A Beautiful Autumnal Morning

A pair of Varied Tits (Yamagaraヤマガラ) were busy flying back and forth and I was wondering what exactly they were doing.

A-ha! I realised that they were caching food for a rainy day.

How can you remember where you have buried them?!

The seeds they were collecting were of Japanese Snowbell (Egonokiエゴノキ), famous as the Varied Tits' favourite, which are said to be extremely bitter to human taste.

Japanese White-eyes (Mejiroメジロ) were taking advantage of autumn-blooming cherry blossoms.

Japanese Pygmy Woodpeckers (Kogeraコゲラ)

A small flock of Oriental Greenfinches (Kawarahiwaカワラヒワ)

A large number of Dragonflies were sitting quietly in the sun everywhere to be warmed up in the park. The time left for them is rather short and they must make the most of it.

Miyakogawa Mizunosato Koen

This year autumn seems to have arrived rather early (thank god!) and it was a gorgeous autumnal day today.

I cycled down to the Miyako river to see if any shrikes have come to Chiba for winter.

There she is!
She was calling really loudly, perching at the very top of a tree, claiming her territory.
She is a Bull-headed Shrike (Mozuモズ), which is the most common shrike species in Chiba.
They are famous for mimicking other birds' calls and this lady was singing like a brown-eared bulbul:)

Today this year's rice was just harvested. Local volunteers grow it every year in the park and it is a part of education programme for local children to learn how rice grows.

On the paddy field, Tree Sparrows (Suzumeスズメ) were feasting away. The number of them was definitely more than 200.

Some of them were enjoying a bath:)

9 Spotbilled Ducks (Karugamoカルガモ) were quietly foraging in the stream (the Miyako).

A Little Grebe (Kaitsuburiカイツブリ) was already in its winter plumage.

An Oriental Turtle Dove (Kijibatoキジバト) looked rather startled.

Lots of Dragonflies were flying around or resting like this one.

I've never seen so many grasshoppers in one place.










I'm not good at identifying spiders but I thought it looks beautiful.

Walnuts!!!

A map of the park.
The park itself is not so large but it is a good place for bird-watching especially during the week when it is very quiet.

Ecology Park

There were quite a few visitors to the lake in the Ecology Park on 13/July, despite the bad weather.

a Great White Egret (Daisagiダイサギ)

a Grey Heron (Aosagiアオサギ）

a very young Black-crowned Night Heron (Goisagiゴイサギ).
There is a particular name for young BC Night Herons in Japanese: Hoshigoiホシゴイ, meaning a spotty BC night heron, which is easy to know why:)

a male Kingfishers (Kawasemiカワセミ)

a Little Grebe (Kaitsuburiカイツブリ)

a juvenile Moorhen (Banバン)

more than 50 crows came one after another to have a bath

many Thick-billed Crows (Hashibutogarasuハシブトガラス) and a couple of Carrion Crows (Hashibosogarasuハシボソガラス)

Rare visitors: Raccoon Dogs (Tanukiタヌキ)

dragonflies

empty shells of young dragonflies (nymphs) on the pole















a Japanese Sand Wasp (Nippon Hanadaka-bachiニッポンハナダカバチ)

the wasp's nest

very quiet looking lake but full of life

Chiba Botanical Garden

I went to the Botanical Garden, not exactly to see birds but to see some insects today.

an immature female Common Skimmer (Ooshiokaratomboオオシオカラトンボ)

a male Common Skimmer (but a different subspecies from the one above)
(Shiokaratomboシオカラトンボ)

a female Sympetrum infuscatum (Noshimetomboノシメトンボ)

an Asian Comma (Kitatehaキタテハ)

a Potanthus flavum (Kimadaraseseriキマダラセセリ)

a Small Copper (Benishijimiベニシジミ)

a pair of Small Coppers, the one was chasing the other around and doing a courtship dance:)

I've read about their courtship dance in a book, in which it said the dance could last hours so I decided not to stay until the end. I don't know if it was a successful one. I hope it was:)


a Common Yellow Swallowtail (Kiagehaキアゲハ)

a young Crayfish (Zariganiザリガニ)

beautiful Hydrangea (Ajisaiアジサイ)

a busy Carpenter Bee (Kumabachiクマバチ)

a rather mysterious looking Japanese Five-lined Skink (Nihontokageニホントカゲ)

a type of Tiger Beetle Cylindera kaleea (Tokyo-himehammyouトウキョウヒメハンミョウ) moving like a ninja!

tiny (about an inch long) Japanese Ricefish (Medakaメダカ)

a Garden with a waterfall and a pond with huge carp

There were very few birds in the garden but lots of insects instead. It certainly didn't feel like the temperature was about 30 degrees in the woods with a gentle breeze blowing.