Inage Yacht Harbour

2 years ago just after we moved into Chiba, we went to Inage Yacht Harbour to see Eastern House Martins.

http://birdinginjapan.blogspot.jp/2013/05/inage-yacht-harbour.html

But last year I didn't see any martins' nests on the same building and sadly there are none this year again.

There were a couple of pairs of Barn Swallows (Tsubameツバメ) flying around the building this year.  They looked like they were refurbishing the old nests.

 

This one looked completed but empty??

 Then, I saw 2 yellow mouths in the nest when a parent came back!!

It looked almost like the chick was swallowing its mum!

Although there were no martins' nests, I was happy I was able to have a close look at the Swallows' nests. The Barn Swallows have been having a tough time in Japan (probably in many other countries as well) and I do hope these guys will do well to raise their chicks.

Kemigawa no Hama

I went to Kemigawa no Hama to check if there is any sign of the Little Tern. Sadly, I saw no terns but other birds pleased me on the beach and on land.

A lone Grey-tailed Tattler (Kiashishigiキアシシギ) was foraging on rocks by a pier.

I walked slowly and slowly to get closer to him, but he didn't seem to mind much.

very intricate patterns in a closer look

A lone Turnstone (Kyojoshigiキョウジョシギ) was on the other side of the pier, foraging.

He was on his own too so he often looked up to check if there would be any danger.

He also has a beautiful summer plumage.

Rather gentle begging-like calls somewhere in the park caught my attention. There was a Thick-billed Crow's nest (Hashibutogarasuハシブトガラス) with 3 chicks in it.

A parent flew into a tree near me, looking a bit alert so I just took one shot and left them in peace. (The Thick-billed Crow are famous for their agressiveness when they have chicks. I was lucky not to get my head kicked!)

A huge flock of Cormorants (Kawauカワウ) were flying out on the sea.

The number of them was 1,200 or more!! (It was quite hard only through my bins)

I thought they were shearwaters, but an aqueintance of mine, who is an ornithologist, told me they were cormorants. A bit disappointed, not that I don't like cormorants but that shearwaters are rarer.

I don't think I'll ever get used to the ugly, disgusting views of Tokyo Bay in the background...

Fledglings!

A couple of Tree Sparrow (Suzumeスズメ) fledglings paid a visit onto our wood-deck today. The ones we saw were old enough to fly well and to eat by themselves (I spotted one of them pecking something on the ground!) but they all were still begging for food.

Good luck, all of you!

Little Grebe

The only Little Grebe (Kaitsuburiカイツブリ) chick has been doing very well and is well-fed by both parents.

 the same chick on the 5th May
 http://birdinginjapan.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/chick.html


The lake in the Ecology Park was rather calm on that day. There was the Little Grebe family, who were very active, a young Grey Heron (Aosagiアオサギ), who was standing on the island almost all day and a pair of Spotbill Ducks (Karugamoカルガモ), who were also resting almost all day on the opposite side of the island from the heron. 

Ta-Nu-Ki !

4 young Raccoon Dogs (Tanukiタヌキ) were chilling out by the water in the Ecology Park.

Meadow Bunting

Male Meadow Buntings (Hoojiroホオジロ) were in a singing competition by the Miyako tributary.

A Tough Time for the Wriggly

Eastern Great Tit (Shijukaraシジュウカラ)

Grey Startling (Mukudoriムクドリ)

 Tree Sparrow (Suzumeスズメ)

Inage Kaihin Park

I hadn't been to the would-be breeding ground for the Little Terns since I took part in the voluntary work and I'd been wondering if any Little Terns had been spotted at the site and decided to stay for the summer so I cycled there (for 6.5 miles!) to have a look.


The visitor centre for the park
It was rather deserted as it was mid-week but I can imagine how hellish it could be on weekends.

When I got to the beach, I heard Little Terns' calls and spotted 2 of them but they didn't stay long. Both birds flew out into the sea. Well, it could have been a good sign, they could have been there to check the site. We'll see.

Instead, a pair of Kentish Plovers (Shirochidoriシロチドリ) were foraging on the shoreline.

a handsome lad!

He went into the protected area and sat down in the bushy grass. Was he brooding? or just playing hide-and-seek? I can't tell.

We had some pairs of Kentish Plovers, which successfully bred in the protected area last year so we could expect that to happen again this year. Fingers crossed.

The clock tower in the park seemed to have a Tree Sparrows' nest inside.

on sentry duty?

Chick!

One out of three eggs of the Little Grebe (Kaitsuburiカイツブリ) has hatched!

Nobody knows what happened to the other two. Maybe infertile, maybe hatched but the chicks died, there's no way of knowing. Anyway, the only chick looked very healthy and well looked after.

The chick has become rather big for a piggyback!