My plan was to stop off en route from Tokyo to bird at Omaezaki, a headland about halfway there. I successfully got a bullet train to Shizuoka, found a locker for my case and the correct bus to take me to Sagara, where I was supposed to change buses. Since this was already on the coast, I thought I'd take a look and an hour walking to the beach and back turned up a huge off-shore group of Great Crested Grebes and a lifer Arctic Loon (Black-throated Diver).
Arriving back at the bus station, I found out that I had just missed a bus to Omaezaki and the next wasn't for two hours... sigh. No problem, I thought - if there's one lifer here, there may be others. I walked through the town on a diagonal to the river mouth and harbour, turning up a few river birds, but nothing special: Black-headed and Vega Gulls (which ebird won't count), Great Cormorants, Wigeon, Spot-billed Ducks, Olive-backed Pipits, Dusky Thrush, White Wagtail. Coming eventually to the coast, I saw a Black-tailed Gull (lifer this trip) and an off-shore concrete block with about 30 cormorants on board.
My hope was to find Japanese and Pelagic Cormorants, both far less likely to be on fresh water than Great and so possible out to sea. I was first able to pick out some Pelagics, being slenderer and without a throat patch, almost Shag-like. Then I took a long detour round onto the harbour wall (scaring up a female Rock-thrush along the way) to see close enough (just) that most if not all of the others were Japanese Cormorants. Bingo. They have a pinch-faced look compared to Great, due to a less expansive and more angular yellow skin around the bill.
At this point with three lifers, I decided there was no point going to Omaezaki, so I will never know what else there was there.
The remaining possible birds were Reef Heron (for which I really needed rocky coast, rather than endless beach, and Pacific Loon. I spent some time sea-watching but gave up due to cold. The birds at sea were (as ever) just out of scope range. Still that takes the trip totals up to 15 lifers, 41 year birds, and 72 species. All three marks are better than expected.
Arriving back at the bus station, I found out that I had just missed a bus to Omaezaki and the next wasn't for two hours... sigh. No problem, I thought - if there's one lifer here, there may be others. I walked through the town on a diagonal to the river mouth and harbour, turning up a few river birds, but nothing special: Black-headed and Vega Gulls (which ebird won't count), Great Cormorants, Wigeon, Spot-billed Ducks, Olive-backed Pipits, Dusky Thrush, White Wagtail. Coming eventually to the coast, I saw a Black-tailed Gull (lifer this trip) and an off-shore concrete block with about 30 cormorants on board.
My hope was to find Japanese and Pelagic Cormorants, both far less likely to be on fresh water than Great and so possible out to sea. I was first able to pick out some Pelagics, being slenderer and without a throat patch, almost Shag-like. Then I took a long detour round onto the harbour wall (scaring up a female Rock-thrush along the way) to see close enough (just) that most if not all of the others were Japanese Cormorants. Bingo. They have a pinch-faced look compared to Great, due to a less expansive and more angular yellow skin around the bill.
At this point with three lifers, I decided there was no point going to Omaezaki, so I will never know what else there was there.
The remaining possible birds were Reef Heron (for which I really needed rocky coast, rather than endless beach, and Pacific Loon. I spent some time sea-watching but gave up due to cold. The birds at sea were (as ever) just out of scope range. Still that takes the trip totals up to 15 lifers, 41 year birds, and 72 species. All three marks are better than expected.
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