking for a place to build a nest. One of the bird, possibly a male, was very tame and vocal, while another bird flew up and down the roof checking anything with holes that could fit its body. Seems like spring has already made its appearance and the breeding season has finally arrived once again. There were lots of Meadow Buntings feeding on the small lawn near the ropeway station as usual. Among them were a few Black-faced and Yellow-throated Buntings. I noticed that most of the male Meadow Buntings had brownish eyestripe instead of black, almost like the subspecies found in China. I guessed it's a matter of breeding/non-breeding plumage.

Varied Tit (Parus varius) "Anyone knows when's the next bus?"

Male Meadow Bunting (Emberiza cioides)

As the cable car went up towards the summit of Mt. Tsurumi, I could see many Sika Deer feeding out in the open down below. They seemed to favour grassy area among the forest. I could grab a few shots as the car was moving. At the summit, I spent time taking some landscape shots as the scenery and the weather were just brilliant. There was some common stuff around as well, including the Long-tailed, Coal and Willow Tits, Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers and Meadow Buntings. I also saw my first Red-flanked Bluetail (Tarsiger cyanurus) for a few minutes. It was a female bird perching far in the woods.

Sika Deer (Cervus nippon)

Mt. Yufu viewed from the top of Mt. Tsurumi
Willow Tit (Parus montanus)

In The Park

Photos taken from Beppu Park earlier this month. After the finding of the Ryukyu Minivet on January 12th, I went back again on the next morning hoping to get some better shots. The bird was nowhere to be found, by the way. So I spent time taking photos of other common birds around the park instead. I was surprise to see that a small flock of Eurasian Siskins was still lingering inside the park. I thought all of them have already moved further south. There were a few Hawfinches, as well as a pair of White-bellied Green Pigeons, of which I could almost take some nice photos while they were coming down to drink, but flew away just before I pressed the shutter button. Other stuff like Pale and Dusky Thrushes, Grey-capped Greenfinches and Daurian Redstarts were all presenting well as usual.

This male Daurian Redstart (Phoenicurus auroreus) was staying at the northeast gate of the park. It was so tame that I didn't have to crop all of the images above, well, simply because there's already no space to crop. It was foraging on fallen berries underneath a fruited tree. There were a few more individuals in the other areas of the park, but not as numerous as during the autumn passage.

Dusky Thrush (Turdus eunomus)
Carrion Crow (Corvus corone)

A flock of Eurasian Siskins (Carduelis spinus)

There seemed to be an influx of Olive-backed Pipits (Anthus hodgsoni) in the pine zones of the park. More than 10 birds were busy walking all over the ground looking for something to eat, not really sure what. I tried to photograph these birds and found it really difficult. They were all very energetic and didn't stop walking for even a second. I had to use flash to help make the photos sharper, since the area where they were feeding was very dark. Some of the birds looked really pale, while some looked much buffier. I wondered if a single or two Tree Pipits (Anthus trivialis) might have sneaked in, but after checking all of the photos, I found none.

Olive-backed Pipits (Anthus hodgsoni)

Beppu Park

It's been quite a long time since these photos were taken. The last few days of November saw me repeatedly visiting the local Beppu Park or Beppu Koen (別府公園) in Japanese. The main target for each visit was the large flock of Eurasian Siskins, a new species which seems to be so numerous this winter, as I've also seen a lot more in Oita. Last time I checked the park, which is on the last Wednesday, about 20+ birds were still around in the park. Though Furuso-san told me that there was also a Brambling in the park, I still couldn't find one. Bramblings are normally common in autumn, when a small number joins a flock of the commoner Grey-capped Greenfinches. I feel a bit weird not seeing Brambling this season. Apart from the finches, the number of thrushes were notable. Dusky and Pale Thrushes were all over the park. I wish this coming January brings in more Normann's and Dark-thraoted as it did earlier this year.

Eurasian Siskin (Carduelis spinus)

It's always entertaining to watch them swirling through the air in a massive number over the park. I tried to capture them in flight but found it very difficult to get a decent shot. Above is the only acceptable one. When they come down to perch on the open treetops before coming down to drink, they also look like yellow autumn leaves ready to be blown away by winter breeze. New arrivals of the park were 3-4 Olive-backed Pipits (Anthus hodgsoni) which were feeding along the small stream where the siskins often came down to drink. Other birds like the usual tits and wagtails were all showing well. Below are some of the shots I did.

Japanese Tit (Parus minor)

Non-breeding male White Wagtail (Motacilla alba lugens)